A Further Reach

Mark chapter 4, who loves a good story?

Mark 4 · chapter mention

I think we all do.

Sometimes people are prone to watch a good movie

especially if they sing it to you.

But without television and digital devices

the first century was filled with storytellers.

Good storytellers.

But nobody could speak a truth better than the Lord Jesus.

Man, he knew how to tell a story.

He used stories a lot.

And his stories fit the culture in which he lived.

The stories fit the settings in which he lived.

But his stories turned everything upside down.

He left people amazed.

And he told a lot of them.

Matthew records more than 24.

Luke records almost that many.

Mark don't record many because he's in a hurry.

Mark don't have time for stories.

He's in a race to get to the cross.

And he spends half of the gospel of Mark speaking of the last week of Christ.

However, he does include a few.

We're going to look at the first one this morning together.

It's in Luke chapter 4 beginning in verse 1 and it says this.

Luke 4 · chapter mention

Again, he began to teach beside the sea.

And a very large crowd gathered about him so that he got into a boat and set 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 this 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 seeds 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 the 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 30-fold and 60-fold and 100-fold.

And then he said, he who has ears, let him hear.

Now, the parables of Jesus, and they call these stories parables

because parable means it comes alongside a truth.

The parables of Jesus often mystified and stupefied his listeners

because he didn't explain them.

He just told the story and moved on.

And some of them looked like I did when I took college English

and we would read a story and I would get to class

and they would explain what that story was really talking about.

Looked like a mule at a new gate.

Golly, you know.

And that's what a lot of folks, when they heard these stories,

his disciples were no better than that.

They didn't understand.

So he takes the time often to explain his stories to his disciples

as he trains up these 12.

And thankfully, he shares that with us as well here in Mark

because he explains it beginning in verse 14.

And he says,

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.

And then when tribulation and 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 deceitfulness of riches

and the desires of the 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 30-fold and 60-fold and 100-fold.

The story is called the parable of the sower,

but the emphasis is not so much on the sower

as it is on the soils themselves,

the different types of soil.

Now, it requires a sower,

and that's where professed Christians come into the story.

It requires a seed,

and that's where the hope of Christ comes into the story.

And it requires scattering the seed

and the sowing of that seed.

Now, the sower is the one that shares Christ,

and the seed is the message of Christ,

the gospel message of Christ.

The soil is the state of the heart and the mind of a person.

Now, Christians, what that means

is that we all have a responsibility,

that God gives every Christian responsibility

and insight into our role in spreading the good news of Christ.

And with that, there are some commitments

that we need to embrace.

One of them is that we need to be aware.

We need to be aware.

We don't know the state of someone's life.

There are several spiritual places that they can be,

and Jesus names four of them.

And let me explain what he means by that.

Some folks have a closed mind.

The seeds which fall along the path

fall on hard ground

that the message never penetrates

within their heart and within their mind.

And that message lays atop the ground,

and the birds came down

and took that seed and ate them.

And sometimes the word of God is heard,

but someone refuses to listen.

They're too hard-hearted to even consider

what we say about the love of Christ.

Now, I want to be clear about something.

It's not our job to figure out

the state of someone's heart.

That's not our job.

It's not our job to figure out

if they're willing to listen to what we have to say.

It's our job to share it.

And if we share it, let it fall where it may,

leave the results up to God,

you're not responsible for somebody's salvation.

You're responsible with giving them the opportunity

to be saved by understanding the gospel.

Some people attend church,

and they're preset on not listening.

I can tell who you are, by the way.

But some folks come in and say,

I'm not going to allow God to move in my life today.

Their minds are made up

before they ever come in the room.

That's if they're even willing to come into the room.

Because their minds are closed to any suggestion,

and they refuse to follow.

If that be the case,

Satan easily snatches that truth from them

like a bird snatches a seed.

It's gone.

Then in verse 5 and 6,

he speaks of a different state of mind,

the rocky soil,

which speaks of a clouded mind.

And these seeds fall on rocky soil,

and they shoot up quick,

but they're scorched by the sun quick

because they have no root base.

This shallow soil represents people

who receive the word of God with joy,

but they quickly fade away.

