Sown among Rocks
Introduction: During our Wednesday night service, Pedro had a great point about our church during our testimony service and it spurred a thought, that I want to expound upon today about the true gospel church and about the true gospel convert. We often see somethings blow up like a balloon, bigger and bigger and then eventually pop! When a true gospel church grows, it grows for the right reason, it will grow because of the true gospel, if not, it is because people are abandoning the true gospel (which is prophesied to happen in the last days) Not everything that grows quickly, grows for the right reason.
As we see SOME (not all) “Mega-Churches” that promote nothing but a feel good, self serving, pep talk with very few biblical references, some of which are misapplied or spiritualized out of context.
When I look at the parable of the soils, in Mark 4, I notice one soil in particular that makes this point.
“Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.” Mark 4:5,6
As you read the entire parable: we read about a farmer sowing seed on 4 different types of soil hoping for a harvest. He sows his seed very liberally, throwing it here and throwing it there. Some is sown on the path, some is sown in the thorns, some is sown in good ground, some is sown among Rocks. The farmer is the minister of the gospel, the seed is the true gospel (or else it would be false preacher sowing tares amongst wheat.) the four soils represent four ways in which we all receive the gospel.
When we share the gospel with others, understand not everyone will accept it. When Jesus preached, only a few received Him and we learn in Acts 28:24 that when Paul preached that “some believed the things that were spoken and some believed not” Not everyone who hears the word will believe it.
We are to sow the gospel seed wherever we can and not assume what is good soil and what isn't. Plant the seed and hope for a harvest.
This next story is not for animal lovers, but during Bow season the best shot I ever made was one made by accident. Last year during the middle of Bow season I had waited patiently all evening and with an hour left till sundown I was hoping not to have to walk far to track any deer, if I was fortunate enough to shoot one. Suddenly I saw a doe walking across the field - I aimed at her lungs as she was moving and when I fired she turned and dropped immediately. I thought “Wow! what a shot!” When I got down to see my deer, I notice the arrow was sticking through her forehead, I wish I could say I meant to do it, but I was aiming at her side. But the result was better than expected, she fell right along an area that I could back my vehicle up to and haul her away with little blood in the vehicle.
Brother Hawpe used to say “You miss every shot you don't take” I believe we should all take our aim with the best shot in mind and let God direct the arrow. Keep in mind, the shot that killed an armor wearing Ahab was a random one. Sow the gospel seed wherever you can and let God do the rest.
The sower of the seed has some that falls on good soil eventually, but it wouldn't fall there if it was all spared. You may see a great work in those you share the gospel with. But beware. There is one type of soil that appears hopeful but is, in fact, destined to die. When I read this parable there is one type of soil that fascinates me more than the rest, it is the seed sown among rocks.
Transition: I want to point out three things that are unique to the person Jesus refers to as the rocky soil convert. When they hear the gospel they first receive it gladly, then they progress in it rapidly, but unfortunately they fall away quickly. First, they . . .
I. Receive the Gospel Gladly
“Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy.” Mark 4:16
In all the four soils that are described in this parable, the one thing they all four have in common is that they all “hear” the gospel. They all received the word, although some received it poorly they received it nonetheless.
There are some people that are content to do nothing more than just hear the gospel, but hearing it is not enough. James tells us to “Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only” because “hearers only” will NOT enter heaven. Jesus said “But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand.” This isn't the only place in scripture where we see the danger of disregarding the word of God, once it's heard. Merely hearing the truth won't set you free from sin. These shallow soil “hearers” receive the word gladly, even with tears, great emotion, and enthusiasm, but they receive it superficially. Like a seed that falls on a spoonful of dirt on a large rock, it has enough soil to sprout, but certainly not enough to grow and produce fruit, by which people will know us as Christians.
Let's notice HOW the the Rocky soil convert receives the word. First they receive it immediately with joy. These two characteristics go together. It is our nature to take or at least want to immediately take what looks or sounds good to us.
I remember when I was younger our family would go boating on the lake and eventually pull into the nearest marina and me and my brother Brent would see a school of fish off the dock and we would toss bread crumbs into the water to see the fish swallow them up. Once in a while, we would throw something that wasn't food, like a piece of a rubber worm or a tiny pebble; and we would see the fish go and swallow it up. The fish would compete with one another to immediately swallow anything and everything that floated their way, whether it was real or not. This is how the Rocky soil receives the seed, some people will receive anything and everything without question or conviction, they accept immediately what sounds good and they are thrilled they accepted it. They do as Spurgeon said “swallow the pill with their eyes shut, caring not whether it was God's truth or Satan's lie.” “Salvation? Redemption? Everlasting life? Who wouldn't want that?” Before they count the cost, they say “Count me in!”
