The Message Ain’t The Problem

Sermon Scripture

Matthew 13:24–25 ESV

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.

Introduction- The Bad Product Fallacy

In the late 1980s, many researchers and those working with families recognized a disturbing problem in many families: the lack of an engaged father. This prompted Ken Canfield, while pursuing his Ph.D. at Kansas State University, to apply sound research and seasoned faith to the role of fathering. After studying the existing statistics and research, he arrived at the undeniable conclusion that helping men become better fathers is perhaps the most strategic way to benefit children and strengthen families.

Dr. Canfield’s research would serve as the inspiration for the creation of the organization, The National Center For Fathering (NCF) which is seeking to improve the lives of children and establish a positive fathering and family legacy that will impact future generations by inspiring and equipping fathers and father figures to be actively engaged in the life of every child.

The National Center For Fathering is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with the explicit and intentional purpose of “turning the hearts of fathers to their children.”

Which is quote from

Malachi 4:5–6 ESV

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

The 7 Secrets of Effective Fathers: Becoming the Father Your Children Need by Dr. Canfield

draws on years of his research and experience to provide practical tools to help fathers strengthen relationships with their children and be the best fathers they can be.

According to fathers.com

Ways to Stay Positive Through Discouragement

A lot of dads out there feel like they are “drowning.” They’re stressed out, feeling alone, overloaded in many ways, and struggling as a dad.

You love being a dad. It speaks to something deep within you. But sometimes being a dad gets hard, and you get discouraged. Nothing seems to work with your kids, and the payoffs are few and far between.

Maybe in your worst moments you’ve asked yourself the questions: “What’s the point?” “Is it worth the trouble?”

But the frustrations are real. Maybe some of you are crippled by past mistakes, or by your father’s faults.

Ephesians 6:4 ESV

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Colossians 3:21 ESV

Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.

Provoke- to cause someone to feel resentment—‘to make resentful, to make someone bitter.’

Maybe you’re fighting an addiction that slows you down as a father. Maybe you’re in that stage where it seems like all you do is work to provide for your family. Maybe you’re in a complex family situation and there’s no road map for how to manage everything. Or maybe you don’t get to see your children much at all. There’s a growing list of tough issues that today’s dads face.

Fathering is just plain hard. And none of us are perfect. We all make mistakes and sometimes struggle in major ways.

Sometimes the best advice to struggling dads is: Hang in there. Put in the reps. Dive in and be a dad—in whatever ways you can right now. Stay devoted to your kids. Think about the good you’re doing them instead of how it feels day-to-day on your end.

As we stay faithful, being a dad will become more rewarding, even if it takes months or years. And more importantly, our kids will benefit from our steadfast commitment and love.

Don’t confuse your child’s “I don’t like it” with “That’s a bad message or teaching and it’ll fail”

I adapted that phrase from a then Twitter post in 2017 which stated:

“Easiest trap in consumer tech is to confuse ‘I don’t like it/ I don’t have that use case’ with ‘that’s a bad product and it’ll fail’

This is called the Bad Product Fallacy within the arenas of business & marketing.

According to an article I reviewed recently at andrewchen.com

Your personal use cases and opinion are bad predictors of a product’s future success

Just ask the dozens of investors who’ve passed on Facebook, Google, Uber, and so on.

The bad product fallacy happens because the trajectory of a product evolves quickly- it’s just software after all- and a simple set of features can quickly grow into a rich, complex, platform over time

So is the case with you fathers and all of you hearing my voice today when we…

Transition To Body- Questioning whether the Gospel is a bad product and will fail because some people don’t like it

In Chapter 10 after calling the first 12 Apostles (ambassadors, messengers of the Gospel):

Persecution will come

Matthew 10:16–18 ESV

“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles.

Have no fear

Matthew 10:26 ESV

“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.

No peace

Matthew 10:34–36 ESV

“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.

Simultaneous Amazement & Accusation

Matthew 12:23–24 ESV

And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.”

Jesus & His Family

Mark 3:13–15 ESV

And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons.

Mark 3:20–21 ESV

Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”

Matthew 12:46–50 ESV

While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

Question and issues for those called to share the Gospel & they face resistance and opposition from those whom they share it:

If the message is good, and it is being presented by someone whom the reader has by now learned to recognize as God’s Messiah, why is it not being welcomed and acted on by all those who hear?

