xjwsforChrist

Ears that hear what the spirit says

A person can be born with physical eyes and ears. However, if we want spiritual eyes and ears to hear what Holy Spirit has to say then we must ask for them. We must ask for spiritual eyes to see and spiritual ears to hear what the spirit has to say. Once we are given these eyes and ears and understanding then we are able to know what these verses are saying.
There are many times where a statement or example is given and the reader is told," let the one who has ears hear." Or "Let the reader use discernment." Because those given ears and eyes may be given understanding of the meaning.

There are many times in the bible where verses are written for those with ears to hear.
For example:

[Mat 11:15 NIV] 15 Whoever has ears, let them hear.

[Mat 13:9, 43 NIV] 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear." ... 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

[Mar 4:9, 23 NIV] 9 Then Jesus said, "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear." ... 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear."


[Luk 8:8 NIV] 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown." When he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear."

[Luk 14:35 NIV] 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear."


[Mat 13:9, 43 NIV] 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear." ... 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

[Mar 4:9, 23 NIV] 9 Then Jesus said, "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear." ... 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear."


[Rev 2:7, 11, 17, 29 NIV] 7 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God. ... 11 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death. ... 17 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it. ... 29 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

[Rev 3:6, 22 NIV] 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. ... 22 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

[Rev 13:9 NIV] 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.


However, there are also many that will not hear and will not see and will not understand and these verses will tell some of the reasons why.


[Deu 29:2-4 NIV] 2 Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them: Your eyes have seen all that the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land. 3 With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those signs and great wonders. 4 But to this day the LORD has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear.

[Rom 11:8 NIV] 8 as it is written: "God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see and ears that could not hear, to this very day."

[Isa 6:10 NIV] 10 Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed."

[Mat 13:15 NIV] 15 For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'

[Act 28:27 NIV] 27 For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.'

A few reasons why people may not be able to hear or have not even been given the ears to hear may be because of a callous heart. Others may have eyes and ears but close them by refusing to see or hear the true understanding.

There is still another reason one may not see or hear.

[Num 11:1]1 Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the LORD, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the LORD burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp.

Sometimes because a individual has a hard time hearing he/she may complain about the one that can hear and this can eventually anger our Heavenly Father causing a callous heart; a hardening of the heart just as Pharaoh's heart was hardened during the ten plagues on Egypt.

So then, go to our Father through his Son our High Priest, King and Savior and ask for eyes to see and ears to hear that you may be given understanding. However, be careful not to complain or blame our Heavenly Father nor blame those that do hear What Holy Spirit has to say so that your own heart is not made callous or hardened whether by God or by your own doing.

Revelation 22:7 The spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let the one who hears say, "Come!" Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life.

Your Brother in Christ

FinalCall

I would like to add my " amen" my brother!

Thank you for sharing these verses!

Many good reminders and examples for us.

Love your sister in Christ also,
Justmom ( Kim)

Amen.

_________________
"For whenever people of the nations that do not have law do by nature the things of the law . . . They are the very ones who demonstrate the matter of the law to be written in their hearts" (Romans 2:14-15)

You know I can add nothing to that wonderful truth, dear FC (peace to you, dear brother!), except another "Amen!"

Thank you for sharing that with us!

Peace to you!

YSSFS of Christ,

Shellamar

And an amen from me as well, Finalcall.

Peace and love to you and yours,

tammy

Thank you for sharing this Final Call.

Loz x

_________________
"This is my son. LISTEN to Him!"

Thank you, Justmom, Aguest, Tec, wheelockslatin, and Loz.

The offer from our High Priest, King, and Savior to have eyes to see and ears to hear is to everyone who so desires. it is just that some of us may still have a little baggage ( from life) or obstacles that we may need to overcome to clear the path to hear clearly and put faith in what we are hearing. We all have our own challenges but CHRIST is kind and loving and will meet us part way as long as we are honest with ourselves.

may Jah bless you and your households.

FinalCall

I've refrained from commenting as I wanted to really ponder these verses. Thank you so much for posting them.

