All right, today we're studying Luke chapter 8, verse 4 through 21.
Please turn with me there while I open us up in prayer.
Father, I pray that you would be with us,
that you would prepare our hearts to receive your word,
that your word would bear much good fruit.
Father, I pray that it would be for your praise and for our good,
and I pray that you would help me to speak faithfully from your word.
And we pray in Christ's name, amen.
So Luke chapter 8, verses 4 through 21.
And when a great crowd was gathering,
and people from town after town came to him,
he said in a parable,
A sower went out to sow his seed,
and as he sowed, some fell along the path,
and was trampled underfoot.
And the birds of the air devoured it,
and some fell on the rock,
and as it grew up, it withered away,
because it had no moisture.
And some fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew up with it and choked it.
And some fell into good soil,
and grew, and yielded a hundredfold.
As he said these things,
he called out,
He who has ears to hear,
let him hear.
And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant,
he said,
To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God,
but for others they are in parables,
so that seeing they may not see,
and hearing they may not understand.
Now the parable is this,
The seed is the word of God.
The ones along the path are those who have heard,
and the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts,
so that they may not believe and be saved.
And the ones on the rock are those who,
when they hear the word,
receive it with joy.
But these have no root.
They believe for a while,
and in time of testing fall away.
And as for what fell among the thorns,
they are those who hear,
but as they go on their way,
they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life,
and their fruit does not mature.
As for that in the good soil,
they are those who,
hearing the word,
hold it fast in an honest and good heart,
and bear fruit with patience.
No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar,
or puts it under a bed,
but puts it on a stand,
so that those who enter may see the light.
For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest,
nor is anything secret that will not be made known,
that will not be known,
and come to light.
Take care then how you hear,
for to the one who has,
more will be given,
and from the one who has not,
even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.
Then his mother and his brothers came to him,
but they could not reach him because of the crowd.
And he was told,
Your mother and your brothers are standing outside,
desiring to see you.
But he answered them,
My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God,
and do it.
Like many of you,
Carolyn and I divide our chores at home.
Some of them could go either way.
I take out the trash,
but Carolyn is perfectly fine at taking out the trash.
She just doesn't like doing that,
because it smells right.
But laundry is something that Carolyn should do,
because unfortunately,
I have a history of shrinking our clothes.
I don't want to.
I don't try to.
I really try not to.
But some,
I just miss the clothes, right?
So like, for example,
this sweater, right?
I thought I'd wear it today.
It's a little tight.
I'm not trying to show off my dad bod,
but it's,
sleeves are kind of short,
and it's one of my shrunken sweaters.
So I'm just going to roll up my sleeves
so I look hardworking instead of incompetent.
But ultimately,
it comes down to,
I think,
a failure to heed instructions for me, right?
I want to be quick and efficient
about getting stuff done,
but I could just take an extra 30 seconds,
read the instructions on the little tab,
right,
on my sweater,
or just remember,
Carolyn told me to check out the clothes
before I wash it,
and I could have avoided it, right?
And that's what our passage is about this morning.
We're studying Luke chapter 8,
verses 4 through 21,
and the main theme of this passage is
take care how you hear God's word.
Take care how you hear God's word.
Our passage is split up into three parts,
consisting of the parable of the sower,
in verses 4 through 15,
proverbs around light,
in verses 16 through 18,
and the encounter with Jesus and his family,
in verses 19 through 21.
So let's dive into the first part.
The section on the parable of the sower
takes up most of our passage,
and I'll be spending most of our time here.
It includes the parable itself,
a brief point about the purpose of parables,
and an explanation of the parable.
In verse 4,
where we see that Jesus' ministry
continues to attract a lot of attention,
people from town after town, it says,
have come to form a great crowd.
So far, he's healed people of physical illnesses,
such as leprosy and paralysis.
He's freed them from demonic oppression.
He's forgiven their sins,
even raised the man from the dead.
And people eerily want what Jesus is offering,
but the situation isn't as positive as it may seem.
