“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts (Isa 55:8-9).”

The first step for developing our listening ears is to realize that God’s thoughts are so different from our thoughts. We are created as God’s image in his likeness, and we are like God. But we should not think he is like us. Only when we know that his ways are different from our ways, we start listening to him.

If his thoughts are higher than our thoughts and his ways than our ways, then so is his word than our human words. God’s word is spiritual, but our words are not. We cannot fully understand his word with our head by hearing with these physical ears only. It takes spiritual ears to understand spiritual things of God.

In order for us to know what it means to have ears to hear, it would be good to see first what happens when we have no ears to hear. If you are seeing only the color white, and have seen no other colors, then you would not know the color you are seeing is white. But once you see the color black, you now know that the color you were seeing was white. In the Bible are so many stories that can be seen as examples for not having ears to hear. Especially, in John’s gospel are found some interesting passages with detailed dialogues between Jesus and various types of people who had no ears to hear. We will look at some of such passages.

But first pay attention to the following words of Jesus in the parable of the sower:

A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up (Luke 8:5).

Then, Jesus explained it as follows:

Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved (v. 12).

This is the case of the seed that fell along the path. You will see it illustrated, for example, in the following dialogue in John’s gospel:

Jesus: I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (v. 12).

The Pharisees: Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid (v. 13).

Jesus: Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. But if I do judge, my decisions are right, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two men is valid. I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me (vv. 14-18).

The Jews: Where is your father (v. 19)?

Jesus: You do not know me or my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also (v. 19).

Even though Jesus is the light of the world, it would be of no value without any eyes to see such light. Note also the way he spoke of his father. But did they understand what he meant?