Why Did Jesus Speak So That People Wouldn’t Understand?

S: Mark 4:9-12

⁹ Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

¹⁰ When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. ¹¹ He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables ¹² so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
    and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’^[a]”

O: Jesus quotes Isaiah 6, where Yahweh commissions Isaiah to preach to a hardened Judah. Isaiah’s preaching does not create innocent unbelief, but exposes and confirms rebellion already present. In the larger sweep of Isaiah, Judah’s refusal of God’s word leads toward national devastation, exile, ultimately culminating in the Babylonian captivity.

Jesus applies that same prophetic pattern to His own ministry: He’s announcing the Kingdom of God, but not everyone receives it. This is preceded by the Parable of the Sower – the same gospel seed is sown, but the condition of the heart determines the response. Some reject immediately, some respond shallowly, some are choked by worldly concerns, and some truly hear, accept, persevere, and bear fruit.

Jesus is not saying, “I arbitrarily do not want people forgiven.” He is saying that the mystery of the kingdom is given to those who draw near to Him in faith, humility, and repentance, while those repeating Israel’s old pattern of hardness remain blind even while hearing. The issue is not mere intelligence. The disciples themselves often misunderstand. The issue is the posture of the heart: whether one comes near, asks, listens, repents, and follows.

At the same time, a person’s heart condition is not necessarily static. People can later repent. Even in Isaiah’s larger context, judgment does not destroy God’s mercy; a remnant remains. Therefore, this passage warns us not to presume upon hearing the word, but to receive it with repentance, perseverance, and fruitfulness.

A: Spiritual understanding grows as we stay near Christ. I must not be content merely to hear God’s word outwardly. I must receive it inwardly with repentance, faith, and obedience. I should draw near to Christ in prayer, study of Scripture, and faithful living, trusting that spiritual understanding deepens as I remain close to Him and bear fruit in perseverance.

P: Lord Jesus, I thank You
with my whole life and soul, I do
My heart belongs to You,
I know You love me true

The only sacrifice
I can bring is my soul,
my body and my heart,
You can take me whole.

My riches are like rags
compared to You, my Lord
My works are not enough
the ones I could afford.

So take my heart, O Lord,
I offer it to You
Tell me now my Lord,
what You want me to do
Receive it all my Lord,
this body that was mine
until the end of time.

Amen

Subtle idols

S: Mark 2:16-17, 24, 27-28

Some of the teachers of the Law of Moses were Pharisees, and they saw Jesus eating with sinners and tax collectors. So they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

Jesus heard them and answered, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor, but sick people do. I didn’t come to invite good people to be my followers. I came to invite sinners.”

…

Some Pharisees asked Jesus, “Why are your disciples picking grain on the Sabbath? They are not supposed to do that!”

…

Jesus finished by saying, “People were not made for the good of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was made for the good of people. So the Son of Man is Lord over the Sabbath.”

O:

We have a tendency to make an idol of our own rules and interpretations of the faith, of our own tribe, and hence end up pushing people away from Yahweh. We may excuse the wrong things people we support do, while emphasising the wrong things people we disagree with do.

Jesus came to reconcile the ungodly people to Yahweh. We are His ambassadors, so we should be in that same business. But too often, we let our own prejudices get in the way of that.

A: I need to repent of my own sins, and show God’s compassion to others, whether they are already with Christ or still outside the family of faith. Many or most of those tax collectors and sinners Jesus ate with were not yet converted, yet He openly fellowshipped with them. I must show that same love and welcome as well.

P: Father, give me your heart for those outside the family of faith. Help me to show Your love to them. Let me recognise my own sins and grow closer to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.

𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐯𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐞

For All The King’s People

By Rob Hibbitt

Look my people, look what you’ve done

And there is nothing new under the sun

In your freedom you’ve bowed down to gold

It′s the same story, that same story of old

Come now children, put down that calf

I want the whole heart not just the half

By all means sing, I love to hear your voice

But O my children, love is freedom’s choice

Look my people, where is your fruit

That Love and peace and kindness

Stemming from my Spirit root

You sing, and dance, while the poor they die

You worship me while the nations cry

Come now children, put down that calf

I want the whole heart not just the half

By all means sing, I love to hear your voice

But O my children, love is freedom’s choice

Look my people, it is all in my Word

Why chase compromise and the absurd

The nations blaspheme because of you

So repent, my people, ’cause I still love you

Come now children, put down that calf

I want the whole heart not just the half

By all means sing, I love to hear your voice

But O my children, love is freedom′s choice

Throw down that calf of gold

Remember the promise of old

You will be like the stars up in the sky

And a land of promise for you and I

Now throw off the yoke of lust

And in my Word alone trust

Look my people, it is all in my Word

Why chase compromise and the absurd

The nations blaspheme because of you

So repent, my people, ’cause I still love you

Come now children, put down that calf

I want the whole heart not just the half

By all means sing, I love to hear your voice

But O my children, love is freedom′s choice

Come now children, put down that calf

I want the whole heart not just the half

By all means sing, I love to hear your voice

But O my children, love is freedom’s choice.

