Day 27

Chase: Hello and welcome to the Point Church Podcast. We're really glad you're here. Before we jump in, if you'd like to stay connected, you can download the Point Church app. It's a simple way to find messages, resource, and what's happening. And if this podcast is helpful, take a moment to like, subscribe, and share. You can find us on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music. Let's get into today's episode. Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Point Church Podcast. I'm here with Pastor Sam and As we are walking through the gospel of Matthew verse by verse for forty days, forty podcasts for this Lent time. And today we are starting in chapter thirteen. In verse one it reads On that day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea, such large crowds gathered around him, and he got into a boat and sat down while the whole crowd stood on the shore. Then he told many things and parables. And I thought you could maybe just give us insight what a parable is. Yeah, parable is a term for a story, a teaching that uses earthly examples to communicate a heavenly meaning. So Jesus using examples they would know to say, This is what the kingdom of heaven is like. Yes. Yeah. Goes on saying Aga and remember this Jesus talking, consider the sower who went out to sow. As he sowed some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it didn't have much soil. It grew up quick quickly, since the soil wasn't deep. But when the sun came up it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away. Other seed fell. Among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, still other seed fell on the ground and produced fruit, some hundred, some sixty, and some thirty, what was sown? Let any one who has ears listen. Yeah, so again, this is an example that Jesus is what a par talking about what a parable is. Like we know what We know what soil is, we know what seeds are, rocky ground, ⁓ shallowness, and you know, we know all these things, but we're like, what's he mean? What's he talking about? So ⁓ he's gonna go on and explain this particular one later. So I think we let Jesus do the explaining, but there's another ⁓ insight that we can offer in a minute. Yep. Verse ten it says, Then the disciples came up and asked him, Why are you speaking to them in parables? Good question. Great question. And he said, Because the secrets of the kingdom have been given to you for you to know, but it has not been given to them. For whoever has more will be given to them to him, and he will have more than enough. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Yeah. So again, this is very similar to the language that Jesus used when saying the kingdom of heaven ⁓ suffers violence. And ⁓ again in the other translation in the violent bear it away, Jesus is saying again that it's those who are willing to put the work in, to work out what the teaching is like, to understand the holy mystery, who are gonna show up to Jesus and He's not gonna give them easy answers. He's gonna give them parables, he's gonna give them riddles. ⁓ the crowd probably might not be as big the next time, but those who show up are gonna get even more. So it's those who are willing to do the work are going to get more, but those who are flippant, even the little interest they had is going to go away. That's why he's speaking in parables. He's almost weeding out the crowd. Yep. And verse 13, that is why I speak to them in parables, because looking they do not see, and hearing they do not listen or understand. Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says, You will listen and listen, but never understand. You will look and look. But never perceive, for this people's heart has grown callous, their ears are hard of hearing, and they have shut their eyes, otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn back, and I would heal them. Blessed are those are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people are belong long to see the things you see but didn't see them. To hear the things you hear but didn't hear them. Mm-hmm. Yeah, again, Jesus is talking about people who are just like numbed, they're not paying attention, they're just going through life. Yes. ⁓ he's gonna talk about it later in the parable as he explains it, but it's like they're too worried about other things. They're worried about the wrong things. They're too busy. They're too consumed with whatever in the world. He's like the Again, he's reiterating like how special it is that what you're seeing and hearing Elijah wanted to see and hear, or Moses, or David, or Joseph, just anybody. They all wanted to see and hear these things that you're seeing and hearing, but they didn't. So like you are blessed. Like continue to put the work in to work out the mystery of what I'm teaching you. Mm-hmm. In verse eighteen it says So listen to the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word about the kingdom and doesn't understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the one sown along the path. And the one sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. But he has no root and is short lived. When distress or persecution comes. Because of the word, immediately he falls away. Mm-hmm. Yeah, so you could say that honestly this is a pr an ongoing problem in our modern world today, that, you know, there's a lot of excitement about maybe Jesus. There's a lot of excitement about like, Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna get back into my Bible, I'm gonna get back into prayer, I'm gonna get back into church. And then it's quickly as almost scrolling to the next thing on your phone, then you're on to the next thing. A very distracted time we live in and and Jesus is saying like, ⁓ there's no root. Like you're not taking root in this and so you're gonna lose it. Mm-hmm. So yeah. Verse twenty two, now the one sown among the thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the and worries of his age and deceitfulness of wealth choke well, choke the word and and it becomes unfruitful. Yep. So again, this is another one where people like they they hear the word of God, but then they start when it comes time to actually start following Jesus, like he says You know, let the dead bury their dead. Yes. You know, make me your first priority. If you take care of my business, I'll take care of your business. But they really can't do that. Or they're tricked into thinking I can