Mark 4:1-4:20
March 25, 2012
Morning Worship
Text: Mark 4:1-20
Subject: Faith
Title: The Right Attitude About God’s Word
I can’t seem to get away from the theme of revival in the church. Every time I go to prayer that is the one thing that is on my heart to pray about. On Friday mornings when we come together for prayer revival seems to be the focus. Revival is not just something that I desire for my own sake. I know that it is God’s will for the church. He wants each of us to fan the flames of revival in our personal lives and then to take it out into the world to those who are lost.
Revival requires something that the bible tells us that we all have a measure of – and that is faith. And that faith that we have is based on the kingdom message that is found in the whole bible but especially in the New Testament. It begins with saving faith through Jesus’ work on the cross on our behalf – saving faith – and it continues with the faith just to believe and trust God’s whole word.
In Luke 18:8 Jesus asked the question, “However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” When Jesus comes back will He find His church doing what He said they would be doing in John 14:12, “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” That is the kind of faith that is going to bring revival to our church. Is that kind of faith in the church today? If the answer is yes then where are the signs and wonders? If the answer is no, then why? I want you to listen closely today to hear something that maybe you haven’t thought of before. This is not a new revelation but is a new understanding of an old revelation that the church has continued to overlook throughout the centuries.
Turn to Mark 4: 1-20.
I want to look at three things today. First – the purpose of the parable. Secondly – the preeminence of the parable and thirdly – the proof of the parable.
Read Mark 4:1-20
I believe this is God’s word…
I believe it is for me…
I accept it as mine…
And I appropriate it to my life today…
I. THE PURPOSE OF THE PARABLE... We don’t have to look very far into this passage to find out what the purpose of Jesus’ parables was. 1Again Jesus began to teach by the lake… The purpose of a parable was simply to teach a profound truth by using analogies of common things. Parables were not something new to the Jews. Rabbis had used parables for centuries. The question isn’t why did Jesus teach in parables, but why did He allow so many people to wonder about their meanings. We’ll talk about that later. The reality is parables were an effective method of teaching. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water’s edge. 2He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said… Then He goes on to tell the parable of the farmer who sowed seed. We know that there is a deeper meaning to the parable than what is on the surface by what Jesus says afterward, “9Then Jesus said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” The word translated “hear” carries with it the idea of not just hearing, but also understanding. So it could read, He who has an ear (spiritual desire) to understand, let him understand…” Now, after He said that verse 10 says this, 10When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11He told them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables 12so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’ Notice that the disciples weren’t asking Him specifically about this parable but about “the” parables. Here we get the distinct impression that the parables are much more than stories from the natural world. They are the word of God, but in order to get it you 1) have to want to - “He who has ears to hear, let him hear… 2) you must have the proper relationship with Christ and that is by faith… But to those on the outside everything is said in parables… Therefore, they don’t get it because these are spiritual words with spiritual meaning. 3) understand that real perceiving and understanding (v 12) begins in the spirit man. You can see and hear in the natural but never understand in the spirit. The purpose of parables then was to bring people to the place where they would want to know what the real meaning is and would begin to seek the truth. Jesus was planting a seed but it was the responsibility of His listeners to seek out what God is trying to say through the parable. Hebrews 11:6, And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
II. THE PREIMINENCE OF THE PARABLE… Now we are going to get into the meat of what I want to say today. When the disciples questioned Jesus about the parables I want you to at how He responded to them. 13Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? Jesus is not saying, “This is an easy one. If you don’t get this one you won’t get any of them.” What He is saying is that this one parable is the key to all of God’s word. . If you understand this parable you can get the rest of the word. I want to take some steps now to look at the principle of sowing seed. That is what this parable is about. The Bible says that there are two kinds of seed – perishable and imperishable or (KJV) corruptible and incorruptible. 1 Peter 1:23, For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. Now look at Genesis 3:15. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring (seed) and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” Obviously this is referring to the battle between satan and Jesus that takes place at the cross. But let’s look a little closer. Satan has no literal “seed” or offspring. He does not procreate. So what is this seed speaking of? This seed is the lie that the serpent had implanted in Eve. Look at Genesis 3:1-3, 1Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” Satan is sowing the seed of doubt in order to perpetuate the lie. Also, in conversing with Eve he gets a picture of her susceptibility to a lie because she does not know the world of God. The reason she does not know the word of God is because her husband never properly taught her. Genesis 2:16-17, 16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” It doesn’t say anything about not touching it – just not eating it. Satan now had an opening into her life and he enticed her with a lie. 4“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So the perishable seed began in the Eve’s mind but it ultimately affected her in her spirit. She lost the pure fellowship that she had with God. Satan has continued to fill the minds of people with his lies, which have brought mankind into the places of death, destruction and darkness. So if the seed that has brought death originated in the mind, the seed that brings life also does. That seed is Jesus, the Word of God. When the word is implanted in us it begins with our hearing and then turns to faith. Faith comes by hearing… Real faith comes from the spirit man and flows back out to the natural man. So the purpose of this parable is for us to understand this seed principle. Once we do that we will begin to see tremendous blessings in our lives. Satan will use every lie he can come up with to keep you from receiving God’s word – not just the gospel, but every promise that has come from God.
