Well, if you'd open up your Bibles to Matthew chapter 13, as you're turning there, I think
it's very important for you to know that last Sunday in our sermon, I launched a new men's
cologne.
I'm not sure if you remember that.
It's called Weekend Warrior.
It's a cologne made by men and for men.
It's one-third chainsaw exhaust extract, one-third wood chip extract, and one-third male sweat.
Call it musk.
Well, after the service last week, I went downstairs to the fellowship hall and I was sitting next
to two sisters in Christ and they had their own fragrance they wanted to launch.
And it was not a perfume.
It's a disinfectant called Be Gone Weekend Warrior.
A disinfectant made by women for men.
Last week, I sought to prime the pump of your heart to receive the parables of the kingdom
of heaven from Matthew chapter 13.
There are eight parables in Matthew 13 and they're all structured in a very special way.
It's like an arrow.
And so the first four parables, it's like the 45 degree angle down in the front of an arrow
and the last four parables are a 45 degree angle up in an arrow and they're all pointing
to the same thing in 34 through 43 and that's Jesus.
All the parables are about Jesus and specifically how we are to respond to Him.
And so this morning, we're going to be looking at the first parable, the parable of the sower or the parable of the soils.
And what we're going to do is we're going to look at the three sections that Matthew lays out for us.
There's the parable of the soils itself in verses 3 through 9.
And then there's the explanation for why Jesus speaks in parables in verses 10 through 17.
And then in verses 18 through 23, Jesus comes all the way back and explains for us what the parable of the sower means.
And just to let you know, that's a bit unusual.
When you have Jesus explaining one of His own parables, it's like gold.
It's awesome.
And He has something to say to all of us today.
I just want to remind you of a couple of other things.
A parable is a teaching tool in which Jesus will paint a very vivid picture of an everyday experience.
And this morning, it's going to be farming, sowing.
And He's painting that picture in order to make a spiritual point.
To reveal the truth of the kingdom of heaven.
And it calls for a response.
And so, the response begins now.
Here's what I'd like you to start thinking about.
As we make our way through the parable of the soils,
would you start asking yourself this question?
Which soil best characterizes my heart?
That's where I want you to start in right now.
Be asking that question as we walk through this passage.
And so, let's look now at the parable of the soils.
In verses 3 through 9, Jesus actually speaks the parable.
Read with me.
Let's start in verse 1.
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 parable, 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 hundred fold.
Some sixty.
Some thirty.
He who has ears, let him hear.
So here's the background.
Jesus shows up on this beach on the Sea of Galilee.
And He takes a seat, which was the normal way rabbis would teach in that day.
But what happens is a huge throng of people come.
And He's out of space.
So He takes a step back.
He gets into this thirty-foot Galilean kind of fishing boat.
And the crowds kind of throng in.
And they're all standing on the beach.
So what you have here is a natural amphitheater.
And so Jesus starts to speak to them in parables.
And in verses three and four, He starts with this sower.
Now, if you don't know what a sower is, a sower is basically a farmer.
And everybody on the beach on that moment would know what Jesus is talking about.
Because either they were a sower themselves, they were a farmer.
Or they sowed kind of part-time, they were a farmer part-time.
Or they knew someone who was a farmer.
And so here's Jesus the carpenter in a fishing boat talking about kind of farming.
And everybody got it.
He is pointing, painting a picture of an everyday experience to make a spiritual point.
To bring some things out about the kingdom of heaven.
And so, what is this sower doing?
In verse four, we see that this sower is sowing his seed.
And back in the day, what would happen is a farmer, a sower, would have a basket with all the same seed in the basket.
And he would walk out on his plot.
And he would take the seed.
And he would scatter it in a very controlled manner.
And so he would scatter the seed all along his plot.
And you can imagine that seed, though falling on good soil, would fall on all other kinds of soils as well.
And that's where Jesus wants to draw our focus.