We often make the mistake of counting happiness as a certain sign of conversion and while it is true, joy is a fruit of the Spirit, its also true that there is joy that comes from delusion. As a great preacher once said “we shouldn't reason that we are safe because we are happy.” There are atheists who hear the word gladly. Mark 6:20 exposes a king named Herod who enjoyed listening to John the Baptist preach, but when forced to choose between sparing the life of the one he delighted to hear or giving a woman her desire to have his head cut off – he chose to comply with her demands and behead his favorite preacher. So hearing something gladly or receiving it with joy shouldn't be our only benchmark for conversion.
Jesus also taught us the danger of receiving something too quickly. In Luke 14:28-30 Jesus said “For which of you, when he wants to build a tower does not sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise when he has laid the foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him. Saying this man began to build and was not able to finish.”
It seems it's better not to start, than to start and not finish. Some people dive into religion head first without question and without counting the cost. A thoughtful and wise man will consider what professing to be a Christian might cost him, what is it going to cost me to follow the Lord, Do I really want to pick up the cross, Do I have it in me to be a faithful Christian for the rest of my life? Just like a contractor will consider what it will cost not only to start but to finish building a house. We have a half built neighborhood behind our sub division. The roads are collapsing over the creeks, grass is growing up through the pavement, no houses are being built. Why? Because the builder didn't consider the cost of what it would take to finish such a project. I suspect he thought it was a great idea and jumped at the opportunity to begin, but didn't consider all the red tape, trials, and money that it would take to finish what he started.
If you are going on a 3 year expedition to Guatemala, you don't just take off one day on a whim, because it sounds fun or because it is something you always wanted to do. You don't just rush out the door with whatever gas you have in the car and couple hundred dollars in the bank and head to the airport. These things are thought out well in advance. What will be needed for the journey, the permission to explore the destination, the maintenance of the equipment, medical supplies, food, money, etc.
When you see a person full of enthusiasm promising to conquer everything in front of them, they are impressive, but as I have said before: Time tests all metal. Let's see where they are in a year from now and then lets see where they are 5 years and so on.
Transition: Because they like what they hear they receive the gospel gladly and once they receive it they . . .
II. Progress in it Rapidly
“Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up, quickly because the soil was shallow.” Mark 4:6
It had no where else to grow, but up. There was not enough soil for healthy roots, in fact the roots don't go down at all. Their growth is rapid, but its an illusion, because all of their growth is external only. The soil is shallow, there is no room for internal contemplation, no space for godly meditation; there is no depth for thoughtful consideration by which the gospel roots can really get a deep grip on a man's heart. To exist at all, the seed that sprouted on the rocks has to grow up since it's roots can't grow down. The gospel will grow out from some people but it never truly went into them in the first place. It goes out of their mouth but it never really went into their hearts, like the rocky shallow soil it grow out but the roots never went in.
We read that “It sprang up, quickly . .” of course it did! What else could it do? The Rocky Soil Convert is the person that springs up quickly, they are on fire for God for about a month to maybe a year and then is back in the world sometime shortly after. They give a testimony about their salvation experience and then they are teaching Sunday School the next week. It's a peculiar sight to see them grow from a sprout to a tree in the span of a week. Rather than the Oak tree they are more like the dandelion. They sprout quickly
They seem confused that many other Christians are not excelling at the same pace they are. The ministry itself seems to be beneath them. They are convinced and they are convincing others that they are going to go to heaven dragging the church behind them and slaying the world of sin in front of them.
There is a lack of moisture in the rocky soil, there is a lack of spirit, a lack of power, and more than anything a lack of hunger for God's word. There is just enough moisture in the soil on the rocks to show signs of great promise and cause great hope and expectations. William Barclay makes a great point about the Rocky soil convert “The Christian offer is not only a privilege, it is also a responsibility. A sudden enthusiasm can always, so quickly, become a dying fire.”
Other notable rocky soil converts might be those that will say “didn't we prophecy in your name? Didn't we heal in your name? Didn't we cast out devils in your name?” They may have used his name but they never knew him, and he never knew them. Jesus quoted Isaiah being right about the Pharisees who “honor me with their lips but their hearts are far from me.” (Matt.15:8) Not everyone who uses the name of the Lord, knows him, or is known by him. Even preachers can be rocky soil converts, they receive the word gladly jump into ministry and like Judas use the name of the Lord to heal, cast out demons, just like the other disciples, but in the end they are found false.
Transition: They look good enough but if there is not a deep rooted conviction the effects will always be temporary and they will . . .
Fall away Quickly
“But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.” Mark 4:6
These rocky soil converts jump into Christianity thinking of nothing but sunshine and rainbows, when the reality is being a Christian might mean having more trouble than you had before. Don't believe me? Think of the 21 men who were beheaded in Libya by ISIS, or what if we could ask those in a Bible study in South Carolina or this week when an armed mad man went into an Oregon community college and said “Are you a Christian? If you are a Christian stand up. And they would stand up and he said “Good because your a Christian, you are about to see God in just about one second.” and then he proceeded to shoot them in the head.
