Resources/Articles
Listening
A man once said, “What we think we now know isa barrier to beginning to learn”. That message is so true. An example of what that means is Romans 2:17-24.
The Jews gloried in the law, were confident of its promises, and were able to guide others by it, but they refused to hear its greatest message - Jesus has come to save all men who have sinned (Romans 3:23). That included them.
We all have two ears and one mouth, which means we need to take in twice as much as we give out through our mouth. The Jews practiced the opposite. They told more people what the law said than applied it themselves (Matthew 23:3,4).
There is more hope for the one who knows little than the one who believes he knows everything. By his silence of knowing little, he places himself in a position to learn. Little can be learned while we are talking.
Now you know why James 1:19 says, “But let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak…” When silence gives ear to the words of another, he will learn many things he did not know or be reassured of what he knows is true or false. The listening ear, seeing eye, and thinking brain are our passage to faith, hope, and knowledge. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7).
