Matthew 13:1-23

Turn with me if you've got a Bible to Matthew chapter 13.

Matthew 13 · chapter mention

We're beginning a short series, just four sermons in Matthew 13 that'll get us to the holidays.

And it's boiling hot, isn't it? And so if you feel you need to get up and get some fresh air, honestly, feel free.

No one will think any badly of you at all.

All right, how about that?

Matthew 13 is about the kingdom of God. It's about parables.

And you take verse 10 as a text.

Really, this question, why do you speak in parables?

The disciples come to him and say, why is that the way you teach?

There are three sections in the passage we're looking at.

And in the middle bit, Jesus explains the story.

In the middle of it, there's this confusing explanation of why Jesus speaks in parables.

And I want to dive just into the middle of it and ask that question that the disciples ask in verse 10.

Why do you speak to people in parables? Let me set the scene for you.

Notice how the chapter opens.

We're told that Jesus went out of the house and he sat beside the sea.

Great crowds gather to hear him.

In fact, the crowds are so great that he's got to get into a boat to get away from them.

And he speaks to them from a boat.

This is what seems to be happening.

Jesus, I must heal the sick.

People are clamoring for it to touch him.

And no doubt he wants to speak to them.

So he puts a little bit of distance between him and the crowd.

Picture it, if you can.

The boat is his pulpit.

His voice carries across the water crisp and clean in the morning air.

The steep banks are a little bit like a well-designed amphitheater.

There's perfect acoustics.

And Jesus is in the boat.

The crowds are on the shore.

And they're hanging on his every word.

And we're told that he began to speak to them in parables.

Why?

In fact, at the end of the chapter, verse 34,

we're told that Jesus didn't speak anything to them without using a parable.

So why, Jesus, do you speak in parables?

The disciples ask him.

If you've got a church background and you're here this morning,

you went to Sunday school when you were a child,

you've probably heard that parables are an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.

Maybe.

Maybe you think of them like beautiful little anecdotes

that make difficult things straightforward.

Stories Jesus tells.

So why doesn't every preacher speak in parables?

Why don't they teach preachers to do that in Bible college?

I love what Spurgeon says of so much of people's preaching.

He says, so much of preaching is over people's heads.

Spurgeon said, don't forget, Jesus said, feed my sheep, not my giraffes.

And yet so often, isn't it, the way preachers speak, it's kind of out of our reach.

It's inaccessible.

So why does Jesus speak in parables?

What is he doing here?

It makes perfect sense, but it makes no sense.

You see, in verse 10, you can sense their bewilderment.

What are you going on about?

Jesus has told a little story, nice little story about a farmer sowing seeds.

Well, what's that got to do with anything?

Why do Jesus tell stories like this?

And they say to him, verse 10, why do you speak in parables?

And his answer is shocking.

His answer is shocking.

It's not what you expect.

He quotes from the Old Testament, from Isaiah chapter 6.

Isaiah 6 · chapter mention

And he says in verse 13, this is why I speak in parables.

Because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

Indeed, in their case, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says,

you will indeed hear, but you'll never understand.

You'll indeed see, but you'll never perceive.

For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they cannot hear,

and with their eyes they have closed,

lest they should see with their eyes, hear with their ears,

and understand with their heart.

And I would turn and heal them.

Why does he speak in parables?

So that they could understand?

No.

So that they wouldn't understand.

Why does he speak in parables?

To reveal the truth?

Or to conceal the truth?

And you can understand, can't you, why the disciples, they're bewildered.

I mean, it seems, doesn't it, such a wrong move to Jesus' followers.

A strategic mistake, a PR blunder, of the highest order.

The crowds are gathering, they're hanging on his every word.

Surely now is the time to put the most clear,

most comprehensive PowerPoint presentation available.

Now is the time not to be speaking in riddles.

Now is not the time to be speaking in stories that people do not understand.

Why don't you give it to them straight, Jesus says.

Don't you want people to know who you are?

Don't you want people to follow you, Jesus?

And the answer to that question is yes and no.

Doesn't Jesus want people to know who he is and what he's about?

Well, yes, of course he does.

But no, he doesn't.

Because with the rising popularity,

at the same time comes mounting opposition to Jesus.

You can see that in chapter 12, just the chapter before, chapter 13.

His family come to take him away because they think he's mad.

And in the middle of the chapter,

the authorities accuse him of being in league with the devil.

They think he's bad.

And even his strongest supporter, John the Baptist,

his best friend is having second thoughts about him.