Life gets real,

and it happens fast.

And they're clouded by the hardship

or the pressure that they feel under.

They love the thrill of a spiritual renewal,

the recognition that goes with that,

but it never really sinks in.

They're never committed to sink their roots

into God's truth.

There's a lot of people

in a lot of churches

that walk down the aisle

and are baptized

and are never seen again

in that church.

Many of them were never saved.

And the evidence of that shows.

I mean, they wanted the excitement.

And listen, folks,

I think we ought to get excited

when somebody gives their heart

and life to the Lord.

Some of y'all cheered yesterday,

embarrassingly so.

You know?

For whoever you're rooting for,

some of you cheered for two days.

I did.

We get so excited.

And then I watched at least part

of six, seven, eight games

over the last,

sometimes four at a time,

but over the last couple of days.

Seriously.

And I can't hardly tell you

any of it right now,

just to be honest with you.

But it was good at the time,

and I was excited about that.

When somebody makes a commitment to Christ,

I believe we ought to celebrate them.

I believe when they walk down this aisle

that we ought to let them know

how proud we are of them

and how we're praying for them

and how we'll be here for them.

And when they go through

those baptismal waters,

I think we ought to cheer for them.

Like you did on your couch

or like you did in a bleacher

or like you did in a box

or wherever you were yesterday,

I think you ought to cheer for somebody

who gives their heart and life to the Lord

more than you do a touchdown.

And let them know that.

And by the way,

if they're kids

and they're up in the baptismal area,

I've told them

they can't look out at you.

If they look out at you,

they go back up,

they don't get baptized.

That's the way I am.

I run a strict ship.

So they're not going to look at you.

So let them hear you.

Cheer for them.

I think it's something

that we ought to celebrate with that.

But I'll tell you,

sadly,

sometimes people,

they get excited.

They feel guilty

about what they've done.

They want to join the gang.

They need a fresh start.

But they don't really surrender

their life to the Lord.

Maybe it's a split decision

in the moment

and they're confused

about the circumstances.

They're clouded

by the world around them.

And as soon as Monday comes,

which is the trial,

by the way,

they fall apart

and they fall away

because they never really know Christ

or who they could be in Him.

And their name lies

on a Baptist church roll

all over America.

Churches are filled with people

who they don't really know

who they are.

I'm telling you,

oh dear God,

my burden is

I hope they're saved.

Many of you know

the deep burden

that I have for that

and I try to be as thorough

as I can with the process

that when somebody comes

and shows an interest

in the Lord Jesus

that we sit down

and we talk about that.

What does it mean

to give your heart

and life to the Lord?

I sit down with parents

with their kids

and many times

I give those parents

some information

to take home

and work with their children

and I say take 30 seconds

to two minutes a night.

Don't belabor the point

but take 30 seconds

to two minutes a night

to go over these crucial verses

and explain it

to the point that

let them be able

to tell you

what it means

to give their heart

and life to the Lord.

And then once they make

that decision

we try to follow that up

with a new believer class

for them to understand

what it means

to have given their life

to the Lord.

And it's a dear burden

but clouded minds

sometimes

cause for false reactions

and we need to be sensitive

about making sure

people understand

what they're doing

when they do it.

And then in verse 7

he speaks of a cluttered mind

and the cluttered mind

or that mindset

is described as thorny ground

because it quickly sprouts up

but it gets choked out

too quickly.

And this describes

a mindset

that hears the word of God

but its power

and its personalization

gets strangled out

by the distractions

of the world's

empty promises

and cares.

People that are like this

place too much stock

in what the culture values.

They place too much stock

in their time

and their energy

and they spend it

worrying about themselves

instead of concerned

about the things of God.

How sad that is

because it's a spiritual

their spiritual potential

is there

but they're so busy

and they're so distracted

and they're so

got so misplaced values

that they smother out

God's very best

for them.

It's hard

for a cluttered mind

like this

to ever hear

his voice.

I'm with the Puritans.

We need

some time

of silence

and solitude

before the Lord

to let him speak

to us

to hear the word of God

come to life

within us.

