Why do some people some people love the word of God and
others ignore it? Is it only a matter of belief or unbelief? Actually, it has
more to do with the heart than you might think!
Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, so that
“they may indeed see but not perceive,
and may indeed hear but not understand,
lest they should turn and be forgiven.”
And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
WHY PARABLES?
Mark presents Jesus’ actions more than His words. Chapter 4
begins one of two extended sections of teaching in Mark. And Jesus’ teaching is
given in parables. But why parables?
Remember, the last chapter ended with Jesus’ mother and
brothers coming to bring Him home, back to his senses, because some in the town
were saying that He was out of his mind. Then the Scribes had publically
accused Jesus of working miracles under the power of the prince of demons—an
act of sorcery that by the Law of Moses was punishable by death.
Jesus was surrounded by a large crowd—so much so that he had
taught from a boat so that his voice would carry across the water. There are
several spots on Sea of Galilee that are like a natural amphitheater. But Mark’s
Gospel, the crowd plays as one the main characters. Sometimes the crowd is like
His fan club, and sometimes the crowd is his worst friendenemy. They will
eventually chant for his crucifixion!
In his wisdom, Jesus begins to teach in parables, He said,
“To you has been given the secret
of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, so that
‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand,
lest they should turn and be forgiven” (v.11-12).
To the disciples, those who were truly following Jesus, the
truths of the Kingdom of God are revealed. This is by the illuminating work of
the Holy Spirit. But to those who will not receive the word, they will see and
they will hear, but they will understand. They will not be given the
illumination of the Holy Spirit.—As a result, they will not turn and they will
not be forgiven their sins.
The hard fact is, that we need the illumination of the Holy
Spirit to show us the truth of God, but the Holy Spirit will not illuminate
hard hearts—So Jesus’ first parable explains the effect of God’s word of four
types of hearts in the Parable of the Sower.
THE SEED—THE WORD OF GOD!
Jesus explains that the seed is the word of God. If you
think about it, seeds are amazing little things. The seed contains all the DNA
of the plant encased in its shell. This shell can last for years, until the
conditions are ready for it to sprout and grow into a plant and eventually give
fruit.
Throughout the Bible, God’s word is compared to seeds,
listen to Isaiah,
“For as the rain
and the snow come down from heaven
and do not
return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
giving seed to
the sower and bread to the eater,
So shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
It shall not
return to me empty,
But it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
And shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11).
God’s word is not
just empty words. This Bible is not just a history book, or a book of
religious thought, it is alive and
active! It has been inspired by God!
It has been sent out into the world by God and it will accomplish the purposes
for which He sent it! This word will not return to him void! The word gives light in darkness! The word give life! The word bears fruit!
1. THE SEED THAT FELL ALONG THE PATH IS A PICTURE OF THE HARD HEART
Some of the seed sown fell along the path, where the soil is
hard. The birds just come and devour the seed before it can enter the hard
soil. This is the soil of the hard heart. The birds are Satan. He loves to
devour the seed before it can enter the soil of the hard hearted! If your heart
is hard towards God—Satan wants to keep it that way!
2. THE SEED THAT FELL UNTO ROCKY GROUND IS THE PICTURE OF THE SHALLOW HEART
Some of the seed that was sown fell among the rocky ground.
There was depth of soil, so the seed sprouted without roots. When the sun rose,
the seedling withered away.
Others, when they hear the word of God, receive it will joy.
But because they have not developed roots, the joy only last for a season,
until trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
3. THE SEED THAT FELL AMONG THE THORNS IS THE PICTURE OF THE DIVIDED HEART
Some of the seed that was sown fell among the thorns. The
thorns grew up around the seedlings and choked it, so it yielded no grain.
Still, others, when they hear the word of God, the cares of
this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, the desire for other things come in and
choke the word until it becomes unfruitful.
4. THE SEED THAT FELL INTO GOOD SOIL IS THE PICTURE OF THE FRUITFUL HEART
Finally, some of the seed that was sown fell into good soil.
This seed produced grain, growing up it increased and yielded thirtyfold,
sixtyfold, and a hundredfold.
Yet others, when they hear the word, they receive it, and
produce a crop thirtyfold, sixtyfold, or a hundredfold.
HOW TO HAVE A HUNDREDFOLD YIELD IN YOUR LIFE!
In this parable the seed is the ‘word’ of God. This is not
just a parabolic symbol that Jesus used to explain the nature of the soul of
man, but it also explains the life-giving qualities of the word of God! These
qualities were seen in the OT and was echoed throughout the NT.
“Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree
Planted by streams of water
That yields
its fruit in its season,
And its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,
But are like the chaff that the wind drives
away” (Ps 1:1-4).
Have you taken seriously the
words of God? Have you considered the Gospel? Do you make God’s Word a priority
in your life? Reading and listening to God’s word is to receive the seeds.
Meditation throughout the week is to nurture his word in your heart—I promise
you this—If you will nurture God’s word in your heart, God will make your whole
life fruitful with meaning and purpose! If you will nurture his seed with meditation,
He will make sure that your heart will not wither. You will find your life to become prosperous!
No comments:
Post a Comment