It's great to be back with you guys, miss worshiping with you all last week.
Please open up your Bibles to Matthew chapter 13.
If you don't have a Bible, please raise your hand.
We'd love to give you a copy of the Bible that you can take home with you and use while you're here.
We're going through this series in the Gospel of Matthew, and we are in chapter 13 today,
verses 1 to 23.
Let me pray for the reading and preaching of God's Word.
Father, we thank you because you did not leave us to our own devices.
But you gave us instead your Word.
The words of life.
Word that brought this world into being.
Word that now makes the dead, those who are spiritually dead, live again in Christ.
Lord, we now humble ourselves before your living Word.
We ask that you will give us eyes to see and ears to hear.
exalt the name of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Help us cherish and hold fast to his message of salvation.
It's the good news you have given to us in him.
Teach us to do that better now as we hear from you in Matthew 13.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
Please stand if you're able.
Let's honor God as we read from his Word as he addresses us.
That same day, Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.
And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down.
And the whole crowd stood on the beach, and he told them many things in parables, saying,
A sower went out to sow, and as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.
Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil.
And immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil.
But when the sun rose, they were scorched.
And since they had no root, they withered away.
Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.
Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
He who has ears, let him hear.
Then the disciples came and said to him,
Why do you speak to them in parables?
And he answered them,
To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.
For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance.
But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them 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 never understand.
And you will indeed see, but never perceive.
For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed.
Lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears,
and understand with their heart, and turn.
And I would heal them.
But blessed are your eyes, for they see,
and your ears, for they hear.
For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous people long to see what you see,
and did not see it.
And to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
Hear, then, the parable of the sower.
When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it,
the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.
This is what was sown along the path.
As for what was sown on rocky ground,
this is the one who hears the word, and immediately receives it with joy.
Yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while.
And when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word,
immediately he falls away.
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.
As for what was sown on good soil,
this is the one who hears the word and understands it.
He indeed bears fruit and yields,
in one case a hundredfold,
in another sixty,
and in another thirty.
This is God's holy and authoritative word.
Please be seated.
Thank you.
There's an issue that has befuddled pastors
and different ministers of the church
throughout the generations,
and it's that you can tell two people
the self-same gospel,
and yet one person rejects it outright and scoffs,
while the other person receives it eagerly.
Even within the church,
people can hear the self-same gospel
from the same preachers
over many months and years,
and while some seem to soak it all in
and mature steadily,
others stagnate
or even fall away.
What are we to make of all of this?
What accounts for the varied outcomes?
Jesus answers that question
in two primary ways.
First is that God only reveals the secret to some.
That's his first answer.
And the second answer is this,
only some people hear and understand.
I've mentioned to you before
that the Gospel of Matthew
is structured around five main discourses,
and this is the third discourse,
which is on the theme of the kingdom of heaven,
kingdom, the word,
occurs 12 times in chapter 13 alone.
The kingdom of God
or the kingdom of heaven
refers to the dominion
or the rulership of God
over his subjects.
And this passage,
and this third discourse in particular,
is concerned with
what does it look like
when the kingdom of heaven
breaks in upon the earth?
What does it take?
What does it look like
for us to become participants
or citizens of the kingdom of heaven?
That's the important question
that this discourse addresses.
Jesus begins this teaching
by the Sea of Galilee.
In our cultural context,
preachers like me stand,
and people who are listening sit.
In the near eastern context,
the teachers,
in the Jewish context,
the teachers sit,
and then the disciples gather around.
So when Jesus sits down by the sea,
the disciples get the cue.
They all gather around him
to hear what he has to say.
But when the crowd gets large,
the large crowd gathers around him,
he goes onto a boat
into the Sea of Galilee
and then preaches from there
to the people who are sitting on the shore
because,
I mean,
they probably knew this from experience.
Sound travels further in water,
and so because of that,
this would provide natural amplification.
And then he says in verse 3,
it says in verse 3,
Matthew says,
Jesus told them many things in parables.
This is one of the distinctive features
of this third discourse.
It is made up almost entirely of parables.
Eight parables to be exact
about the kingdom of heaven.
Of the 17 occurrences of the Greek word
for parable in the Gospel of Matthew,
12 of them occurs in this chapter.
Verse 34 says,
in fact,
that Jesus said nothing to the crowds
without a parable.
And this first parable that Jesus tells
is one of the most famous ones
that we know of in English
as the parable of the sower.
But since the focus in Matthew
is not on the sower per se,
but on the seeds
sown on four different types of soil,
it may be more aptly be called
the parable of the four types of ground.
The word parable comes from a Greek word
that means to literally
to place alongside something,
to juxtapose something
for the sake of comparison.
So in verse 24,
Jesus introduces a parable by saying,
the kingdom of heaven
may be compared to
a man who sowed good seed in his field.
So a parable is an illustration,
a comparison,
an extended figure of speech
whose meaning goes beyond
the literal meaning on the surface.
So let's look at the parable of the sower.
Its meaning is not immediately apparent.
We're so familiar with it now
because we've been taught this passage,
we've seen Jesus' explanation of it many times,
that we can assume that this is,
you know, self-evident.
But that's not the case
when you hear just the parable.
Why is Jesus talking about
seeds that fall along the path
that are devoured by birds,
and then seeds that fall on rocky ground
that sprout up quickly
but wither away due to lack of root,
and other seeds that are choked by thorns
as they grow,
and still others that produce much fruit?
