Well, we've noted a number of times through our study of the Gospel of Mark that Mark's
Gospel presents the life of Jesus in a mosaic form.
And so rather than narrating the events of Jesus' life in a strictly chronological way,
Mark, under God's guiding hand, is choosing to write in a sort of topical way.
As we go through his Gospel, we see that he's really given us these snapshots of various things about Jesus
rather than giving us a clear timeline exactly of how Jesus went about his life.
And his desire, of course, as we have said over and over, was to persuade the reader
that Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the Messiah and the Son of God.
And so he accomplishes that by giving us these snapshots, persuading us not just to be entertained by the stories,
but to actually come to a point of faith in the person of Jesus and to believe in his work,
ultimately in his death and resurrection.
And though there are various moments of Jesus' teaching that are expressed and explained throughout the book,
there's really only two places that Mark deals specifically with the content of Jesus' teaching.
Mark is focused on the Lord's use of parables,
and he collected just a handful of them,
and he linked them together to help us understand the message of Christ,
the Gospel of Christ,
as well as the message of the kingdom and these comparisons to the kingdom.
So, one thing that we don't have in this chapter is,
it's not a random assortment of stories that Jesus told.
It's not that Mark just grabbed a few of his favorites and threw them in here.
We know that Mark is keeping a very succinct and systematic approach to his teaching about Jesus.
And so, what he has collected here in chapter 4 are the parables that, in his estimation,
are most important for his Roman audience, his early Roman audience, to understand.
And so, when we come to these parables, we don't come just saying,
okay, Jesus told this really nice story here about the four soils,
and then he told this really nice story about a lamp,
and then he told this really nice story about casting seed and things eventually growing,
and then ultimately wraps it up with just another nice story about the mustard seed
and how it grows into a big bush.
It's not just that Mark thought, these are all my favorites.
I want people to hear these favorite stories of mine.
No, there's a very intentional purpose to what Mark is doing.
These are all linked together.
There's a purpose to what he is giving us here,
and we need to come to it understanding that purpose.
Now, remember at the beginning of the chapter,
we saw that Jesus was teaching a massive crowd on the shore of the Lake of Galilee.
And after that time of public teaching,
when he gave this parable of the four soils,
he has some time privately with a few of his disciples
and some of his other followers as well.
They were inquiring the meaning of the parables that he had been teaching,
but they were also trying to figure out
exactly why he was all of a sudden beginning to teach in stories.
That's not what Jesus had done up to this point.
Up to this point in the Gospel of Mark,
he's actually had a very consistent message.
The consistent message we see is summarized in chapter 1
as the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
It is near.
Repent and believe the Gospel.
Repent and believe the good news.
And so for two years now,
Jesus has been teaching this message.
He has been preaching the message of the Gospel.
Preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom.
Demonstrating that in his works.
And now he's all of a sudden making this switch
to where he's telling stories.
And so they ask,
why are you teaching in parables?
They don't seem to be as clear as you were before.
Why are you doing that?
And so Jesus gives that answer in verses 10 through 12.
Now, though the text doesn't explicitly state this,
it is reasonable for us to conclude that verses 21 to 25,
what we just read,
are a part of Jesus' private teaching to his disciples.
So that very first section,
that was the public crowd on the Lake of Galilee.
He tells the story.
And then there's the private setting
in which Jesus gives the explanation of the story,
the explanation for why he was teaching in parables.
Well, verses 21 to 25 are tied into this private teaching.
We haven't left that scene yet.
We're going to in verse 26,
but we haven't quite left that scene yet.
And there's a few reasons that I've come to this conclusion.
Maybe I can persuade you that this is it
through these four things.
The first note that I notice here
is that while verses 21 and 24
indicate Jesus addressing a specific group,
verses 26 and verse 30,
the other two parables,
they do not do that.
So look at it with me.
Verse 21, the very first phrase,
and he said unto them.
It's referencing a very specific group
of people that he's teaching.
And then if you look down in verse 24,
same thing.
And he said to them,
to them,
a specific group tying it back
to this private time of teaching.
But when we get to verses 26
and verses 30,
we don't have that same phrasing.
It is just simply that Jesus said.