follow Jesus and worship money, which again, he says, like, you can't love two masters. You can't serve two masters. This is like the seed that's choked out by the roots. Again, an ongoing problem in our world today, especially people who think, ⁓ like, do I really need Jesus? Like my life's going pretty good right now. Yeah. I don't think I really need it. Gonna choke choke out the word. 23. It says, but the one sown on the good ground, this is the one who hears and understands the word, who does produce fruit and yield some 100, some 60, some 30 times what was sown. So the insight that I got from this again, Tim Keller, amazing on this says the only way to really have good soil is for Jesus to. Give you again that good soil. And so what he says is Jesus took the attack of the devil, like the seed that was slow sown on the road. Jesus took the rocks for you, the rock that went over his tomb. He took the thorns, like the crown of thorn, to produce in you. Like he took the devil, he took the thorns, he took the rocks, so that all that was left. was like one who cleared the way to say there's nothing but good soil here. And if there's good soil, it's going to just create such abundance. Again, let me clear the way for you. Mm-hmm. In verse twenty four it says He presented another parable to them The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while people were sleeping, his enemy came, sowed weeds among the wheat and left. When the plants sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also appeared. The landowner's servant came to him and said, Master, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from? An enemy did this, he told them. Yeah, this that line always reminds me of almost the Garden of Eden. Nothing too deep there, other than just saying, An enemy has done this. Yeah. And now God has to let it continue to grow so it can be sorted out. Yes. He goes on to say, So so do you want us to go and pull them up? Their servant asked him. No, he said. When you pull up the weeds, you might also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time, I'll tell the reapers, gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but collect the wheat in my barn. Yeah, he's gonna go on to explain this one as well, because this one is much like the seed on the road. Pretty complicated, pretty confusing. ⁓ but yeah, he's gonna unpack this one more as well. He presented another parable to them in verse thirty one. The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It's the smallest of the seeds, but when grown it's taller than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches. He told them another parable. The kingdom of heaven is like leaven leaven that a woman took and mixed into fifty pounds of flour until all of it was leavened. Yeah, so Jesus is communicating that ⁓ a little bit goes a long way. Yes. Simple as that. There that's about the simplest explanation is a little bit goes a long way. The smallest mustard seed can grow and go a long way. Same with leaven. ⁓ you know, it's it's just very interesting that he uses leaven because ⁓ again, when the Israelites were escaping from Egypt They took with them only unleavened bread. Yes. So Jesus is saying like the kingdom of heaven lifts you up, rises up. There's a lot that you could unpack with that. You know, especially something flat, dead, and hard. A little bit of leaven brings levity, brings life to the dough, and wakens it up. So again, you could go on a whole rabbit trail with that. In verse thirty four. Jesus told the crowds all these things and parables, and he did not tell them anything without a parable. So that that so that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled, I will open my mouth in parables. I will declare things kept secret from the foundation of the world. Mm-hmm. So I this passage of scripture, I'm probably like most people, when it's time to read it. Yeah. I don't know how much I read it. That makes sense. I'm kind of like, no, I don't get that. No, I don't get that. Yeah. Let's get to a miracle. You know what I mean? Like, you kind of just Yeah. Your eyes look over it, but you're not really reading it, digesting it, processing it. And that's what these this crowd felt like. Because they're like, what is this? Yeah, what and again, what Jesus is doing is like, are you willing to slow down, to chew on this, dwell on this, think on this. Not that I'm not in the business of also giving simple straightforward answers because he does that too. But he's like, but there are truths that you have to marinate on, think on, memorize, put into practice, test them. Like, but if you're just looking for a simple short answer, it's not this. It's not this teaching. So maybe that's a challenge for those watching, listening, doing their reading today is like, go slow. Let Jesus unpack these teachings for you. That's the point of a parable. Mm-hmm. In verse thirty six it says, Then he left the crowds and went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, Explain to us the parable of the weeds and the field. He replied, The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world and the good seed, these are the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy he sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Therefore, just as the weeds are gathered and burned into the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom all who cause sin and those guilty of lawlessness. They will throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Father's kingdom, let anyone who Who has ears listen? Yep. Jesus is saying, like, here's the truth, here's the explanation. So again, this is like but you're also seeing what the disciples are doing is they're going to Jesus and say, Give me more. Yes. Give me more, more insight. That's what we are called to do as well. Study your Bible, study your scriptures, go to Jesus. Don't go to YouTube. You know what I mean? Like, don't seek YouTube first, seek Jesus first. Like, what does he have to say? What does biblical commentaries have to say? But in this particular one, you're getting some language of like this is judgment day, the separation. Again, like the sword gets talked about ⁓ earlier. Like we're separating people, the righteous from the unrighteous. Everyone can be righteous, but those who choose to be unrighteous chose it. Like, let's make no mistake. Jesus is here for everyone. And this is where you get language. Like