Some people are into whatever is good, whatever is fun, whatever is comforting, but as soon as the enjoyable feelings fade so do they. You will know where your faith is, when trials come. If it lasts through the fire it will shine, if not it will burn up and fade away. Rocky soil converts doubt their salvation for the wrong reason. Things are not all of he sudden peaceful and easy like they hoped. They can't understand why a good and merciful God would treat them so harshly. God will try his people and test their faith, their loyalty, and their courage and then decide between the goats and the sheep, the wheat and the tare, the wise and the foolish, and the precious and the vile. Many worship the God who gives, but not the one who takes away. Many love the God of grace but not the one of repentance. Many want to be a servant of Christ, if there is no whip involved. As a result a shallow understanding and devotion to Christ will inevitably lead to apostasy.
I wonder how many converts we would see if we were to tell them that persecution was ahead of them and awaiting them? How many “Fire ball” preachers would we have if they knew they had to spend the next 30 years in a dank and dirty prison cell for doing nothing more than proclaiming to be Christian or proclaiming the gospel of Christ. Strange because we have professors of Christ that are afraid to like a scripture verse on facebook because some of their friends might sneer at them or be offended. They would rather cower away from the heat of sarcasm and ridicule rather than to defend their faith and the Lord's honor. Friends, Don't become a Christian and if you can't be one!
Jesus explains in verse 17: “But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.” Mark 4:17
Like the parable of the builders, the rocky soil convert is like the house that fell during the storm because of a poor foundation. When the heat of trial and trouble or persecution comes their faith dries up.
R Kent Hughes refers to the Rocky soil convert as the “thin veneer soil” He puts it plainly: “They hear the gospel and seem to fit in. They even make a profession of faith. But then some difficulty arises—the loss of a job, misunderstandings with other Christians, sickness, even a bad romance—and just as suddenly as they once seemed to embrace the faith, they fall away because they were never really born again.” There are some who receive the word gladly, then they progress rapidly, and then they hear fine sounding arguments from atheists, deists, critics, and skeptics. Arguments they never considered before and because it sounds good to them therefore the believe what appeals to the flesh and not the spirit and walk away. They are no better than those who follow every wind of doctrine. Just as easily as they received the gospel they receive it's criticism.
Vernon McGee nails the character of the rocky soil convert this way:
“These rocky-ground folk are the opposite of the first group. It was the Devil who took the Word away from the wayside hearers, but the flesh is the culprit with this group. Instead of being in deep freeze, they are in the oven—warm, emotional, shedding tears, greatly moved. These are what I call Alka-Seltzer Christians. There is a lot of fizz in them. They make as much fuss during a service as a rocket on a launching pad, but they never get into orbit. I classify them as the Southern California type. They have great zeal and energy during special meetings, but they are like burned out Roman candles after the meetings are over.”
There is a difference between feeling the weight of sin and fearing it's wages and simply agreeing that “we are all sinners.” Rocky soil converts are eager to jump into any role as long as it is a visible role, where many can see them, but if you were a fly on the wall of their living room you would never find any prayer, bible reading, soul searching, or any other Christ like attribute that they so proudly displayed in the church on Sunday. They think they must be Christian simply because they say so.
Conclusion: I read a wise saying this week: “that if we have no more than what nature gave us, then under it's best conceivable circumstances, we have no more than the Pharisees, and that landed them in Hell.” You may think “The pastor paints a grim picture.” Perhaps. But it isn't without a purpose. You see, out of the four soils only one was good. So the relevant question is 'what makes for good soil?'
In a word, Humility. We sometimes think that God exists only to please us and to do nothing but make us happy. God is love and He created us, therefore we exist to love and please the Lord. True happiness and contentment comes from fulfilling our purpose to love God with all our heart, all our soul, with all our mind and with all our strength and to love one another. Once we learn we live to please God, and not ourselves – we take the first step described in 2 Chronicles 7:14 to “Humble ourselves”
Isaiah said “woe to him who quarrels with his Maker, to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, what are you making? Does your work say, He has no hands?” Isaiah 45:9
Isaiah is saying that it is sad if not dangerous to contend with God rather than submit to him. He refers to us as a potsherd (a piece of broken pottery lying in a filed among millions of other pieces of broken pottery) what right does the broken piece of pottery have to say to the potter “what are you making?” We act as if God has no hands; as if He doesn't know what He is doing and He needs our help. That is an insult to God's omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent LOVE for all of us. “All things work together for the good of those who love the Lord and are called according to his purpose.” This is not always a temporal good, temporary good is what worldly men seek after. Sometimes it is an unseen good, sometimes it is a spiritual good, but it is always an eternal good. Give your whole life to God and He will work all things together for THE GOOD!
The Rocky soil is something we all should all pray not to be. The heart of stone that strives against the will of God will only find themselves in a sad and miserable condition. Matthew Henry said “For none ever hardened his heart against God and prospered.” We don't want to harden our hearts, but let the Holy Spirit break our hearts. We want God to do for us what he did for his people in Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”
If you count the cost and know that you want to follow Christ, and are willing to not be half hearted but give your full heart to him then God will save the sincere and humble that want to be saved.