And so it is reasonable for us to conclude,
and I could be wrong,
but it's reasonable for us to conclude
that those last two parables are just,
that it didn't happen at this particular time,
didn't necessarily happen in this particular place,
but it mattered to the point
that Mark was making in this chapter.
But verses 21 to 25
is more of the explanation
for why he's teaching in parables,
and it's certainly tying into
the parable of the soils as well.
So that's the first thing that I noted
that makes me think that way.
The second thing that I noted
is that the teaching of verses 21 to 25
is better understood as a companion piece
to the story of the soils
and to the story or the explanation
of verses 10 through 12.
We're gonna come back to this
throughout our study this morning.
But if you think about it,
if you just take verses 21 to 25,
apart from 10 through 20,
it is a very confusing passage.
I mean, there's some weird language
that he's using here.
It's not very easy just to grab it and understand.
But when we set it within the context
of verses 10 through 20,
we begin to understand,
okay, he's just explaining further.
He's unpacking further what he was trying
to explain to them before.
And then here's the other thing.
Like the parable of the soils,
the last two stories are agricultural in nature.
They come back to this casting seed,
this growth of plants.
They're all kind of on the same theme.
But this section 21 to 25 is not on that theme.
So it seems reasonable that Mark,
after explaining the parable of the soils,
does this other thing
in this private teaching with Jesus.
Then he circles back around
to deal with the explanation of the kingdom
in these agricultural terms,
which would have made sense
to his Roman audience.
They would have understood that clearly.
And so it just makes sense
that maybe there's a separation here.
And then the last thing,
if you notice the conclusion
of the whole section in verse 33,
Mark writes,
this is Mark narrating now,
is writing and he says,
and with many such parables
spake he the word unto them
as they were able to hear it.
But without a parable
spake he not unto them.
All right.
Well, we know that he spoke
to the disciples at times
without parables.
So that can't be necessarily applying
to this private time of teaching.
That's got to be applying
more to the general audiences
that he was teaching
when he would include these parables
and what they were doing.
So the content of verses 21 to 25
need to be linked really
with the content of verses 10 through 20
and especially verses 10 through 12.
Now there, Jesus explained
why he was teaching in parables.
And the summary is this.
For those who were believing on him,
the parables brought gospel clarity
to their mind.
But for the unbelieving,
the parables had a hardening effect.
And we've used that common phrase,
the same sun that melts the ice
hardens the clay.
And the parables had that effect.
For those who had believing hearts,
their hearts were melted further.
They became more believing people.
But for those who had hardened
their hearts to the Lord,
the parables further hardened
their hearts to him.
And it had this hardening effect.
It's not that Jesus's stories
were difficult to understand.
That's not what this is about.
It's just that their spiritual meaning
was lost for those
who did not believe Christ in faith.
And so Jesus unpacks this thought further
in 21 to 25.
And he first brings some clarification.
Some clarification,
lest someone read verses 10 through 12
and think that Jesus actually
was trying to conceal the gospel,
that he was trying to hide it
because he didn't want certain people
to be saved.
That's not what he's saying in this.
And so the first thing he does
in verse 21
is he brings some clarification to that.
And then he emphasizes
the necessity of being fruitful
hearers of the word.
And so that's really the object
of our study today.
We want to understand
the clarification that Jesus brings.
And then we certainly want to see
the emphasis of being fruitful hearers.
And just for my help,
I've broken this down into three words.
If you want to write these down
in your margins,
maybe it'll be helpful to you as well.
First, I have clarification.
Then I have exhortation.
And then explanation.
Clarification, exhortation, explanation.
And we'll work our way through
those three words this morning, okay?
First, let's look at clarification.
Look with me again at verse 21.
And he said to them,
Is a lamp brought in
to be put under a basket
or under a bed
and not on a stand?
That's an interesting way
to kick things off here, isn't it?
It's just another parable.
It's another story.
And it's almost humorous
what Jesus is saying here.
It's a ridiculous notion
that he's pointing his finger to here.
The lamp that Jesus is referring to
is the lamps that would have been
small clay vessels
that they would have had
scattered throughout their homes
in ancient Palestine.
It's difficult for us
to now think about this.
It's difficult for us
to relate to a time
when there's no electricity,
when there's no electric power, right?
But that's certainly the time
that they lived in.