For one, we know, we've learned that,
along with the increase in popularity,
there's been an increase in animosity and opposition.
Right?
The Jewish leaders, they oppose him.
They don't like him.
They don't like what he's saying and what he's doing.
And also, just because people are,
they want what Jesus is giving them,
it doesn't mean that they're receiving Jesus himself.
It doesn't mean that they want him himself.
It's possible to love the gift more than the giver,
and there are probably a lot of people in the crowd here
who are only interested in Jesus at this superficial level.
But Jesus continues his mission.
We read in chapter 4,
Jesus came to proclaim good news to the poor,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.
So he continues to teach,
and he teaches them in the form of parables here.
What is a parable?
In the Bible, they are illustrative comparisons
meant to teach something.
Jesus taught with some 60 different parables
using illustrations from everyday life,
like family, housekeeping, farming, like here.
And his listeners,
they don't need special knowledge or vocabulary
to understand the illustrations in the parables.
But the difficulty of parables
is understanding the meaning underneath it all.
So here's Jesus' parable.
A sower goes out to sow his seed.
He's just scattering the seed liberally,
almost wastefully.
He scatters seed.
Some fall on unproductive ground,
and others fall on productive ground.
The unproductive parts have different issues.
First, there's a soil along the path.
So apparently in this field,
there were paths for walking,
walking through the field.
And these seeds got stepped on,
where they were easy pickings for birds,
because the ground was hard-packed,
and it couldn't go into the ground.
Second, there was the soil on the rock.
And when it says this,
this isn't like earth with small rocks in there,
but it's a thin layer of soil
that sits on top of a base of limestone,
which is apparently common
in the Palestinian hill country.
And these seeds,
they were able to start growing,
start germinating,
but there wasn't enough soil to hold water
for the seeds to grow.
So they sprouted up quickly,
but then they withered away.
Then there's the soil with the thorns.
There's nothing wrong with the soil itself.
It's not hard-packed like the path
or thin like on the rock.
Instead, its growing potential
is being used up by other plants,
by thorns.
Then there's only one type of productive ground.
It's good soil,
and it produces a huge yield,
a hundredfold.
Again, the illustration is pretty easy to understand
what's happening on the surface.
And then after the parable in verse 8,
Jesus tells the crowd,
he who has ears to hear,
let him hear.
It's an easy command for the crowds to overlook.
It's a pretty short and simple phrase
that Jesus says here,
but everything in this chapter,
in this passage,
hinges on this one point
because they need to take care
how they listen to what Jesus is saying.
Will they think about what he said,
and will they consider its meaning
and act upon it?
Or will they ignore it,
forget it,
or will they give up
in the middle of trying to apply it?
And so the same is true of us
regarding God's word.
What good does it do to us
if we hear the best preaching
and the best teaching,
but we don't think about it,
we don't ponder its practical applications,
we don't try to follow it in our lives,
right?
In verse nine,
we see that there's a change in audience.
They go from a huge crowd
to speaking,
Jesus speaking to just his disciples.
His disciples come up to him.
They know that Jesus isn't,
he's obviously not giving a farming lesson,
so they say,
what does this parable mean?
And before explaining the parables' meaning,
Jesus briefly speaks
to the purpose of parables.
Maybe this is a question
that's come across your mind.
Why does Jesus speak in parables?
They're hard to understand.
If he's come to proclaim good news
and free the captives,
why does he speak in illustrations
that aren't obvious,
that some people won't understand, right?
In verse 10,
Jesus tells his disciples
that parables serve a dual purpose.
They reveal the secrets of God's kingdom
to Jesus' disciples,
and they also hide the meaning to others
so that these people,
they see,
but they don't see.
They hear,
but they don't understand.
So,
if you guys remember,
as I mentioned,
Jesus is attracting big crowds,
but in these crowds
are people who have already heard
Jesus' teaching,
and they've rejected it,
right?
Although they've seen Jesus' heal sicknesses,
raise a man from the dead even,
they're still unreceptive to him
and his teaching.
So in this context,
parables are given.
Parables are a form of judgment.