He wants us to show us four different kinds of soils.
And so let's look at verse number four.
We read, and as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path.
Now, the path would be a compacted soil.
Paths would be all around these farmer plots, even through them.
And so this is where people walked.
You had to get to the quick and save of the day.
You took a path.
You walked.
And so it would be the equivalent of if you're driving out 50 and you're driving by one of those big cornfields.
You know those side paths that the farmers drive their heavy equipment on?
You can't grow anything on those because it's compacted.
It's hard soil.
It's the soil of the path.
And what Jesus brings out is not only is it hard, it doesn't produce anything.
The seed falls on it, and you see what happens?
Birds of the air come and devour it.
It doesn't yield anything.
It doesn't produce anything.
That's the first soil condition.
It's the compacted soil.
Now look at verse 5.
This is the second soil.
Other seeds fell on rocky ground.
Now, when you hear rocky ground, I'm not in your brain, so I can't see what your brain is thinking right now.
But I'm guessing you're thinking, okay, there's a lot of big rocks on the ground.
Or there's this soil mixed with these little kind of small rocks.
That's not what Jesus is talking about.
In Galilee right now, there is this limestone bedrock that oftentimes lies within about an inch or a half inch underneath the soil.
So there's this very thin veneer of soil over this limestone bedrock.
So it's a concealed bedrock soil, if that makes any sense.
And so what you can imagine as a result of that is it's very shallow soil.
And so if you read for the rest on verse 5, 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.
And so here the seed is received in very thin soil.
And the result is a quick growth only to be withered and scorched by the rising sun.
So let me ask you, what's the yield?
There's no yield.
It doesn't produce anything.
Let's go on to the next soil.
Soil condition number 3.
We see that in verse 7.
Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.
So this is the soil of competing growths.
And so apparently, the sower sows the seed.
It falls into some good soil.
It's received.
It even starts to grow.
But alongside of it is growing some thorns.
Now, I don't know about you, but we had a house where we had a raspberry patch.
You know those crazy thorns?
There's no way you can plant anything.
You need napalm to get rid of raspberry bushes.
There's no growing anything.
And so what Jesus is pointing to here is this, oh yeah, the seed fell on pretty good soil, but as it started growing up, it got choked out by other things growing in the same soil.
What's the yield?
There's no yield.
It doesn't produce anything.
It has a little growth, but it gets choked out.
Now look at verse 8.
The fourth soil.
The quote unquote good soil.
The choice soil.
Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain.
Some 100 fold, some 60, some 30.
So this choice soil is the soil that the seed grows in.
And it grows and produces a yield.
So this soil must not have been compacted.
Somehow it was loosened up.
Somehow this soil wasn't a shallow soil.
That there wasn't any bedrock underneath.
There was depth to the soil.
There was room for rooting.
And this soil must have been cleared.
Because there's no thorns to be found.
This is prepared soil.
This is soil that had been readied.
This is soil that was waiting for the seed.
This is the soil that produces.
Produces a yield.
The first three soils, the compacted soil, right?
The just under the surface soil,
that bedrock soil,
and then that weedy soil,
they didn't produce anything.
But the good soil,
it produces a yield.
100 fold, which was an amazing yield.
60 fold, which is a pretty good yield.
30 years, it was like,
yeah, that's okay.
But the point is,
it all yields.
So, we have four different soils,
but we have two different yields.
One produces grain in much abundance.
The other three don't produce anything.
Look at verse 9.
After speaking this parable to the crowds,
Jesus says something very interesting.
He says,
He who has ears,
let him hear.
Is he doing a mic check?
Hey, can you guys hear me out there?
He's not doing a mic check.
He's saying something much different.
He's saying,
if you can understand
what I'm saying
about the kingdom right now,
take it to heart.
Receive it.
And so what Jesus is doing here,
He's calling for a response.
And He seems to be very subtly
making a distinction.