Now imagine your house, Clementine,
is this stone house
in Israel 2,000 years ago.
But there's no light switches.
There's no lights in the house.
There you have windows.
They're just holes
that are cut out in the wall,
but there's no glass
because they wouldn't have had glass
for their windows.
Even the glass that they had,
that was really for more
of the wealthy people at that point.
And it wasn't very clear glass
like we would have
in these mirrors here
in this room today.
They didn't have what we have now.
So in the evenings
when it was time
to shut the shutters
to the windows
for safety or for privacy
or for whatever it was,
the rooms in the house
would be especially dark.
There's no light coming in.
And so they had
these small clay vessels
that had kind of a large opening
right in the middle
and then maybe it would have
had a spout on one side
or maybe it would have
just been the hole.
They fill it up with oil.
They light one end of it
and then they set it up
on a shelf
or on a table
or on a particular stand
and it gives light
to the house.
They can now see
what otherwise
would be hidden
by the darkness.
And so you can visit
museums even today.
Julie and I have had
an opportunity
to go to the Museum
of the Bible
in Washington, D.C.
And this is just
this is not a paid advertisement.
This is just a by the way.
If you ever get
an opportunity to go,
go.
It is really, really fantastic.
I think you'll enjoy it.
But in there
they have
a collection
of lamps
that are about
2,000 years old
from Israel,
Iraq, Iran
from that area.
And they have
this collection
where you can go in
and see.
And they're very small.
They're very small
and it's just displayed
and you can get a picture
of what it was
that Jesus is referring
to here.
Now,
what does he mean
by this?
Well, his question
was somewhat silly.
It was somewhat
humorous
as the thought
of hiding that light
is really ridiculous
because who does that?
Right?
Who goes into
their dark house,
lights a lamp
so that they can have light
and only to take it
to the kitchen
and cover it up
with a basket
or to take it
to the bedroom
and slide it
underneath the bed
that completely
defeats the purpose
of the lamp?
Who would do that?
It's a ridiculous notion
and that's really
what Jesus is saying here.
Jesus,
in the same way,
wasn't trying
to hide the gospel
through his use
of parables.
That's not what
the parables were doing.
They weren't hiding
anything.
It wouldn't make sense
for God
to bring the kingdom
near as was
Jesus' message.
It wouldn't make sense
for God
to bring the kingdom
near to them
only to conceal Jesus.
That wouldn't make
any sense at all.
So the fact
of Jesus'
constant traveling
and his accommodation
of these massive crowds
only contributes
to the understanding
that Jesus
wanted to be known.
He did not desire
to live in an obscurity.
Think about it.
He could have.
He could have found
a place where nobody
could find him.
He could just grab
the 12 disciples
and maybe a few others,
bring them in
and he could spend
his three years
doing that
and then make his way
to Jerusalem
to provide redemption.
But that's not
what Jesus did at all.
He went from village
to village
and town to town.
He accommodated
the crowds,
even the unbelieving crowds.
He accommodated them.
Why?
Because Jesus
didn't desire
to live in obscurity.
He didn't come
just to be concealed.
He came to be revealed.
And so his parables,
they weren't about
hiding the gospel.
They weren't about
doing that at all.
That wouldn't make
any sense.
He was actually here
bringing clarity
to what the gospel
meant in the parables.
And we just reminded
about Luke chapter 19.
The son of man
came to do what?
to seek and to save
that which was lost.
He didn't come
to hide
and just hope
that you figure it out.
That's not what Jesus
was doing with the parables
and he brought
some clarification to that.
Now look at verse 22.
For nothing is hidden
except to be made manifest,
nor is anything secret
except to come
to light.
Now the reference
to secrets
and things hidden here
connects back to
what Jesus said
is the mystery
of the kingdom of God
in verse 11.
Let's look back up
to verse 11 with me.
And he said unto them,
unto you,
this is to his disciples,
unto you it is given
to know what?
The mystery
of the kingdom of God.
Well when he gets here
and he's talking
about things hidden
and he's talking
about secret things,
it's a reflection
on what is said
to be the mysteries
of the kingdom of God.
So just as one
uses a lamp
to reveal what is hidden
in his house,
so does God intend
to reveal the mysteries
of the Old Testament
through the person
of Jesus.
That's the point.