Those who are genuinely following Jesus
and try to understand,
to them are given the secrets of God's kingdom.
But to those who have already received teaching
but rejected it,
to them further understanding is withheld.
So it's like parables are,
like they're a one-way mirror, right?
From one side,
if you try to look through,
it's just a mirror,
but on the other side,
you get to look through
and see what's on the other side.
And this mirror is on a swivel, right?
And what determines how the mirror is turned
is the choice of a person's heart.
Do you want to understand,
and do you want to receive Jesus or not?
Now, to be clear,
it's not as if God is cheering for people
to reject Jesus,
and that's far from it.
God wants everyone to be saved.
So we read in 1 Timothy 2,
God our Savior desires all people to be saved
and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
And in Ezekiel 33,
we read,
So God loves us.
He wants what is good for us,
and he's cheering for us to live and not die.
And God is just.
He's the one who judges us
according to what is right and good.
And maybe the idea of God
using parables as judgment
makes you squirm in your seat a little bit.
I know it makes me a little uncomfortable.
But at a deeper level,
I also know that
I want God to be just.
I need him to be just.
A God who sees wrong and evil
yet is unwilling or unable
to do anything about it,
that's no God at all.
We need God to see the injustices
of this world and to judge.
We need God to see
the mosque shooting in New Zealand this week
and to hold people accountable for that.
Right?
So what does this all mean for us?
Well, we need to take care how we listen.
How are you coming to God's word this morning?
What is your attitude?
Is your heart soft and receptive to God's word?
Do you seek to understand and obey it?
Then be joyful
because God is revealing
the secrets of his kingdom to you.
Right?
Keep seeking understanding.
Keep asking questions.
Be diligent in applying what you've learned.
Or do you reject what God says?
It holds no weight with you.
You're your own boss,
your own God.
Only you gets the final say in your life.
Then don't expect any more fodder
for your rejection
and your contempt
and your indifference.
But I do hope for better things
for us here today.
In verse 11,
Jesus explains this parable
to his disciples.
So let's listen carefully
to its meaning.
The seed is the word of God
and the soil,
the first soil,
the soil on the path
represents those who hear the word,
but the devil comes
and takes it from their hearts
so they can't believe
and be saved.
The second soil on the rock
represents those
who do receive God's word
and initially receive it with joy,
but in times of testing,
they fall away.
The third soil with the thorns
represents those
who hear God's word,
but God's word can't produce
mature fruit in their lives
because they're choked
by the cares and riches
and pleasures of life.
And the fourth soil,
the good soil,
represents those
who hear the word
and they hold it fast
in an honest and good heart
and bear fruit with patience.
I'm pointing out
a few additional things
from this parable.
First, there's nothing different
with what the soils receive,
right?
They all get the same seed.
It's not like the first soil
gets like old
and rotten fruit or seeds
and the fourth gets fresh
and strong young seeds,
right?
They're all the same.
Deficiency is not in God's word,
but with the response
of the hearer.
Second, the good soil
is commended for bearing fruit.
What is fruit?
Fruit is a person's response
to God's word
that is consistent
with God's word, right?
Responding consistently
with God's word.
So for example,
when God says
in Philippians chapter 4,
do not be anxious
about anything,
but in everything
by prayer and supplication
with thanksgiving,
let your requests
be made known to God.
Then when we feel anxious,
we pray to God
about that anxiety,
about the source
of that anxiety.
We take it to him.
When God says
in Romans chapter 8,
and we know
that for those
who love God,
all things work together
for good.
For those who are called
according to his purpose,
when a person faces trials
and difficulties in life,
we go to God
and trust
that he's using
those circumstances
for our good, right?
And when God says
in Matthew chapter 28,
go therefore
and make disciples
of all nations,
baptizing them
in the name
of the Father
and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit.
The hearer prioritizes
helping others
follow Jesus, right?
So fruit is a positive
response to God's word
in the form of trust
in God
and obedience
to his word.
Third thing about,
an additional thing
about these parables
or this parable,
the soils in this parable
represent different kinds
of individuals
and their overall response
to God's word.
