GOSPEL OF MARK: GOD’S SERVANT IN ACTION
SHARING & ACCEPTING GOD’S WORD
A. Mark 4:1-9 (READ)
1. In Mark 3, we see the CROWDS that are FOLLOWING Jesus growing by LEAPS and BOUNDS.
a. “Jesus now has His 12 apostles in place to help Him minister to the people”- Mark 3:13-19.
b. Among the CROWDS are the CURIOUS, the SCEPTICS, and the true FOLLOWERS.
2. Jesus is well aware that most of the people FOLLOWING Him are not there because He is the Son of
God, but because they are wanting to be HEALED or to see a MIRACLE.
a. Yet, Jesus takes this opportunity to TEACH them the GOOD NEWS.
b. But not everyone there who HEARS the Word of God is going to ACCEPT.
COMMENT:
Some are going to WALK AWAY as soon as Jesus begins TEACHING. Others are going to STAY long enough to be HEALED, and then Jesus will never SEE them again. Some will get EXCITED about what Jesus has to say and FOLLOW Him for a while, but when DIFFICULTIES come—they are going LEAVE Him. But then there are THOSE who will be deeply and permanently TRANSFORMED by the Words of Christ, and will FOLLOW Him to the END of their LIVES.
B. In this parable, Jesus stresses the IMPORTANCE of SHARING and ACCEPTING the Word of God.
1. As Christians, we have the responsibility of “Spreading the SEED of God’s Word” wherever we go.
a. Our CONCERN is not WHO hears the WORD, but only that they get a CHANCE to HEAR it.
b. That’s the beauty of the Word of God—the GOOD NEWS of Christ. EVERYONE—“The FOOTPATH, the ROCKY SOIL, and the THORNY SOIL” all gets the same SHOT at the SEED
of God, just as the GOOD SOIL does.
COMMENT:
God wants His WORD scattered all over the EARTH, because it has POWER to take ROOT in the HARSHEST GROUND. And once it takes ROOT, it can BEAR FRUIT. It may take a while for God’s WORD to germinate in a person’s heart, but the Bible says that “God’s WORD does not return to Him EMPTY”- Isaiah 55:10-11.
c. All that God asks of us is that we be SEED SPREADERS, and He’ll DO the rest.
2. But again, as Jesus points, not everyone with whom we SHARE the Gospel will ACCEPT it.
a. The problem is not with the SEED, but the SOIL—the HEARTS of those who HEAR the Word.
b. The key to a FRUITFUL and ABUNDANT life lies with our RESPONSE to the Word of God.
COMMENT:
As Jesus explains the parable to the apostles, we see four kinds of PEOPLE represented by the four SOILS. All four SOILS receive the same SEED—the same MESSAGE from God. Even so, there
are various RESPONSES to the Word of God, with only one type of SOIL or HEART bearing FRUIT.
C. Listen as Jesus explains the PARABLE to the apostles- Mark 4:13-20 (READ).
MESSAGE:
LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT EACH CONDITION OF THE HUMAN HEART:
I. THE HARDENED HEART- vv. 4 and 15
A. Jesus- “The SEED that fell on the HARD PATH is quickly eaten by the birds.”
1. There are those out there (PEOPLE you may know) who have been beaten down by SUFFERING, by other PEOPLE who ABUSE them, by a SINFUL LIFESTYLE that has left them HARDENED
and UNYIELDING.
a. You tell them about the FORGIVENESS of God, and they don’t UNDERSTAND what you’re TALKING about or EVEN CARE.
b. These are the people who don’t want to LISTEN—their HEARTS have become HARDENED
to the Word of God that gives LIFE.
COMMENT:
Have you ever met anyone like that? You plead and plead with them to turn their lives over to Christ, and they just simply refuse to listen. They just don’t want any part of the GOSPEL of Christ. You may never see them in church, or they may attend church regularly but never respond to the INVITATION. They hear the WORD but fail to take hold of it as God’s truth for them.
2. They leave themselves OPEN for Satan to come and SNATCH the Word of God right from them.
a. Luke 8:12- “Those along the path are the ones who hear, and the devil comes and takes the
word from their hearts, so that they may not BELIEVE and be SAVED.”
