RTS Charlotte: Women's Bible Study w/ Dr. Mike Kruger- The Gospel of Mark, Episode 7

Summary

In this thought-provoking sermon, the speaker delves into Jesus' Parable of the Sower, unveiling profound insights into the growth of God's kingdom. Through a masterful analysis of the parable's elements – the seed (the gospel), the sower (those who spread it), and the soil (the human heart) – the speaker emphasizes that the advancement of the kingdom hinges on the response of individual hearts, not the quality of the message or the messenger. The parable illuminates the various soil types, representing different heart conditions, and underscores that only hearts receptive to the Word bear spiritual fruit. Ultimately, the speaker challenges listeners to self-reflect on their own heart's condition and surrender to God's transformative work, aligning themselves with the good soil that yields an abundant harvest for the kingdom.

Takeaways

• 🌱 The kingdom of God grows gradually and mysteriously, like a small seed becoming a large tree, rather than all at once.
• 💬 The seed represents the word or message of the gospel, which has inherent power to produce fruit when it lands on good soil.
• 🙍‍♂️ The sower represents those who spread the word, and the effectiveness is not determined by the sower's skill or eloquence.
• 🌎 The different types of soil represent the various conditions of the human heart in receiving the word: the path (hardened), rocky ground (shallow), thorns (distracted), and good soil (receptive).
• 👿 Satan tries to snatch away the word from hardened hearts, preventing it from taking root.
• ⛅ Fair-weather hearts initially receive the word joyfully but fall away when difficulties or persecution arise.
• 💰 Distracted hearts are choked by the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things.
• 🌳 True believers with good soil hear, accept, and bear fruit, though the degree of fruitfulness varies (30, 60, or 100-fold).
• 🙏 The advancement of the kingdom is ultimately determined by the response of individual human hearts, which God alone can soften and make receptive.
• 🔍 Self-examination is crucial to identify the condition of one's own heart and to pray for God's work in softening and transforming it.

Q & A

What is the main topic or theme of the sermon?

The main topic of the sermon is the Parable of the Sower from the Gospel of Mark, and how it relates to the advancement of the Kingdom of God.

What is the definition of the Kingdom of God according to the sermon?

The Kingdom of God is not a physical location or place, but rather refers to God's reign or rule manifesting itself and spreading throughout the world.

What are the three main elements discussed in the Parable of the Sower?

The three main elements are: 1) The seed, representing the Word of God or the Gospel message; 2) The sower, representing those who spread the Gospel; and 3) The soil, representing the different conditions or states of the human heart.

Why does the sermon emphasize that the problem is not with the seed (the Gospel message)?

The sermon emphasizes that the Gospel message itself is not the problem when it comes to the advancement of the Kingdom of God. The seed (the Word of God) has power and potential when it falls on the right soil (a receptive heart).

What does the sermon say about the role of the sower (the one spreading the Gospel message)?

The sermon states that the problem is not with the sower either. Even if the sower is not the most eloquent or skilled, their role is to faithfully spread the seed (the Gospel message), and God will use it as he intends.

What are the four types of soil or hearts mentioned in the Parable of the Sower?

The four types of soil or hearts are: 1) The path (hard heart where the seed does not take root), 2) The rocky ground (heart that receives the Word with joy but falls away when faced with difficulty), 3) The thorns (heart distracted by the cares and riches of the world), and 4) The good soil (receptive heart that bears fruit).

What is the significance of the different levels of fruit-bearing (thirty-fold, sixty-fold, and a hundred-fold) mentioned in the parable?

The different levels of fruit-bearing signify that not all believers bear the same amount of fruit, but all true believers will bear some fruit as evidence of their faith.

What is the main lesson or takeaway from the Parable of the Sower according to the sermon?

The main lesson is that the advancement of the Kingdom of God is determined by the response of individual human hearts. The sower's role is to spread the seed (the Gospel message), but God is the one who softens hearts to receive it.

How does the sermon encourage believers to examine their own hearts?

The sermon encourages believers to examine their own hearts and identify which type of soil or heart they might be tempted by (the path, rocky ground, or thorns), even if they are ultimately the good soil. It also encourages prayer for God to change and soften their hearts.

