To those who have, more will be given

Then the disciples came and asked him, ‘Why do you speak to them in parables?’ He answered, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. The reason I speak to them in parables is that “seeing they do not perceive, and hearing they do not listen, nor do they understand.” With them indeed is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah that says:

“You will indeed listen, but never understand,

and you will indeed look, but never perceive.

For this people’s heart has grown dull,

and their ears are hard of hearing,

and they have shut their eyes;

so that they might not look with their eyes,

and listen with their ears,

and understand with their heart and turn—

and I would heal them.”

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. Truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.

- Matthew 13:10-17

In yesterday's reading, Jesus told the crowds the parable of the Sower, who sows good seed all around, and what happens to that seed. Today, we read about Jesus' subsequent talk with his disciples about his method of teaching in parables.

‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. The reason I speak to them in parables is that “seeing they do not perceive, and hearing they do not listen, nor do they understand."

My study bible notes that the mysteries of the kingdom do not constitute an esoteric knowledge or secret information for the elite. As we have reviewed in yesterday's commentary, understanding of parables is not merely an intellectual understanding. We recall Jesus' words thanking God for revealing truth to babes. It is the simple and innocent, so notes my study bible, who are open to the gospel and have the faith to receive this mystery which is the reality of the kingdom.

If we take a closer look at the words in the excerpt of today's passage, quoted above, we see a theme about perception. Parables (or "riddles" or "proverbs") have a way of opening up to those who will perceive. They're not simply analogies or allegories in a purely conventional sense; but they do serve as vivid illustrations. What they ask is for us to be drawn into them and think about them ourselves. They require an insight or what we might call an intuition that is not strictly or merely intellectual but also comes from a spiritual capacity to perceive which we nurture in our hearts and through a prayer life, a relationship to this spiritual reality. In a sense, Jesus' explanation here for his use of parables to the crowds suggests Judgment - a fitting topic for this new tone of the His ministry, in which we are given to understand that there is opposition to him, those who do not wish to hear. Our receptivity is reflected in understanding. If the door in our hearts is open, more will be received. If the heart is "hard," then perception is not only blocked, but will diminish. Jesus' words here stress his own emphasis on the responsibility within each of us to make the choice to develop this capacity for perception, on our own desires and zeal for this understanding. We are not infants in the sense of needing to be spoonfed and dragged along to an understanding; on the contrary, we are adults in the sense of responsibility for cultivating our own desire for spiritual reality and our capacity for perception of it. In this sense, we each stand as individuals: Jesus is separating each person in the crowd into his or her own capacity for receiving what he's offering.

With them indeed is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah that says:

“You will indeed listen, but never understand,

and you will indeed look, but never perceive.

For this people’s heart has grown dull,

and their ears are hard of hearing,

and they have shut their eyes;

so that they might not look with their eyes,

and listen with their ears,

and understand with their heart and turn—

and I would heal them.”

There is once again an emphasis here on personal responsibility. Although Jesus is speaking to the crowds, and has named an "adulterous generation" that demanded a sign, there are clearly those in the crowds who will understand and those who will not, with varying degrees of apprehension in between. There are those who will desire more, and those for whom all interest will fade. But clearly, elaborating from Jesus' words about the "adulterous generation that seeks a sign," there is an expectation that people will be drawn in not simply by his words but by their own desire for understanding and zeal for spiritual reality - it is up to us to respond in relationship to Him.

As the tone of Matthew's gospel shifts from great feats of power and an acclaimed public ministry, extended through his disciples, to the growing opposition and plotting against Jesus, we are coming to an understanding that each of us stands in a place in relationship to Jesus. That is, everyone will not automatically understand nor accept these teachings. There will be great variety among us all, as among the crowds to whom he is preaching. Our own receptivity depends also upon our desires and choices. And surely we must note the idea of growth and change expressed by Jesus: 'For to those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.' We always stand in relationship that can grow and change. At any moment we have the opportunity to cultivate that relationship and our desire for it, to cultivate our heart's receptivity and our capacity to understand. We have been told to "ask, and it will be given to you."

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. Truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it.

And this is yet another new note that appears here in the context of our understanding of the realities of the spiritual kingdom. Jesus' presence and his ministry in the world heralds new capacities being opened via grace. Many prophets and righteous people have desired to see what the disciples see, and did not attain it despite their zeal. We again recall the thanks Jesus has given for things the Father has chosen to reveal to "infants" and yet hidden from the wise and intelligent. There is a new time opening up - surprising, seemingly, even to Jesus himself. Part of the "breaking in" of the kingdom into the world is this new nature of revelation and understanding. Those who sincerely desired in the past did not receive what his followers, the pure in heart, are now able to receive and to understand. And we know from the fullness of scripture that in the story that will unfold from here, this aspect of grace will grow among us.

If we think closely about these words, they indicate a wonderful change happening in the world as a product of his ministry and the grace that accompanies it. Truths are being revealed not merely to those in high places and among the specially educated, but rather revealed to the pure in heart. From Jesus' words, we must understand that this is a deep shift in the reality of spiritual perception and practice in the world. It is a revelation of a new nature of spiritual reality of the kingdom interacting with us in our world, a grace.

So, how does this translate to you, to us, now in our time? I think we are to understand that we are still in this period of spiritual reality in our world initiated through this ministry and its particular properties of grace. My study bible notes on this passage: "When one has zeal, he will be given more from God. But if he does not use what he has, and fails to participate in the life of the kingdom, God's gifts will be taken away." So how do we participate and cultivate these gifts? Clearly the conditions of the heart - as illustrated by the parable of the Sower, have something to do with our capacity to receive and use this spiritual understanding. The state of our inner spiritual lives - the soil that receives the seed, and the care with which we cultivate its growth - really counts in this picture. So how do we cultivate our good ground? How do we nurture what we have so that it grows to abundance? And what constitutes neglect, so that we lose even that which we have?