As I've stated before, I don't "hear" as many of you do, though I've asked and asked and asked for ears to hear. I'll continue to ask. I have to believe these words of our Lord:

All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. - John 6:37


I'll be completely open here. One thing I've asked for is for him to tell me directly that WTS is or is not the chosen religion. Everyone here would tell me very definitively, no doubt, that it is NOT. And it's not that I don't disagree with you. From my perspective, though, I've grown up being told and believing that it IS. Since my next course of action will, in all likelihood, cause me to lose my family, I want to be absolutely certain that it is not, and I feel the only way to know for sure is by our Lord telling me directly. Not through other people (no offense intended to anyone here). I've already built up one belief system based on what other people have told me. I'm not ready to tear it down on the words of other people. This one piece of information I really, really want to hear straight from our Lord. It is a life-altering decision I have to make (to get out of WTS or not). It's not one I'm taking lightly.

Let the rebuking begin...

Good morning to you LQ,

Remember, our Lord does not want or ask of us anything we do not want to do.

He shares the TRUTH with us... putting before us " Life and death" the blessing and the malediction (the same as to the Israelites)...

Then the choice is ALWAYS ours!

So when you read ( if you don't think you ARE hearing) ... " Get out of her" and " "Come to ME",
The choice STILL is ALWAYS ours!

For me personally I knew it meant I had to leave. I have never regretted that choice, and my Lord has never left me!

SO..." COME...Take life's water which is Holy Spirit, which is our Lord and savior THE ONLY TRUTH out there...FREE!!!" Revelation 22:17

Love to you always,
Justmom

I hear what you are saying, Leaving. You do not want to follow men, you want to follow Christ. I am not going to rebuke you for that, of course!

One question though (not for you to answer, but just to factor in as you choose):

Did you hear from Christ that the wts was the true religion, to begin with?





Instead of worrying or concentrating on what you might have to do or what might happen IF something is true (or false)... you could just concentrate on following Christ, and leave all the rest alone. It will fall into place. Cast all your worries and your fears about all the other stuff onto God, and simply follow Christ where He leads you, listening to and for Him. Put your faith and your trust in Him.

...

I had to do that also. For me, the nature of Christ was the thing that frustrated me, and prevented me from moving forward. I saw no reason to believe that Christ was the arkangel Michael, and there were verses that seem to lend credence to the trinity... but nothing was clear about that one way or the other. No definitive statement. Of course, I should have applied the same reasoning to the trinity as to the arkangel theory, since I only considered it because it is something that is now taught. I was so frustrated, and I kept asking (really, I was more demanding) that God would tell me if the trinity was true or not, so that I would know. I think not knowing the answer to that question (which should not have been a question to begin with, because Christ never taught it to begin with) kept me in limbo about 'where' I should go and 'what' was truth. But Christ's words were simple: "I am the Truth. Follow ME."

One afternoon, I literally cast those worries off and onto God... and I put myself in His hands, and asked Him to lead me where He wanted me to be. I did not doubt that He would do as I had asked of Him. If He had something to teach me, then HE would teach me. Then I followed and listened to Christ. As God said: "This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to Him."



May you be granted ears if you wish them, and the strength to believe and to follow what you hear, and also 'Come! Take the free gift of the water of life!"

Peace and love to you, as Christ gives peace and love,

tammy

Justmom,

The identity of Babylon the Great has been open to interpretation for centuries. WTS says it's all of false religion (excluding itself, of course). Here on this forum, we say it includes WTS. Who is to know for certain other than the one who gave the vision to begin with?

Tammy,

Exactly!


I never asked. Never felt the need to. Until recently. I was an almost-born-in. Parents became JWs when I was a toddler. Never had a need to question this. So, no, I never heard from Christ. It was from man.


I don't disagree with this. However, if I am not hearing because I am still in the WTS, then this is a pretty big catch-22. Otherwise, I'm trying to figure out why it is I'm not hearing. I've been extremely open and forthcoming in my prayers. There is nothing hidden.


I absolutely agree with this. No question. Of course JWs think they ARE following him. There's quite a bit they don't get. I had a dear friend just yesterday, out of the blue, bring up the subject of tattoos and how we're not supposed to wear them. Why he brought this up, I don't know. It came up in the course of a conversation about not judging others (Matt 7:1,2) I reminded him that tattoos were part of the Law that was made obsolete and that the commands JWs have regarding this are actually keeping the Law alive, just like circumcision. He actually didn't know what to say to that, so he just kept quiet. My point is, JWs don't realize they are NOT following Christ the way they think they are.