Is he trying to relate to
and commiserate with
the plight of the farmers
who labor in the arid ground
of the ancient Near East?
Is he trying to warn farmers
about the need to exercise care when sowing?
Or is he talking generally
about the hardships of life,
the difficulties of life,
the meaning is not immediately clear.
And that raises a question.
Isn't the goal of the teacher
to communicate concepts clearly
so that the students understand?
Why then employ parables,
which by definition need to be deciphered,
explained?
Jesus' disciples had this exact question.
So they ask him in verse 10,
why do you speak to them in parables?
And Jesus gives them a plain answer in verse 11.
To you, it has been given to know
the secrets of the kingdom of heaven,
but to them, it has not been given.
The secrets of the kingdom of heaven
have been given to the disciples of Jesus
to know,
but it has not been given to the crowds
to know.
Jesus continues in verses 12 to 13.
For to the one who has,
more will be given,
and he will have an abundance.
But from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables,
because seeing,
they do not see,
and hearing,
they do not hear,
nor do they understand.
This is why I speak to them in parables,
Jesus says.
Because seeing,
they do not see,
and hearing,
they do not hear.
Maybe some of you have seen
this optical illusion
that I saw years ago
when I was a kid.
It's a drawing,
a black and white drawing,
of a young woman
with the headscarf
with her head turned slightly this way.
I think some of you guys
have probably seen it.
And if you,
you know,
if you just look at that,
that's maybe all you see.
Until someone points out
the contours of another image,
and when they do that,
you suddenly see,
not a beautiful young woman,
but an old wrinkly woman
with a huge crooked nose
and a protruding chin.
And then once you see that,
you can't unsee it.
Like that's what you see
when you see that image.
But unless someone points that out
or you somehow came to see
that second image,
you could stare at that
all day long
and all you see
is that first image.
A parable is kind of like that.
Because seeing,
they do not see.
You have heard the parable,
but have you really heard it,
not just with your ears,
but with your heart?
You understand the surface meaning
of the words that Jesus speaks,
but do you understand
the deeper meaning underneath that?
That's the point of the parable
that some people see
and yet not see.
The point of the parable,
the parable functions
for some people to elucidate.
For the disciples,
when they explain it,
it clarifies,
helps them to understand.
But for some others,
it obfuscates,
it makes opaque,
more difficult to see
and understand.
In the parallel version
of this parable
in the Gospel of Mark,
Mark 4, 11 and 12,
Jesus makes this point
even more explicit.
He says,
To you has been given
the secret of the kingdom of God,
but for those outside,
everything is in parables,
so that they may indeed see,
but not perceive,
and may indeed hear,
but not understand,
lest they should turn
and be forgiven.
Jesus cites Isaiah 6, 9-10
in verses 14 and 15
to explain this further.
In the original context of Isaiah,
this is in the commissioning
of prophet Isaiah,
God tells him to go
and prophesy among
the people of Israel,
but as he commissions him,
God tells Isaiah
that people will not listen to him.
In fact, he tells him
that your prophecy
will have the effect
of hardening the hearts
of the people of Israel.
The heat of the sun
melts chocolate,
but it hardens clay.
The word of God
functions as an instrument
of mercy to some,
but as an instrument
of judgment to others.
It reveals and saves for some.
It conceals and hardens for others.
As 2 Corinthians 2, 16 says,
witnesses of Jesus Christ,
that they are,
we are as witnesses of Christ,
are a fragrance
from death to death
for those who are perishing,
but we are a fragrance
from life to life
for those who are being saved.
Jesus cites Isaiah 6, 9 to 10
to explain why he teaches
the crowds in parables,
not so that they might hear
and understand,
but so that they might hear
yet not understand.
Follow along with me
in verses 14 to 15.
You will indeed hear,
but never understand,
and you will indeed see,
but never perceive.
For this people's heart
has grown dull,
and with their ears
they can hardly hear,
and their eyes
they have closed,
lest they should see
with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand
with their heart
and turn,
and I would heal them.
A passage like this
makes some of us
feel uncomfortable
because it seems
to negate human agency
and will.
If we go back
to the original quote
in Isaiah,
it's even more direct
and forceful
than Matthew's rendering of it,
which he quotes
from the Greek translation
of the Hebrew.
Isaiah 6, verse 10 says,
Make the heart
of this people dull
and their ears heavy
and blind their eyes
lest they see
with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand
with their hearts
and turn and be healed.
God's telling Isaiah
that his prophecies
would dull
the people's hearts,
harden their hearts
in some sense,
that Jesus is saying
that his parables
fulfill Isaiah's prophecy
by doing the same thing.
It's also important
to note that
it's not the case
that the disciples
of Jesus,
they don't have dull hearts,
they are humble
and receptive
and therefore
they understand
these parables
without Jesus
having to explain it
to them.
That's not what
sets these disciples
apart from the crowds.
Matthew makes it clear
in the course of the gospel
that his disciples
also do not understand
the parables
without Jesus
explaining it to them.
So he says
in Matthew 13, 36,
Then Jesus left the crowds
and went into the house
and his disciples
came to him saying,
Explain to us
the parable
of the weeds
of the field.
Again,
in Matthew 15, 15,
Peter says to Jesus,
Explain the parable
to us.