It's not meant
to represent
a person's progression
in the Christian life.
It's not like you go
from soil one
to two to three to four,
right?
And it doesn't represent
specific moments
in our lives
where sometimes
we're hard-hearted,
sometimes we're receptive,
sometimes we give
into temptation.
Now, of course,
that's true.
Sometimes we do have
different responses
to God's word
in our life,
but that's not
what this passage
is about,
and so we shouldn't
try to make it
say something
that it's not
trying to say.
So instead,
when looking at
the totality
of a person's life,
that individual,
how do they respond
to God's word?
Are they fruitful
or unfruitful?
And that's the question
to ask ourselves.
Which kind of soil
am I?
When I look at my
life picture overall,
what response
have I given
to God's word?
Maybe this is a hard
question for you
to answer
because honestly,
you've never really
heard God's word
communicated to you
or clearly in a way
that demands a response
because maybe you've
heard of God's word
as some nebulous thing,
right?
Like the Bible
is God's word.
That's true,
right?
But there is a
central message
in God's word
that he communicates
to us
and that demands
a response from us.
In the words of Jesus
in Mark chapter 1,
the time has come.
The kingdom of God
has come near.
Repent and believe
the good news.
So Jesus tells us
the good news
of how we can be saved
from God's judgment
and enter into his rule
and reign,
which is known
as his kingdom,
right?
That's his rule
and his reign.
The way things are
right now
aren't the way
that things were
meant to be.
We were originally
intended to be
under God's rule.
God in his power
and beauty,
he made the universe
that we live in.
God in his love
and joy made us
to know him
in relationship
for us to belong
to him as his people.
And as the one
who created us,
he rightfully has
authority over our lives.
In our lives,
we were to acknowledge
and honor him.
We were to delight
and be satisfied in him.
We were to obey him,
thank him,
praise him,
but none of us
experience this
in our lives
as we ought to.
None of us know God
like this.
We all fall short
of who God made us
to be.
We read in Romans
chapter 1,
for although they knew
God,
they did not honor him
as God
or give thanks to him,
but they became futile
in their thinking
and their foolish hearts
were darkened.
Claiming to be wise,
they became fools
and exchanged the glory
of the immortal God
for images resembling
mortal man
and birds
and animals
and creeping things.
And that's us,
that's speaking of us.
Instead of acknowledging
God as God,
we reject him
and we ignore him.
Instead of honoring him,
we doubt that he's good
and he loves us.
Instead of being satisfied
in him as the one
who provides for us,
we choose to rely
on ourselves
or on money
or anything else really.
And so we fail
to meet God's standards
for us
and this is what
the Bible calls sin.
In our sin,
God judges us
because, again,
God is just
as part of his character.
Romans tells us,
for the wages of sin
is death.
And then Isaiah 59 says,
but our iniquities
have made a separation
between you
and your God
and your sins
have hidden his face
from you
so that he does not hear.
Also in Romans,
he will render
to each one
according to his works.
For those who are self-seeking
and do not obey the truth
but obey unrighteousness,
there will be wrath
and fury.
And as a description
in Romans,
Mark,
sorry,
in Mark 9,
hell is described
as where their worm
does not die
and the fire
is not quenched.
I think sometimes
we tend to think
of our sins
as not that bad,
not that serious.
It's kind of like
a parking ticket.
Like, yes,
I technically
did something wrong
and I have to pay for it
but it's not that big
of a deal, right?
Overall,
I'm a good person
and there aren't
serious consequences
to this
but sin
is far more serious
and far deeper
and far more hateful
than I often think of it.
Sin is saying to God,
God, no,
I reject
your authority over me
and I declare
my independence
from you.
It's saying to God,
you're not good enough,
you don't love me enough
and you don't really
care for me
so I need to
care and provide
for myself.
You're not really
wise enough
to know what's best for me
so I need to figure
things out for myself.
You're not really
strong enough
to get things done
for me
so I need to
rely on myself
and sin is saying
no to God
and turning to
other things
to fill God's place
in our lives.