What is the role of the believer in advancing the Kingdom of God according to the sermon?

The role of the believer is to faithfully sow the seed (share the Gospel message) and leave the softening of hearts and the advancement of the Kingdom to God's work.

Outlines

00:00

🗣️ Opening Remarks and Context for the Parable

The speaker introduces the context for the day's discussion, which is focused on Jesus's parable of the sower in Mark 4:1-20. He highlights that this is one of Jesus's most famous parables and provides a unique interpretation from Jesus himself, making it particularly significant. The central theme of the parable is the kingdom of God, which will dominate the discussion. The speaker sets the stage for exploring the parable and understanding how the kingdom of God grows.

05:01

🤴 Understanding the Kingdom of God

The speaker delves into explaining the concept of the kingdom of God, which is central to understanding Jesus's parables. He clarifies that the kingdom of God is not a physical location or place, but rather a way of describing God's reign or rule in the world. It represents the manifestation and spread of God's sovereignty throughout the world. While God is always sovereign, the kingdom refers to the active establishment of God's will on earth, akin to the Lord's Prayer's petition, 'Thy kingdom come.' The kingdom is about heaven coming to earth, not merely about going to heaven after death.

10:01

🌱 The Growth of the Kingdom: Expectations vs. Reality

This section discusses the expectations surrounding the growth of the kingdom of God. Many expected the kingdom to come in a single, powerful, apocalyptic moment, conquering all evil at once. However, Jesus teaches that the kingdom grows gradually, slowly, and even invisibly, starting small but eventually becoming what God intended. This idea is likened to a mustard seed that becomes a large tree. The parable of the sower illustrates this concept, showing that the kingdom advances through the response of individual human hearts.

15:01

🌾 The Seed: The Word of the Kingdom

The speaker explains that in the parable, the seed represents the word of God, the good news of the kingdom. He addresses the temptation to modify or change the message (the seed) when it is not received well by some. However, the speaker emphasizes that the problem is not with the message itself, as Jesus does not suggest anywhere in the parable that the seed is bad. The seed (the word of God) has enormous power and potential if it lands in the right soil (heart). Therefore, the message should not be altered or compromised.

20:03

🧑‍🌾 The Sower: Faithful Proclamation

This section focuses on the role of the sower, who spreads the word of the kingdom. The speaker clarifies that the sower represents anyone who proclaims or shares the good news of the gospel, not just pastors or ministry professionals. He acknowledges the temptation to think that the reason the kingdom does not advance is due to the sower's inadequacy or lack of skill in evangelism. However, the parable does not place the problem on the sower. The speaker encourages faithful proclamation, even if one does not feel particularly eloquent or skilled, trusting that God will use it as intended.

25:03

🌎 The Soils: The State of the Human Heart

The speaker delves into the crux of the parable, which is the different types of soil representing the various states of the human heart in receiving the word. He discusses the four types of soil: the path (hard-hearted), the rocky ground (fair-weathered heart), the thorns (distracted heart), and the good soil (receptive heart). Only the good soil produces fruit, representing true believers who hear, accept, and bear fruit. The advance of the kingdom is determined by the response of individual human hearts, which God alone can soften and prepare.

30:05

🌳 The Fruitful Heart: True Believers

This section focuses on the good soil, representing true believers who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit. The speaker emphasizes that bearing fruit is not the cause of salvation but rather the evidence of a softened heart that loves Jesus. Different believers may bear different levels of fruit (30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold), but all true believers will bear some fruit as a mark of their genuine faith. The speaker encourages self-examination to determine the state of one's own heart and a reliance on God to soften and change hearts.

35:06

💡 Lessons and Application

The speaker summarizes the key lessons from the parable. The advance of the kingdom is determined by the response of individual human hearts, which only God can soften. The believer's role is to faithfully sow the word (the good news) and trust God with the outcome. While acknowledging the temptations to modify the message or question one's ability to share it effectively, the speaker emphasizes relying on God's work in changing hearts. The parable prompts self-examination to determine the state of one's own heart and a prayerful dependence on God to continually soften and transform hearts.

