You May be Speaking, but I'm Not Listening!

Altha and I live very near the “Caltrain” railroad tracks. To say that dozens of commuter trains blaring their horns as they pass by every work day (and less often on nights and weekends) makes for disagreeable background noise would be an understatement. But over the years we have learned NOT to pay attention to the noisy trains. There’s nothing wrong with our ears; but by way of practice, we have “dulled” them to the intrusive sounds.

The writer of Hebrews warns the Jewish believers they had become “dull of hearing” (5:11). What does “dull of hearing” mean. It means they were practiced in not paying attention! The opposite of “dull” is sharp—our human faculties are sharpened by using and practicing them, like any discipline.

How can we prevent our hearing from becoming dull? How do we sharpen our listening skills? The obvious answer is: by paying attention. Even as Altha and I have learned to ignore the sounds of trains, Christians can practice ignoring the voice of the Holy Spirit. Sharpening your listening skills must be cultivated. It must be deliberate and consistent. The writer admonishes these Hebrew Christians to pay much closer attention to the things they heard. (2:1)

And finally, speaking through Isaiah, Jesus says: “The Lord wakens my ear morning by morning, to listen like one being taught; He has opened My ear; and I was not disobedient…” (Is. 50:4-5). In other words, even Jesus disciplined himself to listen and pay attention.

If you are not hearing the Lord, maybe you're not listening!