Mark 4:1-20

Please take out your copy of God's Word and turn to the Gospel of Mark chapter 4.

Mark 4 · chapter mention

As you're doing that, you've heard it said already that we had our men's retreat this weekend,

and everyone's a bit tired from that. I'm feeling this as well. My soul is very awake this morning,

and glad to be here. I'm trying to get my mind and my body to catch up to that. So,

if at any time during the sermon I just suddenly fall asleep and fall over on the stage,

what I want you to do is drag me by my feet to the back corner, put the chair rack in front so

no one steps on me and just leave me alone. Wes will come up and maybe do an extra song,

and we'll close the service up that way. But I'm sure by grace I'll stay standing in this process.

We finally find ourselves back in Mark. We ended up taking a little bit of a three-week

hiatus from it. Not really intentionally, but previously when we were in Mark we talked about

what the purpose of the parables were. We looked in chapter 4 verses 10 through 12, and we saw how

it was that Jesus used these parables. He laid these truths that were understood to them alongside

greater truth to help them understand it in expanding degrees. And that the parables were designed,

as we can see as he quotes here, from Isaiah chapter 6, there in verse 12, to both conceal and reveal

Isaiah 6 · chapter mention

things about the kingdom of God, this gospel message that he was preaching.

So we did that together, and now we're going to actually back up a little bit and look at verses

1 through 20. So join me reading along as I read out loud.

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, 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 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

parable, 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 one who, when they hear the word,

immediately receives 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 the 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. Please join me in praying.

Father, we praise you this morning for Christ, and we praise you for your word to us in the scriptures

that speaks of the word of God who became flesh, who came and dwelt amongst us, who lived a sinless life

on our behalf, bore your wrath for us who will believe in him, that we might have life and be set free

from the bondage and slavery of sin. We praise you for the gospel of Mark, and the opportunity to look at

the life of Christ as recorded here by Mark, who was carried along by your spirit. We accept this this

morning as your word to us. It is holy, and we come to you in reverence, asking that you work change in

our lives by its power, and we pray this in Christ's name. Amen. So we find Jesus again, likely close to

Capernaum on the northwest side of the Sea of Galilee, and he has gone out again in more remote places, but

these big crowds keep following him, and we see this kind of repeatedly throughout the story here. And so

Mark pauses at this point to set a little bit of a scene for us. He gets into a boat. He goes out a ways

into the water so that the crowd isn't pressing in on him so much, where he can stop performing miracles,

which validated the message, and preach. He got out and he began to teach them. And the gospel of Mark,

I've said to you before, is a work of rhetoric. It's a work. Mark's intention as he's writing by the

power of the Spirit is to access our hearts through our minds to have us be devoted followers of Jesus

Christ. And it's action-packed. He moves, and he moves very quickly through the events that are

happening in Jesus' life. But he pauses on a couple of occasions to record his teaching at length,

particularly chapter 4 and chapter 13. We see Jesus dropping truth along the way in the midst of

these stories, but he really stops and pauses in these places, which should give us reason to stop

and pause and really question how is it that this teaching, how is it that this parable in particular

is incredibly important. This parable is recorded in all three of the Synoptic Gospels, along with Jesus'

explanation. It's one of the few parables that we get a recorded explanation of exactly what it means.

Quite fascinating to come to a text. Often I come to a text and I have to get its bearing, try to

understand what it means, and then say, okay, now we know what it means. What does it mean for our

people? And Jesus just does the work for me here, right? We know exactly what it means, right? He tells

us. He continues his sermon. He goes right on. And so the challenge before us today is then to

apply it as well into our lives. Notice verse 13. As he responds to his apostles, we kind of see two

settings. By the sea, he's preaching from the water. And then later on, when he was alone, his disciples

come to him and ask him this question about parables. And he says to them in verse 13, do you not

understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? So this kind of seems to be a

paradigm-shifting parable. We must understand this one if we're going to get the others right.

And so it's a parable about soils. This would have been a very commonly understood parable. The general

population would have got this symbolism, this agrarian symbolism. So the challenge before us is

to say, okay, this is an important parable. By it, we must understand other parables. So what does it

mean for us? What does it mean for us today? And I want to give you two objectives of this parable

that means something for us today. Firstly, to have us question which type of soil we are.

In the parable, Jesus is the sower. We find him in this stage in his ministry right now,

going about sowing the Word, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. And he says to us that there

are types of soil. And those are those who hear the message of God. And so we must ask ourselves,

which type of soil we are. This is the greatest question we could ask. How do we find ourselves in

the category that will be damned for eternity because of our sin against the most holy God?

Or those who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ? You must answer that question this morning.

