We looked at Matt 13 last week. I have read this chapter more than once – it’s rather famous. It starts of with the Parable of the Sower, and then has a number of other parables concerning the Kingdom of Heaven.
The disciples ask Jesus, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” This is a question I hear often. Why doesn’t Jesus just speak plainly? Jesus answers their honest question, and quotes from Isaiah 6. “It has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.” Isaiah says “Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.” Jesus then says “But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
I used to think that the disciples were blessed because they got to see Jesus walk on earth, and were alive during the time that the Messiah came to earth. How wonderful that would be. But it hit me last week that we are blessed right now, to see the things we see. Isaiah prophesied that one day people from all around the world would pray to the Lord. Guess what? We have a group of gentiles that get together on Thursday evenings and read the Bible and pray to the Lord. People in our group come from all over the globe. I don’t think it’s overreaching to say that many prophets desired to see our little Bible study in action.
Seeing gentiles worship the One True God is amazing. Seeing God move in power and might is also wonderful. However, there is another reason we are blessed. As Isaiah said, there was a group of people who refused to hear or to see, because they did not want understanding. Why would anyone want to avoid understanding? Well, if you understand, then there must be a response of turning and being healed. People who desire to remain in their sins do not want to be healed. A great many choose to stay in their sins, clinging to the filth and heartache they have grown to know so well. It breaks my heart.
We are blessed, because we have eyes that see and ears that hear. We have understanding in our hearts and the grace for repentance. This is only because of the righteousness of Christ. The Lord is so sweet, that He would allow us to experience His grace. The sweetness is that this grace is open for all us. We can all experience His grace and have understanding in our hearts. Lord, let the scales fall off our eyes, and let our ears be unstopped that we might see your face and hear what the Spirit is saying in this hour.