"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Romans 10:17
This verse makes perfect since in ancient biblical times very few people could read and even less had access to written scriptures. People would listen to priests, pharisees and rabbis. Those people would speak or read what the prophets wrote. Moses is the quintessential example!
One of the recurring themes throughout the bible is the saying: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 13:9). This phrase — and its fuller form, “eyes to see and ears to hear” — serves as both an invitation and a challenge to perceive beyond the physical senses. It speaks to a spiritual awareness granted by God that enables understanding of His messages, His presence, and His purposes.
We might think of spiritual eyes like a pair of eyeglasses with a special filter. Without them, the world may seem flat, ordinary, and limited to what is visible to the natural eye. But when those lenses are put on, hidden details, meanings, and patterns suddenly emerge — things that were there all along but invisible without the filter.
In Scripture, the prophets were given that kind of perception directly by God; they saw reality through the lens of divine revelation. Christians believe the Holy Spirit is those special glasses. He places the filter of truth over our eyes so we can discern God’s hand in events, understand His Word more deeply, and perceive spiritual realities we would otherwise miss entirely.
It is this kind of Holy Spirit-enabled vision — along with the capacity to hear with spiritual ears — that the Bible urges us to seek and cherish.
The New Testament as the Key to Unlocking the Old Testament
The Hebrew Tenach, known as the Old Testament, is rich with meaning but can often be challenging to understand. It contains many symbols, enigmatic events, and prophecies that appear complex or even bizarre without context. Over centuries, Jewish rabbis and scholars have worked diligently to interpret these Scriptures, developing traditions and commentaries to explain them.
Jesus, recognized as a rabbi—or teacher—by His followers, engaged deeply with the Tenach. Yet His teaching bore a unique authority unlike any other. According to the Gospels, He demonstrated special abilities — including miracles, prophetic insight, and authoritative interpretation — that confirmed His role as one who not only taught but fulfilled the Scriptures.
In this way, the New Testament functions like a “decryption key” to the Hebrew Scriptures. Jesus and His disciples shone light on the meaning of prophecies and symbols, revealing how they pointed to Him as Messiah.
In Luke 24, the risen Jesus opens the minds of His disciples to understand “the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms” in light of His death and resurrection. This revelation enabled them to see the Old Testament as a unified story of God’s redemptive plan.
Thus, while the Old Testament lays the divine foundation, the New Testament unveils its fulfillment and clarity, uncovering truths that had been partially veiled until Yeshua Himself brought them to light.
Old Testament Foundations of Spiritual Sight and Hearing
The call to have spiritual eyes and ears is deeply rooted in the Hebrew Scriptures:
Spiritual Sight in the Old Testament
Elisha prayed: “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see” (2 Kings 6:17), revealing God’s protection in the form of unseen angelic armies.
Isaiah lamented: Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes…” (Isaiah 6:9–10).
Divine Gift of Perception – Speaking to the Israelites, Moses said: “But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand, or eyes to see, or ears to hear” (Deuteronomy 29:4).
The Spirit’s Role – “The hearing ear and the seeing eye—the Lord has made them both” (Proverbs 20:12).
The Meaning of Spiritual Sight and Hearing
Eyes to See — the discernment to recognize God’s hand and truth in all things.
Ears to Hear — the openness to receive, believe, and obey His word.
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| "Faith and Spiritual Awakening: Job’s Journey from Suffering to Seeing God’s Truth Beyond Human Understanding" |
Spiritual Blindness Is Not Moral Evil
The Book of Job shows that suffering is not always a result of sin, as Jesus taught in John 9 about the man born blind. Job’s friends wrongly assumed his hardships were punishment, but God revealed this was not true. Though Job struggled to understand God’s purposes, his encounter with God opened his spiritual eyes—shifting his perspective from merely “hearing” about God to truly “seeing” Him (Job 42:5). This story reminds us that spiritual sight often comes through God’s revelation amid mystery, and faith means trusting His wisdom even when full understanding is beyond us.
Spiritual blindness is not simply rebellion or moral corruption — many remain well-meaning yet unaware.