It's like if my
one-year-old daughter,
Caladriel,
were to come up to me
and Carol and say,
you know,
you're not doing a good job,
you're not doing good enough,
like,
I'm good, right?
I'm on my own.
Even though, like,
we love her, right?
That's absurd.
We're trying our best for her
and if God
is who he says he is,
if he's good
and loving,
he's compassionate
and powerful,
if he's holy
and the one
who created everything
and rightfully owns everything,
then we see how hateful
and wrong it is
to reject him.
So far,
this is not good news,
like Jesus said,
right?
This is pretty bad news.
We're all sinners
and under the just wrath
and condemnation of God,
we deserve punishment.
But the good news
is that God's solution
for our sin
is the sacrificial death
and resurrection
of Jesus Christ,
the Son,
like we've been singing about
this morning.
In Isaiah chapter 53,
it says,
Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows,
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God,
and afflicted.
He was pierced
for our transgressions,
he was crushed
for our iniquities.
Upon him
was the chastisement
that brought us peace
and with his wounds
we are healed.
All we like sheep
have gone astray,
we have turned everyone
to his own way
and the Lord
has laid on him
the iniquity
of us all.
So,
God's got a problem
on his hands.
He's just
so he needs to punish us
but he also loves us
and wants to save us
from that punishment.
So what does he do?
How can he spare us
from the punishment
but still be just?
And his solution
is he sends Jesus
to be born as a man
to live a perfect life
and therefore he saves us
from the punishment
that we deserve.
Instead of being regarded
as perfect and good
like Jesus deserves,
he's regarded as a sinner,
as being a liar,
a drunk,
a murderer,
a thief,
being a proud man
and a selfish man,
all the ways
that we've fallen short
of God's standards for us.
And 2 Corinthians 5 says,
for our sake
he made him to be sin
who knew no sin
so that in him
we might become
the righteousness of God.
Jesus is our substitute.
He switches places
with us
and we don't deserve it.
This is God's grace,
his undeserved goodness.
And his salvation
from sin is complete.
He doesn't just forgive us
but he promises us
power to overcome
that sin
and he ultimately
gives us freedom
from the presence
of sin itself.
So God forgives us
our uncontrolled anger
but he doesn't leave us
just to be angry
all the time, right?
He enables us to grow
in self-control,
patience,
in love,
in gentleness.
And then when we die
we move on from this life
and he gives us eternal life,
a life free from that sin
so we don't,
we can overcome
that battle
that we're facing every day.
And so God has accomplished
all of this for us
but we must respond.
It's like medicine, right?
It can be the best medicine
in the world
and cure your illness
but if you don't take it
you can't experience
its benefits.
And so we can either
accept and receive
what he's done for us
or we can reject it.
To accept God's message
we must turn away from sin
and turn in trust
toward Jesus.
It's personally saying
something like
yes Lord Jesus
I will trust you
and only you.
I am a sinner
and I need you to save me.
I'm reaching out
to grab onto your hand.
Save me
or I die.
Right?
And for those of you
who have heard
this good news before
who have received Jesus
into your life
let me encourage you
to keep doing that.
To continue receiving Jesus
because the way
the way in
to the Christian life
is also the way forward
in the Christian life.
We continue every day
to repent of sins
and to turn to Jesus
in faith.
And as we do
we resemble Jesus
more and more
and we bear fruit
in our lives.
So this is the gospel.
This is the good news
of salvation
and all of God's word
centers around Jesus
and what he's done for us.
So the question is
what will you do with it?
How will you respond?
What kind of soil
are you?
Take care how
you hear God's word.
Are you the first soil?
Maybe you think
this message
isn't for you.
You turn it down
and ignore it
maybe politely.
It seems irrelevant
and impractical.
There are more important
things in life.
You need to work.
You need to find
someone to marry.
You need to live life
to the fullest
and reach your full potential.
But what could be
more relevant
and practical
than securing
your present
and future well-being?