The necessary risk:

The parables within our text today are spoken to the disciples, to meet their growing disillusionment and discouragement

Body- The Message Ain’t The Problem, no its the…

Uncertain Hearts of the Hearers

The Message of Matthew The Parable of the Yeast (13:33): Why Is the Kingdom so Hidden?

Why is the response to the gospel so mixed?

Matthew 13:1–9 ESV

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”

Matthew 13:10–13 ESV

Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

Matthew 13:18–23 ESV

“Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

Illustration: The Message is not necessarily the problem, maybe it’s the presentation Fathers! Maybe it is the preparation of the soil of our children’s hearts!

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Uncertain Hearts of the Hearers

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Undeniable Reality of the Resistance (to the WORD)

The Message of Matthew The Parable of the Yeast (13:33): Why Is the Kingdom so Hidden?

Why does evil prevail?

Matthew 13:24–30 ESV

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

Matthew 13:36–43 ESV

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

Philippians 1:15–18 ESV

Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice,

2 Corinthians 11:22–29 ESV

Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

Illustration: The Devil is at work in the world too so you must be engaged & you cannot always discern how the LORD may be at work- they may look like they are on the wrong track and they may be in God’s will

Proverbs 22:6 ESV

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

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Uncertain Hearts of the Hearers

Undeniable Reality of the Resistance (to the WORD)

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Unexpected Supremacy of the Savior (The WORD At Work)

The Message of Matthew The Parable of the Yeast (13:33): Why Is the Kingdom so Hidden?

Why is the kingdom of Jesus so insignificant and hidden?

Supremacy- controlling power or influence over others

Matthew 13:31–33 ESV

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”

We can no more see leaven working than we can see a flower growing- so is the power of the Kingdom

Leaven is negative sense:

Mark 8:15 ESV

And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”

1 Corinthians 5:6 ESV

Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?

Galatians 5:9 ESV

A little leaven leavens the whole lump.

Although usually used in a bad sense, leaven could be used for any invasive and pervasive influence

Imperceptible influence of the Kingdom

Inner influence of the Kingdom

no man is changed until his heart is changed

The Power From The Outside

The dough had no power to change itself. The power which was to change it- the leaven- had to come from the outside. Just so, men have no power to change themselves

Leaven as a disturbance or disturbing agent in the world for the glory of God

This parable teaches the disturbing influence of Christianity on the life of the individual and the life of the world

Kingdom of Power

1 Corinthians 4:20 ESV

For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.

Not By Might, Nor By Power, but By My Spirit

Zechariah 4:5–10 ESV

Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’ ” Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. For whoever has despised the day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. “These seven are the eyes of the Lord, which range through the whole earth.”

Illustration: The Power of making incremental improvements as fathers

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Uncertain Hearts of the Hearers

Undeniable Reality of the Resistance (to the WORD)

Unexpected Supremacy of the Savior

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Transition To Close- Coming From Far On the Outside To Change

Archimedes is considered the greatest mathematician of ancient history, and one of the greatest of all time

Archimedes discovered that if you placed a lever below a mass, you could lift the mass, and the longer the lever, the bigger the mass that could be lifted. In the end he came to this conclusion. “Give me a lever long enough,“ he said, “and give me a place outside the world to stand and I will lift the world.“ He knew well that the lifting must come from outside.

If we are to be changed, and if the world is to be changed, that change must come from a power that is not our power, the power of Christ. “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). This risen Christ said, “Behold I make all things new “ (Revelation 21:5).

Close- The Word Became Flesh

The WORD Became Flesh & Dwelt Among Us

Image of the Invisible God

Colossians 1:15–20 ESV

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

Upholding the Universe by the WORD of His Power

Hebrews 1:1–4 ESV

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

The Word Became Flesh

John 1:9–18 ESV

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ”) For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.

For God So Loved The World

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Let the WORD of Christ Dwell in You Richly

Colossians 3:16–17 ESV

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Your Labor is Not in Vain

1 Corinthians 15:56–58 ESV

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

In Due Season You Will Reap- Don’t Give Up

Galatians 6:9 ESV

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

In Christ God was Reconciling the World

2 Corinthians 5:17–19 ESV

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.