Blind, Deaf, and Dumb

Matthew 13:1 ESV

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.

Matthew 13 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.” 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. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: “ ‘ “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. “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.” 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.” ’ ” 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.” All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: “I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.” 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. “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. “Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there, and coming to his hometown he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household.” And he did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.

Matthew 13:1–2 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.

omeone had him by the neck and was choking the life out of him. The peace and joy have gone out of his life if he ever had any. He lived paycheck to paycheck, the house is falling apart, the car keeps breaking down, and there's no relief in sight. He's stuck in the rat race. He feels his life is unproductive and unfruitful.

There was another girl that grew up in a Christian home. Her parents would take her to church just like their parents did. She heard about Jesus and learned about following Him. It was so easy until around the 8th grade. Her friends started making fun of her faith in God. She was feeling the peer pressure to try new things. And before you know it she had decided to walk away from the things of God and join the world. A Christian is what she used to call herself.

Have you ever had an unproductive job.

There was a man that grew up in the rough part of town. He was oppressed by everyone around him. Good opportunities never seemed to come his way. He would get up every day and go to work. after a hard days work he would come home and check the mail to find a pile of bills. It felt like someone had him by the neck and was choking the life out of him. He lived paycheck to paycheck. The house is falling apart. The car keeps breaking down. There’s no joy. There’s no peace. And there’s no relief in sight. There’s no getting ahead. He is just stuck in the rat race. He feels his life is unproductive and unfruitful.

Earlier that day Jesus had been rejected by the Jews.

There was another girl that grew up in a Christian home. Her parents would take her to church just like their parents did. She heard about Jesus and learned about following Him. It was so easy until around the 8th grade. Her friends started making fun of her faith in God. She was feeling the peer pressure to try new things. And before you know it, she had decided to walk away from the things of God and join the world. A Christian is what she used to call herself.

There was a man that grew up in the rough part of town. Everyone around him oppressed him. Good opportunities never seemed to come his way. He would get up every day and go to work. After a hard day's work, he would go home and check the mail to find a pile of bills. It felt like someone had him by the neck and was choking the life out of him. The peace and joy have gone out of his life if he ever had any. He lived paycheck to paycheck, the house is falling apart, the car keeps breaking down, and there's no relief in sight. He's stuck in the rat race. He feels his life is unproductive and unfruitful.

There was another man that did very well in business. He had the means to have nice things and enjoy the finer things in life. But to maintain that lifestyle it costed him two marriages. He has a daughter and a son from each that he rarely sees. He tries to make his heart happy with the things of this world but nothing seems to satisfy. Every pleasure is for a moment and then fades away. There is no lasting joy, no great fulfilment. His life is unproductive and unfruitful.

There was another man that did very well in business. He had the means to have nice things and enjoy the finer things in life. But to maintain that lifestyle, it cost him two marriages. He has a daughter and a son from each that he rarely sees. He tries to make his heart happy with the things of this world, but nothing seems to satisfy. Every pleasure only lasts for a moment and then fades away. There is no lasting joy and no fulfillment. His life is unproductive and unfruitful.

There was a man that heard about the Kingdom of God and believed with all his heart. Life was not easy but he lived in the love and protection of Christ. When hard times would come he would cease the moment to tell others about the goodness of God, inviting them to join him in the kingdom. He saw Jesus meet many of his friends in the midst of their struggles and the kingdom of God was expanded because of his love for Christ and others.

What I have just read to you are examples of the types of people Jesus describes in his parable of the sower.

The Wayward Heart.

The Weak Heart.

The Worldly Hearts.

The Willing Hearts

Matthew 13:1–2 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.

Matthew 13:

Matthew 13:1–3 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.

The same day that Jesus was rejected by the Jews as their Messiah or Savior. He began to

Earlier that day Jesus had been rejected by the Jews.

They rejected him as King and Massiah.

They accused him of having an evil Spirit.

Their rejection of Jesus caused them to go spiritually blind and Deaf. If they were not going to see and not going to hear, than Jesus would speak to them in parables.