By the way, I just discovered this artist today. I mentioned the line “The nations blaspheme because of you” in a conversation with Eric Skattebo and he thought I was referring to a song, and so he Googled for the song and found this song. I was actually referring to Romans 2:24, but this was a serendipitous discovery because I really like the few songs I’ve since listened to from this channel.

Persist in repentance

S:

1 Kings 21:21, 25, 27-29 Behold, I will bring evil on you, and will utterly sweep you away and will cut off from Ahab everyone who urinates against a wall, and him who is shut up and him who is left at large in Israel.

…

But there was no one like Ahab, who sold himself to do that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.

…

When Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes, put sackcloth on his body, fasted, lay in sackcloth, and went about despondently. Yahweh’s word came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, “See how Ahab humbles himself before me? Because he humbles himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but I will bring the evil on his house in his son’s day.”

2 Kings 3:1-2

Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, but not like his father and like his mother, for he put away the pillar of Baal that his father had made.

2 Kings 6-9

When Syria repeatedly attacked Israel, God had Elisha warn Jehoram many times where he would be, until the king of Syria thought he had an Israelite spy in his camp, but then when he was told it was the prophet, he tried to kill the prophet, but God blinded them so that Elisha could lead them into Samaria where they were shown Yahweh’s power, so they stopped attacking Israel.

But later, the next king of Syria, Ben Haddad, invaded again, but God didn’t warn Jehoram anymore and Samaria besieged and staving, and Jehoram said “God do so to me, and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat stays on him today.”

But the next day, God miraculously made the Syrians run away, and Samaria was saved.

However, some time after that, Elisha instructs one of his disciples to anoint Jehu to enact the earlier pronounced judgment on the House of Ahab, and Jehu kills him.

O: At first, we might wonder: “there was no one like Ahab, who sold himself to do that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight” yet when he showed remorse (though temporarily), God postponed that judgment to his son’s time.

Yet, his son Jehoram seemed less evil, having “put away the pillar of Baal”. Yet did Yahweh jinx him by the curse on Ahab earlier? Didn’t Yahweh say not to punish the children for the sins of the parents? (Ezekiel 18:19-20)

Then there’s the interesting thing: Yahweh first helps Jehoram against Syria by sending Elisha to warn him whenever they would attack. But then later He allows an attack so severe Ben Haddad had actually besieged Samaria till they were resorting to cannibalism from their hunger! And then Jehoram demanded Elsha’s life before God intervened and rescued them.

What’s the deal there?

My theory is: Jehoram did make steps towards Yahweh… but didn’t persist. Because if there’s anything the Book of Jonah taught us, it’s that God always has an implicit “unless they repent” clause on all His judgments even if it’s not stated. Even the Ninevites knew that.

So my theory is that God sent Elisha to warn Jehoram of the Syrian attacks at first because Jehoram was at least kind of trying to follow Yahweh. But then he drifted back to the bad old ways. So God allowed Syria to attack. But I’m guessing that Jehoram didn’t repent even after God delivered them miraculously from that siege.

So God had Elisha’s disciple anoint Jehu and enact the judgment earlier pronounced.

So: God is not unjust. While there are natural consequences that might harm one’s descendants, God does not judge a person’s offspring for their parent’s sins. And there is always an implicit “unless they repent” clause.

A: So we must always be quick to repent and turn back to God. And stay heading back to God. Both Ahab’s and Jehoram’s problem was an incomplete and temporary repentance – then going back to their bad old ways, which then brought back the judgment. Contrast that with David’s horrible sins of adultery and murder: when he repented, he stayed repented. Not that he never sinned again (he did.) But he kept heading back to God, even after later failures.

P: “Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned,” as the Catholic confession prayer goes. Father, I mess up again and again but I repent each time and head back towards You. Renew my mind and conform me to Your Son. May I be a good ambassador for You. In Jesus’ name, amen.