And what's the point
of working at things
like marriage
and work
and everything else
apart from God
who gives us
meaning for these things
and makes it possible
to do these things
well?
Maybe you have
doubts and concerns.
Maybe this sounds
somewhat compelling
but you're not sure.
You're not sure
if this message
is actually true
and credible.
And that's okay.
It might not seem
that all of this
fits into a unified
and cohesive whole
but if that's you
don't stay there.
Take the next step.
Ask those questions.
Don't rest
until you're satisfied
with the answers.
If you'd like to talk
with someone
please talk to me
or Matt or Sean
and we'd love
to talk with you
and question with you
and wrestle with you.
Jesus says
in Matthew chapter 7
ask and it will be
given to you.
Seek and you will find.
Knock and it will be
open to you.
And Jesus
he's true to his word.
He's trustworthy.
We can trust him.
Be warned that this is
neither a light affair
nor a neutral one.
What is at stake
is your eternal well-being.
And you have an enemy
who wants to steal
this message
and harm you.
The spiritual realm
is unseen
but it's not
non-existent
nor inactive.
The devil's schemes
can be subtle
but they're devastating.
C.S. Lewis
the author
of the Chronicles of Narnia
wrote many other works
and one of them
is the Screwtape Letters.
It's a fictional set
of letters
from a senior demon
named Screwtape
to his nephew
called Wormwood
who's a junior tempter.
Right?
So he's mentoring
his nephew
and Wormwood
is responsible
for getting a man
known as the patient
to hell.
So in one episode
Screwtape writes
to Wormwood,
I once had a patient
a sound atheist
who used to read
in the British Museum.
One day as he sat reading
I saw a train of thought
in his mind
beginning to go
the wrong way.
The enemy,
God because they're demons,
right?
Of course was at his elbow
in a moment.
Before I knew where I was
I saw my 20 years' work
beginning to totter.
If I lost my mind,
lost my head
and begun to attempt
a defense by argument
I should have been undone.
But I was not such a fool.
I struck instantly
at the part of the man
which I had best
under my control
and suggested
that it was just about time
he had some lunch.
The enemy presumably
made the counter suggestion,
you know how
one can never quite overhear
what he says to them,
that this was more important
than lunch.
At least I think
that must have been his line
for when I said,
quite.
In fact,
much too important
to tackle it
at the end of a morning.
The patient brightened up
considerably
and by the time
I had added
much better comeback
after lunch
and go into it
with a fresh mind.
He was already
halfway to the door.
Once he was in the street,
the battle was won.
I showed him a newsboy
shouting the midday paper
and a number 73 bus
going past
and before he reached
the bottom of the steps
I had got into him
an unalterable conviction
that whatever odd ideas
might come into a man's head
when he was shut up alone
with his books,
a healthy dose of real life
by which he meant
the bus and the newsboy
was enough to show him
that all that sort of thing
just couldn't be true.
He knew he'd had
a narrow escape
and in later years
was fond of articulate,
of talking about
that inarticulate sense
for actuality
which is our ultimate
safeguard against
the aberrations
of mere logic.
He is now safe
in our Father's house.
So take the time
to seriously consider
God's word.
Is it reasonable?
Is it credible?
Does it resonate
with what you've experienced
in life?
And so ask those questions.
So that's the first soil.
Maybe you're one
of the other two
unproductive soils.
The second soil
on the rock
or the third soil
with the thorns.
So both of these soils
allow God's word
to germinate to a degree
but neither
lets it fully grow
and be fruitful.
Unlike the first
and fourth soils,
it's unclear
if these people
are saved, right?
But the point
of this parable
isn't about
where that line
is between faith
and unbelief.
The point is about
how we can best
live the Christian life.
So only the fourth soil
does that.
So it's unclear
in this passage.
The second soil
represents a shallow faith
that cannot survive
the pressures
of persecution.
God's free salvation
is an amazing gift
and totally worth it
but it does have
its costs.
It does have
its difficulties
and one of them
is persecution.
