1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.” 10 The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”
11 He replied, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables:
“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:
“‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
15 For this people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.’
16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 22 The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
Chapter 13 is a bunch of parables that Jesus tells. I used to, and let's be honest still do, get so frustrated as to why Jesus spoke in language that was not easy to understand. It seems to me that if you want people to do what you want, you might want to speak in a way that is easily understood so that they can follow you.
But even more valuable than the people that want to follow you, are the people who want to follow you deeply. Such is the reason for parables. In Matthew 7:6 Jesus says, “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces." Jesus knows what its like to give something of great value to people who don't respect it and think it of no value. Such is the same with the wisdom we can have from Christ. Pearls of wisdom are not just cast to anyone and everyone, but rather to the people who truly seek them. The next two verses in Matthew 7 are: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened." If we ask and seek, Jesus will open our eyes to His wisdom and kingdom! And such is the reason for parables...
Luckily for us, Jesus does explain this particular parable at the end...phew! Even the disciples needed Him to explain the parable, so don't beat yourself up if you don't initially understand it. But how incredible it is to me that Isaiah even prophesied in vs. 14 that "You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving." How I pray that does not become me -- that my heart becomes so calloused that I no longer am sensitive to the Word of God!
Because I have Jesus in my heart, I know I am not "the first man" where Satan comes and snatches any truth away from my understanding. If you're not sure of this yourself, just admit that you are a sinner in need of Him and ask the Lord to take control of your life. Then you can be sure! I promise you, it will be the best decision you will ever make. Then, please tell me or someone you know who is a Christian so we can get to you the tools you will need to be a deeply-rooted Christian. That would be the best news of my week!
The "second man" had no root in the Word, so his joy and understanding of the Bible lasted only a moment. Jesus loves the tree analogies! But they paint a perfect picture for us. May our roots grow deep down in the soil of the Word and of WHO Christ is so that we are not easily squelched when our circumstances become too hot for us to bear on our own. What are you doing to make sure your roots are deep in Him, my friends? For one, you are reading this blog, which means you desire to understand Him more. That's a great step in the right direction! I encourage you to dig into the Word yourself -- even just one verse a day. Allow Him to speak to your needs this morning.
The "third man" is a tempting place for all of us. If we hear what the Bible says but our hearts are full of worries and a desire to be wealthy and acquire things other than Christ, those desires will choke out what we are learning from the Lord. May I be honest with you? This has been a struggle for me lately! I have good seasons and not so good seasons as we all do. I am surrounded by affluence where I live, and it's so easy to begin to equate your worth with what you have here and to want to hold on so tightly to what you have for fear of losing it. I have been reminding myself, "What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?" (Matt. 16:26). Lord, help me to just want You. You are enough. Help me to make You my heart's only desire, and to fully trust you with everything else. I have nothing to fear in You!
The "fourth man" is who we strive to be. He hears the Word and understands it, so he can put it into practice in his own life. And his yield is a hundred times what was planted! How can we do this? We cannot on our own. John 14:26 says, "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you." It is He that teaches us and allows the Word to be alive and active in our lives. Be attentive to the presence of God's whispering in your life today, and do what He says.
This is not something where we can say, oh, I've finally made it -- I'm done. No, this is a life-long journey and process! We will never be finished, but hopefully we will be one step closer to Christ and being like Christ each day. Keep pressing on, dear people! This race is not yet won! Keep fertilizing those roots...
No comments:
Post a Comment