Apparently, in Jesus' minds,
there are people who have ears
but can't hear.
And there are people
who have a different set of ears
that can hear.
And we're left asking the question,
well, what accounts for the difference?
Why can some people hear
but not hear
and produce nothing
where there's other people
who hear, receive,
and they produce a yield?
What accounts for the difference?
Well, that's where Jesus goes next.
So we've looked at the parables
themselves, 3 through 9.
Now we're going to look
at the next passage,
part of this passage,
10 through 17.
Read it with me.
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 from him.
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,
in turn,
and I would heal them.
But blessed are your eyes,
disciples,
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.
There is a lot of seeing
and hearing going on here.
Here's what Jesus is doing.
Jesus just shares this parable.
His disciples quickly realized,
hey man,
He's changing His M.O. here.
He's preaching in parables now.
What's up with that?
And so you've got to imagine,
here's the crowd on the beach,
here's this 30-foot
kind of Galilean fishing boat,
and apparently,
the disciples are on the boat with Him,
and they take kind of an aside.
They're like,
Jesus,
why are You speaking to them
in parables?
And in this kind of little huddle
on the boat,
Jesus explains why.
And He explains why,
and He's explaining to us too.
He's helping us to understand
why some respond one way
and others respond another way.
So, in verse 10,
the disciples say,
why do you speak to them
to the crowds in parables?
And look where Jesus begins
in verse 11.
Jesus starts by saying,
because there's a difference
between you two.
You guys have something
that they don't.
Look at 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.
To you it's been given,
but to them it's not been given.
Jesus starts by saying,
there's a difference
between the two of you.
I'm speaking to them in parables
because there's a difference
between the two of you.
Do you notice
what makes the difference?
In verse 11,
I just want you to kind of focus in
on those two words,
to know.
To you it has been given
to know the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven.
You've been given an understanding.
You've been given an insight.
You've been given something
that you couldn't figure out yourself,
nor could they on their own.
You've been given something.
Jesus is saying that
they've been given a secret.
What have they been given?
The secrets of the kingdom of heaven.
Now when you see the word secret
being used by Jesus here,
and later Paul will talk about secrets.
What it is,
is not some kind of unknown mystery.
Rather,
it is truth that is hidden
from sinful minds
that is revealed by God's grace
to those who He prepares.
And so Jesus is saying,
to you it has been given
a God-given knowledge
of the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven.
I love planning surprises
for my wife.
I just love it.
I love doing things
in secret.
Whether it's buying a gift
or planning a little trip
for the two of us,
I just love doing it.
But here's the deal.
about two weeks in,
I can't keep the secret.
I get so excited.
I get so,
I want her to share
in this knowledge
that I am keeping
hidden from her.
And so I usually
spill the beans like this.
I know something
you don't know.
And after 21 and a half years
of marriage,
Jenny knows that means
in about three days
he's going to spill the beans.
And at that time,
I make known to her,
I reveal the truth
of this hidden secret
to her.
Jesus is talking about
when God gives
to know the secrets,
it's revelation.
God is giving eyes
to see.
God is giving ears
to hear.
He's giving understanding.
Not of unknowable mysteries,
but of the truth
of the kingdom
of heaven.
Like what?
What kind of secrets
are we talking about?
Well, the kingdom of heaven
is not for the rich,
but for the poor.
The poor in spirit.
The kingdom of heaven
is not for the healthy,
but for those who know
that they are sin-sick.
The kingdom of heaven
is not about your resume
of good deeds
that you can lay out
before God
and say,
look how wonderful I am.
The kingdom of heaven
is about your heart
for God.
It's about worship.
The kingdom of heaven
is not just limited
to Jews.
The kingdom of heaven
is open to Jews
and Gentiles.
That's a secret
that's being made known.
The kingdom of heaven
is not some
political kingdom
that uses political
muscle and military
might
to force an agenda.
