Mark 4:26-29

Mark 4:26–29 CSB

“The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head. As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

(CSB)

26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

(CSB) 26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

THE PARABLE OF THE GROWING SEED

26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

Illus: I think we have an unhealthy obsession with success. We say, it is worth my time of I get results.

So evangelism is worth it if we get results, but when it gets difficult we tend to grow weary and quit.

Look at the results of Jesus’ evangelism. At the end of his life, the very crowds that were cheering him on turned and demanded his crucifixion. Even Jesus disciples fled, slept and denied him in his darkest hours.

God does not call us to success because success does not sit on our shoulders. It sits on his.

God calls us to faithfullness. We are called to be faithful to sow seeds of the gospel and let God handle the rest.

(CSB) 4 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and because of his appearing and his kingdom: 2 Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. 3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. 4 They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5 But as for you, exercise self-control in everything, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

FULFILL YOUR MINISTRY

4 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and because of his appearing and his kingdom: 2 Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. 3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. 4 They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5 But as for you, exercise self-control in everything, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

THE PARABLE OF THE GROWING SEED

(CSB) 26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

Illus: I am not good at growing plants of any sort. Truthfully gardening and farming takes too much patience.

I think the way we want to view evangelism is like hunting. We see our prey, put them in our sights and BANG! We got them.

There is a reason that God’s mission is described over and over in farming terms. In farming much of the success is out of your control. You simply have to trust that an itty bitty seed will grow. Sure you can cultivate the soil, optimize the conditions, but at the end of it all it is an practice of constant faith.

Evangelism is a call to a patient faith that God will grow the seed of the gospel where it is planted. It is not a quick sell or an instant reaction.

(CSB) 4 Again he began to teach by the sea, and a very large crowd gathered around him. So he got into a boat on the sea and sat down, while the whole crowd was by the sea on the shore. 2 He taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! Consider the sower who went out to sow. 4 As he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it didn’t have much soil, and it grew up quickly, since the soil wasn’t deep. 6 When the sun came up, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it didn’t produce fruit. 8 Still other seed fell on good ground and it grew up, producing fruit that increased thirty, sixty, and a hundred times.” 9 Then he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”

4 Again he began to teach by the sea, and a very large crowd gathered around him. So he got into a boat on the sea and sat down, while the whole crowd was by the sea on the shore. 2 He taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! Consider the sower who went out to sow. 4 As he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it didn’t have much soil, and it grew up quickly, since the soil wasn’t deep. 6 When the sun came up, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it didn’t produce fruit. 8 Still other seed fell on good ground and it grew up, producing fruit that increased thirty, sixty, and a hundred times.” 9 Then he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”

(CSB)

27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

(CSB) 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

Illus: Salvation is a supernatural act. God calls the sinner, convicts the sinner, leads the sinner to repentance, and saves the sinner.

We have to fight the temptation to think that we can save other people. We can’t. We can offer the good news of salvation, but if the Spirit of God is not working in their heart, our efforts are in vain.

This is why spiritual preparation is essential as we go to share our faith to others. If we go in our own power, we fail. When we go dependent on the power of God, We will accomplish much.

People often ask me why I wake up at 3:30am on Sunday mornings. I wake up that early because I know that I will accomplish nothing if I preach in my power. I wake up that early to prepare my heart through bible study and prayer for the morning ahead.

Catch scripture’s picture of salvation.

(CSB) 2 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously lived according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, 5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! 6 He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.

FROM DEATH TO LIFE

2 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously lived according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, 5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! 6 He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.

(CSB) 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head.

Illus: I am increasingly worried about what we pray for as a church. If we desire to see God work in salvation, we need to begin praying for it specifically.

Yes, praying for the many things we pray for is important, but are we missing the most important thing. If we began to pray specifically for the lost in our lives regularly, we might see them turn their hearts to Christ.

(CSB)

36 When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”

(CSB) 29 As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

Illus:It is God’s intent and will so see people saved.

So why arn’t we seeing people saved like we used to? Perhaps it is because we are not sowing the gospel, and that we really don’t have faith that God will work.

2 Peter 3:8–9 CSB

Dear friends, don’t overlook this one fact: With the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.

Mark 4:26-29

We are not called to save people, we are called to sow seeds.

God does not call us to success, he calls us to faithfulness.

Scattering seeds does not produce instant fruit.

From beginning to end, God produces salvation.

No man can change another man’s heart. Salvation is solely God’s work.

When we see salvation as an act of God, not men, we can see the importance of prayer.

We place our faith in God the harvester.

Is your faith in your efforts, or in Christ’s perfect work.