“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 8:18)

During Jesus’ ministry on the earth, in His teachings and His interactions with others, we see just how important the way we receive and respond to His words is. Let us reflect on these fundamental questions from the events of this chapter.

What is our immediate reaction to hearing the words of God?

Just as the first type of ground in the Parable of the Sower tells us, our initial response to hearing God’s words determines whether His words can even enter our hearts. Our lack of understanding, or disbelief, are like the hard topsoil of the wayside that prevent deeper reflection on God’s words resulting in spiritual growth (Matt 13:19).

The people of the Gadarenes heard of the great sign that had been performed. They had the curiosity to come out to see what had happened, and they witnessed for themselves the man they knew to be demon possessed, healed and in peace. But rather focusing on the good that had been done for the man who was healed, they responded with fear, looking at the economic damage caused by the loss of the swine. Their focus on economic value hindered them from seeing the liberation Jesus could bring them.

Yet another example was the mourners at Jairus’ house. From Jairus’ faith, we can assume they too knew who Jesus was, and that He had great power to heal. But when Jesus told them the girl was not dead but sleeping, their immediate response was ridicule. Their preconceived assumptions prevented them from witnessing an even greater miracle.

Even Jesus’ own disciples - when Jesus asked who touched Him, rather than being sensitive to recognise that something had happened, Peter responded with questioning - does Jesus know what He is talking about?

When we are not sensitive to the voice of God, or we do not accept it readily but allow our assumptions, our pride, or our disbelief to get in the way, just as the parable says, we become easy pickings for the devil. The distractions and noise of the world quickly come and drown out the still, small voice of God, and it fails to bear fruit in us.

What are our actions in response to hearing the words of God?

The words of the demons to Jesus remind me of what James says.

“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:19-20)

Indeed, the demons recognised Jesus as Son of the Most High God, but they responded to Jesus’ words with trickery and rebellion - purposely entering the swine to scare the people to make them reject Jesus.

Clearly, what we choose to do after we hear Jesus’ words also is critical in determining the effect of God’s words in our lives.

Do we pursue understanding? The great multitudes all listened to Jesus’ parables, but only the disciples heard the explanations. This is because only the disciples persistently followed Jesus, and came to Him after that to ask about what they did not understand. Whereas the multitudes, after hearing the parables that they did not understand, were content to go back without answers or to draw their own conclusions. If we want God’s word to bear fruit in us, we must allow the seed to grow by giving it attention and meditating on it.

Are we doers of the word of God, or hearers only? Jesus illustrated the importance of this when His mother and brothers came looking for Him (Luke 8:19-21). Being close to Jesus is not a matter of the amount of time spent with Him, but whether we act on His words after hearing them. Similarly for us, coming to church regularly and participating in many duties does not make us true disciples, if we do not continue to look into the Word of God and be transformed by it (James 1:22-25).

Bear Fruits with Patience

Hearing God’s words, pursuing growth in knowledge of His will and being transformed by being doers of the word is a lifelong process. May we strive to be the good ground that keeps the word and bears fruit with patience (Luke 8:15).