This makes sense
because as Jesus'
disciples,
we follow
in Jesus' steps
and he was persecuted
and he died.
He died on the cross.
In Cambridge Mass
in the United States
of America
in this day and age,
our persecution
will likely not
take the form
of physical abuse
and imprisonment
and death.
More likely,
it'll involve
social rejection
and contempt,
being thought of
as intolerant
or small-minded
or dumb
or being too
morally uptight.
You might be
the only one
of your colleagues
at your firm
who doesn't enjoy
getting hammered
regularly
or who isn't
living and sleeping
with your girlfriend
or boyfriend
and when the pressure's on,
how do you respond?
Don't give in
to the pressure
but cling to God's word.
Follow in the footsteps
of the Lord Jesus.
Hebrews chapter 12 says,
Therefore,
since we are surrounded
by so great
a cloud of witnesses,
let us also lay aside
every weight
and sin which clings
so closely
and let us run
with endurance
the race that is set
before us.
Looking to Jesus,
the founder and perfecter
of our faith,
who for the joy
that was set before him
endured the cross,
despising the shame
and is seated
at the right hand
of the throne of God.
Consider him
who endured from sinners
such hostility
against himself
so that you may not
grow weary
or faint-hearted.
So Jesus went
through the same thing
and what he did
was he set his eyes,
set his focus
on the joy
before him
and not on the difficulties.
So forget
about that persecution.
It's only for a moment,
even if it's for
your whole lifetime.
Look to the Lord
and consider the joy
set before you,
the joy of being with Christ,
of loving him
in return
and response
with your life.
Look to other Christians
around for love
and support as well.
Don't go it alone.
The third soil
also fails
to produce mature fruit
and maybe
this represents
your life.
It represents
those who
are choked out
by an excessive
concern
for earthly affairs,
for earthly pleasures,
for one's welfare
and possessions
and comfort.
I say excessive
because
these things
aren't insignificant
or unimportant.
The issue
is one
of misplaced priorities.
There's
too much concern,
too much energy,
too much time
and space
in hearts and minds
given to these things.
So what does this look like?
You might worry too much
about how to take care
of yourself financially,
your income,
retirement funds,
your home,
so you overwork
to get more stuff,
to get more money,
to get that house,
to get those clothes.
Maybe our top priority
is finding a spouse.
So even though
you're at a great church
that helps you grow
in love and faith,
you hop from church
to church
looking for
the best looking group
of singles
and you don't
put down roots.
Or maybe you're
all about
maxing out
life's pleasures.
You want to step foot
in every continent
in your life,
go to 100 countries,
add to your list
of restaurants
you've eaten.
And again,
it's not that these things
are bad in themselves,
it's that
if they take
too much energy
and too much time,
if these pursuits
take up
too much
of the space
of your life,
then not enough
is given
to God's word
so that it can
manifest results
in your life.
There's not enough
time to read
God's word,
to meditate on it,
to spend meaningful
time in conversation
with God
in prayer,
building relationships
with other Christians
to encourage them,
developing relationships
with non-Christians
to share Christ's love
with them.
And you might know
and agree that
these things are good,
you're just too busy,
you're too tired
for anything else.
God might be
on your priority list
just at number 10
or number 2
but not number 1.
Or are you
the four soil?
Of these four soils,
this is the only one
that is commended
and that we should
strive to be like.
We are to respond
with an honest
and good heart
which means a heart
that is humble,
sincere,
that seeks to do
what is right
and people with
honest and good hearts
are receptive
to God's word.
We are to hold fast
to the word
which is a description
of faith.
When persecution
and trials
come in life,
instead of focusing
on the difficulties
or the stress
or contempt of others,
we choose to cling
to God's word
and persevere.
When we're ridiculed
for not drinking
excessively
or we're belittled
for choosing
to honor God
with sex,
we might think
of Matthew 5,
verse 8.
Blessed are the pure
in heart
for they shall see God.
We consider it better
to see God
and have God
than to have
the fleeting pleasures
of life
or the good opinion
of others.
This soil also bears
fruit with patience.