That's the point
of the parable here.
Now mystery is used
often in the New Testament.
It's almost exclusively used
to refer to things
that were at one time
hidden
but have now been revealed
in the gospel.
They have now been revealed
in Christ.
And so Paul uses
this word often.
Paul even refers
to these mysteries
as shadows.
But God's intention
was always to bring
to light
the things that were hidden
in the Old Testament,
in the law
and the prophets.
And in his time,
he brought a lamp
to manifest those things.
And that lamp
is Jesus.
He is the lamp.
So when Jesus says,
who lights a lamp
and hides it under
a basket or a bed,
he's referring to himself.
He's saying,
I did not come
to be hidden.
In fact,
think about it.
John chapter 1.
In him was life
and the life
was the light of men.
The light shines
in darkness
and the darkness
has not overcome it.
What was John saying?
Jesus himself
is the light.
He is the lamp.
Jesus himself said this.
John chapter 8
in verse 12.
Again,
Jesus spoke to them
saying,
I am the light
of the world.
Whoever follows me
will not walk
in darkness
but will have
the light of life.
What's the light
he's referring to?
He's referring to a lamp.
Same thing he's referring
to in Mark chapter 4.
So we come to this.
We're not just talking
about a theological belief
or a set of doctrines.
We're talking about
a person.
The lamp is Christ.
And when we go back
to the Old Testament
we start trying
to sift through
all the things there.
What is all of this about?
What is this system
of sacrifices about?
What is this whole issue
about the kingdom
that the prophets
are getting on about
in the Old Testament?
What is this all about
about David
and lineage
and all these kinds
of things?
All of those things
are revealed
and answered
in the person
of Jesus.
He is the lamp
and he came
to cast light
on the darkness
of this world
and on the mysteries
of the Old Testament.
And so it wasn't
his goal
to conceal the gospel
but his very presence
demonstrated
his intention
actually
to display
the gospel.
And think about
that message
that he had been preaching.
He was the representative
of the kingdom.
When Jesus said
the kingdom is near
he meant himself
as representative
of the coming kingdom
of God
I am near
spatially.
Spatially.
He's not talking
about time
but space.
I am near you
look to me
and all who heard
the good news
were commanded
to repent
and believe.
And so what's
the point
of this parable
of the lamp?
Jesus is the light.
He is the representative
of the kingdom.
Now that you know
repent
and believe.
And for all
who will not repent
and believe
they will only be
hardened further
as they come
to these stories
and as they come
to these parables
and as they come
to this truth
time and time
again.
James Edwards
said the lamp
coupled with
the theme
of disclosure
testify
that God's purpose
in Jesus
is to
enlighten
and reveal.
He is the lamp.
So he brings
clarification.
Secondly
we see
exhortation.
We've seen
clarification
now we see
exhortation.
Now look with me
at verse 23
and just the first
part of verse 24.
Jesus says
again
if any man
have ears
to hear
let him hear.
And he said
to them
pay attention
to what
you hear.
Pay attention
to what
you hear.
So after
providing some
clarification
Jesus
again
emphasized
the necessity
of quote
hearing
the word.
So the
fruitfulness
of the word
of God
in our lives
is not
then a matter
of intellectual
capacity
but it is a
matter of
spiritual
faith.
It is not
that Jesus
parables
were challenging
to understand
but the
clarity
they bring
is entirely
useless
unless you
receive it
by faith.
So the
issue for
those that
weren't grasping
what Jesus
was getting
at with
these stories
it is not
because they
were dumb
that is not
what it was
these were
very simple
stories.
They would
have understood
the stories
themselves
but the
extent of
the fruitfulness
of the word
in their life
was directly
related to
the way
that they
heard or
received it
and whether
or not
they received
it by
faith.
And so
throughout
this entire
section
an emphasis
is placed
on how
we receive
the word
and this is
even true
in the
parable
of the
soils.
Remember
the sower
teaches
the word
of God
that is
the casting
of the seed
and the
fruitfulness
of the
seed
is based
on how
the individual
or the
soil
receives
what is
taught.
And we
can trace
this emphasis
throughout
these verses
as well.
21 all the way
really to
34.
Five times
Jesus is
specifically
noted as
speaking,
teaching,
saying,
casting the
word.
