If you walk into a crowded restaurant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and shout, “Roll Tide,” what kind of reaction do you suppose that you would receive? Now, take that same, simple message and declare it with just as much passion in a crowded restaurant in Auburn, Alabama. Do you suppose that you will receive the same response in the Auburn restaurant as you did in the Tuscaloosa restaurant? Why is that? Or, you could go to those same restaurants and shout, “War Eagle,” and the response would be just as divided. Again, if the same message is proclaimed in both places, why is there a difference in response?
The difference is the heart of the hearers. While the message can be exactly the same (and even simple in its content), two different hearts can have two very different reactions. This is certainly seen in the Parable of the Soils in Matthew 13, as four different hearts responded in four different ways to the seed of God’s Word. It is also seen in the book of Acts.
In Acts 2, Peter and the apostles were preaching in Jerusalem (probably in one of courtyards of the temple). They preached to the Jews about Jesus Christ—that the Jews had “crucified” Jesus, but “God raised” Him up (2:22-24). At the hearing of this message, many “were cut to the heart” (2:37)—meaning they were “pierced, stabbed with a sharp pain of anxiety and remorse.” Their hearts were open and receptive to the gospel, and as a result, they heard, changed and obeyed.
But, go to Acts 5. Peter and the apostles were preaching in Jerusalem again—this time before the Jewish leaders in the Sanhedrin. The apostles preached the very same message—the Jews had “murdered” Jesus by “hanging on a tree,” but God “raised” Him up (5:29-32). At the hearing of this message, many “were cut to the heart” (5:33, KJV). However, this is different Greek word, which means they were “sawn asunder, rent with vexation, cut to the quick, infuriated inwardly, enraged.” Their hearts were closed off to the gospel, and as a result, they did not receive it and rejected it outright.
Friend, which one of these passages represents the kind of heart that you have to the teachings of God’s Word? Are you open and receptive, or are you closed off and resistant? Why is it (like the illustration of shouting “Roll Tide” in two different restaurants) that two hearts can react very differently to a message about attending on Sunday nights and Wednesdays, or about drinking alcohol, or about modesty, or about some other Bible subject? It is because a person has already made up his/her mind about something (even like a football team) and will accept only a message that matches his/her heart. What is your heart open to receive?