He sends disciples and he says,

are you for real?

Or should we look for another?

And so you see, Matthew 13 is a really crucial point in Jesus' ministry.

His popularity is on the increase, the crowds are gathering,

but at the same time, opposition is growing.

And so Jesus speaks in parables to sift his hearers.

He sorts his hearers into those who want to know

and those who don't really want to know.

Those who don't want to know,

who are hard-hearted,

will wander off to someone else

and they'll get bored of their stories.

Jesus is playing hard to get.

And only those who really want to know will hang around.

In other words, what I'm saying is this,

parables are a little bit like a filter.

If you like, they reveal the truth to those who want to hear

and they conceal the truth from those who don't.

Think, for example, of a stained glass window.

We haven't got one in this church,

but think of a stained glass window.

And as you're walking along the side of a church,

maybe a path alongside the church,

you look up from beneath the stained glass window.

What do you see?

You just see colored glass.

You don't see it from the pathway.

It just looks like dark glass, doesn't it?

Discolored glass.

But if you go into the church

and the sun comes blazing through that window,

you see this beautiful picture.

You get the message.

You're walking alongside.

You don't get it.

It's just dark glass.

It's indistinct shapes.

And the parable's a bit like that.

Maybe you're sitting here and you just think,

what are they going on about?

They're just like dark shape.

Dark shapes.

They don't illumine the truth.

But actually, inside the church,

at the same time,

you go in

and suddenly you see the beauty.

The beauty of the truth.

It all depends, doesn't it,

with the stained glass window,

are you on the outside

or are you on the inside?

To you, Jesus says to his disciples,

his followers,

verse 11,

to you,

it's been given

to know the secrets of the kingdom.

But to them,

it's not been given.

Let me give you an illustration

from church history.

Two of the great reformers

of the English Reformation

were Hugh Latimer,

he's one of the martyrs,

and the other guy

was a guy called Thomas Bilney.

Now, they were both

in Oxford University.

Latimer was a priest.

Bilney was converted first.

And Bilney wanted Latimer

to become a Christian.

But these were dangerous times.

There was serious opposition

to the Reformed faith.

In England at that time,

if you were caught

reading some of the works

that were being taught

on the continent

by Luther or Calvin,

your life could be in danger.

You could be imprisoned.

You could lose your life

for reading the Bible.

That's what it was like.

And Bilney had come

to know the truth

of the gospel.

He was burdened

for his friend Latimer.

He really wanted to share

the gospel with his friend Latimer.

And so what he did

was brilliant.

The Bible says,

isn't it,

that as followers of Jesus,

we should be innocent as doves

and as wise as serpents.

So Bilney comes up

with this great idea.

He says,

I'll go along

and I'll go into

the confessional.

And I will confess

to my priest.

I will confess

to Hugh Latimer.

I will confess to him

the new ideas

that I'm finding

in the New Testament

all under the seal

of the confessionals.

Very clever.

But do you see

what he was doing?

He was planting,

wasn't he,

the gospel's truth

in Latimer's mind.

So that when

the Holy Spirit

began to work

in answer to Bilney's prayer,

those truths

would spring forth

to life

and would bring fruit.

And that's what Jesus

is doing in Matthew 13.

He is planting the truth

into people's minds

for later on.

And he puts it

in such a vivid

and unforgettable way.

But it requires interpretation.

To understand these truths,

you have to come out

of the crowd

into the house.

You have to be willing

to come and sit

humbly at Jesus' feet

and be taught by him

as the disciples do.

So let's do that.

The introduction is a bit long

and the points are quicker.

This parable is about

the kingdom of heaven

and its progress

in the world.

Three things.

A vital activity,

a variable response

and a very big result.

So first of all,

there's something

that's absolutely vital.

Something absolutely vital

to the coming of Christ's kingdoms

in this world

and that is the word of God,

the seed.

A farmer went out to sow.

It's an everyday story

of country folk

and it's probably happening

at the very moment

Jesus is speaking.

There on the beach,

Jesus is preaching to them

from a boat.

There's probably a farmer

up on the cliffs

planting crops

and he's sowing the seed.

But notice the seed

according to Jesus

later on in the passage

is the word of God.

And it's a message

about the kingdom,

how the kingdom comes.

How God's sovereign rule

gets set up in the world.

This is how the king

sets up his kingdom.

Not with a fanfare of trumpets.

Not with a motorcade

of limousines.

Not by military force.