We are commended in the Scriptures to test our faith. Do that today as you reflect upon these

different types of soils? Our fruitfulness matters a great deal. We want to find ourselves as good soil.

Those who have received the Word and who have bore fruit thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.

The fruit matters. Our salvation is a great work of grace that Christ has bought on our behalf.

We cannot earn our salvation in any way, but yet the fruit is the evidence of the work of God in our lives.

So it matters. Matthew 3.8, Jesus says,

Bear fruit in keeping with repentance, in evidence of your repentance.

And later in Matthew 12, verse 33, He said that a tree is known by its fruit.

Matthew 12:33

Good trees produce good fruit. Bad trees produce bad fruit.

At the end of chapter 3, we looked at kind of some beginning parable, but there's a lot of activity happening

as He's likely back in Capernaum.

And we see an interaction with a number of different types of people here.

And He's elaborating. Mark, being led by the Spirit, is giving us this parable

in following the way He's treated by His family, as He's treated as a lunatic.

They come to Him, if you look back up in verse 21 of chapter 3,

and when His family heard it, that He was back in town, they went out to seize Him,

for they were saying, He is out of His mind.

Then we see Him interacting with the scribes, who thinks that He's a liar.

He's saying that He's the Son of God, and they're saying,

You can't possibly be the Son of God. You are working by Satan.

And then we see those that He recognizes are His mother and His brothers and His sisters,

in verse 34 and 35, those who do the will of His Father.

John 6.4, He says,

For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him

should have eternal life.

So, our faith is not merely an outward activity.

Thousands of people were following Him around,

but they followed Him for the benefits that He could provide for them.

They wanted to be healed, or they wanted to see healing happen.

They wanted demons cast out, or they wanted to see that happen.

It was a spectacle that was going on.

And many people today, and you may find yourself in this position,

that you follow Jesus for what you think He can offer you,

in this world, but not for what He actually came to offer.

And that was the redemption of our souls.

I love you, Dad.

This is why we come to Christ, for the redemption of our souls.

And we receive immense blessing in Him.

Immense, immeasurable blessing.

But often not the way we think.

You don't follow Jesus for a new car or financial success.

The prosperity gospel is damning untold millions to hell.

They're just air conditioning the trip there.

That is not the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We must ask ourselves, if we're good soil,

do we have the seed of the Word in us,

and is it producing fruit as evidence of that?

Secondly, if we are good soil,

this parable helps to prepare us for the way the world will receive the gospel of grace.

If you want to complicate the parable a bit,

you certainly can,

to say that we're now sowers,

sowing the Word.

I like to think that Jesus is still the sower,

and He uses us as His tools of sowing seed,

right?

Spreading the Word amongst the world.

And not all people are going to receive the Word the way we would hope that they would.

The way we think they ought to.

And this is to help us to understand what that's going to look like.

Because the major task of every disciple of Christ is to sow seed.

This is it.

You want to know God's will for your life?

Believe in Him,

and sow seeds so that others might believe in Him.

This is the task that has been given to us.

Many people call it the Great Commission.

Properly, aptly called that thing.

In fact, all the instruction that we receive in the Scriptures about holy living,

the ways in which we ought to glorify God,

is giving validation to that message.

The same way that Jesus went around and healed people,

and showed that He had a power from above,

validated His message,

is what we do as we love one another,

as we live holy lives,

as we put to death sin,

as we pursue righteousness,

all of these things validate this primary thing of sowing seed,

sowing the Word in the world.

This is the primary task.

We are to propagate to the glory of God.

Propagate to the glory of God.

Sow seed so that others might bear fruit.

I think it's behind me.

I'm pretty sure it is.

Our vision statement for our church.

That we exist to glorify God

by experiencing,

proclaiming,

and displaying the supremacy of Jesus Christ

in all things to all peoples.

That is our way of saying

that in all of our activity,

our experience,

in our proclamation,

and the things we do together,

we are to show Jesus Christ as supreme.

To show Him as He is.

To sow the Word in the world,

in everything we do,

to the ends of the earth.

I hope that you're working on memorizing

this statement.

It's there for you.

Remember it.

Remember it.

The Canons of Dort,

which quite interestingly,

was the response to Arminianism.

So,

if you got a little bit uncomfortable

with the song we sang beforehand,

and if you get uncomfortable

with this particular parable here,

a group of men met together

to look at the claims of Jacob Arminius,

and they wrote responses to that.

We often call them

the doctrines of grace,

but in the Canons of Dort,

it said it this way.

The Word should be declared

and published to all nations

and to all persons

promiscuously

and without distinction.

I love that.

Right?

Promiscuously,

the Word should be sown.

