In his epoch-making treatise, On the Origin of Species (1859), Charles Darwin spoke in chapter one of the variations and adaptations among animals resulting from the influence of man. For example, he wrote, “Not a single domestic animal can be named which has not in some country drooping ears; and the view suggested by some authors, that the drooping is due to the disuse of the muscles of the ear, from the animals not being much alarmed by danger, seems probable” (p. 11).

In this article I am not going to argue for or against the reliability of Darwin’s speculations; but the idea of animals whose ears droop because they no longer sense any danger and are being continually looked after is very suggestive to me. If you will pardon the analogy, I would like to ask a question: Do your ears droop?

Drooping ears - in domesticated animals at least - suggests heedlessness and carelessness due to the absence of danger and the presence of protection and provision. But what about drooping ears among believers? How do you explain our failure to listen to God, to heed His warnings and to care for the things He tells us to care about?

In the Scriptures, we are frequently pictured as sheep. I know very little about sheep from personal experience; but those who do know them have written entire volumes to explain the comparison of believers to sheep. Sheep are dumb animals (doesn’t that make you feel good?). Sheep stink (feeling better now?). Sheep are weak, unable to defend themselves, and they are slow (bet you’re sticking your chest out now!). And sheep don’t have a keen sense of direction. They can get lost easily if not watched over by a shepherd. (Got the “big head” now, don’t you?)

Jesus, calling Himself the “Good Shepherd,” said that His “sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t recognize the voice of strangers.” (John 10:4-5 HCSB) In ancient Palestine, sheep were most often raised for wool and not for food. Consequently, shepherds and sheep developed a special relationship over time. The shepherd would often name his sheep; he knew each sheep individually, and the sheep knew the shepherd’s voice and distinguished it from that of anyone else. Shepherds often developed a language in which they communicated with his sheep.

After a visit to Palestine decades ago, author H. V. Morton penned this description of shepherds: "He talks to [his sheep] in a sing-song voice, using a language unlike anything I have heard in my life. The words were animal sounds arranged in a kind of order . . . a language the great god Pan might have spoken on the mountains of Greece." Several flocks of sheep might be watering at the same watering hole when one of the shepherds would begin his sing-song chant. All the sheep would raise their ears, but only those belonging to that shepherd would leave the water and follow that voice. The rest - not recognizing that voice - would continue watering until their own shepherd began his familiar chant; then they would follow him. The flocks were mingled and indistinguishable; but they were never lost, confused, or forgotten.

A Christian with drooping ears is one who feels so secure he has stopped listening to the Shepherd’s voice. It is one thing to know we have a Good Shepherd; it is another thing to take Him for granted and to cease listening to His call.

Jesus said emphatically, “My sheep hear My voice, I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish - ever! No one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one” (John 10:27-30 HCSB).

Many Evangelicals say that this passage teaches the “security of believers,” i.e., the truth that those who really belong to Christ can never be lost again. I believe that as much as any doctrine in Scripture. Christ saves and He keeps us; therefore, I am secure in Him.

However, that doctrine can be easily prostituted into a cheap idea equivalent to “now I don’t have to worry about anything since I can never lose my relationship to Christ.” The deleterious effects of that kind of thinking are heedlessness and carelessness. In short, we can develop drooping ears. Convinced of our Shepherd’s protection and oblivious to any potential danger, we stop listening to His voice.

Now for the punch line - and the conclusion. One reason God allows problems, crises, adversity, and danger to come into our lives is to make us raise our ears, listen for His voice, and run to His side. When problems come - and they are inevitable - we must perk up our ears and listen for guidance. A Christian who is continually facing challenges (and which of us is not) should have perky ears since the spiritual muscles that control our spiritual ears are toned and taut.

Call it a paradox if you want to, but healthy Christian sheep are both secure and they are constantly listening to the Shepherd’s voice for guidance and warning. He speaks because He loves us. He speaks because we are weak, wayward, wandering, and wanton. We listen because we have learned by painful experience the trouble we can get into when our ears droop.

Yolanda Adams wrote these lyrics:

Because He knows just what we need, we should listen to His voice. Perky ears are certain evidence of a careful, watchful, listening believer.

Alan Day, Senior Pastor