COMMENT:
Satan does not want to see you SAVED! He will DECEIVE you and LIE to you, planting the SEEDS of DOUBT in your HEART. He doesn’t want you to BELIEVE there is a God, or at least to DOUBT His LOVE for you.
b. But that’s not what God wants. Paul writes that “God wants all men to be saved and come to
the knowledge of the truth”- 1 Timothy 2:3-4.
COMMENT:
That is the central truth of this PARABLE. Everyone gets a chance to HEAR the Word of
God, ACCEPT it, and be SAVED. That’s why God sent His Son to the CROSS to give His LIFE for us.
B. But one thing the Bible also tells us is that a HARD HEART can be SOFTENED. (e.g. Apostle Paul)
1. Over the years I have heard from many former ATHEISTS and AGNOSTICS and just all-around BAD PEOPLE who came to BELIEVE and ACCEPT Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
ILLUSTRATION:
Years ago, when I was selling Kirby Vacuum Cleaners door-to-door, I worked with a man who was a staff sergeant in the Air Force and a part-time Kirby salesman. (I can’t recall his name.) He was a fairly NEW CHRISTIAN, and now was surrounded by Christians who all worked for the Kirby Company in Altus, Oklahoma, an AIRFORCE TOWN.
Before giving his life to Christ, he admitted that he had a deep DISDAIN for Christians and Christianity in general. He wouldn’t go into any DETAIL, but there was a HURTFUL situation that his Mom experienced from a PREACHER when he was just a BOY. His HEART had become
HARDENED by that situation.
He talked about how a group of AIRMEN would gather in the Air Force CHOW HALL for Bible study, and this UNBELIEVING, CHRISTIAN-HATING sergeant would stand over them with a can of BEER and POUR it on the PAGES of their Bibles. Every time these AIRMEN gathered for Bible Study, he would MOCK and BELITTLE them. But then the Air Force Chaplain, a Captain, started attending those Bible Studies. So, he had to tone it down quite a bit.
One day after making yet another SNIDE REMARK about Christians and about Christ, the Chaplain took him aside and said very simply, “Sergeant, I don’t know who HURT you, but it was not Jesus.” The sergeant said that those simple WORDS, for whatever reason, hit him HARD. So, he started taking his FOOD TRAY and every day began to sit closer and closer to where these AIRMEN were studying their Bibles, and really began to LISTEN to what they were SAYING. And over the next few months, his HARD HEART began to gradually SOFTEN until finally he gave his life to Christ.
2. Satan LOST one that DAY.
II. THE SHALLOW HEART- vv. 5-6 and 16-17
A. Jesus- “The rocky soil represents those who joyfully receive the Word, but quickly fall away because
there is no root.”
1. This soil is SHALLOW with ROCKS right below the SURFACE. The PLANT can grow only so
FAR, and then it DIES.
2. This person LOOKS and ACTS like everybody else in the CHURCH.
COMMENT:
They’ve obeyed the GOSPEL, having confessed their FAITH in Christ and been BAPTIZED into Him. They are fairly regular in their WORSHIP ATTENDANCE. However, they usually do not attend a Bible Class or Small Group—they believe that the dose of SPIRITUALITY they get on Sunday morning is enough.
3. The “ROCKY SOIL” refers to those Christians who have a superficial adherence to the Word of
God.
a. They HEAR the WORD and JOYFULLY accept it, but they apply only what makes them FEEL
GOOD.
COMMENT:
They love quoting the Bible gems . . . you know, the little Scripture soundbites that you see plastered all over Facebook. These are wonderful sayings and encouraging Scriptures, but the CONTEXT often speaks of remaining FAITHFUL to God in times TRAGEDY and HARDSHIP.
b. But when you dig DEEPER into the HEARTS of the “Rocky Soil”, you realize that there is no SPIRITUAL ROOT that will SUSTAIN them and help them GROW through the HARD TIMES.
B. Jesus- “When trouble or persecution comes because of the Word, these SHALLOW Christians quickly
fall away.”
1. You know some of those Christians, don’t you? They are no longer HERE because they were not ROOTED into God’s Word.
2. When TOUGH TIMES come, JOY alone is not going to SUSTAIN you.
a. God’s Word must bring more than GOOD FEELINGS.
b. The EMOTIONAL HIGH doesn’t LAST FOREVER
COMMENT:
And, sadly, when the EMOTIONAL HIGH goes, so does the GOOD FEELING and the FAITH that could have been.