They ask Jesus
to explain the parables
because they don't understand.
Both the crowds
and the disciples
do not understand
the parables.
The only difference
between them
is that Jesus
does not explain
to the crowds,
but he does explain
to the disciples.
Why?
Jesus told us
in verse 11,
To you it has been given
to know the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven,
but to them
it has not been given.
Or as Jesus
puts it differently
in Matthew 22, 14,
Many are called,
but few are chosen.
Jesus did not choose
the disciples
because they are
unlike these crowds
and they have hearts
that are humble
and supple
and able to understand.
No,
their hearts understand
because Jesus chose them
and explains things to them.
Since this is
a difficult topic,
let me bring in
a few other passages
of scripture
to demonstrate this
to you all.
Psalm 139, verse 16.
It says,
Your eyes saw
my unformed substance.
In your book
were written
every one of them
the days that were
formed for me,
when as yet
there was none of them.
Notice it doesn't say
that God foresaw
what I will do
ahead of time
and then he just
wrote it down
in his book.
If that's the case,
then what's the point
of telling us
that God wrote the book
before any of our days
came to be?
That priority,
that priorness
of God writing
our days
in the book
is no priority
at all
if he only wrote
down what he foresaw
we will do.
In that case,
our choices
and our actions
come logically
before God's writing
and that's not
what Psalm 139, 16 says.
It says that
our days
were written
in God's book
before any of them
came to be.
We need to take God
at his word
when he tells us
that he sovereignly
ordains
every single one of
every single day
of our lives
before any of it
came to be
which is a source
of great comfort
for me
knowing that no matter
how hard my life gets,
no matter what
bad things happen,
no matter what
tragedy strike,
all of it came
from the loving
and sovereign hand
of my Father.
Ephesians 1, 11 says this,
in him we have
obtained an inheritance
having been predestined
according to the purpose
of him who works
all things
according to the
counsel of his will.
According to whose purpose
did God predestine
some of us
for salvation?
He says,
according to the purpose
of God
who works all things.
Well, but doesn't
God purpose
to uphold
our free will
and therefore
work things out
according to
our wills
and choices?
What is the basis
for God's purpose?
having been predestined
according to the purpose
of him who works
all things
according to the
counsel of his will.
It says that our
predestination is
according to God's
purpose
and that God's purpose
is not based on
our will and choices
but on the counsel
of his will.
So why is there
such a wide range
of differing responses
to the gospel
of Jesus Christ?
One answer
that our passage
gives is this,
God only reveals
the secret
to some.
But if you walk
away from this passage
way down
only by the fate
of the non-elect,
those who are not
chosen by God
in this sense,
then you're missing
the emphasis
of Jesus' teaching.
All of us
were once
depraved,
hardened sinners.
All of us
once had dull hearts.
What is remarkable
is not that
these sinners
are not saved.
What is remarkable
is that some sinners
are saved.
what is remarkable
is that to some
it has been given
to know the secrets
of the kingdom
of heaven.
So Jesus says
to his disciples
in verses 16 to 17,
but blessed are your eyes
for they see
and your ears
for they hear.
For truly I say
to you,
many prophets
and righteous people
long to see
what you see
and did not see it
and to hear
what you hear
and did not hear it.
I think it's fair
to say that all of us
have a fascination
with secrets.
We like to be privy
to secrets.
We all wonder
what's in that vault
or in that secret archive
in the MI6 headquarters
in London
or what's hidden
in that CIA headquarters
in Langley, Virginia
or what was hidden
in the secret
Vatican archives
that wasn't open
to the historians
until like the 1880s
or something like that.
What's in there?
People want to know
these secrets
want to be in on it.
Jesus says
that many prophets
and righteous people
throughout the ages
long to see
what you see
and did not see it.
Not only the prophets
and righteous people,
1 Peter 1, 10-12
tells us that
even the angels,
angels of heaven
long to look
and see
what it was
that God was planning
his redemption plan
through the suffering
and death of Jesus Christ
and his resurrection.
God has invited us
to be in on
a secret
that up to the point
of Christ
that not even his angels
were fully privy to.
He has now revealed
that to us.
What exactly
are the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven?
The word secret here
is the same word
that is usually translated
as mystery
in the New Testament.
Paul speaks
of this mystery
that God revealed
to him in Ephesians 3,
4 to 6.
When you read this,
you can perceive
my insight
into the mystery
of Christ,
which was not made known
to the sons of men
in other generations
as it has now
been revealed
to his holy apostles
and prophets
by the Spirit.
This mystery
is that
the Gentiles
are fellow heirs,
members of the same body
and partakers
of the promise
in Christ Jesus
through the gospel.
The secrets
of the kingdom of heaven,
the mystery
of the ages
is this,
that Christ Jesus
fulfilled the law
of God
by living the life
of perfect obedience
and then dying
as the atoning sacrifice
for sin on the cross
in our place,
in the place of sinners,
and then he was raised
from the dead
in victory
so that lawbreakers
like you and I
who were once enemies
of God
can be forgiven,
pardoned,
and become citizens
of the kingdom of heaven.
but how can
the kingdom,
the secrets
of the kingdom
of heaven
be mine?
See,
that's the true wonder
of the doctrine
of election.
It's meant
to make us wonder
why would it be
that God
would choose me?