I'm telling you

it's a living document

and when the Holy Spirit

of God

breathes through it

it changes your life

and if you'll just

give him time

to speak to your heart

and life

and not be so cluttered

by so many other things

the word of God

often is choked out

by the stuff

that clutters our life

and our mind.

And then lastly

he speaks of a committed mind

and that's where

fertile soil

where the seed

of the gospel

takes root

and grows

and people

can become

closed minded

for two reasons.

One is that

either pride

compels them

to believe

they already

know enough

or either

they become

closed

because they

fear that

hearing the truth

will demand

something of them

that they don't

want to give.

But a fertile mind

is teachable.

It's just like

that of a child

as a seven

or eight year old

that doesn't come

to church

with an unbelieving mind.

They come to church

with an openness

and a humility.

One of the greatest

compliments I've ever got

was last week

when a grandparent

brought a grandchild

that normally is not

in this church

to this church

and as they were leaving

the grandparent

told me

my child told me

that they understood

what you said.

That when they go

to church

their preacher

uses big words

and they don't

understand it

but he understood

what you said.

I said I knew

my simple mindedness

would come in handy

at some point.

children remember

more than we can imagine

because the truth

of God's word

finds a place

in a ready heart

and then the Holy Spirit

can bring that truth

to their awareness

when they need it.

So how do we respond?

I mean if we know

the Lord Jesus

how do we respond?

Well let me first

address this.

if you don't know Christ

if you've never

committed your life

to follow Christ

then quit being closed

quit being clouded

quit being cluttered

commit your life

to Christ today.

It's the greatest investment

you can make in your life.

He'll forever change you.

And for Christians

we need to be aware

we need to be aware

that when we share

with others

hear me now

we cannot control

where that seed

of truth falls.

We just need to make sure

that it falls.

Be aware.

Second thing is

be willing.

I mean if God

has commissioned

believers to be sowers

and the seed

that we're to sow

is the gospel message

of salvation

what are we doing

about planting that seed

and when and where

are we scattering?

We should not just do it

in sure places.

We ought to step out

on the waters of faith

and we should do it

not just a few times

we need to scatter

seed abroad.

Now how do we do that?

Well you talk to people.

And when you talk to them

you ask them

if they place their faith

in Christ.

You ask them

if they're sure

that they're going to

go to heaven

when they die.

You tell them

that they can know

for sure.

It's an easy way

to have a conversation

when you ask someone

when I was a student

at New Orleans Seminary

they required us

to pass a class

that taught us

continued witness training.

CWT was an intense

evangelistic course

in the 80s

and the 90s

that you had to learn

a bunch of stuff

and they gave us

a blank sheet of paper

and we had to complete

about a 20 or 25 minute

presentation verbatim

to be able to graduate

from New Orleans

because when I was

coming through

they said

if you want to learn

how to preach

go to Southwestern.

You want to learn

how to teach

go to Southern.

You want to learn

how to testify

go to New Orleans.

And New Orleans

wanted to make sure

we knew how to testify

so we went door to door

in New Orleans

sharing Christ.

And I'd ask somebody

if you were to die today

and stand before God

and he were to ask you

why should I let you

into my heaven

what do you think

you'd say?

I'm telling you

it's an excellent question

to ask somebody.

It don't have to be

as complicated

as I just made it either.

If you were to die today

and stand before God

and he were to ask you

why should I let you

into my heaven

what do you think

you'd say?

And if they say

I had several guys

when I asked that

they'd say please.

But I hope you got

more than please

in your pocket.

Because if they respond

to you in any way

beside because of what

Christ did for me

on the cross

if they don't bring

that up

if they talk about

how good they've been

or how they hope

they're okay

if they give you anything

it's open for the gospel.

Open for the gospel.

Because your behavior

is not going to determine

your destination

in eternity.

It's not.

Your commitment to Christ

that'll change your behavior

by the way

but your commitment

to Christ

is the determining factor

for that

and it's an obvious way

to share that.

Tell them they know

for sure.

Tell them that

it's the greatest gift

is eternal life

through Christ.