40:07

🙏 Closing Prayer

The speaker concludes with a prayer, acknowledging the convicting and encouraging aspects of the parable. He prays for trust in God's control over the advancement of His kingdom and for faithfulness in doing the part God has asked believers to play – sowing the word. The prayer also expresses a desire for God to change and soften hearts, including the hearts of believers, to trust Him more fully.

Keywords

💡Kingdom of God

The kingdom of God refers to God's reign or rule in the world, not a physical location or place. It describes the manifestation of God's authority and the spreading of his righteousness throughout the world. The video explains that the kingdom of God is not about us going to heaven, but about heaven coming to earth, as Jesus taught in the Lord's Prayer: 'Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.' Understanding the concept of the kingdom of God is crucial for grasping Jesus's central message and purpose.

💡Parable

A parable is a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson. Jesus frequently used parables in his teaching, drawing illustrations from everyday life to explain profound truths about the kingdom of God. In this video, the parable of the sower is described as Jesus's 'paradigmatic parable' in the Gospel of Mark, as he provides an interpretation of its meaning. Parables were a powerful teaching tool employed by Jesus to make abstract concepts more accessible and relatable.

💡Sower

The sower in the parable refers to anyone who proclaims or shares the good news of the Gospel, the message of the coming king and his kingdom. The sower's role is to faithfully spread the 'seed' of the Word, representing the message of salvation. The video emphasizes that the sower is not just pastors or paid ministers, but every believer who shares their faith with others. The effectiveness of the sower is not the primary concern; rather, the focus is on the condition of the 'soil' or the heart of the recipient.

💡Seed

In the parable, the seed represents the Word of God, the Gospel message about the kingdom of God and the offer of salvation through Jesus Christ. The seed holds immense potential power, as a tiny seed can grow into a large tree, symbolizing the transformative impact of the Gospel message when it takes root in a receptive heart. The video stresses that the problem is never with the seed itself, as the Word of God is good and unchanging. Rather, the issue lies in the condition of the soil or the human heart that receives the seed.

💡Soil

The soil in the parable symbolizes the condition of the human heart when receiving the Word of God. Jesus describes four types of soil: the path (hardened heart), rocky ground (shallow, fair-weather heart), thorny soil (distracted heart), and good soil (receptive heart). The state of the soil determines whether the seed takes root, grows, and bears fruit or fails to thrive. The video emphasizes that the success of the kingdom's advance depends on the response of individual human hearts, which only God can truly soften and prepare.

💡Bearing Fruit

Bearing fruit is presented as the evidence or mark of a true believer who has received the Word of God with a soft, receptive heart. It represents the outward manifestation of an inward transformation, a life that exhibits the qualities and characteristics of a follower of Christ. The video notes that while all true believers bear fruit, the degree or abundance of fruit can vary, with some bearing 30-fold, 60-fold, or 100-fold. Bearing fruit is not the cause of salvation but rather the result of a genuine relationship with Christ.

💡Hardened Heart

A hardened heart is likened to the soil of the path in the parable, where the seed never takes root and is quickly snatched away by Satan (represented by birds). This condition represents people who hear the Gospel message but remain entirely unreceptive, with the Word merely bouncing off and never penetrating their hearts. The video suggests that this hardened heart is arguably the most common response in the world, where the message is immediately rejected or disregarded without any genuine consideration or reflection.

💡Fair-weather Heart

The fair-weather heart is represented by the rocky soil, where the seed initially sprouts but quickly withers and dies due to a lack of deep roots. This condition describes those who appear to receive the Word with joy but quickly abandon their faith when faced with tribulation, persecution, or difficulties in life. The video notes that this fair-weather response is particularly common among young people who may be initially excited about following Christ but lack the perseverance to endure hardships and trials.

💡Distracted Heart

The distracted heart is symbolized by the thorny soil, where the seed is choked out by the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things. This condition represents those who hear the Word but become so enamored and preoccupied with worldly pursuits, material wealth, and temporal pleasures that they never fully embrace Christ and the Gospel message. The video suggests that this distracted heart is particularly prevalent in affluent areas, where the allure of the world's attractions can prove dangerously distracting from a genuine commitment to Christ.