Not by political wheeling

and dealing

but by the patient,

continual scattering

of the seed.

Week in,

week out,

year in,

year out.

And Jesus' teaching,

never underestimate that.

A farmer went out

to sow.

Notice Jesus

doesn't identify

who the farmer is.

We know it's Jesus

of course.

Jesus came to preach,

didn't he?

Somebody has said

about Jesus,

God had one son

and he made him

a preacher.

Jesus is the farmer

who came out to sow

but he leaves it

open-ended,

doesn't he?

He doesn't necessarily

identify himself

in the parable.

And so it is

anyone who sows

the word of God.

Any parent

with children

growing up in your home

telling them

Bible stories.

It's any gospel worker,

any Sunday school teacher,

anyone who has

a conversation

with another person

and drops

the name of

the Lord Jesus

into a conversation.

A farmer went out

to sow.

That is what the church

is called to do.

To scatter the word

of God

amongst all sorts

of different people.

To scatter the seed

of the word of God

in countless conversations

and to be intentional

about it.

And so God's kingdom

is not going to come

to healing

just by us

meeting and building

and worshipping

in this building.

Every year

I buy grass seed.

I use most

of the grass seed

but I leave

some grass seed

in the box.

I now have

six boxes

of grass seed

that I've bought

over the last six years

and I've found out

the seed is useless now.

There's no point

keeping it.

There's no point

having grass seed

and keeping it

in the box

in the shed.

The point of the seed

is what?

It's to sow it.

It's to get it out

into the ground.

And so God's kingdom

is going to come

when we leave

this building

and start having

conversations

with people

in our families

and our networks

on our streets

and telling them

about the Lord Jesus.

Of course

you don't need

to tell them

everything there is

to know about Jesus.

You don't need

a word perfect

gospel presentation

with drawings.

You don't even

have to have

a particular method.

You just have

to love Jesus

and because you

love Jesus

out of the abundance

of your heart

your mouth will speak

and talk about

Jesus and his kingdom.

Slip him into

conversation.

Pray Lord

help me to do it.

It doesn't seem

like very much

does it

as I say that.

And sometimes

you have to wait

a very long time

before you see

any results.

But there is

life in the seed

isn't there?

And it will

produce the harvest.

I love what

Martin Luther

said about

the Reformation.

Somebody said

to him

how did

the Reformation

happen

which changed

the face

of Europe?

How could

something like

that happen?

How can

a man

stand up

against the

might of

the Roman

Catholic Church?

How did

that happen?

And Luther

said I did

nothing.

The word

did everything.

I got up

in the morning

I preached

the word

I prayed

I went to

bed

and I slept

and it

happened

because the

word of

God

finds good

soil

and bears

amazing

fruit

and that's

what we

must do

to sow

this message

about Jesus

in people's

hearts and

minds

and broadcast

it far and

near.

And the

kingdom of

God will

only come

as you

and I

go out

to sow

the message

of Jesus

in people's

lives.

The kingdom

comes as

the word

is taught

as the word

is spread.

And so

why is there

such a weak

response?

Why doesn't

everyone get

converted?

Why doesn't

everyone in

your family

believe?

And the

answer

according to

Jesus

lies in

the soil.

There are

different types

of soil.

There is

secondly a

variable

response.

And so

when the

seed is

scattered

it falls

on the

wayside

some

falls

on the

stony

ground

some

among

thorns

some

on good

ground.

And I

think we

have to be

really careful

here.

We mustn't

be kind

of fatalistic

about this.

You mustn't

think there

are four

types of

people.

And which

one of the

types of

people am

I?

And if

I'm one

of the

three types

of people

that doesn't

bear fruit

well there's

no way

that I

can be

saved.

Am I

a wayside

shearer

or a

stony

ground

shearer?

No,

no,

I don't

think Jesus

is talking

about that.

He's not

saying there's

four different

types of

people.

He's not

saying there

are four

different types

of personality.

he's saying

there are

four different

kinds of

responses to

the word of

God, to the

message of the

kingdom.

And so you

mustn't absolutize

this.

You mustn't put

people in a

box and label

them, well

they're a hard

hearer, there's

not much hope

for them, or

she is a

thorny ground

hearer.

We mustn't do

that.

We mustn't

judge people

like that.

You might be

this morning a

thorny ground

hearer.

But next

week, a

good soil

hearer for

the gospel.

Sometimes if

you're like

me, you

have a

good week

and you

have a

bad week.

And there's

no reason

at all.