Tell them what Romans 10 9

says that if you confess

with your mouth

Jesus is Lord

and believe in your heart

that God raised him

from the dead

you will be saved

as guaranteed.

Don't walk by

and act as if

it does not matter.

Don't come up

with an excuse.

Invite them

to church.

Invite them to come

and hear the gospel.

If you'll bring them

to Pickens First Baptist Church

I'll make sure

they hear the gospel.

I guarantee it.

You say well preacher

they won't come.

You have

hear me

you have

no idea

what soil

you're dealing with

today.

Well I just talked

to them yesterday.

Well that's yesterday.

God works

and moves

in people's life

constantly.

You don't have

any idea

where that's going

to fall

when you invite

them.

When you give

them opportunity.

God continues

to work and move.

The soils

of the hearts

change for good

and bad

over time.

Trust the Lord

in the matter

and do the work

that God

has called you

to.

Be willing.

Third thing

is be prayerful.

Be prayerful

because prayer

is where the power

is.

Pray that God

will save the sinner.

Pray that God

will give you

the burdens

for those

who are lost

without Christ.

If you've never

shared your faith

with other people

if you've never

done that

and you're

a believer

pray that God

would give you

the opportunity.

It'll change

your life.

Pray that God

will give you

the words to say.

Pray that the

Spirit of God

will move

in the conversation.

That it'll echo

in their hearts.

I've told people

that I've shared

Christ with

and they were

not receptive

to it.

I've told them

I'm going to

pray for you

daily

that you'll

be miserable

until you

give your life

to Christ.

I have

and I'll do

it again too

so that they

would understand

I'd rather you

be miserable

here than

miserable for

all of eternity.

I hope he

leaves you

up at night

until you

call me

and say

I want

Christ

in my life.

Pray that God

will open

another door

of opportunity.

Pray that God

will give clarity

in the conversation

and in the

afterthoughts.

If you'll pray

that way

and you'll leave

that prayer

expecting

I'm telling you

something

God will make

it happen.

He's the Lord

of the harvest

where the scatters

of seed

and I want to

give you a warning

because if you'll

get this burden

in your heart

and you'll look

for opportunities

sometimes you'll

walk away

from a conversation

with someone

and you'll realize

afterwards you missed

the opportunity.

You missed it.

You had it

but you missed it.

And you may

feel hounded

by that.

Thank God

sometimes

God opens

doors twice.

Now I'm not

encouraging you

to wait

until the second

time

but if you

miss it

trust God

to open it

again

and then

when he does

walk through it

follow his lead

trust him.

Be prayerful

there's power

in prayer.

Next thing

is be sharing.

Scatter the seed.

Don't just pray

about it.

Do it.

Invite folks

to come

and hear the

gospel.

Another story

that Christ

shared in Luke

Luke 12:16–20

chapter 12

verse 16

through 20

it says this

and he told

them a parable

saying the land

of a rich man

produced plentiful

and he thought

to himself

what shall I

do for I

have nowhere

to store my

crops

and he said

I'll do

this I

will tear

down my

barns

and I'll

build larger

ones and

there I'll

store all my

grain and my

goods

and I'll

say to my

soul soul

you have

ample goods

laid up

for many

years relax

eat drink

be merry

but God

said to him

fool this

night your

soul is

required of

you and

the things

that you

prepared

whose you

will they

be

so it

is the

one who

lays up

treasure for

himself and

is not rich

toward God

this is a

reminder that

if we get

so busy

successfully

or struggling

either way

if we get

so busy

that we

forget

eternal

things

we need

to be

careful

because whether

we're struggling

or whether we're

successful

either way

not only could

our souls

be required

of us

but it

could be

required

of our

neighbors

as well

this could

be the

day of

the last

breath

have we

done all

we could

hear me

today

we're not

responsible

for the

condition

of the

soul

which is

the soil

we're not

responsible

for the

convicting

we can't

convict

anybody

we're not

responsible

for the

harvest

I've never

saved anybody

nor have

you

we are

responsible

for the

scattering

I have a

handheld

broadcaster

it's a little

device that you

can put some

seed in the

top of it

it's got a

little crank

on the

side of it

man you

crank that

around

you can

throw that

stuff

better than

you can

with the

arm

when I

turn the

wheel it

throws the

seed

and the

harder the

wheel turns

the more

seed it

thrown out

and the

further it

goes

the same

is true

for the

gospel

broadcast

the love

of God

turn hard

at it

let it

spread wide

and often

do it at

school

do it at

work

do it at

home

do it

with your

neighbors

do it at

!