I wouldn't choose me
if I were God.
I'm slow to change.
I'm like a stubborn mule,
right?
Really,
really long times.
I change slowly
and gradually.
I'm a Gentile dog,
an ethnic mutt
in all likelihood,
even though I haven't
taken one of those
DNA tests,
but just look at me.
Definitely don't look
100% Korean
if you ask me.
I was alienated
and hostile
in mind to God,
doing evil deeds,
as it says
in Colossians 1.21.
My forefathers
were engaged
in idolatrous,
futile ways.
Opposed to the truth
of God.
If you go far
back enough,
my ancestors
persecuted the Jews,
the chosen people
of God.
I am the foremost
of sinners.
I was far off,
separated from Christ,
alienated from
the commonwealth
of Israel,
and strangers
to the covenants
of promise,
having no hope
and without God
in the world.
That's me.
So God,
I think you've
got the wrong
person.
I'm not your
guy.
I'm not supposed
to know the secret.
These precious
secrets are not
for my blind eyes
to see,
not for my deaf
ears to hear,
not for my dull
heart to understand.
God.
But if God
as the king
gets to choose,
then he can say,
it doesn't matter
what you say,
I'm choosing you
and revealing
this secret to you.
Pastor,
he's still a pastor,
I think,
Stephen Um,
who's an acquaintance
of mine,
when he used
to do
submissions work
in South Korea,
he would minister
to prostitutes,
and no matter
how many times
he would tell
them the gospel
and God's
forgiveness
and God can
forgive you,
you can have
a new life
in Christ,
they wouldn't
listen.
They felt so
much shame,
so much shame
from their
lifestyle and
what they had
done,
they said to
themselves,
God cannot
possibly receive
us.
But it was
when they
were taught
the doctrine
of election,
when they
were taught
that God
is the king
who sovereignly
chooses and
saves people
for himself,
that's when
they said,
oh,
if that's
the case,
then I can
believe that.
That's the
wonder of
election.
How can
God choose
me?
Because my
son died
for your
sins,
he has
fulfilled the
law on your
behalf,
you whom I
have chosen,
you are no
longer strangers
and aliens,
but you are
fellow citizens
of the kingdom
of heaven.
Remember,
that's why
Andrew preached
on this
passage in
the preceding
passage,
Matthew 12,
41 to 42.
What did
Jesus use as
examples when
he was denouncing
the Pharisees?
He says,
the men of
Nineveh will
rise up to
condemn you.
For Jonah
came to them
and preached
and they
listened and
they
repented,
but something
greater than
Jonah is
here.
The queen
of Sheba,
the queen
of the
south,
came to
hear the
wisdom of
Solomon and
she listened
and she
will rise up
to condemn
you in the
day of
judgment because
something greater
than Solomon
is here.
Both of those
examples,
they're Gentiles,
sinners.
He's kind of
rubbing it in
the face of
these Pharisees,
the Jewish
religious elites.
you think
you're saved
because you're
a Jew.
You think
you're saved
because of
your own
righteousness,
not a
chance.
Those whom
God sovereignly
chooses and
reveals himself to,
those who
repent and
believe in
Jesus Christ,
only they
who recognize
that their
own righteousness
is inadequate
can be saved.
and so with
the religious
elites,
the cream of
the crop,
the moral
exemplars that
they thought
themselves to
be behind
him,
Jesus turns
to his
ragtag
bunch of
disciples,
the collection
of sinners
and tax
collectors who
have gathered
about him
and he says,
here are my
brothers,
here are my
mothers,
here are my
sisters.
brothers,
Jesus turns
upside down
the conventional
Jewish
understanding of
who is in
and who is
out.
Jesus has
made a way
for sinners
like us to
be saved.
And yes,
God sovereignly
chooses some
to be saved,
to be his
disciples,
but implicit in
this passage is
also an
invitation.
Yes,
the purpose is
to make people
hear,
some people
hear yet not
understand,
but there's
also an
invitation to
believe and
follow the
only person
who can
explain the
parables and
give its
meaning.
When I
defined the
word parable
for you
earlier,
I didn't
mention that
parable is
a Greek
word that's
used to
translate the
Hebrew word
for proverb
in the Old
Testament.
So when it
says in
verse 3 that
Jesus told
them many
things in
parables,
it recalls
1 Kings 4
32 which
tells us that
King Solomon
spoke in
many proverbs,
more specifically
3,000 proverbs.
And remember
Jesus, we were
just told in
chapter 12
verse 42 that
Jesus is
something greater
than Solomon.
if the queen
of the south
traveled 1,500
miles to
hear the
wisdom that
God had
given to
Solomon,
then how
much more
when the
wisdom of
God in
the flesh,
when the
word of
God incarnate
is in our
midst, how
much more
should we
pay attention
to him
and listen
to him?
Divine
sovereignty
and salvation
does not
abrogate human
responsibility.
The
geologist
Frank Rhodes,
who was the
ninth president
of Cornell
University,
once used
this analogy
to explain
multiple types
of causes.
He asks,
so why is
the kettle
boiling?
Two types
of explanations
can be given.
At one level,
the stove top
is applying
thermal energy
to the base
of the kettle,
which then
generates kinetic
energy and the
molecules are
moving faster
and faster and
that is what
you're measuring
and then when
this reaches
100 degrees
centigrade,
that's boiling.
