Can you please explain Mark 4:24?
Let’s read Mark 4:21-25 to understand this verse. It says, “Also He said to them, ‘Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. Then 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 given. 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).
In verse 2 of this chapter we read, “And He taught them many things by parables.” Then the Lord Jesus proceeded to tell them the wonderful parable of the sower and the meaning of it as well. After the Lord Jesus finished, He encouraged them to teach others what He had just taught them, for the “lamp” in verse 21 speaks of the light of God’s Word which should not be hidden, but manifested for all men to see. Those who listen to the Word are responsible for what they hear, as indicated by the Lord’s words, “If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” We must have “ears to hear,” which speaks not only of our physical ears, but the “ears of our heart.”
The Lord then issues a serious warning in verse 24, “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 given.” The main message here is that WE NEED TO USE WHAT WE HEAR! I believe this means that as we are learning God’s Word, we need to apply it in our lives and share it with others. James 1:22 speaks to this, for it says “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” As we obey the truth we learn and then teach it to others, men will see the truth being lived out. They will benefit from the truth we are manifesting and so will we, for our verse encourages us by saying, “and to you who hear, more will be given.” God will give us more truth and the ability to understand it! Verse 25 repeats that promise, “For whoever has, to him more will be given,” but then a warning is added, “but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.” What does that mean? I believe it means that if we fail to respond to the truth that we are learning by not obeying it and sharing it with others, we will actually lose the truth we once possessed. I have witnessed this in the lives of believers, for I’ve seen people who once enjoyed a certain truth; it made them more holy and with great zeal they taught it to others. But then the world or some sin came in to rob them of their joy in studying God’s Word and instead of living in the power of that truth and passing it on to others, they never speak of it at all. They have lost it in that it is no longer precious to them and it has no effect on their lives. (177.2) (DO)