“Therefore consider carefully how you listen.”

Luke 8:18a (NIV)

Jesus spoke these words after explaining the meaning behind the Parable of the Sower. The same “seed” (identified as God’s Word in v11) produces different results, depending on the condition of the soil and how the seed is received.  How should we listen to God’s Word so that we may know Him intimately (v21) and experience its transforming power in our lives?

1. Retain It

Satan is bent on removing God’s Word from our hearts (v12)!  He does this in various ways. He removes God’s Word from us through our inattentiveness – by depriving us of sleep and planting distracting thoughts in our minds. He also does this through our ill-will – ill feelings against the preacher or his mannerisms, worry and anxiety, anger arising from offences and unresolved conflicts, pride in thinking that the Word is not for us but for someone else, and discouragement and disappointment.

To receive and retain God’s Word, till the soil of your heart by devoting yourself to read and hear God’s Word regularly and at a conducive time when you’re fresh and alert; by purifying your heart (confessing your sins, dealing with negative emotions, putting aside distractions); by praying for revelation and illumination and for a humble, teachable and responsive heart. Retain it by paying full attention to what you read and hear, taking notes, and doing what it takes to understand it (e.g., asking questions, meditating on it and on how it applies to you, discussing it with others, and looking up commentaries).

2. Believe It

To believe God’s Word is to agree with it and trust that it is true and that God will back it up. If you don’t believe it, then Satan has effectively removed it from you and it’ll have no effect on you (Hebrews 4:2). By all means clarify your understanding of the Word, deal with your doubts, and consult others who know the Word better. But ultimately, our attitude towards God’s Word must be “God says it, I believe it, that settles it!”

3. Internalise It

To internalise God’s Word is to cause it to become an integral part of us, our attitude, belief, thinking, and conviction. The key to internalising God’s Word is in continuing to believe in it, holding to it, and persevering in it (v15) despite hardships we face, sacrifices we make (v13), and the lure of riches and pleasures (v14). Then Satan won’t be able to remove God’s Word from us.

4. Obey It

The last group of hearers in Jesus’ parable accepted the Word and produced fruit (v15). How did they produce fruit? By obeying the Word! And not just momentarily, but by persevering in obedience (v15). This then is how the Word of God will produce fruit in our lives and how we will know Him more intimately and have our lives transformed by it.  Max Lucado wrote, “we are listening to God when what we read in the Bible is what others see in our lives.” 

So when you read God’s Word and hear His message, seek to retain it, believe it, internalise it, and obey it. And what’s our motivation? Love for God (John 14:21).