In the

mercy of

God, I

find that I

can be a

thorny

ground

hearer and

a good

hearer all

in the

space of

one sermon.

And you

may have

come in

here this

morning and

your heart

might have

been stone

hard, cold

as ice.

But God

promises you

to take

away your

heart of

stone and

to give

you a

heart of

flesh.

And he

can do

that even

as I

speak to

you this

morning.

And so

the question

is not

what kind

of person

are you,

but how

are you

responding?

When you

come here

and you

listen to

the word

of God

preached,

how are

you preparing

yourself for

the word

of God?

It's true,

isn't it,

that for

some of

us who've

been in

church for

decades maybe,

it can be

like water

off a

duck's

back.

For some

our hearts

are like

the well

worn foot

path,

nothing

gets

through.

It never

seems to

penetrate the

surface.

So many

feet have

trodden it

down over

the years

and maybe

you've been

brought up

on this.

Maybe

you've

heard me

a thousand

times before

and you've

become

gospel

hardened.

Maybe

that's

you.

And some

see Jesus

says fell

along the

path and

the birds

came and

they added

up.

And no

sooner do

you hear

than you

think I've

heard it

all before

leaving and

you switch

off.

No sooner

do you

hear than

verse 19

the devil

comes and

he snatches

it away.

And the

reason that

the devil

can come

and snatch

it away

is because

we're not

allowing it

to penetrate

our hearts

and minds.

It's one

of the

reasons why

I think

we've got

to work

really hard

as a

church to

cultivate

the art

of spiritual

conversation.

Some seed

fell along

the path

and the

birds came

and added

up.

And so

we need

to shoo

away the

birds.

If you go

to the

cinema,

it's so

expensive to

go to the

cinema,

but you go

to the

cinema,

you come

out of the

cinema and

you walk

from the

cinema to

the car.

What do

you talk

about?

What do

you talk

about on

the way

from the

cinema to

the car?

Anybody

want to

shout out?

It's really

interesting,

isn't it?

When you

walk from

your seat

to get

coffee,

what do

you talk

about?

I don't

really know

why.

I think

part of

it is

the devil,

isn't it?

The devil

loves to

pluck away

the seed

of the

words.

You're all

thinking,

no,

good grief,

I'm going

to have

to talk

about the

sermons

through

the

office.

Can't

even ask

someone how

you are.

The reason

Satan can

snatch it

away is

because we're

not allowing

it to

penetrate our

hearts.

I want to

introduce a

new ministry

to IPC

this morning,

and maybe you

want to

volunteer.

I think we

need a

scarecrow

ministry.

You could

be a

scarecrow,

couldn't you,

in church

life?

You

should

talk to

people about

the

sermon.

What did

you find

helpful in

what was

preached?

It's one of

the reasons

we have

house groups,

isn't it?

In lots of

ways, the

most important

thing about

house groups

is what

happens before

or what

happens after.

They're kind

of natural

spiritual

conversations.

Say to

someone,

it'd be great

to dig into

this a little

bit deeper,

isn't it?

I've read a

book on

this,

maybe we

could read

it together.

Why don't

we meet

up?

We could

read through

Mark's

gospel.

There's

all sorts

of ways,

aren't there,

that we can

do it in

a way that

shoots off

the birds.

And so

let me ask

you, don't

do the

devil's work

for him.

Let's not

do the

devil's work.

Let me say

this again

before you,

this isn't

about memory.

memory.

I think the

internet hasn't

helped us.

I think for

some of us,

we hear too

many sermons.

And I

don't want you

to feel guilty

at all about

not remembering

my sermons.

What I'm

talking about

here is not

remembering

sermons.

This isn't

about remembering

sermons, it's

about responding

to sermons.

Let me show

you the

difference.

If you were

to ask me

what did I

have to

eat last

Thursday, I

couldn't tell

you.

What did I

have for

dinner?

I couldn't

tell you, and

probably you

couldn't either.

But I did

eat last

Thursday.

And I know

that it did

me good, and

I'm still

here.

But I

couldn't tell

you what it

was that I

had.

It's not a

bad thing for

you to

remember.

It's a good

thing to

furnish your

mind with.

But what is

really important

is that as

you hear the

word of

God

proclaimed,

that you

respond to

it right

now.

That as

God's word

is proclaimed,

Jesus is

speaking to

you.

He's not

sitting in

a boat.

He's in

the highest

place that

heaven affords.