Massive handfuls of seed

thrown everywhere.

This is our response

to this great gospel of grace.

I challenge you when you get home,

next time you're on your computer,

type into Google

evangelism methods that work.

Just watch the stuff that pops up.

Watch the stuff that pops up in that.

We have,

as American Christians,

I believe with the best of intention,

try to come up with

our own methodologies

for how it is

that Jesus saves souls.

Right?

We don't want there to be

any types of soil.

Right?

We want to say there's one type of soil,

and if we can just be convincing enough,

right,

if we can just get the game

just right,

and what we end up doing

is we end up modifying

the seed itself.

Right?

It no longer becomes

the seed of the kingdom of God.

It becomes some weird distortion of it

that has no value

that will ultimately be

ripped up by its roots

and thrown into the fire.

Right?

It doesn't produce more fruit.

It's not the thing

that's good for nourishment.

I was thinking about this

this past week,

and I just started thinking

about all of the

genetically modified food

that we eat these days,

and we could go off

on a big,

huge tangent about that,

but there's lots

of genetically modified foods,

and they are modified

to produce better,

to make more.

We may never see

this side of heaven,

the effects that's having

on our bodies,

drought resistant,

different things like that,

but I came across

a story of Monsanto,

which is a bad word

in some circles,

an organization

that had genetically

modified some wheat

that they found

to be incredibly bad,

and it was discovered

just this past year

on a farm in Oregon.

They had withdrawn it,

weren't sending it anymore,

but it somehow was found

that this plant was growing

on this farm in Oregon,

and as a result of that,

our wheat export

was boycotted by Japan,

South Korea,

and Taiwan

at the tune of $8.1 billion.

in revenue

this past year.

They recognized

that this was not

weak as it should be,

and they rejected it.

And here we find ourselves

as Americans

modifying the gospel,

right,

and then exporting it

all over the world.

And we're finding

that there are places

that are rejecting

much of the gospel,

the modified gospel

that comes out

of America.

Praise God

that there are countries

that are now

being missionaries

to the states.

South Koreans

are a good example

of that,

who have said,

what an evil,

wicked place

that needs the light

of Christ.

We will go there

and preach the gospel

to those people.

Fantastic.

Absolutely fantastic.

You remember these people,

the people that Jesus

is talking to here,

his disciples,

had much messianic expectation.

Right?

They were waiting

for the Christ.

They didn't know

that this was him

in various forms

quite yet,

but they were waiting

for him to come.

They knew the messianic

prophecies.

They were expecting

Jesus to come

to be a king

who would restore

the Davidic dynasty

and usher in a time

of justice

and peace.

And he will,

but it just didn't happen

the way they thought

that it would.

They were oppressed

by Rome.

They thought he was

going to come,

put Rome back

in its place,

restore the glory

of the Davidic kingdom.

They were familiar

with Isaiah 9, 6, and 7.

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given,

and the government

shall be upon his shoulders,

and his name shall be called

Wonderful Counselor,

Mighty God,

Everlasting Father,

Prince of Peace.

Of the increase

of his government

and of peace

there will be no end

on the throne of David

and over his kingdom

to establish it

and to uphold it

with justice

and with righteousness

from this time forth

and forevermore.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts,

will do this.

Jesus Christ has,

in fact,

restored the

Davidic dynasty.

He was in the lineage

of David

and he has come

and he's reigned.

He's seated now

at the right hand of the Father

and he reigns in our hearts.

The kingdom of God

looked much different

than they thought it would.

And here he is

setting up

a paradigm-shifting parable

to understand

what this would look like.

You see why this is

really important

for us to get

as followers of Christ.

As evidence of this,

in Luke chapter 12,

Luke 12:23

verse 23,

his record ends.

Someone who was following

said to him,

Lord,

will those who are saved

be few?

Will those who are saved

be few?

Here's the parable

that helps us

to understand

what's going on

and happening

in this world.

I said to you before

this agricultural symbolism

may be a little bit

lost on us,

but they totally understood it.

This was an agrarian society.

And they got this parable

both physically and mentally.

And let me explain

what I mean by that.

Physically,

they got the picture.

They understood

what he was talking about

as he talked about

this field

and what it meant

to sow seed.

We talked previously

at the end of chapter 2

when the disciples

and Jesus

are chastised

for picking the heads

of wheat

and walking

and eating.

And I told you

that there were paths

that kind of crisscrossed

around the edges

of these fields.

And this is where

people traveled.

They have highways

that they were traveling on.

They would walk

these beaten paths

between the fields.

And it was permissible

by law

that you could gather

as you were walking along.

So the person

sojourning through

the country

could gather and eat

as they went along.

