The Importance of Listening

Good Morning and hello to all my #RebelFam and #RebelArmy before we begin I would like to inform you all that Christmas is coming we only have about two months left and we desperately need your help, we’d like to be able to help children in the community get the things they need and some they want, such as warm coats, shoes, socks, food, and toys, I need you all to seriously consider donating to our Ministry we accept cash donations, gifts of the heart and tithes at Cash app: $TheChristianRebel Venmo: @TheChristianRebel and PayPal:TheChristianRebel@gmail.com this is a critical time of the season for us and we want to be able to reach out and help as many children and families as possible so please consider sending your offerings and tithes to our ministry and help us reach out to those in need this season, thank you.

Let’s begin brothers and sisters with opening your bibles to Mark chapter 4 verses 1 through 20 “Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching, he said to them: “Listen! A Sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up since it had no depth of soil.”

The reason I point out this chapter of the book of Mark is that Jesus is saying Listen, simply Listen, when he spoke all he wanted was for people to hear what he had to say and listen closely to what was being said.

You see brothers and sisters that is the key to today’s message, and believe it or not, it came to me through the lesson I taught our young men at Wednesday night Cross Walk Teens meeting, is that we only hear what is said, we never really take the time to listen to the words that are spoken.

God wants us to hear everything that HE has to say, we’re not supposed just read the bible and skim over the pages, but really read, understand, and listen to what is being said, because without listening to God, to your spouse, to your parents, you won’t “understand the assignment” and without understanding comes ignorance and compliance and that is exactly what is wrong with the world today.

We have young men running around committing ungodly acts because they hear their parents but they’re not listening to them, young women doing things ladies shouldn’t do why, because they might hear God, but they don’t listen to what HE is telling them, and that’s all I’m asking you to do today, hear what is being said and listen to the words that are spoken.

Brothers and sisters God loves us, he has a plan for your life, my life, my children’s lives, each and every one of us is known by the CREATOR of the universe, just as HE knows every star by name, every galaxy, even the creatures and beings on other faraway worlds, HE knows each and every one of us by name, isn’t that amazing? I think it’s mind-blowing that our Great Spirit, the All-Father, knows me personally and has my life planned out according to HIS will. That brothers and sisters, that is just impressive to me.

I still need to listen though, just as each one of us does. We need to hear HIM and we need to listen to HIM. Because when HE talks, it is probably more important than what you are doing that very moment.

James chapter 1 verse 19 says “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;”

The reason this verse is written in this order, it is an order of importance, hear, listen to the words being spoken, think about what you just heard before opening your mouth, and really pay attention to their facial expressions and body language before taking offense and getting angry. This verse is one of importance and can save you from an argument if you just add a little patience to your every day.

Proverbs chapter 19 verse 20 says “Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future.”

When someone is speaking brothers and sisters, even if it’s gibberish, there is always some truth to what is being said and if you just take a moment to listen and not just hear, you will gain something from it, in this case, the bible says you’ll gain wisdom which is true, every day that goes by and we listen to what others are saying, we gain knowledge and by gaining knowledge we grow in wisdom.

Proverbs chapter 19 verse 27 continues on from verse 20 saying “Cease to hear instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge.”

Now if you put these two passages juxtaposed with each other, you will see a pattern in Proverbs forming, the same pattern I’m speaking with you today, “listen and hear” because if we don’t, it will be our demise. By straying from knowledge, by straying from the bible we doom ourselves.

We can finish up by adding Proverbs chapter 1 verse 33 because it sums it all up nicely by stating “But whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”

This is where God is saying through Solomon that as long as we hear what is being said, we listen to the words and gain knowledge, that we will not stray from the teachings and will be able to dwell with the Father securely and that’s when we will finally be at ease.

I could go on and list every passage in the bible that makes the statement of how important it is to hear the speaker, listen to their words and then meditate on them before starting an argument but we’d be here all day brothers and sisters because it’s written over and over again, hear, and listen, they may seem the same to you, but they are not, we can hear someone speak but if we’re not paying attention we have to ask them, “what did you say” or “what are you asking for” and they have to restate what was said.

Today we are lucky enough to have many different versions of the bible so that we can come to an understanding really of what God was saying. If we have questions, we are able to come back to them over and over again. In Jesus’ time they weren’t so lucky they really had to listen, closely because Jesus was a kind and gentle man, which leads me to believe HE had a kind and gentle voice. Unless you found a way to anger HIM, Am I Right? When he went into our Father’s temple and they were doing trades, or when the Pharisees really pushed HIS buttons and he called and yelled out to them “Snakes in the Grass.”

Our world is changing, people are letting the government control the U.S. and that is not how we are supposed to live, We the People control the government. They are supposed to “Hear and Listen” to us, but again that compliance sets in, and every year the people give up more and more of their freedoms. Through God, we are completely free, and HE will never ask more of us than we can give. So please when you hear someone speak, even God himself, listen to what is being said and follow through if something is asked of you.

“Father bless these men and women today, watch over them, speak to them and guide them, they are ready to hear your word and listen to your instruction for our lives, we are ready to open our hearts and accept YOU for who YOU are and have faith in YOU that all YOUR promises will be fulfilled, we thank you for the HOLY BIBLE and the many versions we have, yes even “the message” because we know it is YOUR word that is spoken and it is only YOUR word that is holy and divine. Father, God we ask that you bless our lives with your grace and mercy, that you keep us safe and watch over us, that you keep us held in your arms, YOU alone Lord are the Divine Surgeon, the Holy Healer, and Wonderful Creator, we ask for YOU’RE healing in our lives whatever that healing may be, and we ask that you watch over us as we sleep for all of our days. And all those that hear the word of God, listen to His instruction cried out in one loud booming voice, Amen”

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Man Listening - artist unknown