That's one
way to explain
why the kettle
is boiling.
A second
answer that
you can give
is this,
the kettle
is boiling
because someone
put it on
to make a
cup of tea.
That's the
just as valid
of an
explanation.
Rhodes writes
this,
now these
are different
answers,
but both
are true.
Both are
complementary
and not
competitive.
One answer
is appropriate
within a
particular frame
of reference,
the other
within another
frame of
reference.
We have a
hard time
reconciling
divine sovereignty
and human
responsibility
because we
presume that
divine will
functions at
the same
level on
equal footing
as human
will,
as if they
function on
the same
plane,
but it's
not like
that.
Our will
is that of
the creature.
God's will
is that of
the creator.
Our will
is that of
the characters
in a book.
God's will
is that of
the author
of the book.
When I was
a child,
I only knew
how to draw
two-dimensional
things,
right?
Circle,
rectangle,
it's a human
being,
right?
It's like a,
and then as
I got older,
took some art
classes in high
school,
right,
you learn about
perspective,
and you learn
about shading,
and then you
learn to use
the contrast
and color
to give depth
and volume
to drawing.
And then when
you jump from
that two-dimensional
world to a
three-dimensional
world,
it revolutionizes
art,
right?
That's what
makes it look
good,
right?
Being finite
creatures is
like living
in a two-dimensional
world.
We function on
the X-Y
plane.
So we can't
quite grasp
the third
dimension,
the Z-axis,
right?
We know that
the two are
connected,
but from our
limited human
perspective,
we cannot
search the
reaches of
God's
infinite
mind.
It's important
to note,
however,
that this
does not
therefore in
any way
abrogate our
responsibility to
respond to the
gospel of Jesus
Christ in
faith.
If we think
to ourselves
after believing
in the
sovereignty of
God and
salvation,
well,
if God
chooses whom
he will
save,
well,
then it
doesn't
matter what
we choose
in the
end.
If you're
tempted to
think that
way,
I just want
you to know
that that's
not a
biblical
idea.
That type
of,
that kind
of thinking,
that line
of reasoning
is completely
foreign to
biblical
thought.
It never
occurs to
the writers
of Scripture.
The authors
of Scripture
did not
have the
difficulty
that we
have of
holding
divine
sovereignty
and human
responsibility
together.
It says,
choose this
day whom
you will
serve,
Joshua 24
15.
That's
what Jesus
says in
verse 9,
he who
has ears,
let him
hear.
That's an
invitation.
Only those
to whom
God has
given ears
to hear
can hear,
yes,
but it
is not
our business
to know
whom exactly
that is.
The only
thing we
can do
is to
take heed
to hear
and understand
the gospel.
Instead of
wondering whether
other people
are chosen
by God
or not,
we share
the gospel
with them
all.
Isn't that
what Jesus
does here?
I mean,
I don't know
if it's
exactly,
you know,
25%,
but if you
look at that
as 25%,
his success
rate's not
very good.
He sows
seeds everywhere
on paths
that will be
devoured by
birds,
on shallow
ground,
on rocky
ground,
among the
thorns,
he sows
everywhere.
God,
Jesus sows
liberally
everywhere,
and so we
must do as
well.
We can't
tell who
is elect,
who belongs
to God's
chosen people.
God has
not given
us that
knowledge,
not for us
to know.
No,
it is our
responsibility
to go and
liberally
sow the
gospel seeds
everywhere we
go.
Instead of
wondering whether
you are
chosen by
God or
not,
do what
you can
do,
which is
to put
your faith
in Jesus
Christ and
follow him
as a
disciple,
for that's
the only
way to
know whether
you belong
to him
or not.
That's the
point of
Jesus'
explanation
of the
parables
in verses
17 to
23.
The word
understand
comes up
a number
of times,
and it's
a key
word.
Verse 13,
hearing they
do not
hear,
nor do
they
understand.
Verse 14,
you will
indeed hear,
but never
understand.
Note this
contrast between
just mere
hearing of
the ear and
understanding
of the
heart.
Verse 15,
lest they
understand with
their heart
and turn,
and I
would heal
them.
This theme
of understanding
is continued
in the
explanation of
the parable
in verse
19.
When anyone
hears the
word of
the kingdom
and does
not understand
it,
the evil
one comes
and snatches
away what
has been
sown in
his heart.
This
seed sown
along the
path is
contrasted
with the
seed that
is sown
on good
soil.
In verse
23,
this is the
one who
hears the
word and
understands
it.
He
indeed
bears
fruit.
Only
the last
seed planted
on good
soil bears
fruit because
that's the
only one
that is
described as
having
understanding.
The seed
on the
path gets
eaten by
birds.
The seed
on rocky
ground
sprouts up
quickly but
withers in
the heat.
The seed
among the
thorns are
choked by
it.
These
three kinds
of seeds
all eventually
lose what
they had at
the beginning.
That's what
Jesus is
talking about
in verse
12.
For to the
one who
has more
will be
given and
he will
have an
abundance but
from the
one who
has not
even what
he has
will be
taken away.
Only those
who hold
fast to the
word in
an honest
and good
heart,
those who
do not,
only those
who truly
understand the
gospel will
bear fruit
in one
case a
hundredfold,
in another
sixty and
another thirty
but to
others who
do not
hear and
understand,
even what
they had
will be
taken away
from them.