In John 9, when His disciples asked whether a man born blind or his parents had sinned to cause the blindness, Jesus responded clearly: “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” but rather this happened “so that the works of God might be displayed in him” (John 9:3).
The Prophets Spoke of Disobedience Born of Spiritual Blindness
The prophets of the Old Testament consistently spoke of disobedience as a condition born out of spiritual blindness—a blindness not merely of the eyes but of the heart and mind. Their prophetic words were not just warnings but spiritual gifts inspired by the Spirit of God to call people to repentance and deeper understanding.
This spiritual blindness, described vividly by prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, manifests as an inability or unwillingness to truly see, hear, or understand God’s truth, even when it is plainly present. Isaiah lamented God’s judgment on a rebellious people: “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” (Isaiah 6:9–10). This condition is a direct consequence of disobedience—when people reject God’s ways, their hearts become hardened, leading to shut eyes and deaf ears spiritually.
Jeremiah also spoke to this same theme: “O foolish people, without understanding, who have eyes and see not, and who have ears and hear not… The word of the Lord is a reproach to them; they have no delight in it” (Jeremiah 5:21). The prophets warned that persistent rejection of God’s message leads to deeper spiritual blindness, confusion, and deception. Ezekiel added that disobedience results in false teachings and deception that further blind the people (Ezekiel 13:2–19).
Importantly, these prophetic words were inspired gifts from the Spirit to awaken the people and to reveal the condition of their hearts, urging them to repent and return to God. Jesus Himself referred to Isaiah’s prophecy to explain why many in His time failed to recognize Him: their hearts were spiritually dull (Matthew 13:14–15).
When Jesus said in Matthew 23:37 ESV, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing”. This verse expresses Jesus' lament over Jerusalem's rejection of God's messengers and his desire to protect its people.
This pattern of spiritual blindness born of disobedience also illustrates that hearing and understanding God's word is itself a spiritual gift. Where there is rebellion, God may permit a hardness or blindness to deepen as a consequence of persistent refusal to obey. At the same time, the Spirit desires to open eyes and ears, granting understanding and healing to those who repent.
Spirit in the Flesh
Jesus applied Isaiah’s description to His generation (Matthew 13:13–15), pointing to the heart as the true gatekeeper of understanding.
Jesus's ministry is fundamentally the embodiment of God's Spirit, and as such, His communication was direct, clear, and authoritative. Unlike typical human teachers who rely solely on human wisdom or tradition, Jesus spoke with the authority of God Himself, empowered and anointed by the Holy Spirit.
Though Jesus came fulfilling the Torah and Prophets, many in Israel could not see Him due to the blindness foretold by Scripture (Acts 28:26–27; Romans 11:7–10).
Yet many Jews did believe and follow Him. The earliest church was almost entirely Jewish: all the apostles, thousands at Pentecost (Acts 2:41), and figures such as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea. Both rejection and joyful reception coexisted in the same generation. After the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 A.D., the number of followers of Jesus increased substantially, marking a pivotal moment in early Christianity's history.
A Modern Awakening: Many Jews Today Are Opening Their Eyes and Ears to Jesus
Today, history is repeating. Across Israel and the world, many Jewish people are embracing Jesus as Messiah, recognizing His deep Jewish identity and role as the fulfiller of Torah and prophecy. Far from abandoning their heritage, these believers see their acceptance of Jesus as the natural continuation — and completion — of their faith.
Few Will Find the Way
The prophets also foresaw a faithful remnant (Isaiah 1:9). Jesus’ words ring true: “the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matthew 7:14).
One the eyes of my heart.
The Latter Days — Intensification Before the Day of the Lord
In the last days, God promises an outpouring of His Spirit (Joel 2:28–29) to awaken His people. While deception will rise, so will spiritual vision among a remnant preparing for the Day of the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 5:2).
Conclusion
From the prophets, to Jesus, to the apostles, and now to modern-day believers — God’s invitation endures: open your spiritual eyes and ears. Only the Holy Spirit can place the “special lenses” over our hearts to see His truth clearly.
As Jesus declared: “Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear” (Matthew 13:16).