The Four Soils
Notes
Transcript
The Four Soils
The Four Soils
INTRO
Mark
Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
Mark
Jesus was taking this moment to draw the crowds in and he begins to tell a story.
Jesus was a great story teller.
He often spoke in parables.
Now parables for those who may not know what a parable is,
Is a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson.
This story is based on a fiction story.
Meaning that Jesus just made up the story to illustrate his point.
Sometimes He would explain the parable and sometimes he would not.
Thankfully this time he explains the parable.
So we have Jesus in front of a large crowd and he is in a boat and he begins a parable or a story.
He begins by grabbing their attention
LISTEN!
There once was a farmer who set out to plant his crop.
The sower does not have a name but let me help you out on who the sower is- It is Jesus.
And the seed is his Word
The sower sows the word.
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
Let’s keep that in mind as we continue to look at this passage.
Now this farmer, the sower, threw his seeds out all over the 4 different types of soils.
This may not register to us very well.
Because we see beautiful field of crops that are in prefect rows and everything is so neat and clean and organized.
We think how on earth could the seed end up in different soils?
The sower or the farmer in this parable almost seems wasteful doesn’t he.
Seeds can’t be cheap, yet the sower is throwing the seed everywhere.
The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel according to Mark The Parable of the Sower and the Mystery of the Kingdom (4:1–20)
So intent is the farmer on a harvest that he sows in every corner of the field “in hopes that good soil might somewhere be found,” said Justin Martyr in his retelling of the parable over a century later (Dial. Trypho 125.1–2). Even so, rocks, thorns, and adverse elements render three-quarters of the labor lost.41
If Jesus is the sower and his word is the seed, then who is the soil?
Those who hear the word, are the soil.
Those who hear the Gospel of Jesus are the soils talked about in this passage.
Meaning what?
Four Soil Types
Which means there are four types of listeners.
As we break these soils down— think about what kind of listener you are to God’s word.
To the Gospel of Jesus.
The gospel is the story of Jesus, who came to this earth because of the sin nature that everyone has, He lived a perfect life, NEVER SINNING, would be betrayed, hit, whipped, cut, and beat some more, he would be lead through the city to be crucified with two other criminals— even though he did nothing wrong.
He would be pierced with three nails- two in his wrist one in his feet and he would be hung on a cross nearly naked, gushing blood, fighting literally for every breath.
He went through the most intense pain and agony to take our place.
We were suppose to be there in that moment, yet Jesus took our place.
He would look down on those who were literally gambling for his clothes, and say father forgive them— they don’t know what they are doing.
Jesus would then pay the price of sin— sin that he had never known— all past, present, and, future sin for the whole world.
His blood would cover.
He would die on that cross— the debt was paid in full
We now had this open channel to God.
Where as before the people would have needed someone to go to God on their behalf— that was done away with— we now were able to have a conversation with God.
Here is the best part— As if all that wasn’t amazing news.
Jesus after being dead for three days got up and walked out of that grave!
He sits alive to this day next to God, waiting to come back and get his children and build his kingdom here on earth.
That is the Gospel… Know everyone in this room has a choice on how they just heard that.
There are four type of hears in his room tonight.
Four different kinds of soils.
The Hard Soil
The Hard Soil
“Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
Mark 4:
Jesus was taking this moment to draw the crowds in and he begins to tell a story.
He begins by grabbing their attention
LISTEN!
There once was a farmer who set out to plant his crop.
Now this farmer threw his seeds out all over the 4 different types of soils.
The first soil that we read about is the hard soil.
The farmer take the seed and even though this is a path— he throws some seed here, because maybe, just maybe this seed will grow.
Paths are not good places to grow seeds.
These paths would have some many people walking all over them.
They would tramp the seed.
The birds would see the seed and they would come and eat it.
It actually says the bird devoured it.
The hard ground cannot and will not soak up the seed.
The hard person will not soak up the Gospel.
How do we know this.
Jesus reveled what the parable meant.
Mark 4:15
And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them.
And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them.
So the hard soil what does Jesus say about this?
When you hear the word— the Gospel.
You are so hardened up that Satan comes and takes it away.
He devours you.
The hard ground likely, represents those in the world who refuse to acknowledge God’s existence.
They live for themselves.
You see it comes down to how you hear.
They chase their own passions and pleasures.
They are not interested in God.
Maybe that is where you are at tonight.
Maybe this whole God thing just isn’t you.
Then my question is why are you here?
If you do not believe that there is a God then why come to church on Wednesday or even Sunday?
See I find it hard to assume anyone here is hard soil.
Because you are present here.
I mean sure you can say that you are here for your friends or whatever, but maybe God is doing something else.
A question I had was why throw seed on the hard ground?
God throws the seed on the hard ground because maybe just maybe some will find a different type of soil
That is the hard soil, the next soil is the rocky soil.
The Rocky Soil
The Rocky Soil
Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away.
The soil is rocky.
:5
The soil was not abundant.
There are some but not enough to sustain life.
The soil did have to be good to some level, because Jesus says that the seed immediately took and sprouted up!
Yet the roots could not get past the rockiness that was under the soil.
The roots never got deep and so they could not spread out the nutrients the plant needed stay strong when things got hard.
The sun rose and caused a little bit of discomfort, and the seed died, the root wasn’t deep and when it got pushed a bit it stopped growing.
Let’s see how Jesus explains the parable.
And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.
Mark 4:
You have an encounter with God and your life has changed!
Maybe you have seen this or even experienced this at camp or events like Surge.
You hear the gospel.
That Jesus loves you and he died for you!
You feel those Holy Spirit bumps all over your body.
SOMETHING IS HAPPENING!!!