In the midst of this rejection Jesus uses a story to illustrate at spiritual lesson to the crowd. This parable was not necessarily about salvation but how a person might receive and understand the announcement of the Kingdom of God.

There are 8 parables given in . But the greatest one according to Jesus is this first one about the sower, the seed, and the ground.

Mark 4:13 ESV

And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables?

Mark 4:13

Any sower cast seed because he desires a harvest. Where you cast the seed and the preparation of the ground you invest in makes all the difference come harvest time.

Bible Lesson: Defining the Passage

I

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“When you fully embrace the word of the Kingdom, you will naturally bear fruit for the kingdom.” @pastorsizemore

So the question I have for you this morning is this:

How is your heart toward the kingdom of God?

In this parable Jesus compares four soils of a sower’s field to a person’s heart toward the kingdom.

Matthew 13:3–8 ESV

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.

Matthew 13:3-8

In preparation for this message I was reading one of my favorite commentaries from John Phillips on this passage.

In preparation for this message I was reading one of my favorite commentaries from John Phillips on this passage.

“...there are productive soils and there are problem soils. Problem soils are found in the hearts of those who are wayward, weak, or worldly. Productive soil is found in the hearts of those who are willing.”

Bible Lesson: Defining the Passage

Phillips, J. (2014). Exploring the Gospel of Matthew: An Expository Commentary (). Kregel Publications.

The 4 Soils of the Heart

The Path or Wayward Heart.

The Rocky Soil or Weak Heart.

The Thorny Soil or Worldly Heart.

The Good Soil or Willing Heart.

But before we dive into the explanation of these 4 soils we must first understand why Jesus begins teaching in parables. This is a new thing. Because of the rejection of the Pharisees the truth is getting harder and harder to find and understand.

Bible Lesson: Defining the Passage

Understanding the Kingdom

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.

The compounding principle:

“God gives more understanding to those who receive understanding, and God takes away understanding from those that deny it.”

“When you embrace the Light the day gets brighter. When you deny the Light the night get darker.”

The dulling effect:

Matthew 13:9 KJV 1900

Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Matt 13:9

Matthew 13:14–15 ESV

Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: “ ‘ “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’

Matt 13:14-

Their hearts had grown dull to the kingdom of God.

They could no longer see God working around them.

They had closed their ears to hearing the truth of God’s kingdom.

So it is in our day. People don’t want to hear it anymore.

The true disciples came will eyes wide open to see and join God is what He is doing. They were ready and eager to hear the word of the kingdom and bear fruit for the kingdom.

Matthew 13:16–17 ESV

But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

matt 13:

How is your heart toward the Kingdom of God?

The 4 Soils of the Heart

Exploring the Gospel of Matthew: An Expository Commentary (3) The Interpretation of the Parable (13:18–23)

In other words, there are productive soils and there are problem soils. Problem soils are found in the hearts of those who are wayward, weak, or worldly. Productive soil is found in the hearts of those who are willing.

Understanding the Soils of the Heart

The Path or Wayward Heart.

Matthew 13:18–19 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.

Matt 13:18-

The path is the hardened ground that gets you to the field. Everyone walks the path.

Because the path has become so hard over time no seed can break through.

The wayward heart hears the word of the Kingdom but doesn’t understand it.

The adversary is the evil one illustrated by the birds that come and pick the seed right off the hardened path.

The wayward heart can’t bear fruit because the seed is never planted.

Modern Example of a Wayward heart

There once was a young girl that grew up in horrible conditions. She suffered abuse of every kind. She had to learn the hard way how to protect and defend herself. The more she was around people, the more hurt she experienced. She began to put up walls and barriers to protect your heart. She could feel her heart getting harder and colder toward people. She couldn't trust anyone. As she retreats into herself, she finds her life to be unproductive and unfruitful. She has a friend that talks about Jesus all the time, but she doesn't believe a loving God would let these things happen to her.

The Rocky Soil or Weak Heart.