💡Good Soil

The good soil represents the receptive heart that hears the Word, accepts it, and bears fruit. This condition describes true believers who have allowed the Gospel message to take root in their lives, resulting in a transformed heart and a fruitful life that honors Christ. The video emphasizes that while the degree of fruitfulness may vary, all true believers will exhibit some level of fruit as evidence of their genuine faith and the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

Highlights

Jesus uses the parable of the sower to explain why the kingdom of God advances in some people's hearts and not others, and it has to do with the condition of the soil (the human heart) rather than the seed (the word/gospel) or the sower (the one sharing the gospel).

The kingdom of God refers to God's reign or rule manifesting itself in the world, not a physical location or geographical entity. It's about heaven coming to earth, God's will being done on earth as it is in heaven.

We tend to blame the seed (message) or the sower (the one sharing the gospel) when people don't respond to the gospel, but Jesus says the problem isn't with the seed or the sower.

The four types of soil represent different conditions of the human heart: the path (hardened heart that doesn't receive the word), the rocky ground (initially receives the word joyfully but falls away during difficulty), the thorns (the word is choked by worries and riches of this world), and the good soil (receives the word and bears fruit).

True believers will bear fruit (evidence of a soft heart that receives the word), though at different levels (some 30-fold, some 60-fold, some 100-fold). Bearing fruit isn't the cause of salvation, but the result.

Our role is to faithfully sow the seed (share the gospel), while God's role is to soften hearts to receive it. The advance of the kingdom is determined by the response of individual human hearts, which God ultimately controls.

We can't control or change someone else's heart, but we should pray for God to change our own hearts to trust Him more and bear more fruit.

Even if we have a good heart that receives the word, we can still be tempted by the tendencies of the other types of soil (hardness, distractedness, fair-weathered faith).

The power and message of the gospel (the seed) should not be modified or changed, as the seed itself is good and has incredible potential if it lands on good soil.

Our evangelism efforts shouldn't be hindered by thinking we're inadequate sowers (not eloquent or skilled enough). The problem isn't the sower, so we should faithfully share the gospel, trusting God to use it.

Some people initially look like believers but ultimately prove not to be, as evidenced by their lack of fruit. Only those with good soil truly persevere.

Persecution and suffering are common reasons why some fall away (the fair-weathered heart), unable to endure difficulties that come with following Christ.

The distractive heart is often tempted by the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and desires for other things, which choke out the word.

Even true believers can struggle with being tempted by the distractions of the world and the love of money, so we need to examine where our affections truly lie.

The goal isn't to always be on a spiritual high, but to have a general trajectory and delight in Christ more than the things of the world.

Transcripts

[Music]

