The seed and the soil
Notes
Transcript
Title Explanation
The Sewer and the seed is not appropriate.
The parables of Jesus
The parables of Jesus
To distinguish between those of a heart toward God and a heart toward self.
Martye and I were watching a movie (imbd) Nair commercial came on and “Worship yourself”
Jesus said that if you want to be His disciple you must deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow Him.
Important that when you are reading the Word and you get to something that you don’t understand, don’t stop until you do.
Fulfill prophesy.
To delay his enemies.
For remembrance and reflection.
The spoken word was emphasized more than the written word.
Jesus only wrote one thing, in the sand, and we don’t know what it was.
Does anyone remember what I asked you to imagine last week involving four people doing four actions with four objects?
The seed and the soil
The seed and the soil
1 That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea.
2 And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.
3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow;
4 and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up.
5 “Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil.
6 “But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
7 “Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out.
8 “And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.
9 “He who has ears, let him hear.”
The disciples ask him why he speaks in parables and He answers....because while seeing they do not see and while hearing, they do not hear.
The other night were were at the dinner table and Martye was talking about the distinction of hearing someone, but not listening......I’m sorry, what did you say.
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower.
Not just hear it, but understand it.
The Hard Ground
The Hard Ground
19 “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 the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.
The word of the cross is foolishness to those that are perishing.
Living my life, doing my thing, I don’t need the things of God. I’m doing just fine.
This is why I said that if you don’t understand something you read in the Bible, pursue it, pray about it, talk to mature believers about it.
The Rocky Soil.
The Rocky Soil.
20 “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;
21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.
This is someone who hears the word of salvation, receives it with joy!, yet is doesn’t pursue Christ. There are not roots.
Good directions always include three things. 1. how to get there, 2. where the cops are sitting, 3. where there is good place to eat.
But if you only listen to the turn by turn directions, you are going to show up poorer and hungry.
The full council of God includes the blessing of eternal life with him, but also that there will be trials. There will be persecution. There will be times of doubt. There will be pain. There will be temptation. There will be failure. and There will be sacrifice.
But if all you hear is the promises of God and you buy into the prosperity nonsense. When the going gets tough, you will be out like a fat kid in dodge ball.
These people were never saved!
This brings about a family debate. Can you lose your salvation?
No. But we look at salvation as only an event. Salvation, I believe is also a journey.
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
A-ha… see it is an event....
12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
Wait what?
Paul is not advocating a works theology.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Salvation is hearing and believing.
These people that are the rocky soil heard it, received it, but never really believed it....They believed a sunshine and roses gospel that isn’t real, and when the test came, their unbelief was revealed.
The Thorny Soil
The Thorny Soil
22 “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
Again, this is unbelief.
Jesus covers the complete spectrum of man. From the poorest, that might worry about their next meal, to the richest that have everything.
I saw a quote that said:
You have to give up what you want the most, because that is what will destroy you.
You have to give up what you want the most, because that is what will destroy you.
When you come to faith in Christ. You have to come in complete surrender to and with complete confidence in God the Father, through Christ.
5 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.
Where, then, is there room to put anything in competition with the Word of God in your heart?
We baptize by emersion to symbolize a complete and utter death and burial to self.
Remember the rich young ruler? Went away said......
He had the great privilege of hearing that on the front end......There are people that can go their entire life, believing that they believe, but the fact is, they have never surrendered to Christ.
Deny Self!
It doesn’t matter how good the thing that you want most is.....If it is not a relationship with God through Jesus, than it is wrong.
We would all agree that if you want to continue to live in a sinful sexual relationship but you say you believe in Christ, you are at worst a liar and a best deceiving yourself.
But the fact is, that if what you want most in the world is to end hunger, or abortion, or racism, or inequality, or whatever.... If you put that desire above knowing, loving and obeying God…it is wrong.
The good soil
The good soil
23 “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
Bears fruit.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
From basic biology.
The main purpose of fruit is to protect seeds during development. They are also important for attracting birds and other animals to eat seeds. Plants use fruit to entice animals to eat their seeds because they can the carry their seeds into new areas.
The sower
The sower
Jesus did not put emphasis on the sower. That is why this story, often called the Sower and the seed, is not the best title.
So who is the sower?
It is not us!
Jesus was the sower, He was the one teaching. He was the one on the boat and he was talking to to the people, sowing. He knew there were those listening who were hardened of heart, and some who would give lip service to the gospel until trouble would come. He knew there were some too bogged down by the the things of the world as to leave no room for the gospel. But he also knew there was soil, that was prepared for His message.
He didn’t emphasize the sower, because he knew there would be a time soon that others would have to follow and they would have to sow seeds, and he never wanted it to be about the sower.....always about the seed.
The person that is standing up here is not important, it is the message that is important.
Not only that....
Look at where the yield comes from.
When the seed (The word of God) lands on good soil (you), the yield is a hundredfold, sixty times or thirty times that which was planted.
The growth of the Kingdom is a result of God producing fruit in your lives.
Love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.