Five times.
Five times
then also
there is a
specific
emphasis
on how
that teaching
and how
that speech
how that
word
is then
received
by the
hearer.
So immediately
after the
parable
of the
lamp,
Jesus
emphasized
the
necessity
of
receiving
that
teaching
by faith.
Well,
what teaching?
That he
is the
light.
Come to
him.
Repent
and believe.
And he's
not just
simply saying
to listen.
He's saying
to listen
with ears
intent
on heeding
what you
hear.
It's not
just about
hearing what
he says,
but believing
and receiving
what he
says.
There's
many ways
that people
hear the
word and
yet they
often fall
short of
exactly what
Jesus was
commanding here.
Think about
this.
Some people
come to the
word of
God for
intellectual
stimulation.
Intellectual
stimulation.
That is,
they're not
concerned about
believing it.
They don't come
with a posture
of faith.
Their aim
is actually
to argue
against it.
And so
maybe they
come to
church or
maybe they
read their
Bibles or
maybe they
go to a
Bible study
group or
they have
the conversation
with their
Christian
friends,
but their
intention is
never really
to come to
the word in
order to have
their mind
enlightened to
truth or to
come to an
understanding of
who God is or
to find out how
their souls can
be redeemed.
That's not their
intention.
It is intellectually
stimulating to
them to argue
back and forth
with people that
believe the word.
And so those
people hear the
word, but they
don't hear it.
Does that make
sense?
Are you with me?
They hear the
word, but they
don't hear the
word.
And so some
people come with
intellectual
stimulation as
their primary
goal.
Others come
simply for
moral motivation.
It's not really
that they're
looking to
exercise any
kind of faith,
and they
certainly don't
have any
interest in a
spiritual birth.
They just want
somebody to tell
them what to
do.
They want
somebody or
something to
tell them what
to do to
improve their
life.
So they don't
go to church
looking for an
understanding of
the Bible.
They go to the
church and they
want 10 ways to
be a better
parent.
Or they want
to know or
have some
instruction on
how to win
friends and
influence people
and increase the
success maybe of
their life.
Or they want
some tips on
how to overcome
the various
struggles of
their life.
But they're
not compelled
at all to
consider the
claims of
Jesus or to
follow him in
faith.
It's moral
motivation.
They just want
somebody to tell
them what to
do so that
their life can
be better.
They're not
really interested
in the spiritual
diet.
They're not
really interested
in faith.
They just want
somebody to
improve their
life.
They want
their best life
now, so to
speak.
And discussions
of theology are
just distractions
from what they
actually hope to
gain from the
Bible.
So they hear
the word, but
they don't hear
the word.
You with me?
Some people
come for
emotional
exploration.
So some come
with intellectual
stimulation as
their goal.
Some come with
moral motivation
as their goal.
Still yet, others
come with
emotional
exploration.
Well, what are
these people doing
when they come to
the word, or
when they come to
church, or
whatever it is
when they're
exposed to the
Bible?
Well, they really
only care about
how it makes
them feel.
they're not
really looking
for any kind
of rational
understanding of
truth.
And really, when
it comes down to
it, they may not
state this, but
really when it
comes down to
it, whether or
not the Bible
is actually used
is irrelevant to
them, so long
as they leave
the time feeling
better, feeling
better about
themselves.
They want
heaven without
hell, or they
want blessing
without lament,
repent, or they
want other
things that just
make them feel
better about
themselves.
Works without
repentance, life
without death.
But then there's
another form of
emotional exploration
that's almost the
antithesis of that
particular person, but
it really fits the
same category.
They want hell
without heaven, or
they want to
emphasize repentance
without any kind
of good works, or
they want the
opposite of that.
You know what I
mean?
That person?
That person, it's
not that they're
wanting to feel
good, everybody to
feel good about
themselves.
They actually want
everybody to feel
bad about themselves,
but they don't want
to offer the good
part of the gospel.
You know what I
mean?
It's emotional
exploration.
There's one side
where this extreme,
they just want to
be made to feel
good, and this
extreme, they just
want everybody to
be made to feel
bad with no actual
resolution to their
badness.
All of these
people hear the
word without
actually hearing
it.