Patience is necessary
because bearing fruit
takes time, right?
It can seem slow going
or unsuccessful.
But when things
don't go our way,
when we don't see
results fast enough,
or you seem to be
dealing with the same
sins over and over again
and you're not
making progress,
you don't give up,
but you persevere.
You're patient.
You keep going.
And I pray that we
would all be
this fourth soil,
that we would be
humble,
that we would be
sincere to receive
God's word,
and we would hold
onto it with
perseverance and
patience so that
God's word can do
its work in our
heart and in our
lives.
So that's the
parable of the
sower and of the
soils.
There are two more
sections in this
passage that I will
spend less time on.
Verse 16 refers to
a lamp being put on
a stand so that it
can be used
effectively rather than
hidden under a jar
or bed.
This light refers to
Jesus and his
teaching.
He was not given
to be hidden,
but Jesus shines to
his hearers in this
world and Jesus
demands a response.
And we can reflect
that as well as we
obey him and as we
reflect his teaching
to others.
Light has a revealing
and exposing quality
as well.
And so just like
sunlight will hit
things in our world
and it shows its
colors, by our
response when God's
word comes to us,
we reveal our hearts
and our thoughts
regarding God,
whether we receive
him or not.
In verse 18, we are
commanded to take
care how we hear.
Those who hear in
faith, trusting and
obeying what they've
heard and understood
so far, they will
receive more spiritual
blessing to understand,
to trust, to obey
more.
But those who don't
receive what they've
already been given
will lose even what
little they have.
There's no neutral
ground.
And I think this
makes sense in a
practical way too.
I mean, I heard
Carolyn, I think,
this week talk about
in the workplace how
if you have something
important to do, you
give it to the
busiest person in the
office.
Why do you do that?
They're busy because
they're responsible and
they get things done,
right?
So that's similar here.
Do you find that
you've had a soft and
receptive heart earlier,
but now your heart is
somewhat dull,
hardened, confused in
understanding?
It's worth some
self-reflection to see
if there's any area of
disobedience in your
lives.
Maybe God spoke to
you about some area,
but you fail to listen
and obey.
So be sure to obey God
in that area before
expecting more.
Finally, in verses 19
through 21, we see an
encounter between Jesus
and his mother and his
brothers.
They come to see him,
but they can't reach him.
And Jesus is told this.
The crowd might have
expected Jesus after
hearing this to say,
my family is here,
everyone make way,
clear a path, right?
They're important to me.
But instead of doing that,
he takes the opportunity
to give a lesson.
Who is Jesus' family?
Who is special to him?
Not his family by blood,
but those who hear and do
God's word.
Now to be clear,
this isn't to devalue
human relationships.
God places a high value
on our family relationships.
For example,
in 1 Timothy 5,
we read,
but if anyone does not
provide for his relatives
and especially for members
of his household,
he has denied the faith
and is worse than an
unbeliever.
And in John 19,
while Jesus was hanging
on the cross in the middle
of being crucified,
he's mindful to take care
of his mother.
It says,
when Jesus saw his mother
and the disciple whom
he loved standing nearby,
he said to his mother,
woman,
behold your son.
Then he said to the disciple,
behold your mother.
And from that hour,
the disciple took her
to his own home.
So he was a good,
good eldest son,
right,
to make sure that his mother
was taken care of
after he died.
And so this isn't
so much lowering a family,
but it's an elevation
of the family of God,
right?
Those who hear the gospel
and trust Jesus
enter into God's family,
a family centered around God
that will last
into eternity.
So my friends,
brothers and sisters,
it's my desire
that we would all
be family members
in the family of God.
Don't you want to be
a child of the God
of the universe
who made you
and loves you?
But that choice
is up to each of us.
Will you choose
to be in Jesus' family?
Will you choose
to listen
to God's word carefully?
Will you hold on
and persevere
and be patient
and bear fruit
and therefore show evidence
that you belong to God?
I pray that it would be so
with each of us.
Please take a moment
to reflect on today's message
as we move into
our time of prayer.
Amen.