“The word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in belly, I knew thee; and before thou camest out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” Jeremiah 1:4,5
It was a remarkable day when the Lord Jesus took Peter, James, and John “into an high mountain apart.” (Matt. 17:2) There He would be transfigured before them, His face shining as the sun, and His clothing being white as snow. So overwhelmed were the disciples by a bright cloud overshadowing them, and a voice out of the cloud, that they fell on their faces, being very afraid. That which was spoken to them by God the Father was very simple, but profoundly powerful: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him.” (v.5) On the one hand, as God seemingly always does, He reveals Himself in such a way that one knows that it is Him, and that He is God. But then, there is seemingly always a statement after that revelation, whether a command or a promise, or a statement of truth, according to which, the believer is to trust God. In this case it is only three words: “Hear ye Him.” Why are these word so very important, though very simple. First of all, they are coming from the sovereign, omnipotent God…the eternal God who possesses all power and authority. He is the God of all wisdom, and is love. He never makes a mistake, and those who truly believe in Him, will hear what He has to say. Secondly, God is faithful, absolute in His commitment to accomplish all His will His way, for His glory. Knowing all things, and in particular the heart of every individual, He knows exactly what to say, how to say it, always with eternity in mind. To the disciples, these three of Jesus’ inner circle, He directs their attention to the necessity to simply defer to Christ, and Him alone, for all things, especially with regard to what He says. They are always to have “an ear to hear,” a seeking heart to receive that which is from above, to be lived and shared “on this earth, as it is in heaven.”
We do not know the entire life of Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. That which we do know is there came a day when she discerned that which was most important. For Peter, the revelation of the glory of Christ on the mount of transfiguration, led him to propose the project of building three tabernacles for the Lord, Moses and Elijah. Peter had to be directed by the Father to grasp that which was most imporant, the hearing Christ’s words. At some point, Mary came to this same conclusion and conviction, that God was not seeking for someone to serve Him in their own way, by their own strength. His call to them was to sit at Jesus’ feet and hear His words. It would be by the hearing of Christ’s life-giving words, that faith would be strengthened to believe Him for all that He desired to do in and through the life. Mary, as well as Peter and the other disciples, were called upon to defer to Christ in all things, hearing Him speaking to the heart.
Throughout Scripture, and history, we find where God speaks to individuals. He does this in different ways, at different times and in many different circumstances. But one thing is clear, He speaks life-giving, powerful words to the individual heart. The issue is never whether God speaks or not, for He will always speak to those who are truly willing to hear. When Habakkuk sought the Lord, to hear God’s word to Him, he set himself to seek Him, wait upon Him, believing Him to speak. God honored such faith, and did speak very clearly to him, telling him to write down what was said, and communicate it to the people. Through the objective word, God, by His Spirit speaks “…in accents clear and still.”
Dear Father, Speak powerfully in the stillness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.