the word hell is not specifically used. Let's make that clear. He's not saying hell, but he is using descriptive. Language that seems to be applying there is going to be pain and torment for those who are part of the children of the devil, like who are sowing lawlessness. But again, you don't need to be in fear of that if you are a child of God. And you don't need to be in fear of the unforgivable sin as you're like, make me whole, make me into that good tree. It's those who are continually rejecting it. That that's what Gamma Jesus is communicating. In verse forty four it says The kingdom of heaven is like treasure buried in a field that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field. Again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. When he found one when he found one priceless pearl, he went out and sold everything he had and bought it. Yep. This is again one of my favorite passages of scripture, but ⁓ it was actually the first sermon I ever wrote for seminary was on the passage of the ⁓ Pearl, Pearl of Great Price, and other ⁓ translations, because the line that I specifically hone in on is sold everything he had. The only way he could afford it is to sell everything he had. And I like to draw out the image that they must have thought this guy was crazy. Like he goes off to work one day and he comes home. And everything they own is on the front lawn for a garage sale. There's a for sale sign in front of the house and the car's for sale. And they're like, What? He's like, I gotta buy the field that I was working in. They're like, What? You did what? Like just an ordinary thing. Because he's the only no he's the only one who knows what's truly buried there. And so the only way he can afford he could never afford the pearl, but he can afford the field if he sells everything. So that's what Jesus is saying is like you don't even fully grasp what you're getting, but the only way you can even get to what's here is letting everything go. And hold on to me as savior and lord, top number one, let everything else go. And there's more treasures here than you can even imagine. Your your readers are giving you trouble. They are today. All right. Forty seven. It says again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea. It collected every kind of fish, and when it was full, they dragged it ashore, sat down, and gathered the good fish into containers, but threw out the worthless ones. So it will be at the end of age of the age. The angels will go out, separate the evil people from the righteous, and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Very similar to the weed. And the weeds. Very similar language, descriptor language, a separation. That yeah. Jesus is just telling it again in another way. Yes. ⁓ Fifty one, it says, Have you understood all these things? They answered him, Yes. Therefore, he said to them, Every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out his storeroom treasures, new and old. Yep. So like our job as Jesus followers, part of our task is to understand these truths, to build up wisdom, to understand the scriptures, listen, to apply in order not just to benefit ourselves, but a store room is what he calls it to say when others come to you with questions, you have built up a life of wisdom that can benefit them. But my my heartbreak is for people who again sit in church. Don't really absorb it. Don't really take it seriously. Don't, you know, attack the teachings of Jesus, so to speak, violently. And then when people come to them for help, like looking for help and wisdom, they're like, ⁓ I don't know. You just like, what? What I want I want you to wrestle so that you can go and do this. And you don't know when it might be a coworker, a cousin, it might be a neighbor, a friend. Someone just recognizes you have a relationship with Jesus. I'm not saying you have to be a Bible expert, but you should store up wisdom to benefit others. Freely give as you've been freely given. Amen. In verse 53 it says When Jesus had finished these parables, he left there. He went to his hometown and began to teach them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, Where did this man get hit this wisdom and these mere miraculous powers? Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't his mother called Mary and his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas and his and his sisters, aren't they all with us? So where does he get these things? And they were offended by him. And Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his household, and he did not do many miracles there because of their unbelief. So he's in his hometown of Nazareth. Yep. Right. Yeah. And they did. don't want to hear what he's got to say because they're like, Who do you think you are in many ways? They're like, You're just one of us and like you're talking down to us. So again, it says like not able to do many miracles. It's again the same thing. ⁓ Jesus just saying the same thing over and over in different ways, but it's the same thing of like, hey, if you don't have a receptive audience, mm-hmm, you know, don't throw pearls before a swine. Like If they don't want it, they're offen you're offended by it. Okay. Even Jesus they rejected. So for whatever reason, maybe Jesus wasn't the conduit that moment, which is crazy to think about. But after his death, burial, and resurrection, then maybe that's when the people would be receptive. Because that's again the ultimate sign is the sign of Jonah. But for whatever reason, as soon as he shows up, they're like They're offended. They're offended. They're like, No. Yeah. And so at times this is a test for us as believers as well is that when you give your life to Jesus, there may be people in your life who are like, Who do you think you are now? Mm-hmm. You trying to tell me how to live? Like we were just doing whatever recently or, you know, I just know you as my my my son or my brother or whatever. And it it's going to again, Jesus was not lying when he said cause division among people. So don't be surprised if people who knew you in your past life are not ready to receive what God has done in you. Mm-hmm. There you know I mean it can be offensive to them. Yes, it can. Instead of intriguing. So it can. Yeah. Just a again, kind of a word of warning. There it is. Well, with that, we're gonna close out today's episode and tomorrow we'll be stepping into chapter fourteen. So thanks for tuning in, everyone.