So let
me ask you
this all
important
question.
Do you
really
understand?
to use
this parable,
what kind
of soil
are you?
Verse 4
tells us
that some
seeds fell
along the
path and
the birds
came and
devoured
them.
A seed
cannot
germinate,
it can't
lay roots
through a
path.
So it
just sits
there,
lies there
until the
birds come
and devour
it.
This,
Jesus
explains in
verse 18,
is when
anyone hears
the word,
the word of
the kingdom,
and does not
understand it,
the evil one
comes and
snatches away
what has been
sown in his
heart.
The enemy
of God,
Satan,
is always
looking to
snatch away
the gospel
seeds that
are sown on
the hearts
of people.
Even today
there may be
people who
hear and
then will
turn around
and forget
about this
gospel.
Please don't
let that
happen.
Don't let
the good
news of
Jesus Christ
go in
one ear
and out
the other
and slip
away from
your consciousness,
slip away
from your
life.
Hold on
to the
gospel.
Meditate
on it,
think on it,
understand it,
ask sincere
questions.
Don't let
the evil
one come
and snatch
away what
you hear
this morning.
Some seeds,
Jesus says
in verse 5,
fall on rocky
ground where
they did not
have much
soil and
immediately
they sprang
up.
Sometimes this
happens in
real life,
that seeds
sprout faster
on shallow
soil because
it doesn't
have long
ways to go
down in
terms of
roots and
it doesn't
have long
ways to
come up
because it's
on shallow
soil.
It doesn't
take much
energy to
sprout its
leaf past
the soil.
and because
it receives
more warmth
because it's
closer to
the surface,
it germinates
faster and
sprouts up
faster.
However,
such plants
are prone
to drying
out and
withering
away more
quickly because
when the
heat gets
hotter,
the root
system is
too shallow,
it doesn't
get enough
moisture.
Jesus explains
in verse 20
to 21,
notice that
phrase,
he has no
root in
himself.
I've seen
many people
move here
to the
northeast,
to Massachusetts,
from the
Bible Belt
or from the
south,
and when
they are
no longer
surrounded
by Christian
community,
when Christianity
is no longer
a badge of
respectability
but a badge
of disrepute
and dishonor,
when Christians
are viewed
as ignorant
bigots,
they abandon
the faith
that they
once had.
I've also
seen many
young people
who were
very active
and zealous
in church
youth groups
abandon
their faith
once they
go to
college
when they're
no longer
under their
parents'
roof
and supervision,
when they
have the
independence
that they
never had
and when
they face
temptations
and peer
pressure to
sin like
they've never
had before,
they reject
God's word
and turn away
from it.
They fall
away.
Jesus says
that this
person is
someone who
has no
root in
himself.
This person
is like a
moss.
Mosses
don't have
real roots.
mosses
they absorb
their
moisture
water
directly
through
their
leaves
and
from
the
air.
This
is why
you find
mosses
only in
shady,
moist
environments
because they
have no
root and
they would
dry out
and get
scorched
by the
sun
easily
when it's
left out
in direct
sunlight.
They catch
some water
from their
environment
here and
there and
they survive
for a little
while but
they have
no roots
in
themselves.
They don't
know how
to receive
spiritual
nourishment
from Christ
directly.
They don't
know how
to abide
in Christ
divine.
It's like
when you
do
barbecue
with
coals
and let's
say when
you're done
barbecuing
and you
spill the
coal on
the street
to burn
out and
the coals
that really
cut fire
they're all
white.
They've all
been burning
but you
will
occasionally
find some
coal that's
still black.
Maybe it's
singed a little
bit from the
heat of the
surrounding
coals but it
never actually
cut fire.
When they're
all together
in the same
barbecue pit
it looks like
they're all
flaming hot
and they're
hot they've
all caught
fire but it's
when they are
scattered
individually
that's when
you see
oh that one
didn't really
ever catch.
Never had
fire in
itself.
What about
you?
Have you
caught the
fire of
God's love
in your
heart?
Do you
have root
in yourself
or are you
merely deriving
semblance of
life from your
environment by
proximity to
other Christians?
Can you
endure when
tribulation or
persecution arises
on account of
the word?
If you grew up
in a Christian
household with
godly parents
like I did
that is an
amazing blessing
but make sure
that your
faith is your
own.
That you
have root
in yourself.
Heed the
exhortation of
2 Timothy 3
14-15
but as for
you continue
continue
brothers and
sisters in
what you have
learned and
have firmly
believed knowing
from whom you
learned and how
from childhood you
have been acquainted
with the sacred
writings which are
able to make you
wise for salvation
through faith in
Christ Jesus.
hold on.
Remain there.
Stay there.
Still other
seeds Jesus
says in verse
7 fell among
thorns and the
thorns grew up
and choked them.
Jesus explains in
verse 22 that 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.
what are the
cares of this
world that are
choking the
spiritual life
out of you
and depriving
you of the
nutrients that
you need.
Are you weary
with care about
your job,
your prospect,
your future,
your bank
account,
the ups and
downs of the
stock market?
are you
weighed down
with anxiety
and cares
about your
health,
your future,
your children?
Are you
weighed down
with cares
about the
world,
politics,
wars,
and rumors
of wars,
the condition
of our
country?
