The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Luke 13:18; 14:35b,
"What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to?... He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
On a number of occasions the Lord explained mysteries of the kingdom of God to his followers. These were mysteries because they were not known until revealed by the Lord. In passages such as Matthew 13:24, 13:31, 13:33, 13:44, 13:45, 13:47, 18:23, 20:1, 22:2, 25:1, the Lord asks the question as above, "What is the kingdom of God like?" and then provided the answer, often in very compelling and interesting ways. Through the agency of comparisons within the telling of fascinating parables and anecdotes, the Lord revealed truths about God's kingdom.
Self-evident is that the Lord did so due to need. He wants us to know some things about his kingdom, that apart from him revealing them we would be in the dark. For us to know these things required him to tell us, and often in ways because we are slow on the uptake. Indeed, he anticipated that many would not listen and not understand, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
I am reminded that what I do know of God, what I do understand of his kingdom, what I do know of what lays beyond the grave requires a dependence upon the Scriptures, God's written word. What is found there, within its pages, is called "revelation". We call it so because we recognize that between the covers of our Bibles is a special kind of literature. Literature that stands on its own because it has its origin within God himself as he reveals to us those things we are dependent upon him to know.
It is within the pages of Scripture that I find the true, unambiguous gospel message. The Scriptures tell me I am a sinner and illustrates that reality by pointing out to me things it knows about me in bewildering accuracy. The Bible tells me of my need as I stand a condemned man in God's courtroom of justice. It tells me of my fate, clearly and unvarnished in horrific terms. It also tells me of an unfathomable love God has for me. A love expressed in the sending of his Son to die a miserable death to take my punishment for my sins. It tells me that faith is the only way to God, the only way to forgiveness, faith in God's one and only Son. The Scriptures tell me of a wonderful place awaiting me when I leave this life, a place at his table.
God's word, the Scriptures, tells me what to believe. It reveals truth to me. It tells me how things really are.
This reality exists in sharp contrast to a culture where it is assumed there exists no authoritative, definitive word on the supernatural, on God, and what lies beyond the grave. We live in a day where people are polled about what they think of this or that, as if truth can be established by way of preference. We live in a day where the mere existence of conflicting religions, denominations, cults, theologies and dogmas, -sims and schisms speak to the failure of man to recognize God's authoritative voice.
"He who has ears to hear, let him hear": A statement of our Lord, directed at those of us who might otherwise ignore what God has revealed to us in favor of what we may find preferable. A statement of our Lord, directed at those of us who might not make effort to avail ourselves of what is found within the Scriptures.
May we all forsake "This is what I think..." in favor of "This is what the Lord says..."
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
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