A person who is a sincere Christian, a true believer from the depths of his/her heart, is a person who hungers and thirsts for righteousness (Matt. 5:6) desiring deeper spiritual understanding. There is always a desire to know more and understand better. There is an inner longing to draw nearer to God and feel closer to him and so the way is sought to do so.

But, the question is how do I do this, or accomplish this, which I so desire? If I just read the Bible more and pray more will that do the trick? It would be good if we could say yes that is all it will take but that would not be telling the truth. We suppose the scribes and the Pharisees of the New Testament era read their Bible (the Old Testament) and prayed and yet to what avail?

We are all familiar with the parable of the tax collector and the Pharisee beginning in Luke 18:9 who both went up to the temple to pray. Only one went down from it justified. Prayer was of no profit to the Pharisee.

We might also say with justification that the Pharisees seemed to know the Old Testament scriptures in the sense that they could tell you what they said. Their problem was one of understanding them and making proper application but that was a result of heart failure.

When you have developed your own religion as they had by the time of Jesus, an admixture of truth mixed in with man made traditions that had the affect of law even to the extent of overriding the law of God (Mark 7:6-13), the heart ceases to be interested in anything that will disturb it. People become satisfied with what they have right or wrong.

Hear the words of Jesus:

"That is why I use these parables, For they look, but they don't really see. They hear, but they don't really listen or understand. This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says, ‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes-so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.'" (Matt. 13:13-15 NLT)

But, do we not have the same problem today multiplied? If you say no how do you explain the hundreds of denominations in the world to say nothing of the Catholic Church, the Greek Orthodox Church, etc.? If we have a correct exegesis of scripture today, a proper understanding, how does one explain all of this? How can everyone differ and all be right?

I do not mean this to sound as hard as it probably will but as life goes on and one comes to understand that as an individual he cannot do a lot to change the way things are you reach the point, if you are like me, where you no longer care about group A, B, or C but rather about self. You become like the Philippian jailer in Acts 16 who said to Paul and Silas, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" (Acts 16:30 NKJV) Was he selfish in asking that question? Am I selfish in being concerned about self? Are you?

This does not mean we would not change group A, if it is in error, if we could but we lack that power. Salvation, in its end, is an individual matter. That is why I am not too awfully concerned about all the religious bodies out in the world. I am concerned about self and about individuals within my realm of influence.

We all need to keep in our minds that we are not going to be judged by what the group thinks or believes or practices. Judgment is an individual matter. "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men." (2 Cor. 510-11 NKJV)

Jesus says he will judge us by his words. "He who rejects me, and does not receive my words, has that which judges him - the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day." (John 12:48 NKJV)

The key to a deeper understanding of God's will begins with the heart. One can read scripture 15 hours a day everyday but until the day comes that a man is willing to obey what he reads his reading will not draw him a fraction of an inch closer to God.

Thus we come to Mark 4:24-25, Jesus speaking, "And he said to them, ‘Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be give. For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.'" (NKJV)

Heed what you hear. Are you going to use what you read from God's word, all of it for it is not a buffet where you get to pick and choose, or will it be you have no intention of acting on any commandment unless it suits what you think is fitting or proper?

The rejection of baptism is rampant in the religious world as is God's teaching on marriage, divorce, and remarriage, women in leadership positions in the church and we are heading to the point where God's teaching on homosexuality will down the road a ways no longer matter either the way things are looking now. Many, many other things could be added to such a list but the point is made. We like the Pharisees of Jesus' time have changed the law of God and said we are satisfied with what we have. We do not want to hear nor listen any longer.

We read the word and say we believe it but I do not think we are even kidding ourselves any more (I could be wrong). We are not going to obey it. We do not believe what it says although we know full well what it says. Like the Pharisees we will make our own religion and call it God's.

When our approach to the word of God is like that then Jesus' words where he says, "with the same measure you use, it will be measured to you" kicks in. Hearing God's word in scripture means you take it to heart and obey it. If you are not obeying you are not hearing God.

If one wants to draw nearer to God he will have to do more than just read and memorize scripture. He will have to obey it. Do you want a deeper spiritual understanding? If so you must obey. "With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be give." (Mark 4:24 NKJV) Are you willing to use what you hear? Only then (emphasis on this) will you be given more. Fail to do that and even what you have will be taken from you.

All of scripture teaches this same lesson. I am reminded of the words of Samuel as he spoke to Saul after Saul proclaimed that he had "performed the commandment of the Lord." (1 Sam. 15:13 NKJV) That commandment was to destroy utterly the Amalekites and all they had. Samuel says to him, "What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?" (1 Sam. 15:14 NKJV) What indeed?

Saul's answer was, "the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God." (1 Sam. 15:15 NKJV)

To obey God means to obey him completely and not just partially or as it suits us and our way of thinking. People make God after their own image and thus if it seems the right thing to believe or do according to our way of thinking then it must please God necessarily. In fact, we feel God could not be just unless he saw it our way so we end up becoming our own Lord and God and we totally convince ourselves that what we are doing is God's will despite his word to the contrary.

The love for objective truth is lost (2 Thess. 2:10). Henceforth our truth will be subjective according to our desires. Yet, Paul says in 2 Thess. 2:12 that we shall be condemned for not believing the truth.

How could God object to sacrificing the best of the sheep and the oxen when it would be a sacrifice that was being made to him (the thought arises about the many innovations men have brought into Christian worship just because it seemed right to them)? But, hear Samuel's response.

"Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He also has rejected you from being king." (1 Sam. 15:22-23 NKJV)

If we could only learn what Samuel taught here but I am not overly optimistic. Note the words "to heed" in the text. Samuel says to heed is better than the fat of rams. Jesus said in Mark 4:24, "heed what you hear." Saul did not heed God's word, nor did those with him. Will we do better?

James says, "Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." (James 1:22 NKJV) What word? Saul obeyed "some words (1 Sam. 15:3)." He was a doer of some words. He had the buffet religion which we have today but will not admit to having. If we do not change our ways we will get to answer as to why to Jesus the way Saul got to answer to Samuel.

There is no hope of any man ever learning more who will not obey what he already knows. If he is at the end of his obedience he is also at the end of his growth in spiritual understanding. He can forget about any deeper spiritual understanding.

I close with this. Jesus says (Matt. 13:12 NLT), "To those who listen to my teaching (listen means heed, obey - DS), more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, (not heeding, not obeying - DS) even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them." This leads directly into the long passage quoted above from Matt. 13:13-15 where Jesus explained why he spoke in parables.

Deeper spiritual understanding is only for the obedient and thus it becomes a personal choice. If you want it you can have it. Do you want it? That is a question only you can answer.

Visit Denny Smith's web site to read more of his articles and also listen to over 110 audio sermons on many different subjects from "Where Are the Dead?" to "The Weaver's Shuttle," to "What Must I Do To Be Saved?" The audio sermons are by a good friend. Why not visit his site now dennysmith.net? You are sure to find a sermon topic or article of interest.