“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open.” (Revelation 3:6-7)
The Bible is God’s Word recorded for our benefit. Remember these words were spoken first before they were written. It is so important to know what God has been saying, that the sixty-six books of the Bible have been put together so He could still speak to us even in the 21st century. When God speaks, it is because He has something to say to His creation. There is so much hidden in His Word (The Bible) that like a hidden treasure we must seek to discover its contents, unearth its teachings in order to live by them.
Indeed, God has a word for each and everyone of us, everyday, to last a lifetime. We ought to stop, take heed, listen and guard His word in our hearts and put it to practice. That would be the time when the blessings will flow. “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by the streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.” (Psalm 1:1-3)
The Psalmist is saying that whatever we do (where we walk, stand or sit) if we take delight in, if we love the word of God by spending time with it (meditation,) then we will be fruitful and will be prosperous in all our undertakings. This is a trustworthy prescription for success.
God spoke and the world came into being. (Genesis 1:3) God has been speaking to His creation since the beginning. When we listen, not with our ears only but with our hearts as well, a transformation takes place. More often than not, our ears want to hear what our hearts are inclined to receive. Like a sieve, we let go of the essentials and keep what is unprofitable – only to discard them later. The choice is deliberate. We sort things out mentally and rid ourselves of what we cannot confront. We dismiss what in our thinking is irrelevant or inappropriate or what we can skip with impunity. It is not in our ability to understand what is at play. It is a question of what our spirit man can take in – its absorptive capacity.
Jesus spoke to a man named Zacchaeus, who was in ‘a spiritual wilderness’ – nowhere near God. He had heard so much about Jesus and one day he resolved in his heart to satisfy his curiosity by going all out to catch a glimpse of Him. To his utter surprise, Jesus called him by name; “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” (Luke 19:5) Zacchaeus gladly received Him and from that day became ‘saved’ through an act of open repentance. He acknowledged being a sinner but determined in his heart to turn his back on his past life and embrace the way to eternal life through Jesus, the Christ.
Peter, a veteran fisherman, returned one morning from fishing and caught nothing. He encountered Jesus and afterwards the latter said to him: “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4) He did, and there was so much fish the nets ‘began to break.’ Jesus prophesied over his life. “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (Luke 5:10) Ten days after Jesus’ resurrection, Peter on the morning of Pentecost caught 3,000 souls. Jesus spoke and it came to pass.
Whenever Jesus spoke, He spoke with authority and conviction. Not like the Pharisees and Sadducees. Where the prophets said; “Thus says the Lord…” He says: “I tell you…” He told the Samaritan woman that people who drink water from the well will thirst again “…but whoever drinks the water I give him/her will never thirst.” (John 4:14) Before they parted company, He revealed to her: “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.” (John 4:23)
Paul exhorting the Romans told them that they had no excuse not to believe in God because He is visible everywhere – in us and around us. “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20) Indeed, even today God is still speaking to His servants. He has raised and is still raising great men and women (of God) around the globe who are raising His banner high, giving people a reason to live. That reason is Jesus. It is said of Him by the prophet Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him – the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord….He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be His belt and faithfulness the sash around His waist.” (Isaiah 11:2-5)
Jesus told the Pharisees and Sadducees that they were diligently reading and searching the Scriptures … “because you think by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:39-40)
Jesus is the solution to all of our problems. He said: “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.” (John 6::63b) He said: “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but the will of the Father who sent me.” (John 6:38) He wants you back to where you belong. He admonishes: “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however they have no excuse.” (John 16:22)
“Follow me!” “Come to me!” “Whoever comes to me, I will never drive away.” Let these words spoken by the Son of God, Jesus the Christ, ring in our ears daily to remind us that He loves us unconditionally and nothing can separate us from His love. (Romans 8:38-39)