foreign

let's turn our attention to what we're

looking at today so in the gospel of

Mark

let's look at Chapter 4 verses 1 through

20. and as you're turning there you'll

recognize that this is arguably one of

Jesus's most famous parables

this is the beginning of the discussion

of Parables and the gospel of Mark it's

what we might call Jesus as paradigmatic

Parable and here's why it's a

paradigmatic parable in the gospel of

Mark because he actually interprets it

for us how about that

you know so many parables he tells

we have to figure out what they mean

right but in this particular Parable as

you know and as you'll see the disciples

come to Jesus after he tells the Pharaoh

and go what did you mean and Jesus says

well let me tell you what I meant and

this is one of the few times we have a

recorded interpretation

of the parable which makes it

particularly significant and also as

you'll see the theme Here is the kingdom

of God which of course will dominate our

discussions today so let's listen uh to

this Parable and what God has to teach

us from it today starting in verse 1 of

chapter four

again he began to teach beside the sea

and a very large crowd gathered about

him so that he got into a boat and sat

in it on the sea and the whole crowd was

beside the Sea on the land and he was

teaching them many things in parables

and in his teaching he said to them

listen

A sower went out to sow

and as he sowed some seed fell along the

path and the birds came and devoured it

other seed fell on the rocky ground or

did not have much soil and immediately

it sprang up since it had no depth of

soil and when the sun rose it was

scorched and since it had no rooted

withered away

other seed fell among the thorns and

Thorns grew up and choked it and it

yielded no grain and other seeds found a

good soil and produced grain growing up

and increasing and yielding 30-fold and

60 fold and 100 fold

and he said he who has ears to hear

let him hear

when he was alone those around him with

the twelve asked him about the parables

and he said to you has been given the

secret of the kingdom of God but for

those on the outside everything is in

Parable so they may indeed see but not

perceive

and it may indeed hear but not

understand unless they should turn and

be forgiven

and he said to them do you not

understand this Parable how then will

you understand all the Parables the

sower so is the word

and these words are the ones along the

path where the word is sown when they

hear Satan immediately comes and takes

away the word that is sown in them

and these are the ones thrown on the

rocky ground the ones who when they hear

the word immediately receive it with joy

and they have no root in themselves but

endure for a while then when tribulation

or persecution arises on account of the

word

immediately they fall away

and others are the one sown among the

Thorns they are those who hear the word

but the cares of the world and the

deceitfulness of riches and the desires

for other things enter in and choke the

word and proven unfruitful

but those that were sown on the good

soil

are the ones that hear the word

and accept it and bear fruit thirty-fold

and sixty-fold in a hundred fold

all right lot there this is an amazing

Parable we've got a lot to learn today

let me pray we'll ask God to bless it as

we jump in

Lord we we admit that we sometimes just

don't understand how the kingdom grows

and Lord we sort of blame all kinds of

things that maybe aren't even the reason

for why it doesn't

would help us to realize that the real

issue is

the human heart the soil on which the

seed lands and how that responds and

Lord help us to be those like the last

of the soils soft hearts that believe

you and follow you we pray this in

Christ's name

amen

so over the last number of years I have

this little fall routine I've done and

I've stopped it recently because I've

just hired someone else to do it

honestly

um but for years what I used to do is

what many I'm sure you of you do in your

household about mid-september rolls

around and I dutifully get in my car and

drive to Home Depot on some Saturday and

buy an enormous bag of grass seed which

I can hardly carry to the car

um and then I go to the back and I buy a

bale of straw or or whatever and put

that in the car makes a big mess and I

drag it back to the house

and of course as my lawn has gone

through the summer it's all half dead

right and parts of patches are showing

and what I have to do I have to reseed

my lawn every year this happens so I get

a open the bag and I get a big handful

of seed and I walk across my lawn and

what do I do I start throwing it right

and every time I do this I start

thinking about this Parable I'm like I

am the sower right and I sow it and I'm

the seed just flutters in the wind and

lands on the ground and I'm proud of

myself because I have some agricultural

farmer dimension in my life finally uh

and I throw it out there and then I put

some straw over the top of it Pour some

water on it then I wait

and you know how this story goes you

wait and wait and wait and wait and

you're like where what is going on with

my with my seed and then eventually

usually about a month later you see it

right in parts of the lawn that little

green starts to sprout up poking through

the straw and you see it but inevitably

also when I go to Milan I'm amazed of

why it grew in some places and not

others

like a look and I can see this one part

of the lawn is just all this fresh new

grass is going to be beautiful next

spring this other part of the lawn

there's there's the seed it's still it's

just dead it's not doing anything

in other parts of the lawn I look at I

know I threw the seed there and there's

nothing there like what happened to the

seed it's gone I don't know what it is

so every year you have this sort of

scenario where you're like well you did

your job

but it didn't grow

then other times you do your job and it

does grow

this of course is the parable of the

sower which is Jesus's way of talking to

us about the way the kingdom grows and

so today we begin this discussion of the

kingdom of God and Jesus is going to

surprise us to some extent here by

saying yes the kingdom grows but not

like you think it does

it doesn't come all at once in some big

powerful act it grows slowly

incrementally even invisibly over time

but eventually it does exactly what God

intends it to do so we're going to have

to deal with that issue of why some

people respond to the gospel and not

others you ever wondered that

ever wondered how two people could sit

in the Pew in a church and both hear the

same message at the same time in the

same place

one leave and think that is true I

believe it and another leave and they've

heard the same message and they say I

don't think that's true at all and I

think that's rubbish and you're like

what why did why does the why does it

work in some instances and not in others

why does my grass grow in some place and

not in others

what we're going to learn in this

Parable is that we tend to blame the

wrong things

we're going to see that this Parable has

sort of three parts to it okay there's

the seed

right because that's what's scattered

then there's the sower doing the

scattering right and then there's the

soils on which it lands three s's today

it's quite easy actually to remember

where we're going to go the seed the

sower the soil

here's what we're going to discover we

tend to blame the ver the first two

things as the reason the kingdom doesn't

grow some got to be something wrong with

the seed you know there's several times

in my life I'm like going back to Home

Depot getting my money back there's

something wrong with your seed you know

they're gonna look at me like I think

the problem is somewhere else not the

seed right or maybe I blame myself maybe

I'm not very good at throwing the seed

right maybe I just need to work on my

wrist snap a little better or something

right I'm just a bad sewer okay maybe

but I think we all know that's really

the third thing is the issue right why

the seed grows or doesn't grow or why

the kingdom advances or doesn't Advance

is actually more to do with the soil it

lands on which as we'll see in the

parable is the state of the human heart

that the soil gets to

now

when you look at your outline you can

see these are going to be our three

points there's three points on your

outline

you can look at Point number one reason

the kingdom advances or doesn't is not

because of the seed Point number two

reason the kingdom Advance or doesn't is

not because of the sower and the reason

the king of Advance or doesn't is

because of the soil now

that's where we're going but before we

get there one brief sidebar what in the

world is the kingdom of God anyway

now see at the top of your outline there

I give you a little bit of a definition

because we need to get this straight

this Parable and the next few Parables

all have to do with how the kingdom of

God grows so if you're gonna understand

The Parables you need to understand what

the kingdom of God is

now here's what's interesting about

Christians and churches today they don't

actually think much about this phrase

kingdom of God even though Jesus talked

about it all the time

remember Jesus's very first sermon in

the gospel of Mark what is this from the

kingdom of God is at hand

if you don't understand what the kingdom

of God is you don't even understand what

Jesus's whole message is about

so here's what we realize about the

kingdom of God the kingdom of God when

we hear the term we think well is this a

location

is this a place is the kingdom of God a

country a geopolitical entity is it a

place with boundaries and borders is it

a castle or a big building what is this

kingdom of God

well what we're going to discover is the

kingdom of God is none of those things

it's not a Locale it's not a location

it's not a geographical center the

kingdom of God is a way of describing

God's Reign or his rule in the world

when the kingdom of God comes that's

when God's Reign comes and manifests

itself in the world and spreads

throughout the world

now at one level you're thinking but God

isn't God always reigning isn't God

always in charge yes of course he is

right God is in heaven and on a

providential sovereign level he's always

King over everything but we also know

another thing is true that kingdom is

not necessarily always manifested in our

lives or in the world we can see the

king some places the kingdom appears to

be there and other places the kingdom

has not yet come and so even though God

Is sovereignly Over All

we can see in our world that it is not

yet under the full Dominion of Christ

because of all the wickedness and evil

in it so the kingdom of God is God

spreading his rule in his Reign around

the world

this is actually what you say in the

Lord's Prayer if you thought about it

um when you think about say basically

you know uh May what's true in heaven be

true on earth right uh basically you

know when you talk about the the the the

kingdom coming it's basically let your

will be done on Earth as it is in heaven

in other words the kingdom of God is not

so much about us going to heaven but

Heaven coming to Earth

okay I'm going to say that again the

kingdom of God is not so much about us

going to heaven but God taking his

Heavenly Reign and bringing it down to

earth

now this is an important paradigm shift

for all of us because when we think

about the Christian Life we tend to

think about the Christian Life as am I

saved does am I forgiven for my sins and

if I die do I go to heaven by the way

that's a really important question right

no one's minimizing that question but

that's not the only thing Jesus wants to

talk about he doesn't want to just talk

about whether you die whether you go to

have an internal life he also wants to

talk about God's Reign coming down

to the world in manifesting itself in