YOU HAVE INCREDIBLE JOY!
Yet it was based on the experience— You did not take the next step of accepting Jesus and laying down your life and following him.
You may claim that you believe but you make no efforts to grow in your relationship with Jesus.
You may come to church, or youth group, yet there is no growth in your life.
There is no fruit.
We will know them by their fruit.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
When life happens, when the hard reality comes up that Christians are not spared from suffering or from persecution, what we see is people bail.
We see people that when they hear all the amazing things Christ can do for us— we are over joyed!
Yet when the rubber mets the road and things get hard.
Our foundation was never built on Jesus it was built on surface level Christianity that has no depth because you have a rocky relationship.
Jesus says that they fall away immediatley
The same way they shot up they fell away— immediately.
Let’s look at it this way— I know that there are people in your school or that you may know who say they are a Christian.
Yet, they do not go to church, they never have attended youth group, they don’t have a Bible, let alone read it, the only time you hear them speak about God is when they get a bad grade on a test— but it is not thanking Him.
If someone like this was to say they have a relationship with Jesus would be affirm that or maybe we would have some questions?
Or maybe they have recieved Jesus and the joy that they had at conversion was replaced by the struggles of life.
Maybe an old friends brings them back in a sin habit.
They desire to pursue one’s old way of life overtakes the desire of the cross.
They quickly deconstruct their conversion.
They had no roots to begin with.
So we have the two soils so far, the hard and the rocky— the next one is the thorny soil
The Thorny Soil
The Thorny Soil
Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain.
Mark 4:
The sower throws some seed and it lands in some thorns.
The soil, like the rocky soil, may have been decent because the seed took and it started to grow.
Maybe it even had some roots, i mean the thorns had to grow as well, am I right?
Yet as it grows more and more- it starts to get choked by the thorns.
Its painful and it produces no fruit.
It too dies, maybe even more slowly then the other two seed did.
They found themselves in places that had a small chance of success but they soil here was okay at least- the conditions may not have been great but the soil had a chance too.
Let’s see how Jesus responds.
And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.
And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.
And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word,
:
Mark 4:
The ones who are the thorny soil, they hear the word— but the word isn’t good enough, or big enough for their problems, or so they think.
The world is too fun and sin is fun and YOLO is the motto we live and yes die by.
Yet at one point the seed took and it grew— it was good soil or else the thrones would not be growing— yet they find out that they were in love with the world more than Jesus.
Now the other two soils you may have been able to look at and say, yeah those are not me.
However, this soil, has 100% percent been us at times.
We chose other things over Jesus.
Life takes a priority over the Christ.
We may seem faithful, or at least at one time we were.
Yet now, you are not willing to pick up the cross daily.
You did but now— the world is more enticing to you.
These people who are this soil— are the most dangerous in our churches today.
Why? because they believe that they have repented and will be saved on the day of judgement, but they will be counted as enemies of the cross.
“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.
“Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
“So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
They produce no fruit.
They have let the weeds of the world choke them out.
They succumb to the outside forces.
The fall to the world.
Paul warn of this.
and so do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.
Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does Demas.
Philemon 1:24
For Demas, in love with this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.
1 Timoth
Demas was one whose soil was among the thorns.
He loved the world more than Jesus.
His story of redemption is never mentioned.
The first three soils do not sound very good do they?
We have the hard soil, the rocky soil, the thorny soil and lastly the good soil.
The Good Soil
The Good Soil
And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Mark 4:
The seed fell on good soil.
Not a hard path, or a rocky one, or soil surrounded by thorns.
The seed fell on a good soil.
On this soil the seed was able to have deep roots, and was able to grow really tall.
and it was able to increase its yield.
Now just really briefly what does yield mean and why is it important that they grain was able to yield up to a hundredfold?
Being able to yield a crop means:
The yield is how much you get out of a crop.
How much is this going to bring in.
The seed fell on good soil meaning that the crop yield was greater than the other three soils.
But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”
Mark
The ones who hear the word: they hear it, they accept it and then they bear fruit.
And they keep bearing fruit.
CONCLUSION
Did you notice a phrase that kept popping up?
In verses 14-19
Jesus keeps saying: They they hear...
When they hear the word they respond to it.
When God speaks or when he acts, that determines our level of faith.
It has nothing to do with you believing harder, it has everything to do with how we respond to God when he acts.
When he speaks you can be hard, or rocky or you can be among the thorns, or you can be obedient and and will.
Sometimes we want to think that maybe there is a problem with the seed.
You can be the good soil— Good soil has nothing to do with morality it has everything to do with hearing and doing— bearing fruit that grows.
Hearing, receiving and bearing fruit are the marks of a believer.
And just in case you want to make the claim that the see may be bad.
Just in case we want to think that maybe there is a problem with the seed.
Nah you see the seed— God’s word always has the potential to grow.
The seed always has a chance to grow.
WHY- because God’s word is good.
The gospel is the Good News!
But where the seed lands will determine how it will grow or not grow.
So let’s ask the question of what type of soil are you?
Are you hard— you want to be tuff?
Maybe you want to be hard because Satan has a real strong hold of you.
Are you Rocky?
Are you in a place where you had joy in Christ, just to have it go away because life happens and you had not roots?
Are you Thorny?
Do you think that you repented but yet you are not living with Christ, you are actually living for the world?
Or lastly the one that we all would hope to be: Good soil.
Are we able to have deep roots, do we hear, do we accept, and lastly do we bear fruit?
What type of soil are you?
Lets’s Pray
Wife shouldn’t be accountability partner- Disagree
Porn- Should be talked about in a group
If you are passionate about you will speak about from the pulpit- why wouldn’t you?
BE PRAYER FOR YOU GUYS