at ball

games

do it at

the grocery

store

just watch

and see

what happens

God blesses

such as that

I'm just

telling you

and lastly

be sacrificial

we're

responsible

for spreading

but we

can only

spread so

far

with our

voice

on our

feet

and I

mentioned

that I

have a

handheld

broadcaster

that I

have but

I also

have a

larger one

that I

pull behind

my lawnmower

and it

does a lot

more than

that handheld

thing

does

it

throws out

the seed

so much

further

that it

reaches

places

that I

can't even

walk into

sometimes

and that's

what the

Lottie Moon

Christmas

offering for

international

missions does

for us

it scatters

the seed

from pickings

across the

world

God has

called men

and women

and families

to go

and as

he's called

them to

go he's

called us

to support

them as

they go

to prayerfully

support them

to sacrificially

support them

their sacrifices

are amazing

and because

their sacrifices

are amazing

ours should

be too

God gave

me a burden

about this

years ago

and I try

to travel

internationally

every year

if God

will allow

me to

to be able

to touch

base with

missionaries

that are on

the field

and the

sacrifices

they make

I don't

feel called

to do

what they

do

but I

feel called

to go

and find

out what

they do

and find

out how

we can

help

them

and how

we can

pray for

them

and to

come back

and drum

up

support

prayer

support

giving

support

asking God

to allow

them to

remain

on the

field

and serve

the Lord

praying that

God would

provide more

to go

pray that

those who

feel called

to go

will have

the resources

to be able

to go

we've got

people that

feel called

to go

that are

qualified

to go

that have

been certified

to go

and are

waiting

to go

we have

the opportunity

in the month

of December

to cast

seed into

those fields

that we

will never

see

to enable

those who

are called

and waiting

to go

to get

the green

light

I mean

we can

touch hearts

that will

never meet

this side

of eternity

won't have

be fun

think about

that

they'll go

in places

that will

never travel

they'll speak

in languages

that will

never speak

people

let's

spread

seed

further

than we

can ever

imagine

and pray

that God

will get

in it

and bring

a bountiful

harvest

because

we've done

our part

both here

I'm not

letting you

off the

hook

both here

and over

there

the sacrifice

is big

if you look

at the front

of your

worship

bulletin

you'll see

that our

goal this

year

is

$70,000

that's

greater

than our

needs

for three

weeks

in our

budget

and the

task

is huge

and the

task

is

worldwide

and I

ask you

to give

as God

allows you

to give

and I

want to be

clear

just a

teaching tool

here

I believe

in storehouse

tithing

I believe

that you

ought to

give your

tithe to

the Lord

where you're

fed

and as

God

enables

you

to give

more

than that

tithe

then you

give it

to special

causes

as God

leads you

to

Lottie Moon

is a

special

cause

don't

misplace

God's

money

and put

it

there

ask God

to give

you

the ability

to give

as he would

enable you

to give

to the

Lottie Moon

Christmas

offering

I grew up

my church

I grew up

in had

a post office

at Christmas

time

and if

you would

bring your

Christmas

cards

don't mail

them

but

if you'd

bring your

Christmas

cards to

church

and you'd

pay a

quarter

and I

think a

stamp

was 19

cent then

so they

were making

some money

but if

you'd bring

that and

give a

quarter

for every

card that

you gave

to people

in the

church

all that

money would

go to

Lottie Moon

and then

you could

go by

the post

office

and see

if you

get any

mail

see if

you get

Christmas

cards

and then

get mad

at people

who don't

bring

you

money

and I

remember

hearing

that

that's

what I

remember

about

Lottie Moon

growing up

and when I

started preaching

and became a

pastor over

30 years ago

I got some

stuff in the

mail about

Lottie Moon

Christmas

offering

and I

started

reading it

and studying

and preparing

for it

to speak

on it

and I