The kingdom of heaven
conquers sinful,
rebellious hearts
through grace
of a suffering servant.
The king who inaugurated
the kingdom
is not a Caesar
on a white war horse
who enters in
leading legions
of ripped,
ready-to-battle warriors.
sinners.
No, Jesus.
It's Palm Sunday today.
Jesus came into Jerusalem
on a donkey.
And He came in
knowing that He was
not to be served,
but to serve
and to give His life
as a ransom for many.
The king of the kingdom
of heaven, Jesus,
was born in a backwater town.
He came in weakness,
not in human strength.
The secret of the kingdom
is that it's upside down
to the kingdom
of the world.
And God gives eyes
to see it.
In fact,
Jesus is saying
it's only by God's grace
that you can see
the upside-down kingdom
of Jesus.
That's why Jesus emphasizes
that word given
in verses 11 and 12.
To you it has been given
to know the secrets
of the kingdom.
It's not from themselves.
It was given
from someone else
to them.
And for these
unbelieving crowds,
to them it had not
been given.
When you hear
the word given,
you need to be thinking
grace.
Undeserved.
Unearned.
Even.
Unable.
God's grace
does something
that we can't do.
We see it in Ephesians 2.
We are dead in our sins,
but God in His mercy,
He made us alive
together with Christ.
By grace,
you have been saved.
Made alive.
And here,
we see God's grace
is enabling grace,
giving a knowledge
of the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven.
So what Jesus is saying here
is the only way
a sinner can know
the secrets of the kingdom
of heaven is if God
by His grace
gives them this knowledge.
He's preparing the soil.
He's getting it ready
to receive the word.
So what a parable does
is a parable simultaneously
hides the kingdom
from the heart of hearts
and reveals it
to those whose hearts
by God's grace
have been prepared
to receive it.
It's the good soil.
So what we're saying here
is that the kingdom
is revealed
by God's grace
and that helps you understand
and know what Jesus
is talking about
in verse 12
because in verse 12
you're like,
what are you saying?
For the one who has,
more of what will be given?
And he will have an abundance,
but from the one who has not,
even what he has
will be taken.
What is he talking about?
He who has been given
to know the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven
will be given more.
And those who have not been given
the knowledge of the secret
of the kingdom of heaven
by God's grace,
what they have
will be taken away.
It's a kind of judgment.
So Jesus begins his explanation
by pointing out
the difference
between the disciples
and the unresponsive crowds.
The difference,
Jesus says,
hey,
God has opened your eyes up
by his grace
so that you can receive
what I'm talking about
in parables,
but to them
it's not been given.
And the parables
are the vertical blinds
that are getting it done.
In verse 13,
we see that he says,
this is why I speak
in parables to them
because seeing they do not see,
hearing they do not hear,
nor do they understand.
It hasn't been given to them.
He speaks in parables
to hide the kingdom
from those with hardened hearts.
But in verses 14-15,
we see more.
He quotes Isaiah 6, 9-10.
The unresponsiveness
of the Jewish crowds
at that time
fulfilled Isaiah 6, 9, and 10.
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 hearts
and turn
and I would heal them.
This is Jesus
speaking to his disciples
on that boat
with the crowds
mingling around.
He's saying
they haven't been given
eyes to see.
And it's a fulfillment
of Isaiah 6, 9, and 10.
And I just want you
to remind you
someone greater
than Isaiah is here.
If Isaiah is preaching
hardened Israel's hearts
the preaching of the parables
by the Prince of Peace
would not just hide the kingdom
but it would further hand
hardened hearts over.
It's a kind of judgment.
The parables hide the kingdom
and hand over the hardened hearts.
But not all Jews in Jesus' day
were spiritually blind and deaf.
Look at verse 16.
He turns from the crowds
and he turns to his disciples
and he says
but blessed are your eyes
for they see
and your eyes
for they hear.
He comes back
hey
God's grace
has lit you up.