And by

his spirit,

and through

his word,

Jesus is

speaking to

you right

now.

And he

expects a

response from

you right

now.

He doesn't

want you to

make a

mental note

and say,

do you

know what,

I'll look

over that.

Do you

know what,

I'll look

that up on

the internet.

It's

feeding on

the word

of God

and receiving

into your

heart,

not in

one ear

and out

of the

other.

Sometimes

there's

another

response,

it's an

immediate

response,

but it's

shallow and

it's

short-lived,

doesn't bring

any lasting

change.

It's like

the seed

that falls

on the

stony

ground,

says there

in verse

five,

and he

explains it

in verse

50,

that he

hears the

word,

immediately

receives it

with joy,

but it's

got no

root.

And it

lasts for a

little while

and when

tribulation or

persecution

arises on

account of

the word,

it immediately

falls away.

And so we

talk about

people,

don't we,

with rocks in

their heads.

rocks,

but Jesus

says we

have rocks

in our

hearts.

Our

garden,

certain parts

of our

garden has

got a

really thin

level of

soil,

so the

grass doesn't

really grow

in that

area,

because

underneath

it is

the rock.

And the

grass kind

of springs

up,

but when

the sun

comes,

it just

dies down.

And there

are people

like that,

they're

superficial in

their response,

they respond

with enthusiasm,

a show of

interest,

but it's

short-lived.

And when

trouble comes

and persecution

comes,

they just

back out.

When it

comes to

standing in

work or

in school,

they just

back off.

You don't

see them

anymore,

maybe they're

scandalized,

they've never

counted the

cost,

nobody's

told them

there's a

cost.

And when

trouble and

persecution

comes,

I didn't

sign up for

that.

And you

don't see

them again.

It's a

surface,

superficial

response.

How do

you deal with

people like

that?

Maybe you

know people

like that.

Maybe they

used to be

here,

they were

full-on

for a

time,

but now

you don't

see them

anymore.

How do

you deal

with the

stony

ground?

Well,

you've

got to

plough it

up.

You've

got to

get rid

of those

stones.

Isn't

that what

Jesus did?

I think

of a

couple of

examples.

In John

John 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4,

he meets

the woman

at the

well,

and Jesus

says,

go and

fetch your

husband.

And she

says,

well,

they're

having a

nice little

chat about

water.

And she's

got to get

water from

the well.

She goes

in the

middle of

the day,

the sun

is blazing

hot,

and Jesus

says,

well,

actually,

I've

got living

water for

you.

I've got

water on

tap.

She thinks

to herself,

that would

be great,

I wouldn't

have to

keep coming

out here

to get

it.

And

they're

having a

nice little

conversation.

And Jesus

is drawing

her,

he is giving

her a thirst

for something

deeper,

and then

he suddenly

introduces into

the conversation,

go and get

your husband.

She says,

I haven't

got a

husband.

He says,

no,

the truth

is,

you've

actually

had five

husbands,

and the

man you're

living with

now is

not your

husband.

And do you

see what

Jesus is

doing there?

He is

ploughing

up the

ground,

he's showing

her her

need of

a saviour.

She's a

woman with

many regrets,

has done

things that

she bitterly

regrets,

there's stuff

in her life

that needs

to be dealt

with.

If she is

going to

receive the

living water

that Jesus

has come to

give,

he ploughs

up the

ground,

it's painful.

Why does

he say to

the rich

young ruler,

this guy

who's got

everything going

for him,

who turns

up to

church and

people are

tripping over

themselves to

welcoming.

He's well

known around

town,

he's wealthy,

he's good

looking,

he's a

moral guy,

full of

religion,

and Jesus,

he asks

Jesus some

good spiritual

questions,

what must I

do to

inherit eternal

What a great

question!

And Jesus

says,

you know the

commandments,

don't you?

He says,

I've kept

them since I was

a boy.

Jesus says

to him,

and one

thing you

lack,

he tears

up the

ground,

he says,

go and

sell all

that you

have and

give to

the poor.

That's not

a general

command that

all Christians

are supposed

to obey.

Jesus is

dealing with

an individual

and the

problem with

this man is

not that he's

got money,

but money

has got him.

He's greedy

and covetous.

And he

doesn't realise

it until Jesus

puts his

finger on it.

And challenges

about him.

Do you see

what Jesus

is doing

there?

He's

ploughing

up the

soil in

order that

that seed

might be

sown.

for people

to become

real Christians

for the

long haul,

then it's

so important

that they

come to

Jesus for

the right

reason.