And this is what

they were attacked for

was doing that

on the Sabbath.

So these fields

were set up

in some form of a grid

and had these hard

paths around it.

And the fields

would be tilled.

Much the same way

we do now,

but we do it

with big machinery.

They would till

the fields up

so you would have

had a nice big blank

plot of land

with the soil

turned up

ready to go

and they would

sow seed

in a bag.

They would put it

in a bag,

carry it over their

shoulder,

and they would

cast the seed

like this.

Any of you

have ever done that?

I've seeded a lawn

that way,

hand seeding a lawn.

And you threw it

out there.

And you can't,

you can kind of

control where it goes,

but if you want

it to get to the edges,

you've definitely

got to do some

overlapping.

It's got to play out

a little bit

beyond that.

They would have

totally understood.

The picture of this

would have been

in their heads.

They possibly could

have looked at

somebody doing it.

Jesus may have.

Jesus may have

seen somebody doing it

and said,

I've got one for them.

The sign of a natural

teacher is that

they've always got

some beautiful analogy

to speak about

something of a

greater truth.

These people also

would have known

of the promises

of God,

which were very

agrarian in their

symbolism,

of Psalm 126,

Jeremiah chapter 31,

Jeremiah 31 · chapter mention

Hosea chapter 2.

Hosea 2 · chapter mention

Spend some time

looking at those.

They also would have

known of some

of the symbolism

of the judgment

of God using

these kind of

agrarian symbols.

Isaiah chapter 34

Isaiah 34 · chapter mention

is an example of that.

So it was a very

timely way for him

to speak to these

people.

Note that there

are six soils.

Don't spend a ton

of time racking

your brain about six.

I think you counted

four already.

Don't spend a bunch

of time thinking

about that.

I'll get you to

that point here

readily.

But let's talk

one by one

about these

different soils.

Firstly,

we see the soil

that is along

the path.

The soil that's

at the edge

of the path.

The part that

would have been

beaten down.

The person that

didn't walk down

the middle of the

path but walked

a little off to

the edge of the

path would have

beat the ground

down quite well.

We see that in

verse 4 and then

the explanation of

it in verse 15.

This would have

been hard.

Hard packed.

Hard as a rock.

This area of the

world is very dry

for most of the

year.

Nothing's saturating.

Our paths would

have been mud

here in Georgia.

But in this place

it would have been

hard as a rock.

As if it was

paved.

And so we see

verse 4 that he

sows it and some

of it falls onto

the path.

And immediately

the birds follow

the sower along

and they snatch

it up.

It's food for

them and they

eat it.

In verse 15

we see that this

is Satan.

Comes and takes

the word away

that they might

not believe.

In the same

account in Luke

Luke 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8

I like the

language here

in verse 15

of chapter 4

it says

and takes away

the word that

is sown in

them.

In Luke

Luke 8 · chapter mention

chapter 8

it says

the ones along

the path of

those who

have heard

then the devil

comes and

takes away

the word

from their

hearts

so that it

may not

believe

and be

saved.

One thing

for us

just to hear

the word

in our

heads

but the

word must

come down

and penetrate

into our

hearts.

It must

plant itself

in us

and for

these people

this word

is snatched

away

before they

can believe.

Secondly

we see

the rocky

ground

in verses

5 and

6

and then

the

explanation

in verses

16 and

17.

It falls

on the rocky

ground

where it

didn't have

much soil

and immediately

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.

Now the

picture here

is not

that there's

rocks on

the surface

or that

there's

chunks of

rock in

the soil.

They would

have fixed

that.

They wouldn't

have let

that remain

in their

field but

that there

was rock

underneath

the soil.

That they

had tilled

it.

It looked

good and

fine on

the surface

so the

seed was

sown there.

But there's

rock down

below that

prevented those

roots from

going down

deep.

And again

in this area

it's very

arid and

roots had to

go down.

They had to

get down

deep into

where the

water table

would be

when the

water was

before they

could start

putting up

height.

If you don't

know much

about plants

that's the

first thing

that plants

do.

When you put a

seed in the

ground it

sends out

roots first

that it

might have

nourishment.

Then it

begins putting

energy into

setting up

the stalk

and setting

it up

above the

ground.

So in this

case they

would have

looked out

across the

field and

they would

have had

all their

little plants

and wheat

maybe in

this case

coming up.

But these

plants would

have come

up higher

and they

would have

known.

Planted that

one on

rock.

Because they

would have

jumped up.

They would

have sprung

up even

higher because

the plant

not able to

!

Put roots

down any

deeper.

would have

been putting

all its

energy into

shooting a

stalk up

high.

And those

things would

have certainly

been pulled

out and

burned.

