Hearing vs. Heeding

In Matthew 15: 1-20, the Lord explains the disastrous effects of blindly following the traditions of men versus the truth of God (vv 8, 13, 14 NKJV). These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips: but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. Every plant, which my Heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch. Peter asked Christ the meaning of the parable. He responds, “Are you also yet without understanding?” Peter being ever so close to the Savior, hearing his teachings, seeing his miracles, remained spiritually naive.

In the same chapter, a Canaanite woman, desiring healing for her daughter vexed with an unclean spirit, heard of Christ, pursued him, found him, addressed him as Lord, the Son of David, and consistently worshipped him. Since her mission was to pursue Christ, she disregarded the stigma of her culture: being called dogs by the Jews and ostracized as second-class citizens. Jesus challenged her pursuit of him in light of the boundaries set by Jews and Judaism. Yet, her faith in his power and authority never waned. As a result of her faith and genuine worship of Christ, her daughter was healed.

Churches are filled with those who can quote scriptures, but very few have an authentic relationship with Christ. We must be willing to abandon our tradition, culture, and desire to experience the fullness of what’s provided for us through Christ. Paul says in Philippians 3:12 KJV I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. He is eagerly pursuing Christ that he may take hold of Him who has captured him. I challenge you to pursue a relationship in Christ with the same intensity as Paul and the Canaanite woman. God is so merciful. Daily, we are given the opportunity to heed what we hear. Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving ourselves. James 1: 22 NKJV

Shalom