But in response
to this, Alistair
Begg is helpful, and
he says that we
should approach the
Bible in three
ways, three ways to
be fruitful hearers.
One, consider it
carefully.
Consider it
carefully.
Now, Jesus, when he
says, listen, when he
says, if you have
ears to hear, hear,
he wasn't talking
about an uninformed
faith.
He wasn't talking
about a blind faith
in the sense that
someone stands up on
a platform on a
Sunday and they say,
say, Jesus is the
Son of God, believe it
and go to heaven, and
just say, okay, I'm
not going to actually
put any kind of
rational consideration
to this.
I'm just going to
accept it and hope
everything is good.
That's not what
Jesus is saying.
He never says that we
are to take our brains
and just set them to
the side and never
actually access them
for anything related
to theology or
anything related to
truth.
We are to come to
the word and
consider it carefully.
We shouldn't be
satisfied with a
surface knowledge of
truth, but we need
to study the Bible
thoughtfully.
Secondly, we believe
it thoroughly.
Believe it thoroughly.
Consider it
carefully and then
believe it thoroughly.
Rather than coming to
your time with the
word with a posture of
argumentative spirit,
rather than coming with
a critical eye to see
everything that you can
find wrong with the
Bible, no, that's not
the right posture.
That's not the right
posture.
We are going to
consider it carefully,
but we have to start
with the fact that this
is the very word of
God.
Therefore, whatever it
says, even if I
disagree, or I don't
like it, or it doesn't
make me feel the way
that I want it to make
me feel, I will believe
it, I will believe it
thoroughly, not because
it's what I want
necessarily, but because
it's what God says.
It is His word.
It's important.
We talked about this a
bit in our Thursday
night group this week.
Undergirding every
doctrine that we believe
is the doctrine of the
inspiration of the
Bible.
That what we have in the
pages of Scripture is
the very word of God.
He literally spoke
these words and used
men to write it, but it
was breathed out by God,
Paul said.
And then the writer of
Hebrews says that this
is a living book.
It's alive.
It discerns the thoughts
and intents of our
hearts.
And I mentioned on
Thursday night, when you
take your Bible, unless
if you do devotions in the
morning or in the
afternoon, whatever you
do it, if you spend an
hour reading your Bible,
that is an hour of time
that God is literally
speaking to you.
That's how he speaks.
He doesn't speak through
epiphany.
He's not going to give
you a dream.
There's not going to be
any kind of subjective
thing that God comes and
gives a pertinent
revelation that's going to
affect you in a different
way than anybody else.
No, he speaks through his
word.
It's his word.
Come to his word and
believe it because it is
his.
And God cannot lie.
And so what he has given
us is truth.
And we need to believe it
thoroughly.
And then thirdly, we
practice it diligently.
We practice it diligently.
So in addition to careful
consideration and thorough
belief, we must approach
the Bible prepared to obey
what it says.
Take one of those three
approaches out of the way
and you will not be a
fruitful hearer.
You can understand it
rationally.
You can even believe it to
an extent as far as just
giving mental assent to the
things that you read.
But unless you're going to
practice it, it will have no
impact on your life.
There will be no fruitfulness
there.
You have to have all three of
these.
And so the question this
morning is, what kind of
hearer are you?
Are you just looking for the
stimulation that it brings to
argue with somebody about
these things philosophically?
Are you just, you just want
somebody to make you feel
good?
And you really just want to
just point me to the
scriptures that are really
just going to help me feel
better about myself.
Well, there's a lot of
scriptures that aren't going
to make you feel better
about yourself.
That's not the point.
The point is to point you to
Christ.
Maybe, maybe your, your goal
is really most of the time
you just want something to
help you live a better life.
And, and the Bible does all
of those things, but, but
those are not its purpose.
But we come in a way that
is fruitful, ready to hear.
So we see clarification.
We see exhortation.
Finally, we see explanation,
explanation.
Look with me now at verse 24
and 25.
This is a weird saying, but
hopefully I can bring some
clarity to it.
With the measure you use, it
will be measured to you and
still more will be added to you.
For to the one who has, more
will be given.
And from the one who has not,
even what he has will be
taken away.
All right.
That's kind of weird.
That's a little bit of weird
language there.
Okay.
Let's, let's unpack it a little
bit and remember the context
of the passage.