You've been given
a knowledge
not your own
from outside of you.
It's God's kindness to you.
You're blessed
by that.
And so
for the hardened hearts
a parable serves
to hide the truth
and to further
harden their hearts.
But for those
who have hearts
that God's grace
has prepared
a parable reveals
the truth of the kingdom
to them.
And they're blessed by it.
And you know what further?
They bear fruit.
Just one more
couple of things.
Verse 17
For truly I say to you
many prophets
and righteous people
long to see what you see
and do not see it
and to hear what you hear
and did not hear it.
You know what Jesus
is saying there?
He's saying
you know what
there's prophets
back in the Old Testament
and righteous people too
that were just waiting
for this time.
They were waiting
to hear what I'm telling
you all these people.
They longed for it.
But they never heard it.
You got to hear it.
Blessed are you.
I just want you
to see one more thing.
We see in verse 11
it's God who initiates
by His grace.
He gives insight
into the kingdom of heaven.
And then in verse 12
I believe
no excuse me
13
no excuse me
14
He says
these people on the beach
they fulfill Isaiah 6
9 and 10.
And then in verse 17
He says
hey many prophets
and righteous people
long to see what you see.
Are you getting the sense
of what Jesus is saying here?
God is sovereign
and in control
of all things.
He's reigning over everything.
He even gives people
insight
into the secrets
of the kingdom of heaven.
It's by His grace.
He's sovereign over all.
So why is Jesus speaking
in parables?
Parables?
Well parables
are the vertical blinds
that hide
and harden
the unbelieving
and reveal
and bless
those whose hearts
God has prepared.
And those
whose God
has prepared
their hearts
they bear fruit.
So here's what
this means for us.
Let's say
we're out
on the street
in your neighborhood
and you're sharing
the gospel with people.
You've got people
you love.
You're seeking
to see them
become Christians.
You're sharing
the kingdom with them.
You're telling
about King Jesus
and they don't
give a rip.
Well we rest
in knowing
that God
is in control.
We don't need
to jump
and start asking
the question
is there something
wrong with the message?
We're just going
to rest and know
okay God
now's not the time.
We're going to
trust you.
But what happens
if as we're out there
preaching the gospel
people start
to respond?
They say yes
I want to become
a follower of Jesus.
Well we rejoice.
We rejoice
in that God
by His grace
would open up
their eyes.
So this morning
in this baptism
we rejoice
that Kelly
and Dan
and Megan
and me
and if you're
a believer
you that God
would open your eyes
up by His grace.
He didn't wait
for you to invite Him.
He initiated
that in you
by His grace.
Here's what this
means for us.
In our evangelism
this produces
resolve.
The effect is
okay
we're going to
move forward
we're going to
share the gospel
with people
people are going
to respond
in different ways
we're trusting God
to light people up
to give them
insight into the
kingdom of heaven.
we'll trust Him
for that
but it gives us
confidence
moving forward.
We can trust
our God.
This section
in 10-17
gives us
a little key
to understanding
what Jesus
means when He
says
if you have
hears
hear.
Because now
look at the
first word
in verse 18
He says
to His disciples
hear then
the parables
of the sower.
He's saying
to His disciples
okay guys
understand the
parable.
God has given
you
to know
the secrets.
Let me explain
it to you.
And so
He starts off
with that word
hear
in verse 18
He's saying
understand this.
And then in
verse 19
He says
when anyone
hears the word
of the kingdom
and does not
understand it
see what He's
doing?
Back in the
parable
Jesus talked
about a sower
sowing seed.
And what Jesus
is doing here
is He's making
the connection
between a sower
sowing seed
and Him
sowing the seed
of the kingdom
of heaven.
the word
of the kingdom.
It's like seed
that we scatter.
When Jesus
spoke in
parables of
the kingdom
He was
sowing
seed
of the kingdom.
He was
evangelizing.