3. If our RELATIONSHIP with God is SHALLOW, we need to REMOVE whatever ROCKS in our
lives that is keeping us from being DEEPLY ROOTED into God’s Word.
a. We begin by making time every day to READ and STUDY God’s Word.
b. 1 Peter 2:1- “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual mil, so that by it you may grow up in
your salvation.”
COMMENT:
In addition to personally studying God’s Word, join a Bible Study Group and find the
SUPPORT you need to help you GROW and remain FAITHFUL.
This church offers a lot of opportunities for you to grow in God’s Word: Sunday School, Wednesday night Bible Class, Women’s Bible Study, Small Groups.
III. THE DISTRACTED HEART- vv. 7 and 18-19
A. Jesus- “The thorny soil represents those who allow the worries and things of the world to choke out
the Word of God.”
1. This sounds like the church in America today, doesn’t it? We allow so much STUFF to DISTRACT
us from the things that are really important.
a. “WORRY?” That’s the catchword of the 21st century.
COMMENT:
We WORRY about everything. We worry about POLITICS. We worry about Iran and
Russia. We worry about FINANCES. We worry about our KIDS. …our HEALTH, ….our JOBS.
b. The Greek word for “WORRY” is a combination of two words: “divided” and “mind”.
COMMENT:
The word literally means “a divided mind.” We accept the Word of God, but we allow all the things we WORRY about to DISTRACT us and to “CHOKE OUT” the TRUST and FAITH that we have in Christ. (I know what I am talking about—I have been there.)
2. We also allow our pursuit of others things, whether MONEY, PLEASURE, RELATIONSHIPS,
or WHATEVER to gradually push Christ and His Word out of our LIVES.
COMMENT:
When this happens, we quit GROWING. Spiritual things just aren’t that IMPORTANT anymore. Our WORSHIP attendance becomes more and more SPORADIC. We no longer PRAY
at the DINNER TABLE or before we go to BED.
We don’t TALK about God anymore. In fact, about the only time we mention Him is when we say “God bless you!” when someone SNEEZES.
B. These, and more, are SIGNS that we are allowing the THORNS of this WORLD to CHOKE God and
His Word out of our LIVES.
COMMENT:
When this happens, we need to start doing some PULLING. Put on your GARDEN GLOVES and grab those THORNS by the ROOTS, and REMOVE them from your LIFE so that God’s Word is free to BLOSSOM and GROW and bear FRUIT.
IV. THE RECEPTIVE HEART- vv. 8 and 20
A. Jesus- “The seed that fell on the GOOD SOIL are those who HEAR God’s Word, ACCEPT it, and
PRODUCE fruit in their LIVES.”
1. When I look around this CHURCH, I see many of you with a RECEPTIVE HEART—you are the
“GOOD SOIL”.
COMMENT:
The Word of Jesus Christ was planted in your HEART the very day you accepted Him as Lord and Savior of your life. You have GROWN over the years, although it wasn’t EASY.
There were times—DIFFICULT TIMES—when you almost QUIT and walked away from Christ. Maybe, like the PARODICAL, you did for AWHILE, and it was a ROCKY and THORNY PATH. But the LOVE that God the Father and His Son Jesus had for you kept that SEED in your HEART alive and germinating until it SPROUTED again.
And now after all these YEARS the Fruit of God’s Spirit is quite evident in your: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”- Gal. 5:22-23.
Your FRUIT is evident by how you SERVE Christ and His church. We can see in the FRUIT of the people in whom you PLANTED the seed of God’s Word, and now they are LIVING for Jesus.
2. Jesus said “the good soil produced fruit 30, 60, and 100 times what was sown.”
a. I find it interesting that the same GOOD SOIL and the same SEED—the Word of God—can
produce a different YIELD.
b. The Word of God is PRACTICAL.
COMMENT:
God knows that not every Christian is the same. Some Christians GROW at a slower rate than others. There are different STRENGTHS, different GIFTS, different UNDERSTANDING of God’s Word.
God is PATIENT, and He is HAPPY with the YIELD of FRUIT that is produced whether it is 30 or 100.
B. So, how do we GROW? How do we PRODUCE more FRUIT? Jesus tells us:
1. John 15:1-8 (READ and COMMENT)
2. If we REMAIN in Christ, we will BEAR MORE FRUIT!!
CONCLUSION:
WHICH SOIL ARE YOU?