Now, Jesus closes this dialogue
with an explanation for why
hearing is necessary.
That's what these two verses
are doing.
So he says, you need to hear,
you need to pay attention.
And here's why you need to
hear.
This is why you need to be a
fruitful hearer.
And again, the fruitfulness of
the word is linked directly to
how we receive it.
And so Jesus says to pay
attention because our attitude
toward the scripture will
determine our understanding of
the scripture.
And the extent of our
understanding is based on the
extent of our hearing.
Let's unpack that.
It's helpful to consider these
last two verses in light of the
parable of the soils.
This is why I think it's
significant to connect these.
And Mark's not the only gospel
that puts these together.
Matthew and Luke cover the,
the other parables in at
different times.
They don't put it in the same
timeframe as Mark does,
but they all put this one
there.
This statement is with the
parable, the soils.
It's important for us to
understand.
Now, Jesus said earlier in
Mark four, that the
understanding of the parable
of the soils is the key to
unlocking the other parables.
These two verses tell us how
it unlocks the other parables.
So the variance in the soil,
if you remember the story,
the variance in the soils is
based on the individual's
reception of the word.
And so here in verses 24 and
25, Jesus first addresses the
good soil, the good soil.
And what we could really read
this like this.
We might read this as to the
one who hears or to the one
who has faith.
And we would bracket faith as
an insertion to help us
understand what Jesus is
saying to the one who has
faith, more bracket
understanding will be given.
In other words, those who
receive the word through faith
reap the benefits of abundant
fruit.
So that the person who
welcomes the truth of God
will be given more and more
of God's intended fruitfulness.
It doesn't come all at once.
We all know that.
The moment that you came to
faith in Christ, you didn't
all of a sudden have all the
understanding that you would
ever need about the Bible and
about theology.
No, we grow in that throughout
the process of our life.
And there's even an insinuation
in the scripture that even when
we get to heaven, there is
still this progressive
understanding.
We will never fully understand
the depths of our infinite
God, right?
It's progressive.
It doesn't happen all at one
time.
But to those who welcome God's
truth, God gives more and
more fruitfulness in their life.
That word impacts their life in
more and more ways and to a
greater and greater extent.
So he addresses that.
The measure that you use, it
will be measured to you and
more will be given.
In other words, if you receive
it, God will give more and
more and more.
You will be impacted in more
and more ways.
But then in verse 25, he
addresses those represented by
the other three types of soil.
So think back to the parable.
Remember, the word was sown in
every type of soil, but the
first three were unfruitful.
Only the good soil had fruit.
Now these people, they hear the
word.
They may even understand the
word intellectually, but the
truth never has any lasting
impact on their life.
Why?
Because they came just looking
for some intellectual
stimulation.
Or they came just looking for
some moral motivation.
Or they came just looking for
some emotional exploration.
But they weren't fruitful
hearers.
And we know that because the
word has no impact at all in
their life.
So to these people, Jesus said,
even the understanding that
they have will be taken away.
Look again at verse 25.
That's what he's getting at.
He that hath to him shall be
given.
He that hath not from him shall
be taken away even that which he
has.
What does that mean?
That Jesus is going to take away
even what he has?
We'll think back to the parable
again.
You see how it's beginning to
unlock things for us.
Did the soil on the pathway
receive seed?
Did it hear the word?
Yes.
The seed was cast on the path.
It did not receive the seed.
What happened?
Immediately, the birds came and
devoured it.
What it had was taken away.
Okay?
Why?
Because it didn't receive it.
Didn't hear it.
What about the shallow soil,
the rocky ground?
Did it receive the word?
Did it hear the word?
Yeah, it did.
It heard the word.
The seed was cast.
But what happened?
The sun scorched it.
So even what it had was taken away.
What about the thorny soil?
Did it receive the word?
Yeah, it did.
It received the word.
But what happened?
The weeds choked it out so that it
lost, had taken away, destroyed,
even what at one time it had.
In each circumstance, what truth was
sown was ultimately destroyed or
taken away due to how it was
received.
So while those who believe the word
grow in fruitfulness, those who do
not eventually lose even what they
had, even what understanding they
had.
So Sinclair Ferguson states it this way
by means of application.
This is why Jesus stresses the
importance of how we hear now,
Sinclair says.