Are you
consumed with
cares about
what you eat
and drink,
the clothes you
wear,
what other
people are
thinking about
you or is
saying about
you?
Don't let
these things
choke the
spiritual life.
What about
the deceitfulness
of riches?
Have you been
deceived?
by the
false promise
that money,
that money
can buy you
happiness,
security?
Isn't that a
very interesting
description?
That the
deceitfulness
of riches.
Do you know
that money
is,
riches deceive
you?
They trick
you.
They trick
you into
thinking that
yes,
if you have
me,
if you have
riches,
you will be
secure.
If you have
me and you
can spend
me,
you will be
happy.
But it
deceives.
Are you
being deceived
by the
riches?
What desires
do you have
for this
sinful world
that are
choking the
word of
God in
your life
so that
it doesn't
bear fruit?
It could be
other things,
other things
that this
world offers.
Maybe for
some of you
it's romance
and fantasies
about romance.
Maybe it's
sex.
Maybe it's
fame.
Maybe it's
renown.
Maybe it's
your desire
for authority
and power.
Maybe it's
nothing so
grand.
Maybe you're
just consumed
with entertainment.
One diversion
after another.
One video
after another.
Are you so
preoccupied with
these things so
that your
spiritual appetites
are getting
duller and
duller?
Seemingly
perfectly harmless
things on their
own can do
a great deal
of spiritual
harm if
they siphon
away our
time and
attention and
energy from
the things of
God and
things eternal.
In C.S.
Lewis' book
Screwtape
Letters,
which is an
imagined
correspondence
between senior
devil Screwtape
and his
junior nephew,
junior devil
Wormwood,
Screwtape
advises Wormwood
in this manner.
You will say
that these are
very small
sins and
doubtless,
like all
young tempters,
you are
anxious to
be able to
report
spectacular
wickedness.
But do
remember,
the only
thing that
matters is
the extent
to which you
separate the
man from
the enemy.
Does not
matter how
small the
sins are,
provided that
their cumulative
effect is to
edge the man
away from the
light and out
into the
nothing.
Murder is
no better
than cards
if cards
can do
the trick.
indeed,
the safest
road to
hell is
the gradual
one,
the gentle
slope,
soft
underfoot,
without
sudden
turnings,
without
milestones,
without
signposts.
how many
Christians have
you known
in life
were professing
Christians who
fell away
from faith,
who fell
away in
that kind
of spectacular
fashion,
just turned
and then
going to
headlong
into
wickedness?
Probably
rare if
you've seen
any.
But how
many of
you've seen
take that
gradual
turn?
murder is
no better
than
cards if
cards can
do the
trick.
What are
the cards
in your
life that
are edging
you gradually
away from
God?
How tragic
would it be
for us to be
turned away
from God
by cards?
Beware of
these things.
If you do
not take care
to hear and
understand the
gospel,
if you do
not make
use of the
means of
grace that
God has
provided for
us to keep
the gospel
real in
our hearts,
the reading
and preaching
of his
word,
the worship,
corporate worship
and singing,
Bible reading,
the personal
time,
prayer,
corporate worship,
the fellowship
of believers.
If we're not
using these
things,
means of
grace that
God has
given to
stoke the
flame of
our love
for God
and the
love that
he has
shown us
in Christ,
then what
used to be
a raging
flame in
your heart
will soon
weaken and
then it
will begin to
smolder.
And then
soon he
will start
smoking and
snuff out.
Jesus,
whom you
thought you
shared loving
intimacy with,
will soon
seem distant
and aloof
and eventually
he will seem
unreal.
am I
suggesting
that the
elect,
the
regenerate,
those who
are chosen
by God
for salvation
can lose
their
salvation?
No,
I'm a
good
reformed
pastor,
I'm not
saying that.
Yeah.
Nevertheless,
a professing
Christian
who checks
all the
right boxes
and possesses
all outward
appearances of
faith can
fall away
from Christ.
The Bible
teaches that.
Apostasy is
a real sin.
For this
reason,
there is no
room in the
Christian life
for complacency
and false
assurance.
The warnings
and threats
of the Bible,
like what you
see even in
this parable,
are not
merely
hypothetical.
And if
some fall
away,
of course,
it wouldn't
mean that
they were
not truly
regenerate.
How do we
know that?
Because Hebrews
3, 12-14
says this,
take care
brothers,
lest there
be in any
of you
an evil,
unbelieving
heart,
leading you
to fall
away from
the living
God,
but exhort
one another
every day
as long
as it
is called
today,
that none
of you
may be
hardened
by the
deceitfulness
of sin.
For we
have come
to share
in Christ,
if indeed
we hold
our original
confidence
firm to
the end.
Note the
tense of
that last,
that first,
the first
clause of
that last
sentence.
we have
come to
share in
Christ.
Perfect.
It's already
happened.
It does not
say that only
those who
persevere till
the end
will come
to share
in Christ.
It says
that we
have already
come to
share in
Christ if
we hold
our original
confidence
firm to
the end.
It's
perseverance
till the
end that
proves our
participation
in Christ,
that we
have partaken
in him,
have shared
him.
1 John 2,
19 is
similar.
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 all
are not
of us.
Referring
to those
who
apostatize
and abandon
the church
of Christ,
John says
that they
were never
one of
us.
For if
they had
been of
us,
one of
us,
then they
would have
continued
with us.
