The message and the messenger

Luke 16:31  "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.' "

Jesus is telling the story here of the rich man who was agonizing in hell.  The man asked Abraham to allow him to go back to earth as a dead man and warn his five brothers of the fate that awaits them if they do not repent.  He believes that, although they have not responded to Moses and the prophets, something more dramatic like hearing from a dead man will get the message across.

Abraham's response says that it is not the means in which a message is delivered that causes us to hear it and respond appropriately.  If our ears and our hearts are not receptive, no amount of theatrics will change that.  Besides, it really isn't within our control to be receptive anyway.  The Holy Spirit circumsizes our ears and our hearts.  We become receptive to the message only when the Holy Spirit allows it to happen.

A positive response may seem like a measured, reasoned act on our part that we are solely in control of.  But we really only receive what the Spirit allows us to receive.  Pray for the Spirit to allow us to hear truth, not for a different messenger to deliver it more effectively.