It would

have been

pointless.

It would

have never

produced any

fruit whatsoever.

Just vegetable

matter at that

point.

So this would

have been rock

up underneath

the soil.

And you can

see in the

explanation that

Jesus gives

us.

They hear the

word and they

immediately receive

it with joy.

It springs up

in them.

Praise God for

the growth in

this person's

life.

Some of you

may know

these type of

people.

I know quite

a few.

You rejoice in

this transformative

work.

It seems like

God has done a

great mighty

work in them.

But then,

because they

have no root,

they endure for

a while.

And when

tribulation or

persecution arises

because of their

faith, everything

doesn't go hunky

dory, everything

isn't great the

way they think it's

going to be, they

fall away.

They're scorched

by the sun and

they fall away.

I would say to

those of you,

especially those

of you who are

young and on

college campuses

and seeing people

come to repentance

and faith, push

new believers out

into the sun.

We tend to coddle

new believers a

lot.

And we must

disciple people.

We must build

foundation of truth

in them.

We must help

them be able to

stand firm.

But the truly

regenerate soul

does not reject

the gospel when

tribulation comes

as a result of

the gospel.

So push them.

Kick them out

into the sun.

Push them out

there and see

what happens.

Press them into

sharing their

faith.

Press them into

speaking freely

about the work of

God in their

life and see

what happens.

They may get a

little bit knocked

down.

You want to be

there to help

them in those

times.

But we'll see

very quickly

whether or not

they're truly

regenerate.

Those of us

who are found

in Christ

welcome

tribulation.

Rejoice in

tribulation.

It gives

evidence of

our faith.

The writer of

Hebrews in

chapter 12.

Actually, please

turn to Hebrews

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

chapter 12 with

me.

This is enough

text for you to

look at it with

me.

This is good if

you've been

feeling

disciplined by

the Lord.

If you've

been experiencing

tribulation of

any kind.

Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

12 beginning in

verse 5.

And have you

forgotten the

exhortation that

addresses you as

sons?

My son, do not

regard lightly the

discipline of the

Lord, nor be

weary when

reproved by him.

For the Lord

disciplines the

one he loves,

and chastises

every son whom

he receives.

Now you might

be saying, but

wait, tribulation

is not of God.

Sure, it's

permitted by him.

You are

chastised.

You are

reproved by the

actions of others

because everything

is held in God's

sovereign hand.

Verse 7.

It is for

discipline that you

have to endure.

God is treating

you as sons.

For what son is

there whom his

father does not

discipline?

Now this is a

general truth.

Some of us may

have had fathers

that did not

discipline us.

But because I

love my sons, I

discipline them.

Because I want

what is good for

them.

I want what is

right for them.

I teach that because

they do not know

it on their own.

Leave our little

kids alone, they

become absolutely

wretched.

Absolutely.

I discipline my

sons because I

love them.

Verse 8.

If you are left

without discipline in

which all have

participated, then

you are illegitimate

children and not

sons.

God leaves you

alone and doesn't

discipline you, then

you are not sons.

Besides this, we

have had earthly

fathers who

disciplined us and

we respected them.

Shall we not much

more be subject to

the father of

spirits and live?

For they disciplined

us for a short time

as it seemed best to

them, but he

disciplines us for

our good that we

may share his

holiness.

Speaking of my

son.

For the moment,

all discipline seems

painful rather than

pleasant, but later it

yields the peaceful

fruit of righteousness

to those who have

been trained by it.

This is good.

The son of

tribulation, if our

roots are down deep,

if we're good soil and

our roots are firmly

planted and we're

drinking deep from the

goodness of God in our

lives, the son of

tribulation causes

growth.

That's how plants work.

They send up the

shoot because they

need the sun to

continue that process

of photosynthesis

and all the things

that go along with

that.

We won't get into a

science lesson at

that point.

But the sun is then

good for us.

And so that's the

rocky ground.

Those who appear,

they appear to be

regenerate.

They appear to make

genuine confessions of

faith.

I have been duped.

I don't think it was

any fault of mine,

but people that I

really thought were

regenerate and ended

up not being at all.

We've had members of

our church were that

way.

Fooled us.

I mean, there's just

no way we thought that

they weren't not

Christians.

Christians, right?

Allowed them into our

fellowship and later had

to ask them to leave

our fellowship because

they were evidently not.

By their own admission

were not.

They say to them,

it doesn't make sense

for you to be a member

of a believing church

if you're not a

Christian.

They say, I agree.

We loved them in parted

ways in that.

We take sin seriously

here.

So this is the rocky

ground.

Thirdly, there was seed

that fell among thorns.