III. THE PROOF OF THE PARABLE… Now Jesus begins to explain the parable and in doing so expounds on this seed principle that I have been talking about. Verse 14 is a key, The farmer sows the word… It doesn’t say, “the farmer sowed the gospel message.” I think that we have all been programmed to believe – that this is referring to spreading the gospel message only. But it says he sowed the WORD!!! Jesus said, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God…” I remember watching Charlotte’s dad sowing grass seed in a waterway in the field. He used to put the seed in a cloth sack that had a metal horn at the end of a cloth tube and as he would walk he would, with every step, sling the seed across the field. That is the same way that farmer’s sowed seed back in Bible times. They broadcast the seed so that it got maximum coverage regardless of the soil. That is what we are called to do in the world, AMEN? But that is also the way that God has sowed His word into the hearts of believers. Now, look at the different attitudes concerning the word of God. 1) 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. The word that is sown is imperishable seed because it has come from God. You have to wonder if this isn’t talking about people who are living theirs lives under the direct influence of the enemy. The reason I say that is because he is right there ready to steal it away. He introduces his lies (perishable seed sown into the mind) and he takes away the word. In John 10:10 Jesus said, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. What does satan come to steal? The freshly sown word of God in you! He does not want you to have the fullness of the word in your heart. Colossians 3:16, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom… 2) Look at the next group of people that Jesus talks about. 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Now that is talking about Christian’s right? People who get saved but that is just about as far as they want to go! They are the ones James talked about in James 1, he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. The imperishable seed, sown in the spirit, has been overcome by the perishable seed, the lie of the enemy, and has made the word of God of no effect. How many of you know someone who has come into this church and it seemed like they really get blessed and want to go deeper with the Lord and the next thing you know they stop coming to church? Then you begin to hear from family and friends that they are right back to their same old life. What happened in those cases? In many cases the seed that was sown never makes it into the spirit of those people. They experience the Holy Spirit in a very tangible way, and they like the way it feels but they never allow the word to go any deeper. Now let me ask another question. How many have been ministered to in the spirit realm concerning healing, blessing, provision, abundance or power, and yet somehow have allowed doubt to replace the word of God that has been implanted in you concerning those promises? You have to till the soil and allow the seed to go deeper. You have to study the word. You have to believe the word. You have to confess the word for the promises in your life. The more you confess the more you will believe in your hearts. 3) The next group allows the lies of satan about happiness in the world steal the word from them. 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Again, we are not referring to the gospel message alone but every promise that has been given to man. It comes down to getting our priorities straight. Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. My treasure is in the word of God. Turn over to Matthew 13. We’re talking about getting the priorities of your faith in proper order. Matthew 13 beginning in verse 44, 44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. That is God’s desire for the church, but many fail to gain the fullness of His promises because of the lies of the world or the pressures of current circumstances.4) There are some who will receive the word about healing or blessing of provision or power or the Holy Spirit and will accept every part of it as what God wants for them in their lives. That is good soil and it will produce. 20Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown.” How do you get to that point? By faith! Faith begets faith. Strong faith begets stronger faith. In Luke 17 the apostles told Jesus, “Lord, increase our faith.!” 6He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you. Now I want you to understand here that the focus is not on the size of the seed, but on the quality of the seed. You can have a large “seed” based on what you think in your mind, experience in your flesh, or feel in your emotions but that is corruptible seed. But your seed can be a small as a mustard seed and as long as it is planted in the spirit man, where real faith comes from it will grow. So when the apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith, they didn’t understand that all Jesus could do was plant His word in them and it was up to them to let it grow. The proof of a growing seed is seen in the life of a believer. Matthew 7, 24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.
Galatians 6:7-9, 7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
Over the years we have had the opportunity to minister to people from every one of these groups.
1) Those who are actively pursuing satan’s purpose for their lives… There have been some who have come into this church and have heard the word of God and the whole time were nervous acting – one even cried the whole service – because they believe the lie rather than the truth.
2) Those who accept the word, but aren’t willing to cultivate the seed to allow it to grow… We all know people like that. They will not take the initiative to grow in the Word. What they will do, however, is try to blame others for their laziness. So and so hurt my feelings. The pastor was picking on me when he preached. I don’t like the kind of music they play or the Sunday School teacher or the people who are working with the youth group…blah, blah, blah, blah, blah…
3) Those who earnestly try, but allow their desires for the things of the world to eventually choke out the seed that the word is producing in their lives… I don’t even need to say any more about that. I just would like to have the opportunity to help those folks mature in the faith. It’s hard to do that when they give up so easily.
4) Those who remain faithful to the kingdom message and the promises of God even when they are not seeing the fullness of the promise yet… And that is where many of you are – and that is the attitude that will lead to revival in the church. We expect every word that God has given us to be proven true for the glory of His name! Through the toughest trials we will hold on by faith in His word. Through every adversity we will stand on the solid rock of His promises. In every sickness we will trust in His healing word.
Which seed are you willing to cultivate in your life?