And what we
see here
in the remaining
of this
explanation
is we see
how the word
of the kingdom
is received
and then
responded to.
So let's
look at these
four heart
conditions.
And notice
it's all about
the heart.
Look at the
end of verse
19.
Middle of it.
The evil one
comes and snatches
away what has
been sown
in his heart.
And then if you
look at 14
or actually 15
for this people's
heart has
grown dull.
And if you look
further down and
understand where
their heart
turned, then I
would heal them.
Jesus is very
concerned about
the heart.
He wants your
heart.
Your heart,
according to
the Jewish
mind, would
be the seat
of your thinking,
of your feeling,
and of your
will.
What controls
your heart
controls your
life.
It's from your
heart that you
worship.
It's from your
heart that you
live for things.
And so Jesus
is making the
connection for us
that when he
talks about the
soils,
he's talking
about the
condition of
people's hearts.
So let's look
at these
conditions.
Condition
number one,
verse 19,
we read this,
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.
What Jesus
is saying
is that
this first
heart condition
is the
calloused
heart.
I'm guessing
if you talk
to a person
about this
about Jesus
that you're
speaking the
gospel to
them and
it just
kind of
bounces off,
they're like,
well,
I don't
know what
you're
talking about.
They haven't
been given
eyes to see
it yet,
hearts to
receive it.
there's no
yield in
this person's
life.
And furthermore,
we read what
happens.
The devil
comes and
snatches it
away.
We're in a
battle.
But God is
reigning over
it all.
When we
encounter
someone with
a heart
that's
callous to
the gospel,
you don't
need to take
it personally.
What you
need to
understand is
that, okay,
God hasn't
moved in
this person's
heart yet.
And here's
where you go
with that.
You pray.
You say,
oh, Lord,
would you,
by your
grace as
you did
with me,
would you
open this
person's
heart to
the gospel?
Would you
give them
eyes?
Would you
give them
ears?
Would you
give them
understanding
so that they
can see
and hear
and respond
and you
would heal
them?
We go to
our God.
heart
condition
number two,
we see in
verses 20
and 21,
as for what
was sown
on rocky
ground,
this is the
one who
hears the
word and
immediately
receives it
with joy,
yet he
does not
root in
it,
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.
So,
remember the
soil of the
shallow bedrock
right underneath
the limestone
bedrock,
Jesus is
saying that
pointed to
a particular
kind of
person.
That when
you preach
the gospel
to them,
they receive
it and
they're like,
oh yeah,
I'm going
to respond,
woohoo,
I'm going
to be a
follower of
Jesus.
And they
start following
Jesus,
and then they
start catching
heat for being
a follower of
Jesus.
The very
word that they
think that they
believed,
they start
catching
heat for.
Remember the
sun that
rose,
scorched?
It's the
heat of
persecution
and tribulation
for the
word.
You see
what happens
in the
text?
They fall
away.
It's the
word that we
get,
we get the
word scandal
from that
word.
It can be
very confusing.
Look what
happens.
I want you
to see the
word immediately
in verse
20.
As for what
was sown
on rocky
ground,
this is the
one who
hears the
word and
immediately
receives it
with joy,
yet has no
root in
himself,
but endures
for a while,
and when the
tribulation or
persecution arises
on account of
the word,
immediately he
falls away.
Immediately he
receives it,
he catches
some heat,
and immediately
he falls away.
Do you know
what that means?
God hadn't
opened up their
eyes.
They didn't
have true
knowledge.
They weren't
really saved.
They had an
experience, but
that's about it.
And when they
experienced the
heat of
persecution, that
clarified things
real quick.
If someone
professes to be a
Christian with joy,
and at the first
time they suffer
on account of the
kingdom, they pack
it up and say,
I'm done with
Jesus, it shows
that they were
never truly a
believer.
That they never
were truly
converted.
It was a false
profession.
There's a bunch
of guys who are
studying the book
of Hebrews on
Saturday mornings
here, and guys,
if you're listening,
I just wanted to
let you know
something.