If we fail to grasp the mystery of
the kingdom of God now and do not
respond to it now, we may be
increasingly alienated from it in the
future.
But if we do respond to it, we will
grow in our understanding and
appreciation and increasingly
experience its benefits.
And we continually come back to this
verse in Hebrews chapter 4 and
verse 7.
Today, if you hear his voice, do not
harden your heart.
Because you don't have forever to
receive the word.
Which was the point Jesus was getting
across about his use of the parables
in 10 through 12.
That there comes a point where he
will harden your heart.
So if you hear his voice today, don't
harden your heart.
Receive the word.
And then God, through his spirit,
produces this fruitfulness in your
life.
Well, let's close it this way.
We need to recognize that this principle
of fruitful hearing is not applied only
to the work of the gospel in salvation.
It doesn't stop there.
This continues on.
This principle in your life as a
believer is to be actually
acknowledged at every point in your
walk with Christ.
There are varying degrees of
fruitfulness in the good soil.
Did you notice that?
Look back with me again at verse 20.
Verse 20.
These are they which are sown on good
ground.
They hear the word and receive it
and bring forth fruit.
Some 30 fold.
Some 60 fold.
Some 100 fold.
Now that's a little strange.
If this is about God providing
fruitfulness to those who accept
Christ by faith, why are there varying
degrees of fruitfulness?
Why doesn't everybody get the same
amount of fruit that everybody else
gets?
Because there's varying degrees of
hearing.
The writer of Hebrews acknowledged
this.
He was addressing spiritual maturity
for believers.
In Hebrews chapter 5 he said this.
For though by this time you ought to
be teachers.
But you need someone to teach you
again even the basics of the gospel.
You need milk not solid food the
writer says.
For everyone who lives on milk is
unskilled in the word of
righteousness since he is a child.
But solid food is for the mature.
For those who have their powers of
discernment trained by constant
practice to distinguish good from
evil.
What's he getting on about?
He's rebuking the church.
And he's saying look I know you know
the gospel.
I know you believe the gospel.
But some of you ought to be teachers
by now in your walk with Christ.
But because you didn't stay fruitful
hearers of the word after your
salvation.
You're just as much a baby as you were
the day you were saved.
And somebody's got to keep giving you
the milk of the word because you won't
ever listen.
You won't listen.
And so this principle continues on.
You want to grow in your walk with
Christ?
Hear the word.
Study the word.
Consider it carefully.
Believe it thoroughly.
Practice it diligently.
And I promise if you do those things
with the word.
If you come to church Sunday by Sunday
Thursday by Thursday whenever it is
that you come to the word.
And you're coming to consider it
carefully and believe it thoroughly
and practice it diligently.
You won't be able to help but bear
fruit.
You can't help it.
Because it's not you that bears the
fruit.
It's God that bears the fruit in you.
And he does it through the word.
But you have to be a fruitful hearer.
You have to be a fruitful hearer.
There's so many Christians that they're
stunted in their growth because they
don't really care about the Bible.
They don't really care.
They never read their Bible.
And when they do maybe they're
bouncing around from place to place
they're not setting themselves up in
a way where they can really
understand what it means.
They come to church they're not
prepared to listen.
They're not prepared to hear.
You want to grow in your walk with
Christ you got to be a good hearer.
You got to be a fruitful hearer.
This doesn't stop at salvation.
It actually continues on.
And let me say spiritual maturity
it cannot be faked for long.
It can't be faked for long.
You can't for a little while.
You can't do that forever.
Because eventually the fruit just
shows.
Jesus said you'll know them by their
fruit.
How does the word impact you?
Are you just as knowledgeable today
as you were the day you were saved?
Or have you grown in that time?
Are you allowing the word of God to
do its work in your life?
Our level of faithfulness to the
word will always reveal itself in the
fruitfulness of our lives.
And it's a shame for a Christian not to
advance in spiritual maturity.
But hearing the word is what will make
all the difference.
Can we not commit today that we're going
to be fruitful hearers?
We're going to be fruitful hearers as a
church.
We're going to care about the word.
And as we care about the word we're
going to share that word.
We're going to live that word.
And we're going to let God do his work.
He only does it through his word.
We're going to takeNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNINGNING