Read or recite Mark 4
Mark records three parables of Jesus in this chapter that all have to do with gardening. The Four Soils, the Seed and Earth Producing of Itself, and the Mustard Seed.
How many gardeners are present here today? Sun, rain, seed and soil are all important components of a good vegetable garden, right? These are also used as comparisons for the kingdom of God in Jesus’ teaching. Look at Mark 4 and think about this. How did Jesus teach the word about the kingdom of God? What would we expect to hear about from him?
When the multitudes there in Galilee gathered to see and hear Jesus, he chose to teach them in parables. Mark says that Jesus didn’t speak to them without a parable. Does that strike you as a bit strange? Now we know from Matthew that Jesus also taught in sermons that were clear and direct without parables. But if you look carefully you will notice that those sermons were addressed to his disciples, not the multitudes.
In Matthew 5:1-2 it specifically says: 5:1 And when He saw the multitudes, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.
2 And opening His mouth He began to teach them, saying…
Notice in order here: 1. He saw the multitudes. 2. He went up on the mountain. 3. He sat down. 4. His disciples came to him. 5. Opening his mouth he began to teach THEM. Who is “THEM”? Is “THEM” not the disciples that came to him after he went up on the mountain and sat down? The Sermon on the Mount is for the disciples, not the multitudes. Jesus always explained everything to his disciples. His message to the multitude was more mysterious. Jesus himself made the distinction when he said, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that ’Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.’" (Mark 4:11-12)
These parables of Jesus are for the multitudes. Their explanation is for the disciples. There is a difference.
How do you hear Jesus when he speaks? That’s the question this chapter discusses. It begins with Jesus teaching and calling them to listen! It ends with the disciples recognizing that even the wind and waves listen to him.
Do you know the difference between wind and waves and people who don’t obey Jesus?
The wind and waves know enough to recognize who made them and who is Lord, disobedient people don’t.
As we look at Mark 4 today, listen to the word and hear what God teaches us through it.
Jesus begins with the parable of the sower. That is the one we will focus on in our lesson today. Actually, a better title would be the parable of the four soils. In this simple story Jesus reveals to us eternal truths about God’s word and the various conditions of our hearts.
Has anyone here ever had heart trouble? My dad died last September due to complications from a heart attack. Heart problems are not to be taken lightly. Heart problems run in my family. Both my grandmothers died from heart attacks and my mom takes medication for her heart. I’ve had chest pains before too, especially when both our girls got married within six weeks of each other. I think I’m doing much better now, but only God knows.
If you want a long life, take care of your heart. If you want to live forever, it’s even more important to take care of your heart. Jesus gives us what we need as he shows us what we are.
Jesus tells us about the worst and best kinds of heart condition here in Mark 4. He gives us four types of heart conditions, beginning with the worst and working toward the best.
1. The first is the worst. There is nothing worse than a heart that is hardened to God’s word. Satan has free access to such a heart and he keeps it clear from any chance for God’s word to have any saving effect. You know people who seem to be this way, don’t you? Not that we can ever be judges of the hearts of men, but we are not spiritually blind either. Jesus said, “By their fruits you will know them.” What does a hardened heart look like? You can tell by it’s response to the word of God.
Jesus pictures this heart as a pathway that is walked on until it is so hard nothing grows there. It becomes a table for birds to eat seeds from. It’s a heart that allows Satan to snatch away all saving words from God. Jesus didn’t tell us how it got this way or if there is any chance for it to change. He only lets us know that as long as this is the condition, there is no hope for entering the kingdom of God.
2. Second is the stony, shallow soil. When it comes to God’s word, this heart allows no root within it. It is shallow and short on devotion. The only thing that separates this soil from the path is that the hardness is just beneath the surface. It appears to be good from the surface, but just under that is rock. It even appears to have spiritual vitality, that is until a little trouble or hardship comes up… then it withers.
Do you know any quitters? They start, but give up easy. Now it is one thing to quit a job when you have found another better one. Or to quit a team when you realize your schedule interferes with important matters of life, or to even quit one church to find another one where you can grow and serve Christ more. But it’s another thing entirely to give up on God for anything else or because the way seems rough and the road steep. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the best news in the universe! God loves you and me! He sacrificed his only begotten Son on the cross to pay for our sins and to pave the way for us to have heaven as a home forever with him. You and I are called to hear the gospel, believe the good news, repent of our sins, confess Jesus Christ as Son of God and Lord of our lives, and to be buried with him in baptism and be raised to walk in newness of life as we call on the name of the Lord. We are called to walk with the king of the universe through what ever may come. Satan wants us to be quitters. His agenda is to break in and steal, kill and destroy. His tools are deception, discouragement and distraction.
The rocky soil people are quitters. They get hurt feelings and quit. They get troubled by opposition and quit. They hit a bump in the road to church and blame Jesus and quit. It doesn’t take much.
Oh, it sounded great at the beginning! Like a wedding, where all is sparkling and decorated, they start down the isle and say all the right words and make all the vows… but when the honeymoon is over and the marriage relationship gets difficult… over half of these marriages will end in the divorce court. Does our society cater to quitters? Actually, no.
We still applaud devotion and dedication. We recognize the virtue of loyalty in character and honesty that stands behind promises made. Do we not? We don’t make quitters into heroes. Jesus searches the hearts of men and women to find those that have depth where the word of God can grow roots and bear fruits.
3. Then there are the thorns. What about deep, rich soil where other stuff has set up housekeeping and is not cleared away? Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters, he will either love one and hate the other or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon.” This one hits close to home, doesn’t it? Jesus says, "Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”
Look at Jesus words carefully. These hear the word, but three things choke the word so that it becomes unfruitful. What are these three word choking, fruit stopping, thorns?
Look at them in order.
A. The cares of this world. Now that’s pretty broad. The word here means “worry, anxiety, concern, or care.” It is plural.
Do you have worries that prevent you from being fruitful for God? Do you worry what someone else may think about your faith in Christ so that you don’t share it? Weed that worry out! Think about what God may think of your faith in Christ if you don’t share it! Don’t sweat the small stuff. Don’t try to please everybody, focus on pleasing God! That’s the best way to love others. Do what God wants you to do for them. Say what God wants you to say to them. He loves them a lot more than you do and he wants to bear fruit through your life by speaking the gospel through you to others!
B. The deceitfulness of riches. What is that all about? It is the human tendency to long for and lean on and love wealth. Paul told Timothy to warn some rich people in the church: 1 Timothy 6: 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.
8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
9 People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.
Don’t let what you own own you. Riches have a deceptive quality making us think they can supply what only God can. Jesus said, “A man’s live does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
C. The desires for other things. What do you want? Be careful what you allow yourself to want. Lust is the desire of the heart to have. Lust turns desires into idols of the heart. “I just have to have… whatever.” I really, really want one of those! Everybody else has one! I need one too!
Desires that conflict with God’s will choke the word and make it unfruitful in your life. Did you know that God can help you with your wants? Cultivate your heart’s desire for God and you will be surprised at how blessed and contented in Him you can become. This is not natural. It is a work of the word and the Holy Spirit of God in you. Turning your heart to God is amazing. He made us and he knows us and he gives us the best. He loves us more than we can imagine and he is able to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.
This world offers cheap substitutes for God’s blessings. Remember the cross. God didn’t send Jesus here to die for you to make you miserable. He has good plans for you.
Don’t choke his word! Choke your worries, choke the deception of riches, choke your desires for other things and let the word of God bear fruit in your life!
4. Look at the good soil. Those who hear the word and accept it and yield a crop, springing up, increasing, producing some 30, some 60, some 100!
Look at our number up here. How many do we have in attendance today?
Let’s just use 150 for an example. What is 30 times 150? 4500. What is 60 times 150? 9000. What is 100 times 150? 15,000.
Now let me ask a question. Is God interested in us bearing fruit? If each of us only won 30 others to Christ in our lives, would God be pleased? Would the kingdom be spread? What if some of those 30 won another 30? What if that continued?
Jesus envisions the kingdom of God to start out small. Like a mustard seed. But to grow so large it out grows everything else in the garden. What are we made of here? What kind of dirt are we?
