Barriers to Understanding the Word of God

Matthew 13:15 "For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them." 1. A dull heart. To have a heart that is dull (or which has waxed gross) means to become calloused in heart, and to make fat. When something has become calloused, it means that it has become hardened and has lost sensitivity. This is also the type of heart that refuses to seek the Lord and to acknowledge Him. When you are at the place where you are not moved anymore by things, things do not affect you, or are not moved by compassion for things, this is a sign of a heart that has waxed gross. It is important to be careful with this. Although the Bible commands us to guard our hearts, the Christian must also be someone who is moved by things and pays attention to the things happening around them. You must be intrigued by things and consider things with your heart. Understand is the result of involving the heart in analysis. When Jesus Christ was born, many special things happened at His birth. Someone may have just brushed these things off and said that it's just a good baby who has been born etc and everyone is excited. But not Mary. The Bible says that Mary pondered the events in her heart. The fact that shepherd's had come to visit them was not seen as an ordinary visitation by Mary. Shepherd don't visit babies. They take care of sheep. Also in this instance, someone may have said that perhaps the shepherd's were coming to check on some sheep in the stable which Jesus was born in a happened to stumble upon the child. A calloused heart would've developed all kinds of theories as to why this event is just an ordinary event. But not Mary! She took notice of this event. Luke 2:19 "But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart." Moses also had a sensitive heart when he encountered a burning bush. This kind of heart takes notice of things. When Moses saw the burning bush, he did not just pass by and say, "oh, just another bush fire. These are common around this time of the year." No, Moses instead drew near to really examine the fire and see why it was not consumed. Exodus 3:3 "And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt." A heart that has become calloused and waxed gross is a strong barrier to receiving the anointing. 2. Ears that are dull of hearing When an ear is duck of hearing, it means that it lacks interest in what it is hearing and is not excited to hear more things. This is also a hinderance to understanding. When you have an interest in what you are hearing and what is being said, you listen attentively and you try to hear more. Let your ears have an excitement and an interest in what you are hearing. 3. Closed eyes Closed eyes means ignorance and rejection. When your eyes are closed to something, you refuse to look at it, take an interest in it, or acknowledge it. The Pharisees knew that Jesus was truly sent from God. They had no doubt about this in their hearts and Nicodemus revealed this to Jesus when he came to see Jesus at night. John 3:1-2 "There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, WE KNOW that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doesn't, except God be with him." Nicodemus told Jesus clearly that they KNEW he was a teacher sent from God. But why did the Pharisees chose to fight Jesus and destroy Him? Why did they accuse Him of operating by demonic powers? Why did the call him a devil? Because they intentionally closed their eyes to Him because of envy and jealousy. Do you ever remember a time in your life where you refused to acknowledge someone's achievement because you envied them or were jealous of them and didn't like them? This is what it means to close your eyes. When you close your eyes to something, it is done intentionally and the cause of this is pride. You feel too big to humble yourself and take interest and LEARN from what you are seeing. You feel like you already know or are above it. Pride is the cause of people closing their eyes to something they should learn from and receive understanding from. Pride and familiarity made the people of Jesus' hometown close their eyes to Him. How could this carpenter now call himself the Son of God? As a result they couldn't even receive any miracle from Him. Humble yourself and open your eyes. Take interest in what you are seeing and look deeply. Understanding will come to you in Jesus name! Amen!