Now get here.

Again, the picture is

no farmer in his

right mind is going

to sow seed amongst

thorns and let thorns

naturally grow.

I shouldn't say

naturally.

Let them just propagate

in his field.

He's going to pull them

up.

In that tilling process,

he's going to pull them

up.

So here you find seed

that's going to land on

ground that has thorn

seed in it.

It's been blown from a

neighboring field.

It's come out of a

ditch somewhere.

We all experience that

in the southeast.

Weeds are everywhere

where we are.

And those plants, in

competition for sun,

sinned up quickly.

I mean, boy, do they

ever sinned up quickly.

They sinned up their

greenery.

They produce seed like

crazy so that they can

go and go and go and

go and go.

If you've ever tried to

have a garden in the

southeast, you know what

this looks like.

It comes up before.

You've got to get out

there and start weeding

before your good plants

come up to make sure

they don't get shaded

out.

So here we find in

verse 7, seed falling

among thorns.

And the thorns grew up

and choked it.

And it yielded no grain.

They grew up and they

shielded out the sun.

Right?

And they sucked up all

the nutrients from the

ground.

Jesus' explanation says

that they are those who

hear the word, but the

cares of the world and

the deceitfulness of

riches and the desire

for other things enter

in and choke the word

and it proves unfruitful.

I really fear this type of

soil is prevalent in our

churches.

That people hear the word,

make some sense to them,

seems to have some effect

in their hearts, but all of

the cares of the world,

this deceitfulness of

riches, the desire for

things, comes in and chokes

it out.

Beloved, being a disciple of

Christ comes at a cost.

It comes at a cost.

We've been given free grace,

but pursuing Him, being a

disciple, comes at a cost.

We must give things up.

You cannot love and serve the

world and love and serve God.

Right?

They're at odds with one

another.

That isn't to say that we

have to be monastic.

That isn't to say that we

have to take vows of

poverty.

But you need to really check

how much do I love the

world.

So often, even for those of

us who are good soil, who

are regenerate, who have

faith in Christ, so often

our love for Christ gets

trumped by our love for

this world.

We are absolutely inundated

at every turn by

materialism where we live.

Right?

I hate going down to the

Mall of Georgia area because

every time I go down there,

I'm usually driving one of

the crummiest vehicles down

there, and everyone's clothes

are more expensive than mine,

and there are billboards

everywhere, and every store is

new and flashy and nice, and

I can feel this pressure.

It kind of presses down on me

to want more.

Right?

I'm glad I live up here where

people drive crummy vehicles,

and I'm just thankful that my

truck is running as you see them

broken down on the side of the

road, and I'm like, praise God

I'm getting from point A to

point B.

This is all around us.

Ask that God would test your

heart in this regard.

Are you good soil?

Right?

Are you good soil that's just

been distracted by the world?

Or are you this seed thrown

among the thorns?

Seed sown among the thorns?

Say that five times fast.

Right?

1 John 2.19

John says,

They went out from us, but they

were not of us.

For if they had been of us, they

would have continued with us.

But they went out, that it might

become plain, that they are all

not of us.

If we're going to be a community

of faith, right, disciple-making

disciples of Jesus Christ, we are

going to look different from this

world.

Not that we're going to wear special

outfits to look different.

But all of our activity, our

experience, our proclaiming,

displaying, is going to look

different from this world.

And people who come here and

want to sit amongst us are

going to have a couple of

emotions.

They're going to stay, feel

incredibly uncomfortable.

These people are so different

than I am.

Look at the way they press.

Look at the way they give

freely.

Look at the way they don't love

the things of this world.

And I do.

They're going to pull in the

parking lot in their car and

go, my car is a lot different

than all these other cars in

this parking lot.

They're going to walk in here

dressed a particular way and

say, I am dressed very strangely

compared to these people.

They're going to be here and

they're going to be uncomfortable.

That is an option.

Secondly, they could change.

They could pursue Christ with

us in a community.

We could press them towards that

type of thing.

Or they could leave.

And I'm not suggesting that

everyone who leaves our church

is a seat among thorns.

I'm not saying that at all.

But speaking of this particular

issue of loving the things of

this world over Christ, those are

the options for them.

We ought to be that kind of

people.

This shouldn't be the kind of

group where you can come in and

meld.

People who love the things of

this world shouldn't be

comfortable here.

It should be the case.

Right?

People should walk in and be

amongst us and spend time with

us, hear what's on our hearts,

and they should go, these people

love Jesus more than anything.

There is no doubt in my mind of

that fact.

And we pray that that causes

change in everybody's life.

Which brings us to our last three

soils.

Good soil.