was blown

away

God

convicted my

heart

and I

wanted to

give to

it

and I

didn't have

the money

to give

to it

I mean

I was

full-time

pastor

making

half-time

pay

you know

I

would

tithe

my money

and I

would write

on the

calendar

what I

had given

and what

I owed

and said

Lord help

me make

up the

difference

and I

wanted to

give Lottie Moon

and I

didn't have

to give

I don't

remember

if I

gave

anything

that year

if I

didn't

give

much

I

don't

remember

the

deal

but I

remember

God

planted

something

in my

heart

and I

don't know

where it

came from

except by

the Holy

Spirit of

God

but he

planted

something

in my

heart

and I

took my

change

the next

year

and I

stuck it

in a

coffee jar

I don't

know

to be

honest

I don't

know if

Lottie got

my quarters

or not

but I

stuck my

change

in that

jar

God

had

given

me

a

figure

in

my

head

that

year

I

couldn't

give

much

and I

started

throwing

my

change

in that

jar

this is

actually

when you

had

change

remember

those

days

but anyway

I

started

throwing

my

and when

I

got

to the

end

of

the

year

I

took

that

change

out

and I

rolled

it

and I

counted

it

and it

was

almost

exactly

the

figure

that

God

had

given

me

the

previous

Christmas

and he

planted

something

in my

heart

about how

at Christmas

time we

need to

give a

Christmas

gift

to

missions

to be

faithful

to give

as God

gives us

opportunity

this is

a task

that is

huge

it is

worldwide

but it's

also very

personal

because it

starts

when you

get up

in a

few

minutes

and walk

out that

door

you're

to be

scattering

don't

wave

ugly

signs

at the

people

who

don't

stop

quick

enough

in a

row

don't

do

that

in front

of the

church

share

the gospel

as you

go

scatter

seed

and let's

impact

people's

lives

right here

in

Pickens

as

Jesus

put it

in

Jerusalem

and Judea

and Samaria

and the

uttermost

that we'll

never see

with our

own eye

let's give

faithfully

let's be

all we can

be for the

Lord

let's reach

as far

as we

can

for Christ

most

importantly

I want you

to hear

this morning

if you've

never

surrendered

your life

to the

Lord Jesus

Christ

the greatest

life that you

can have

on this

earth

is one

that is

with Christ

and I

have prayed

that seed

will fall

on fertile

soil

today

that's ready

to receive

the gospel

message

if you'll

acknowledge the

sin in your

life

ask God to

forgive you

of that

sin

and commit

your life

to follow

Christ

today

he'll save

you

he'll

change

you

we'll

come

alongside

you

we'll

nurture

you

we'll

help

you

grow

in him

but if

you've

never

given

your heart

and life

to the

Lord

I don't

care if

everybody

in this

room

thinks you

have

or nobody

thinks you

have

if you've

never given

your heart

and life

to the

Lord

when we

stand and

sing in

just a

moment

I want

you to

come

and say

pastor I

want to

be

saved

maybe

you're

here and

you have

done

that

but you've

never

acknowledged

that

publicly

it's

always been

something

private

in your

heart

it's not

something

just to be

private

in your

heart

it's

something

to publicly

profess

if you've

never done

that I

encourage you

to come

we guide

you in

the next

steps

to what

that means

maybe you're

here and

God's

leading you

to Pickens

First Baptist

Church

this is

the place

that you

would plant

your life

you feel

led that

way

we'll guide

you in

that process

as well

I don't

know what

God's telling

you to do

I don't

know what

he's laid

upon your

heart

but I know

you'll never

be satisfied

unless you're

obedient to

follow him

so do exactly

what he tells

you to do

this morning

Heavenly

Father I

love you

and I

thank you

Lord for

the love

that you

have for

us

and I

ask right

now dear

God

that you'll

help us

to simply

be obedient

to follow

exactly what

you'd have

us to do

help us

be satisfied

with nothing

less

help us

do nothing

more

than simply

obey you

lead and

guide us

right now

as I pray

in Jesus

name

amen

do