Martin Oll

Jones was

a great

preacher in

the 20th

century in

central London.

On Sunday

night,

3,000 people

would go and

hear him.

And he's

a very powerful

preacher.

And the story

is told of a

man one night

when the

doctor had

preached a

very,

very powerful

sermon,

the man

came up

to him

afterwards and

said,

Doctor,

if you had

given an

altar call,

if you had

invited those

who wanted to

make a response

to come to

the front,

I would have

come forward.

And the

doctor said

to him,

if you don't

want Jesus

five minutes

after the

sermon,

you really

don't want

him.

It's not

about a

surface

emotion,

but how

much do

you really

want the

Lord Jesus?

How serious

are you about

following Jesus?

That is the

test, isn't

it?

Not a surface

emotion, how

you feel,

but serious

discipleship.

What are the

rocks this

morning that

need removing

for you to

be a genuine

follower of

Jesus?

But even

more dangerous

on the

hardness of

the wayside

here and

the shallowness

of the

stony ground

is the

thorny

ground here.

Look at

verse 22.

As for

what was

sown among

thorns,

this is the

one who

hears the

word,

but the

cares of the

world and

the deceitfulness

of riches

choke the

word and

it proves

unfruitful.

The word

grows,

but so

do the

weeds and

the weeds

take over

because the

weeds are

competing for

the same

nutrients,

the same

light.

And I

think many

of us fall

into this

trap.

I get a

notification on

my phone every

Monday that

tells me how

much screen

time I've

used.

Incredibly,

it almost

always seems to

be 20% less

than the week

before.

I'm pretty

sure that's

not the

case.

but I

think in

my life

there's far

too much

screen time

and not

enough Bible

time.

Think how

twitchy you

get when

you leave

your phone

at home.

Think how

panicky you

get when

you can't

find your

phone.

Too much

screen time,

too little

Bible time.

And sometimes

we think we

hear the word,

read our

Bibles,

but the

cares of this

world,

the deceitfulness

of riches,

they just

begin to

choke us.

To change

the metaphor,

there's no

more room

on the

hard drive.

Our hearts

are overcrowded

with things.

There's just

too much

in our

lives.

The things

we see

on the

internet

and the

shops

that we

worry

about.

And maybe

as I

talk this

morning,

there are

things that

you know

in your

life,

they've

just

crowded

out the

seed.

The

world

comes and

it wraps

itself

around us

like a

boa

constrictor

and it

squeezes

the life

out of us.

We don't

realise at

first.

And what

Jesus is

saying here

is that

to listen

to the

word,

the life

giving

word,

is the

most

important

thing

you do

all

week.

And so

it's not

me just

preparing a

talk and

giving it.

It is

King Jesus

speaking to

you through

his word,

inviting you

to respond.

And there's

nothing more

vital than

what we

do as

we gather

as the

people of

God to

hear the

word of

God.

And so

what kind

of soil

are you?

What kind

of response

do you give

to the

word of

God?

Every

parable

has a

punchline

and that

is the

thing to

remember

about the

parables.

And the

punchline

is there

in verse

23.

three.

As for

what was

sown on

good soil,

this is

the one

who hears

the word,

understand it,

and indeed

bear fruit

and yields

in one

case a

hundredfold,

another

sixty,

and in

another

thirty.

And so

it ends

this parable

in a

very

positive

note.

Let me

finish

with this.

Jesus

concludes

his

parable

with a

promise

of

super

abundant

harvest.

It's

probably

lost on

us,

but the

average

harvest

in that

barren

desert

region

was never

any more

than

seven or

eight

percent.

Never

seven or

eight times

the amount

of seeds

sown.

So ten

times the

seeds that

were sown,

that's an

abundant

harvest.

Twenty

times would

be exceptional.

Thirty

times,

would be

unthinkable.

Sixty

times

unfathomable.

One

hundred

times

glorious.

So what

Jesus is

saying here,

he's not

saying all

Christians will

bear fruit,

some will

bear a

lot of

fruit,

some will

bear enough

fruit.

He's saying

all Christians

will bear

lots of

fruit,

some a

lot,

some a

whole lot

more,

some an

extraordinary

amount.

And that's

the test of

whether or

not you're

a good

soil for

the gospel.

Is the

word bearing

fruit in

your life?

They all

hear the

word,

hard hearts,

shallow

hearts,

thorny

hearts,

but it's

only the

good soil

that bears

fruit.

The good

hearer