We see good soil that yields

thirtyfold and sixtyfold and

a hundredfold.

There's your three different

types of soil.

And I have to say that I'm a

little bit encouraged by this

just as sometimes in my

Christian walk I want to see

more things happen.

I want more fruit to happen.

But to see that God has

particularly gifted people in

different ways and that I don't

need to be Billy Graham.

I would like to be.

I would like to be that

effective for the kingdom.

God wants to use me in that

way.

I am willing to do that.

But I don't have to be Billy

Graham.

There's not a pressure to that.

Like the measure of my faith is

not that I am Billy Graham.

That I accomplish what he has

accomplished by God's grace.

But that I could just be one

that yields thirtyfold.

Now understand that this

terminology for them,

thirtyfold and sixtyfold and

hundredfold would have been

astronomical crop yield.

Not like normal crop yield.

I tried to read up on this.

I really didn't understand

what I was reading when I was

trying to figure out the

percentages that it would be.

But essentially this would be

a yield of like three thousand,

six thousand and ten thousand

percent.

What they're measuring I'm not

sure.

Probably weight of crop versus

weight of yield.

But just get this was huge.

Right.

The gradient of society would

have gone thirtyfold, sixtyfold

and a hundredfold.

Are you crazy?

But this is the kind of fruit

that Christians yield.

That we sow the seed.

We put the seed out in the world.

God does this work that causes

this propagation to happen.

The growth of God's church.

Right.

That his people amass and amass

and amass and amass.

And sometimes I get a little bit

discouraged as an American

Christian running in the circles

that I run in.

That we don't see massive

regeneration.

We've been praying as a church

for quite some time for revival.

We want to see a big movement

of people towards God.

And that's a good thing to desire

and we should continue to press

into that.

And sometimes I feel a little bit

discouraged as if God's not

moving and working in the world.

But you only have to open your

eyes a little bit and read some

of the accounts of some of the

things that are happening

around the world.

The last time I kind of checked

in on what was going on in China

it's reported that about

10,000 people a day are coming

to faith in Christ in China.

10,000 people a day God is at work.

Right.

Seed is being sown and it is

meeting good soil.

Right.

It is growing up and it is

producing more.

And hear this.

The way that God came into this

world that brought the kingdom.

He brought it through His Son

Jesus Christ who picked a little

band of brothers.

Right.

Inadequate for the task.

Totally uneducated.

Just normal guys.

Right.

And He left them with the task

of being disciple making disciples

and from this little place

in the Middle East

the fire of the kingdom of God

has spread rampantly across the world

because these people got

that the task of propagating the truth

of sowing seed was theirs.

What is happening to us in America?

Have we forgotten that that is

what we're supposed to be about?

Right.

Not merely about learning things

knowing who our God is

but knowing who our God is

so that other people can know

who our God is

so that we can sing His praises

more accurately

and more loudly

for the world to hear.

I want a big bag of seed.

That's why I should be studying

the Word of God.

Right.

I want to spread it everywhere.

I want to feel speaking to people's lives

at every turn

and at every occasion.

So we see this good seed

and I hope

genuinely

immense desire in my heart

that everyone in this room

can say

I'm good soil.

I'm good soil.

I may be distracted often.

I may not live

and be devoted to Christ

the way I should be today

but I'm good soil

and I can say that with confidence.

I know for a fact

that the seed of the Word

is taking root in my heart

and it's working on me

and it's changing me.

I feel conviction for sin.

I desire to be more holy.

I want to give my life

for the kingdom.

I hope that's true

of you.

2 Corinthians chapter 2

2 Corinthians 2:14

verse 14 and 17

Turn there with me

if you will please.

Now I don't try

to like to play

with symbolism too much

in the scriptures.

So often we try to draw

these neat little connections

between various parables

or various analogies

that Paul gives to us

and they're not really

always meant to be done.

So I just want you

to hear that clearly.

Don't draw connections

between my analogies

because analogies

fall short at every point.

There's always something

that kind of doesn't quite.

A lesser truth

meant to expose

a larger truth

just doesn't quite

get there all the time.

But in 2 Corinthians chapter 2

2 Corinthians 2:14–17

verses 14 through 17

Paul says

But thanks be to God

who in Christ Jesus

always leads us

in triumphal procession

there's a great victory

in that

and through us

spreads the fragrance

of the knowledge of Him

everywhere.

I love that language.

Spreads the fragrance

of the knowledge

of Him everywhere.

