While Jesus was teaching His disciples, He said, “For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light. Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him” (Luke 8:17-18). Here, Jesus urged His disciples to “take heed to how they hear.” So with that thought in mind, let’s examine some ways in which we should hear. Starting with, we should...

Hear Attentively. When Ezra read the Book of the Law of Moses to the children of Israel, it is written that, “...the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law” (Neh. 8:3). You see, we too need to be attentive when others teach and preach from God’s all inspired word. Why? Well, for our own understanding and benefit, and to make sure that the things that are being taught are in accordance to God’s will.

Hear Reverently. Reverently is defined as, “something done in a deeply respectful way.” When we come together to worship God, and to hear a portion of His word proclaimed, we should always do so reverently, and we should not only have respect for God, but also for the others who are among us. Therefore, hold onto these words of the inspired Psalmist, “God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be held in reverence by all those around Him” (Ps. 89:7).

Hear Honestly. In the fourth chapter of Mark we read about the parable of the sower, and in this parable Jesus talks about four different types of soil (i.e. heart conditions), which the seed (i.e. the word of God) falls upon. He then explained, “But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirty fold, some sixty, and some a hundred” (Mark 4:20). You see, those who honestly hear and receive God’s word, and then bear fruit, are those that as Jesus said, “are sown on good ground.”

Hear Inquiringly. The term inquiringly denotes, “being inquisitive in seeking facts.” We have an example of some who inquiringly heard the preaching of the apostle Paul in Acts 17. Here, we find that the Bereans did not just take Paul’s word for what he was preaching, but as Luke recorded they, “...received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11). Therefore, just as the Bereans inquired about Paul’s preaching by searching the Scriptures, we too likewise need to do the same today, and be inquiring hearers.

Hear Eagerly. Many of us eagerly seek out things that we enjoy, and we need to have the same attitude when it comes to the hearing of God’s word. For in Acts 8 we read where Philip was eager to teach the word of God, and the eunuch was likewise eager to learn, just as Luke writes, “So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, Do you understand what you are reading? And he said, How can I, unless someone guides me? And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him” (Acts 8:30-31). May we too, like Philip, and the eunuch, be eager to teach and hear God’s all inspired word.

These are just a few examples to help us take heed to how we hear. Now the question is, how is your hearing?