Apostasy
is proof
that they
never truly
belong to
the spiritual
family of
God.
So then,
what's the
relationship
between these
two things?
The more
you persevere
in faith
and obedience,
the more
you will be
assured of
your salvation.
And the
more you
are assured
and secure
in God's
grace,
the grace
of God
given to
you in
Jesus
Christ,
the more
you will
persevere
in faith
and obedience.
2 Peter 1
verses 10
to 11
says this,
Therefore,
brothers,
be all the
more diligent
to confirm
your calling
and election.
for if you
practice these
qualities,
you will
never fall.
For in this
way,
there will
be richly
provided for
you an
entrance into
the eternal
kingdom of
our Lord
and Savior
Jesus Christ.
We're meant
to confirm
our calling
and affection
by persevering
in faith
and good
works.
So,
brothers and
sisters,
are you
persevering
and holding
fast to
the gospel?
My prayer
is that all
of us will
be like the
seeds described
in verse
8.
Other seeds
fell on
good soil
and produced
grain,
some a
hundredfold,
some 60,
some 30.
Jesus explains
in verse 23,
as for what
was sown
on good soil,
this is the
one who hears
the word
and understands
it.
He indeed
bears fruit
and yields,
in one case
a hundredfold,
in another 60,
in another 30.
This is the
only type of
seed out of
the four that
is saved
in the end.
We know
that because
it's the only
one that bears
fruit.
And according
to scripture,
all true
believers bear
fruit.
That's why
Jesus says
in John 15
verse 2,
every branch
in me that
does not
bear fruit,
he takes
away.
And every
branch that
does bear
fruit,
he prunes
that he
may bear
more fruit.
How can
we become
fruitful?
In that
passage,
how does it
tell us
to bear
fruit?
It says
that happens
by abiding.
Jesus says,
whoever abides
in me and I
in him,
he it is that
bears much
fruit.
For apart
from me,
you can
do nothing.
What does it
mean to abide
in Jesus?
This leads
from one
question to
the next,
right?
Jesus says
in John 15,
90,
then as the
father has
loved me,
so I have
loved you.
Abide in
my love.
We abide
in Christ
by abiding
in his love
and living
out of that
love in
obedience to
him.
it is
when we
are rooted
and grounded
in love.
It says
in Ephesians
3,
17,
when we
know the
love of
Christ that
surpasses
knowledge,
that's when,
according to
Ephesians 3,
we comprehend
the breadth
and length
and height
and depth
of God
and are
filled with
all the
fullness
of God.
You want
more of
God and
less of
me?
You want
more of
the Holy
Spirit to
fill you,
to enable
you to
bear fruit
in your
life?
Abide in
Christ by
abiding in
his love,
knowing and
seeing and
beholding and
believing the
great love that
Jesus showed
you on the
cross in
his death and
resurrection.
And by
this we know
love that he
laid down his
life for us,
1 John 3,
16,
by beholding
and believing
the gospel,
beholding and
believing the
glory of the
gospel in the
face of Jesus
Christ, that is
how we are
transformed.
That is how
we bear fruit.
That is how
we grow.
And we have
every reason to
hold that dear,
don't we?
What is the
seed that we're
planting?
What is the
seed that we're
holding on to
this gospel?
It's nothing
less than the
personal work of
Jesus Christ
himself.
Jesus said in
John 12, 24,
truly, truly, I
say to you,
unless a grain of
wheat falls into
the earth and
dies, it
remains alone.
But if it
dies, it
bears much
fruit.
Jesus was
speaking of
himself.
If Jesus did
not die on
that cross to
save us from
our sin, there
is no seed.
There is no
seed to be
planted in our
lives.
There is no
secrets of the
kingdom of heaven
to reveal.
it all hinged
on Jesus, the
scion of the
kingdom of God,
the heir, the
prince, to whom
belongs all of the
riches and
inheritance of
heaven.
Yet he divests
himself of the
riches of heaven,
of the glories of
heaven, to come and
die a common
criminal's death on
the cross, to give
his life for us so
that in his death,
we might be
fruitful.
That's why he
gave himself for
us.
We're not saved by
our good work, we're
saved by the good
news of Jesus
Christ, but we are
saved for good
works, aren't we?
God wants us to
bear fruit a
hundredfold, a
sixtyfold, a
thirtyfold, and we
do that by following
in the footsteps of
Christ.
dying to ourselves,
dying to our sins,
carrying our cross
daily, and following
Jesus, and like
Jesus who died, the
kernel of wheat to
bring forth grain and
fruit and salvation
for all.
That's how we bear
fruit in this life.
Let's pray that we
may all do that.
Lord, we
long to bear fruit for
you.
We don't want to be a
fig tree that you come
to and has no fruit,
fruit, to be fresh.
Lord, we want to be
fruitful bows with
way down heavy with
bounty, with
innumerable fruits to
please you, to honor
you, to glorify you.
And Lord, to that end,
you have called us to
come and die.
Die to ourselves, die
to our selfishness, die
to our sin, and that is
what we want, Lord.
Let us die like the
kernel of wheat and help
us to behold Christ who
died for us.
that we might bear
fruit for you.
Make us a fruitful
church.
Preserve every single one
of my brothers and
sisters here.
And for those who do
not yet know you, Lord,
give them ears to hear.
In Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.