And as I was reading that

these last couple of weeks

the idea in my mind

is that

we're talking probably

about wheat

in this parable here

but that as fruit

the way that fruit

gets on the ground

and then like an apple tree

for example

as it falls to the ground

and it rots

and apple trees

smell amazing

when they're doing that

for a while

they can stink

after that rot

goes too far

so there's the analogy

falling short

so you walk by

an apple tree

that's got apples

on the ground

that are rotting

and it just smells

wonderful

because those fruits

have gotten riper

and riper

they've got all that

good sugar in them

which is there

to nourish the seed

in its beginning stage

it starts to break down

so that seed

can get in the ground

and make a new

apple tree

and so there's my

mixing of analogies

for you today

verse 15

for we the aroma

of Christ

to God

among those

who are being saved

and among those

who are perishing

to one a fragrance

from death to death

to the other fragrance

from life to life

who is sufficient

for these things

we've been given

the task

of propagating

of sowing seed

who is sufficient

for these things

for we are not

like so many

peddlers

of God's word

but as men of sincerity

as commissioned

by God

in the sight of God

we speak

in Christ

right

we are sufficient

for these things

because we are

in Christ

we're sufficient

for them

because Christ

is sufficient

Christ is more

than sufficient

for these things

Christ is

the great

sower

now as you think

about all of this

I mentioned before

sometimes I get depressed

being an American Christian

oh I want to see

good soil

springing up

and fruit

being produced

and we see

these different

types of soils

just to give you

some comfort

in thinking

well it seems

hopeless

it seems hard

you shouldn't be

hearing it that way

you should be hearing

that there is good soil

right

and that the sower

puts the seed

in the good soil

and that it does

in fact produce

fruit

but let's listen

to some other promises

that the sower

will yield

his harvest

turn with me

to the book of Hosea

Old Testament book

of Hosea

just after Daniel

if that helps you

if you're flipping

back and forth

Hosea is referred to

as a minor prophet

which doesn't mean

he's less important

but just that the book

is shorter

major and minor prophets

this is a minor prophet

my favorite

of the minor prophets

really really love

the book of Hosea

Hosea is commanded

by God

to go and take

a wife

who's a harlot

she's said

she will cheat

on you

she will not be

faithful to you

and it's meant

to be this picture

this great display

of the way that

Israel betrayed

God

the way that Israel

was unfaithful

to God

and they have

three children

that are recorded here

it's presumed

the way the account

speaks of it

in chapter 1

you'll notice

in verse 4

they have a son

together

God tells Hosea

to name him

Jezreel

which means

to scatter

then it would appear

she has a daughter

not likely with him

but it's also

Hosea's daughter

because he is a good

husband and father

in that way

and God tells him

to name her

Lo-Ruhamah

which means

no mercy

your translation

probably says

no mercy

then again

likely she has

a son

not with him

because he's

a good husband

and father

calls him his own

and God tells him

to name him

Lo-Ami

which means

not my people

or those for

kid names for you

to scatter

no mercy

and not

my people

but then turn

to Hosea chapter 2

Hosea 2 · chapter mention

we see in this

great pageant

played out

God

calling Israel

back to himself

in the same way

as we

get further on

in Hosea chapter 2

Hosea 2 · chapter mention

and then into

chapter 3

Hosea goes

and calls Gomer

back to himself

it's such a beautiful picture

but listen to what God says

beginning in verse 21

and in that day

I will answer

declares the Lord

I will answer the heavens

and they shall answer

the earth

and the earth

shall answer the grain

the wine

and the oil

and they shall answer

Jezreel

now remember

first son

is named Jezreel

which means to scatter

but it also meant

to plant

what do you do to plant

seed

you scatter it

right

so it had both

a negative meaning

as well as a positive

and he's putting the positive

application here

at the end of verse 22

they shall answer

Jezreel

we are planted

verse 23

and I will sow her

for myself

in the land

and I will have

mercy

or ruhamah

on no mercy

and I will say

to not my people

you are my people

or ami

and he shall say

you are my God

isn't that a beautiful picture

of him sowing

and establishing

his people

in his land

after Jesus teaches

about the drinking

of his blood

and the eating of his flesh

in John chapter 6

John 6:65

verse 65

he says

this is why I told you

that no one can come to me

unless it is granted

him by the father

this is a great example

of this

right

after this

many of the disciples

turned back

and no longer

walked with him

he explained to them

that what it meant

to abide with him

what it meant

to be in Christ

and it was hard

for them to understand it

it's hard for them

to understand it

and he says

this is why I told you

that no one can come to me

unless the father is granted

by the father

right

this is the evidence of that

you don't understand this

because it was not given

to you by the father

that you should come to me

and the disciples left

verse 67

so Jesus said

to the twelve

do you want to go away

as well

and Simon Peter

answered him

Lord

to whom shall we go

where would we go

where would we go

you have the words

of eternal life