Listen Up!

By Steve Leininger

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091920.cfm
1 Corinthians 15:35-37, 42-49
Luke 8:4-15

I like parables. There’s something comfortable about hearing a good story and being able to relate to the underlying message.

A parable is a short tale that illustrates a universal truth; it is a simple narrative. It sketches a setting, describes an action, and shows the results. A defining characteristic of the parable is the presence of a subtext suggesting how a person should behave or what he should believe. It’s that subtext, or underlying meaning that we “ought to hear.”

Across the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (the synoptic gospels) there are accounts of 37 parables told by Jesus, making up approximately a third of his recorded teachings. In a biblical context, parables are generally stories that are illustrative comparisons between events of everyday life and Christian truths.

Today’s Gospel reading is the Parable of the Sower. It is one of 8 parables that was recorded in every one of the synoptic Gospels. Our reading today is Luke 8:4–15. The same event is presented in Matthew 13:1-23 and Mark 4:1–20.

A large crowd had gathered, and Jesus spoke this parable:
“A sower went out to sow his seed.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and was trampled,
and the birds of the sky ate it up.Some seed fell on rocky ground, and when it grew,
it withered for lack of moisture.
Some seed fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew with it and choked it.
And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew,
it produced fruit a hundredfold.”  [Luke 4-8]

After saying this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.” So, what’s that “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear” stuff about? 

At first, it seemed to me to be a bit random, possibly unnecessary. But Jesus said it in today’s Gospel from Luke, so it must have been important. I checked the parallel readings in Mark and Matthew, and the same phrase or a variation of it is used at the conclusion of the parable. Time to dig deeper.

Jesus also used a variation of these words in Luke’s account of salt losing its flavor, Matthew’s gospel of the Parable of the Weeds, and Mark’s relating of Jesus telling the Parable of the Lamp. While not used in the Gospel of John, a similar phrase is used in Chapters 2 and 3 of the Book of Revelation, “Whoever has ears ought to hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Let’s dissect the words of Jesus and see if we can get the intended meaning. “Whoever has ears” could mean just about everybody, which may not be very revealing. “Whoever has ears to hear”, on the other hand, could mean those who are actually hearing the teachings of Jesus. If we are to be included in that group, we must also take that next step – “ought to hear.” I believe this is Jesus telling us to “Listen up!”

A further clue could be found in the Deuteronomy 29; at the end of 40 years of wandering in the desert, Moses is preparing to announce that All Israel is to be bound by covenant with the Lord. 

“Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, You have seen with your own eyes all that the LORD did in the land of Egypt to Pharaoh and all his servants and to all his land, the great testings your own eyes have seen, and those great signs and wonders. But the LORD has not given you a heart to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear until this day. Observe carefully the words of this covenant, therefore, in order that you may succeed in whatever you do.”

Ears to hear and heart to understand the Lord. That may be the “Listen up!” we are looking for!

Then his disciples asked him
what the meaning of this parable might be.
He answered,
“Knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God
has been granted to you;
but to the rest, they are made known through parables
so that ‘they may look but not see, and hear but not understand’.” [Luke 8:9-10]

The last part Jesus spoke (‘they may look but not see, and hear but not understand’) is God speaking to Isaiah in Isaiah 6:9, as part of the instructions to Isaiah after he said “Here I am, send me!” Those who have hardened their hearts to the message of God will not be given the means to receive it.

Since a parable is figurative speech that demands reflection for understanding, only those who are prepared to explore its meaning can come to know it. To understand is a gift of God, granted to the disciples but not to the crowds who Jesus spoke to.

The simple story that is told as the parable may not be understood by the people at the time they hear it, but it will probably be remembered. If and when they are given the ability to understand by God or the Spirit, these people can reflect on the parable in a new light and gain the intended underlying meaning of this parable and others.

Jesus finishes his explanation:
“This is the meaning of the parable. 
The seed is the word of God.
Those on the path are the ones who have heard,
but the Devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts
that they may not believe and be saved.
Those on rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear,
receive the word with joy, but they have no root;
they believe only for a time and fall away in time of temptation.
As for the seed that fell among thorns,
they are the ones who have heard, but as they go along,
they are choked by the anxieties and riches and pleasures of life, 
and they fail to produce mature fruit.
But as for the seed that fell on rich soil,
they are the ones who, when they have heard the word,
embrace it with a generous and good heart,
and bear fruit through perseverance.” [Luke 8:11-15]

Did you hear that and take it into your heart?

Listen up!