Matthew 13:20–21 ESV

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.

matt 13:20

There is no depth to be rooted in the truth of the word. It is a shallow faith at best.

Jesus is the root

Plants and trees that have a good root system can survive some of the worst conditions because their survival is determined by what is happening underneath and not on the surface.

A shallow heart is a weak heart because it has no root to sustain it through the hard times of tribulation and persecution.

The adversary is the world of troubles that surround us.

The worldly heart can’t bear fruit because its not rooted properly in Christ.

Modern Example of a Weak Heart

There was another girl that grew up in a Christian home. Her parents would take her to church just like their parents did. She heard about Jesus and learned about following Him. It was so easy until around the 8th grade. Her friends started making fun of her faith in God. She was feeling the peer pressure to try new things. And before you know it, she had decided to walk away from the things of God and join the world. A Christian is what she used to call herself.

The Thorny Soil or Worldly Heart.

Matthew 13:22 ESV

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.

Matt 13:22-

The word of the kingdom is not the top priority of life. Other things are allowed to get in the way of or take the place of the kingdom.

This is where I believe most of Christianity is today. They let the world determine the fruit

The adversary is the thorns or worldly distractions that pull our hearts away from the truth of the kingdom.

This is where I believe most of Christianity is today. They let the world determine the fruit that can be produced for the kingdom.

If we let the world set the priorities of our lives it will.

2 Modern Examples of a Worldly Heart

There was a man that grew up in the rough part of town. Everyone around him oppressed him. Good opportunities never seemed to come his way. He would get up every day and go to work. After a hard day's work, he would go home and check the mail to find a pile of bills. It felt like someone had him by the neck and was choking the life out of him. The peace and joy have gone out of his life if he ever had any. He lives paycheck to paycheck, the house is falling apart, the car keeps breaking down, and there's no relief in sight. He's stuck in the rat race. He feels his life is unproductive and unfruitful.

There was another man that did very well in business. He had the means to have nice things and enjoy the finer things in life. But the time it takes to maintain that lifestyle has cost him two marriages. He has a daughter and a son from each that he rarely sees. He tries to make his heart happy with the things of this world, but nothing seems to satisfy. Every pleasure only lasts for a moment and then fades away. There is no lasting joy and no fulfillment. His life is unproductive and unfruitful.

The Good Soil or Willing Heart.

Matthew 13:23 ESV

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.”

Matt 13:

Good soil is prepared to receive the seed.

it is tilled to humble the ground and open it up.

It is fertilized with the Spirit to enrich the soil to produce from the seed of the word.

It is watered with the Word of God to give life to the truth of the kingdom.

It lives in the light of the Son to provide energy for the growth process to bring forth fruit.

The only adversary would be the tares that grow along side the wheat. The implants of the evil one to steal kill and destroy.

The willing heart watches the miracle of God produce just what the sower was looking for some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundredfold.

Modern Example of a Willing Heart

There was a man that heard about the Kingdom of God and believed with all his heart. Life was not easy but he lived in the love, protection, and provision of Christ. When hard times would come he would seize the moment to tell others about the goodness of God, inviting them to join him in the kingdom. He saw Jesus meet many of his friends in the midst of their struggles and the kingdom of God was expanded because of his love for Christ and others.

Matthew 13:9 KJV 1900

Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Closing Questions:

Are your eyes and ears open to receive the word of the kingdom or have you grown dull of hear and can’t see the harvest?

What is the condition of your heart toward the kingdom? Wayward, Weak, Worldly, or Willing.

Practical Steps:

Humble yourself and ask the Lord to prepare your heart to receive his truth of the Kingdom.

If this is the first time for you to understand the kingdom, receive it by making Jesus the Lord of your life. We call this salvation.

Jesus will receive you if you receive him.

Make producing fruit for the kingdom the most important priority of your life.

Say no to the world so you can say yes to the Lord.

The world will choke you out if you let it.

Produce the harvest that was always in the heart of the Sower.

Let God use you to bear fruit for His kingdom.

Get busy about the Father’s business.