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Show PREFERENCE FOR LISTENING "And it came to pass as he spake these things a certain woman of the company lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked. But He said, Ye rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it.,, j, /e4rl"7 (Luke 11: 27-28) r:s-0 f{°'" f:*6 ~~;JJ ,,;~Jv c,r,J d- It, R; cf rr AJ-1 1( /\..0 LJ 1--Y(<'f .vJ /cJ ,;, I/ ? Jesus had just taught His disciples how to pray using the model prayer and remembering that temptation is sure to come. He had told them that the secret to finding God's way is to ASK-Ask, and it will be given. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you. He warned them that a divided 1 house is bad news. It will not stand and those not with Him were against Him. He caution them about cleaning a house, and the peril of not putting anything else in the clean space. For the unclean will soon return and bring company with him. Now, he says that true blessedness comes to those who hear the Word of the Lord and keep it. Notice, what he says is NOT the source of true blessedness. ''Rather" suggest that whatever was before is now replaced by what is to come, that what follows is preferred over what was ahead. To talk about the physical birth is ok but not the lasting things. The first man and woman were given life without death but it did not last. Rather, they listened to the voice of the serpent and discovered 2 their nakedness. David was a greater warrior than Saul, killing his thousands while Saul on slew his thousands. Yet, David yielded to the lust of his own eyes, got caught up in adultery and murder. The woman wanted to pat Jesus on the back for His physical circumstances. She wanted to cry "Hail Mary" time and time again for bringing him into this world and letting Him be nursed on her breast. "And it came to pass as he spoke these things, a certain woman of the company, lifted up her voice, and said unto him, Blessed is the womb that bare thee, and the paps which thou hast sucked." Jesus arrested her attention with one word, "Rather." On the other hand, Jesus said, "Rather, blessed are they that hear the 3 word of God and keep it. " What really matters is what you do with the Word of God. Do you hear it? Do you keep it? Does it mean anything to you? Do you live b it? When others see you can they tell that you are guided by a word from above or that you steps are ordered by the Lord? Jesus says to the woman, listening to my word is preferred over any flattery that you may speak. Maybe that's why God gave us two ears and one mouth, so that what we hear can have double the weight of all that we say. Hear the word of God and keep it. "But he said, Yea, rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it. " "Let his that hath ears hear what the Lord saith. " God is still speaking today but how many of us are listening. Roy Robertson wrote 4 that some people need hearing aids to listen. Here are seven you might want to jot down: Listen reverently-Habakkuk 2:20. Listen expectantly-Psalm 62:5. Listen prayerfully-I Samuel 3: 10. Listen attentively-Acts 15: 12. Listen understandingly-Nehemiah 8: 8. Listen discerningly-Acts 17: 11 Listen Obediently-Matthew 7: 2427. Train yourself to listen. You will be amazed at what you can learn when your mouth is shut. 5 |
