Sarah Churman makes a lot of people cry. Not because she’s intentionally cruel or violent, and not because of anything she says or does, but because she can hear. That’s all. People cry because Mrs. Churman can hear. Millions of people have watched her listen to stuff, and a lot of them have cried because of it. They just can’t help themselves. It’s overwhelming.
In case you’re not one of the 27M who’ve seen the video, Sarah was born deaf (as the story goes), and at age 29 received a cochlear implant that allowed her to hear clearly for the first time. That moment was captured on film and uploaded to YouTube for the whole world to watch. And when they did, many of them, like Sarah herself, couldn’t help but to cry.
The reason a situation like that can be so emotional is because we all know that people were meant to hear, so we’re sad when they can’t. Deafness is hugely problematic in many ways. It so severely impedes communication with the hearing population that the deaf oftentimes form their own communities and develop their own culture with their own set of social beliefs, behaviors, art, literary traditions, history, & values that are influenced by their handicap. Deafness also endangers, because wherever warnings are made audibly (as they often are; sirens, alarms, screaming, etc.), such warnings will be missed; undetected by the unhearing ear. Moreover, deafness stifles wonder, because so much of our world is enjoyed through the ears: Instrumentation & song, the chirping of birds, a reassuring voice. Deafness, in many ways, is tragic.
No one as far as I’m aware wishes they were deaf. And I would imagine that the deaf would gladly choose to hear if given the choice. That’s why the response to one gaining the ability to hear, especially after having lived so long without, is so universally emotional & joyous.
Spiritual Deafness
Peter had already been busy in the discipleship community for a couple of years by the time he made the “Great Confession” in Matthew 16:16. He had taught bible studies, served at tables, participated in missions…all common activities for the average disciple of Christ. He was submissive to his leader Jesus, he was keeping pace with his peers, and he was learning plenty along the way. But something was still amiss…Peter couldn’t hear.
Sheer obedience, by itself, isn’t enough to impress Jesus
The “Rock” (as he was called) needed a personal translator in life issues, and so Jesus quickly became his Linguist. As long as he had someone around to tell him exactly what to do and how to do it, Peter was ok. If Jesus sent him into the mission field, he’d go (Mt.10). When Jesus told him what to do out there, he did it (v.5-6). If he was assigned to preach, he would preach, if to heal, he’d heal (v.7-8). He would bring everything that was on the ‘packing list’ and nothing more (v.9-10). Peter was like some people in the modern church who literally won’t move a muscle unless they’re prompted by their spiritual leader…and once they’re given the ‘green light’, nothing is going to stop them. They’ll risk their very life if they have to (see Mt.14:28-30 for a very vivid display of this kind of attitude). Needless to say, Peter’s obedience was remarkable, a thing to be envied by fellow disciples, and perhaps something he prided himself on. But sheer obedience, by itself, wasn’t enough to impress or to please Jesus. Quite the opposite in fact (see Mt.14:31). Without his Interpreter, Peter was sunk, and Jesus was unnerved by that reality.
From Silence to Sound
What Jesus was looking for in Peter was a “change-over” of sorts. A conversion from spiritual immaturity to adulthood whereby he no longer needed someone else to dictate his beliefs and make his decisions for him. A transition from blind confidence in his earthly Instructor, to full trust in a Heavenly Father. And this was one lesson that Jesus wasn’t allowed to teach. For Peter’s own good, this one had to come from God Himself. Some conclusions are meant to be made on your own, between you and God alone, so to let someone else do all your thinking for you on important decisions like these is extremely dangerous. Jesus wouldn’t even do that for the Apostle. As much as He loved him, Jesus refused to hold Peter’s hand and tell him, step by step, what to believe, for that would have been to enable him further in the very habit He was hoping to break him from. He wouldn’t do it for Peter…He won’t do it for you.
Some conclusions are meant to be made on your own, between you and God alone
When Peter’s deafness finally ended and he uttered his first words as a hearing man (Mt.16:16), Jesus responded emphatically: “How blessed you are Simon!” (v.17). Jesus wasn’t merely excited because Peter gave the correct answer, but because he was finally being directed by God more than he was being influenced by what others were telling him: “This truth did not come to you from any human being, but it was given to you directly by my Father in heaven” (GNT). It excites Jesus to see His disciples graduate from their dependence upon man to a reliance upon God. Jesus had never explicitly told His disciples that He was the Son of God. He couldn’t. It wouldn’t have been good for them. Yet, by God’s grace, & according to His perfect plan, Peter eventually came to that understanding without the help of anybody else except God. It might’ve taken a while, but Peter could finally hear. Good for him.
Christ’s Hope for You
Doing what you’re told is good if you’re a child. Every parent appreciates an obedient youngster just as every pastor appreciates a compliant disciple. But as the years pass, even children are expected to function without the same coaching they received as a juvenile. And when they don’t, mom & dad start getting nervous. Hearing God is a critical part of the Christian life, and to be a well-trained member of the church, without ever maturing beyond the need for your hand to be held at every step, wasn’t what Jesus wanted for Peter, and it isn’t what He wants for you.
It’s not hard to find people in our fellowship who wish they had someone around all the time to tell them exactly what to do & say & believe, but that’s unhealthy. Sooner or later you’ll need to enter in to Christian adulthood and wean yourself from a “godly-council-only” diet. You’ll need to learn how to hear God for yourself & come to your own conclusions. I can only imagine how Peter’s life would’ve turned out had this ‘change-over’ never taken place in him. I’ve known people who, like Peter, spent years in the discipleship community, keeping pace with everyone else, setting the example of Christian obedience. But they never developed the ability to “hear from God” for themselves on important matters. And they died.
Hearing from God is a critical part of the Christian life
You may have a mentor, and you may go to your Christian kin for advice now and then. You might appreciate the wise counsel & insight of your pastors and elders, which is just fine. Truly, to negate the value of earthly help is foolish, and to reject godly advice is pride to the hilt. Surely, Jesus had something of value to offer Peter during their time together on earth. But we, like Peter, also need something that no human teacher or leader can provide us with: Ears to hear. As helpful as a godly man or woman can be in getting you through the sticky mess of this life, they are no substitute for God.
So how old are you? How many years has it been since you began your journey of discipleship? Can you hear God yet? Because that’s what Jesus is waiting for, and that’s what we’re hoping to see in you as well. Spiritual deafness is tragic. That’s why, when someone finally hears God’s voice on their own, for the very first time in their Christian life, it’s such an overwhelming joy for the rest of the family. Almost enough to make you cry.