Hello LQ

I understand your concern with making the right decision. I was born into the WTBTS also. The indoctrination ran deep. I also was in fear of the known consequences of leaving the organization. The loss of parents, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, and my job. While you may not feel you are hearing our Lord clearly as to leaving the WTBS; do you feel our Lord is telling you to stay in the organization?

I know the difficulties and the doubts that arise. Why are these doubts and questions there? Why do you have them. Many of the brothers and sisters that are still in the organization know about many of the things you know about. yet, they are not thinking about leaving. Could it be possible that you are hearing more clearly and better than you may think?

Dear LQ, I ask these questions just for you to ponder. The decision you make will greatly change your life and it is a decision only you can make.

I write this with love and compassion.

Your brother in CHRIST

FinalCall

The identity of Babylon the Great has been open to interpretation for centuries. WTS says it's all of false religion (excluding itself, of course). Here on this forum, we say it includes WTS. Who is to know for certain other than the one who gave the vision to begin with?


Doesn't the WTBS whom we trusted our whole lives to be truth claim to understand the interpretation of this revelation with regards to Babylon the great?
We trusted they knew, and we see how many doctrines and dates they teach are in contrary to what CHRIST teaches. Of course the WTBS would apply this understanding to everyone else but themselves.

But how can CHRIST dwell inside something that lies, misleads and denies HIM?

If the one who gave the vision is the only truth and those that belong to him would share this same spirit that he possesses and would give ( 1john 2:26-29) to those asking...FOR FREE...
Why wouldn't he share the understanding of this vision with them?

But leaving the WTBS for any other reason other than to follow CHRIST would make us followers of man. I personally would not want that to be your reason.

With love for you my brother as always,
Thank you for being here and sharing. We are here for you!
Love Justmom

Exactly. He did not teach this to you. Men taught this to you.

You want Him to tell you that the wts is false (if it is). But He never taught you that the wts was true to begin with... or that any religion was. So why is it even a question?

(I am not meaning to throw those questions at you as something you must answer, but rather as something for you to think about... same as I did... although the above is kind of rhetorical.)



When we accept (or default to) things that He never taught us to begin with, then are we not listening to man first... instead of to Christ? I don't know if I am being very clear. The point is... Christ never taught that the wts was the true religion or that there even was a true religion. He said, as you well know, "I am the Truth." He said, "Come to me."


So this 'true religion' teaching did not come from Him. It is entirely what men added to Christ and his words and his teaching. It works as an excuse to justify where 'she' (wts or anything) is wrong, teaches false, new light, etc... and keep people in her, and afraid to question or test her. Because the only thing that the wts (or anyone) really ever has to do is convince people that they are the chosen channel of God; and then they can do and say anything at all, and people will stay.


But Leaving, truly, if you are unsure... then just test her, my brother. Test the wts. Does she speak truth? Does she teach as Christ teaches? Or does she speak and teach opposite of Him; falsely? Hold her up to Him, the Light, and you will hear/know your answer.

I think you do know and have heard, and are hearing. You may just need a little more confidence, a little more faith so as to BELIEVE what you hear, and that you have heard from Him. I apply those words to myself as well.




I don't think you are not hearing because you are in the wts. Because how else would anyone here have heard to come out of her, if they could not hear Him while in her? I must defer to what FinalCall asked you:





Peace to you both, my brothers.

Your sister and servant in Christ,

tammy

You want Him to tell you that the wts is false (if it is). But He never taught you that the wts was true to begin with... or that any religion was. So why is it even a question?

Tammy....

This statement is profound, thank you! Individuals like LQ and myself included were raised almost from birth from our parents to believe the WTBS is the the true religion. It was our parents, then the organization that ingrained in us it had to be the truth. CHRIST and hearing his voice was never even an option because we were told he doesn't speak! It was demons that spoke!

So it has been man since our beginning that deceived us ( even if our parents did think they were doing the right thing).

And now we want our Lord to prove to us that it is not the truth when it was man that told us it was from the beginning.

Our Lord calls himself " The way, the truth, the life and resurrection" Jah says to listen to his sons voice and follow him. That Jah does not dwell in handmade temples, etc etc etc....and yet we still ask whether or not he dwells inside the WTBS and IF his spirit and truth are there???

Great share, thank you
Your sister in Christ Justmom