“Today if you will hear His voice…” – Psalms 95:8
Alexander the great, waged war on many countries of the world and conquered them. Once when the war was over, he was resting in his war tent. His horse went out without his knowledge. He just ate what came his way and lay down infront of a shop. The horse was blocking the way. So, no one could go to that shop. As the horse belonged to the king, no one made an attempt to drive him away. At last, the shop-keeper took a bell and he rang the bell near his ears, but it could not be awakened. Just then the soldiers came searching for the horse. On seeing the shop-keeper ringing the bell in his ears, they burst into laughter and they said that the horse would not be scared of the clanging sound of the swords and weapons in the battle field and the sound of the bell mattered nothing to him. They woke the horse up and rode away.
Whenever the Israelites and their kings who reigned them committed sin, the Lord sent His servants and the prophets again and again. But neither did they listen nor incline the ear to hear their words. They did not turn from their evil way and deeds. They stiffened their necks in order not to listen or to take correction. Thus, God’s wrath was revealed to them.
In the olden days, we listened to the messages and sermons only in churches and in special meetings. But nowadays they are available in plenty in You tube and face book. We have been listening to different messages from various servants of God. Listening to their preaching is good. But there is a drawback in it. The word of God is interpreted in different ways. Thus, we assume that we have a good knowledge and understanding of God. But our hearts remain the same without any such understanding of God. Are we listening to the sermons without any change of heart? Do we turn a deaf ear to the Voice of God like Alexander’s horse? Let us ponder. Let us test ourselves to find if our hearts are stiffened and without feelings and tendency to obey. It is not important how much God’s message we hear but how much we pay heeds to His words and correct our way. Let us listen carefully to God’s word and take correction and inherit blessings.