You're coming up
on Hebrews 6.
It's either this
coming Saturday
or the next
Saturday.
And the
parables of the
soils will help
you to understand
it.
When someone
claims to have
become a
Christian, do
you know what?
Time in
suffering will
prove whether
their faith is
genuine.
Let's look at the
third condition,
heart condition.
Oh, by the way,
was there any
yield?
No fruit.
It shot up,
it withered away,
no fruit.
Heart condition
number three.
We read in
verse 22.
As for what was
sown among the
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.
So, in the
parable, those
thorns that grew
out of the
soil alongside
of the word,
you know what it's
pointing to, Jesus
is saying?
There are some
people who are
going to receive
the word, and
there's going to
be what appears
to be some
growth, but out
of the same
heart is
growing
competing
loves.
And those
competing loves
for things that
are not Christ or
His kingdom, they
will choke out
the word.
And what are the
competing loves?
Jesus tells us.
He says, but the
cares of the
world.
What are the
cares of the
world?
The cares of the
world are the
things that the
world cares about.
What the world
values above all
things.
And there are a
lot of warnings in
our Bibles about
this.
1 John 2, 15.
Don't love the
world.
It talks about
the desires of
the flesh, the
desires of the
eyes, the pride
of life.
It's not from the
Father, it's from
the world.
If there's someone
who professes to be
a Christian, and
they're loving things
of the world more
than Jesus, it is
going to choke the
word in them to no
yield.
And he goes on to
talk about the
deceitfulness of
riches as another
weed that will
choke out the good
seed.
There's a lot your
Bible has to say
about the deceitfulness
of riches.
Jesus in Luke 12
tells us to take
care, be on guard.
Why?
Because a man's
life does not
consist in the
abundance of his
possessions.
Christians.
It's a lie.
1 Timothy 6, 9
through 10.
Strong, strong
warnings about love
for money.
It's a trap.
Matthew 19, 22.
There's this guy that
came to Jesus and
said, what must I do
to inherit eternal
life?
And he was a
wealthy guy.
And Jesus says, go
sell everything you
have, give to the
poor, and come
follow me, you'll
treasure in heaven.
And this guy walked
away sad because he
loved the treasure of
earth more.
And of course,
there's Matthew 26.
Judas betrayed
Jesus for four months
of pain.
The deceitfulness of
riches.
Jesus.
What Jesus says here
is that these competing
loves choke out the
word and it proves
unfruitful.
There's no yield.
No yield.
When people profess to
be Christians, but
their loves for the
world and for riches
go unchanged.
It chokes out the
word and it shows
that they're
unfruitful and that
the penny never
dropped.
This too is a kind
of a false
profession.
Their true loves
choke out love for
Christ in the
kingdom.
They may have heard
the word and even
been sympathetic to
it.
They may even have a
great worshipful
experience.
But their cares for
this world and the
riches, it proves to
be what they really
love.
It's not Jesus.
Jesus is saying that
it's a false
profession.
And for those of us
living in the West,
it's a stern warning,
isn't it?
It's not.
We live in abundance.
The last soil,
heart condition number
four, is the choice
soil.
It points to a heart
that's been given
understanding from
verse 11.
We read this.
23.
As for what was
sown on good soil,
this is the one who
hears the word and
understands it.
He's been given
understanding.
And it indeed bears
fruit and yields.
In one case,
a hundredfold.
In another,
sixty.
In another,
thirty.
The one who hears
the word and
understands it
produces a yield.
Their life has been
changed.
The other three
heart conditions,
no change.
the one God gives
this insight by His
grace into the
kingdom.
They see the
gospel for what it
is.
They produce a yield.
They produce fruit.
And the question that
you may be asking
right now is,
well, what kind of
fruit?
What does this yield
look like?
Well, we don't have
to go any further
than the passage.
