Many of us can relate to Amulek, one of the lesser known people in the Book of Mormon. After Amulek joined Alma in preaching the gospel to the people of Ammonihah he shared his conversion story with the people and made this profound statement.
“…for I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know; therefore I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart,” (Alma 10:6)
When I read the portion of this verse that stated “I would not hear”, I immediately thought of a similar scripture in Matthew 11:15
15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. (Matthew 11:15)
This commandment to “Let him hear” is interesting in light of the discussion in the 121st section of the Doctrine and Covenants starting in verse 34.
Many are called but few are chosen. Why? Because of their hearts. What’s wrong with their hearts? They are set on the things of this world and they aspire to the honors of men. What are the things of this world? The things of this world is anything you can buy with money.
That is exactly what exactly what Amulek was saying. His heart was clouded with wickedness and he would not (or could not) hear the call.
Consider this quote by Elder Kim B. Clark about having ears that hear.
“If we will look to Christ and open our eyes and our ears, the Holy Ghost will bless us to see the Lord Jesus Christ working in our lives, strengthening our faith in Him with assurance and evidence. We increasingly will see all of our brothers and sisters the way God sees them, with love and compassion. We will hear the Savior’s voice in the scriptures, in the whisperings of the Spirit, and in the words of the living prophets. We will see the power of God resting upon His prophet and all the leaders of His true and living Church, and we will know with a surety that this is God’s holy work. We will see and understand ourselves and the world around us the way the Savior does. We will come to have what the Apostle Paul called “the mind of Christ.” We will have eyes to see and ears to hear, and we will build the kingdom of God.” (Kim B. Clark, “Eyes to See and Ears to Hear”, October 2015 LDS General Conference)