This heart,
this choice heart,
is a contrite heart.
It's turned over.
Deep soil.
Cleared of other
loves.
Receives the word.
A contrite heart
will receive the word
and it will
persevere
when the heat
rises.
Someone who has
received the word
and believes in it,
they will endure
tribulation
and persecution.
And they will
endure it
while blessing
the name of Jesus.
A contrite heart
will not only
persevere in
hardship,
a contrite heart,
a God-given
heart,
will not
get choked
out by
other loves.
But their
love for Christ
and their love
for His kingdom,
it will crowd
out and
choke
out
all
other
claims.
We'll be
less and less
controlled by
the cares of
this world.
We'll be
less and less
deceived
by riches.
One's life
does not
consist of
the abundance
of his
possessions.
Here's what
happens when
someone gets
radically changed
by the gospel
of Jesus.
When God's
grace shows up
and changes
them.
The things
they once
saw and
valued,
they become
opportunities to
make much of
their king.
So,
what was once
the things I was
running after
cares for this
world.
If I've got
any possessions,
I'm going to use
it for the glory
of Jesus.
Money,
we use it,
it's entrusted
to us,
we're now stewards
of it for the glory
of Christ,
the advancement
of his kingdom.
All that he has
given us,
we become stewards
of in order to
advance his kingdom
for the glory
of his name.
We're not
controlled by
other loves.
our love for
Christ puts
these other
loves in their
place.
A contrite heart
will obey
Jesus in all
that he commands.
We live for
Jesus now.
We live for
his kingdom.
When Jesus
is raised from
the dead,
we're going to
see this next
week on Easter
Sunday.
When Jesus
is raised from
the dead,
he then goes
and commands
all of his
disciples everywhere
to go make
disciples of the
nations.
Now, you may be
a Christian in
this sanctuary
and you say,
yes, I agree
with that.
Great.
But what Jesus
is saying is,
I want more
than your
agreement.
I want you to
bear the fruit
of prioritizing
your life and
actually making
disciples of the
nations.
That's what he's
called us to.
We live for him
now.
When our grace
awakened hearts
compel us,
it compels us
to obey him
in all things.
It moves from
more than
agreement to
now I
prioritize.
My life
changes because
he's changed
me.
When we
proclaim Jesus
and his
kingdom,
we're going to
get a variety
of responses.
But we need
not be surprised.
Jesus has
prepared us.
But we also
know this.
God in
his sovereign
grace continues
to pour out
his kindness
on sinners
to open
their eyes,
to give them
ears to hear,
to give them
understanding so
that they can
receive the good
news of the
kingdom and
produce a
bumper crop
of holiness,
fruit in keeping
with repentance.
At the
beginning,
I asked you
to be asking
yourself a
question.
What soil
best characterizes
your heart?
The compacted
soil?
The callous
heart?
Is it the
concealed layer
of bedrock?
That
cursory heart
that moves
real quick,
receives an
excitement,
and just falls
away just as
fast?
The competing
weeds soil?
The compromised
heart?
Is that where
your heart
is?
Or the
choice soil?
The
contrite
heart?
The heart
that's been
changed by
God's grace?
Which one
best characterizes
you?
And no matter
where you are,
do you know
what you can
do?
You can cry
out to the
God who
gives all
grace and
you can cry
out to him
and say,
oh God,
give me a
contrite heart,
a heart that
bears more
and more
fruit for
the glory
of your
name.
Let me
pray.
God in
heaven,
we ask that
you would do
a work in
our midst in
which you
would pour
out your
grace.
Give us
eyes to see
more and
more what
you value
above all
and that we
would value
it too.
God,
we pray for
those in
the room
who may
now realize
that they
are not
good soil,
that they
need you
and that
you're calling
them to
you.
God,
would you
today draw
them to
yourself?
Thank you
for giving us
eyes to see
and it's in
the name of
Jesus we
pray.
Amen.