history and in time in other words the

world is going somewhere

so when you talk about the kingdom of

God now you're talking about a

horizontal timeline right what is God

doing in the world to bring about his

Rule and reign it's not so much whether

you just personally

die and go to heaven if you believe in

Jesus but what is Jesus at work in the

world doing okay so this is the spread

of the Kingdom this idea that the when

when the king comes at his rule of Reign

goes throughout the world so when it

when we start thinking about the kingdom

we want to know what what

how's it advance

and here's here's the reality when we

think about the kingdom of God coming we

kind of want it to advance all at once

don't we

and by the way this was the expectation

in Jesus day

when he came the Jews in his day wanted

God to bring the kingdom in one Fell

Swoop one big moment flex your muscles

God conquer all the enemies of God

conquer all evil in the world and bring

your kingdom all at one moment

but Jesus says well it's not going to

come quite like that it's not going to

come in some apocalyptic moment all at

once it's going to come gradually

it's going to come slowly it's going to

come in a way that it starts off small

and seemingly insignificant but

eventually grows and becomes what I

intended to it starts like a mustard

seed right

you think oh that'll never become

anything but then over time it grows

into a large tree that is the way the

kingdom of God grows so it's mysterious

okay now that same idea pops up in this

parable of the sower the kingdom of God

doesn't come all at once it's Advanced

through the response and the hearts of

human beings

sometimes the seed falls on good soil

sometimes it falls on bad soil but the

kingdom is going to grow and fits and

starts it's like my lawn right my lawn

doesn't all grow at once in the way I

want it to it grows and fits and starts

in good patches and bad patches and if I

had if I had a great consummated lawn

someday it would be perfectly green

everywhere right but it's not there yet

someday God is going to bring his full

Kingdom in the meantime it comes and

fits and starts little by little okay so

I've given this little excursis on the

kingdom of God because that's going to

frame our whole discussion okay now back

to the outline let's talk about the

three things the the reasons why the

kingdom advances or doesn't advance and

let's start with Roman numeral one there

which is the seed now in this story

Jesus says there's a guy who goes out

and he's casting seed and thankfully he

interprets the seed for us right look

down at verse 14.

the sower

sows the word

notice in the explanation part it's

clear that the sower is not just sowing

a seed but it's symbolically a picture

of the word

this is a common phrase of course

throughout the Bible is what what people

do when they talk about the kingdom is

they're they're spreading the word of

the Kingdom the good news of the Kingdom

the announcement of the Kingdom

so what is the word

the word is the gospel right the word is

the announcement that the King has come

the King has come and this king is going

to take back what rightly belongs to him

this is his world and he's willing to

rule it

think about

this one of the most beloved stories out

there which of course is uh Lion the

Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S Lewis

right

of course in the story when uh the

children make it into Narnia there is

someone ruling there

but it's not the rightful King right

it's the White Witch and it's always

winter never Christmas right it's like

the worst thing for a child so the only

reason Winner's worth it is because you

get Christmas imagine having a winner

never Christmas right so here this this

Kingdom of Frozen coldness run by the

witch

but then as we all know there's a real

king

Aslan who is on the way and when he

comes he's basically going to spread his

kingdom right and so in the story Aslan

shows up and he's the rightful King

taking back his rightful uh place on the

throne and when he shows up what happens

the snow starts to melt okay

this is the mark of the new ruler in

town this is what the kingdom is like

when you see the snow melting out there

in the world right righteousness

starting to come back in this is the

example of God coming and reigning and

so what you have here in this particular

story is that you announce that right

you Proclaim it Jesus Aslan is the

rightful King and he is offering

forgiveness to anyone who will follow

him that is the message of the Kingdom

but as we've already seen

that doesn't always produce a result

so here's what happens we tend to think

when we don't get a result that the

problem's the seed

we tend to think well maybe there's a

problem with the message right maybe

there's a problem with with with this

thing I'm announcing because I think

it's good news but a lot of people don't

take it as good news some people take it

as bad news and then here's the

Temptation I want to mention here

because that's true for all of us we're

tempted at this point then to think

maybe I should fix the seed

maybe I should modify the seed

or put another way maybe I should change

the message

maybe I should make the message a little

more this or a little more of that and

that is what will advance the kingdom of

God in other words the reason the

kingdom of God's not going forward is

because there's got to be something

wrong with the message

you ever feel like that

I know that I do when I talk to people

so what are some of the things that we

are tempted to change

in the message

let's talk about that for a moment

because I think we all have those

conversations we're like I know I'm

delivering this good news of the Kingdom

I said the person I'm talking to doesn't

think it's good news so maybe the

problem is the message maybe I need to

fix it yeah

okay one of the big things about the

message already seen this so far in the

gospel of Mark is that part of the

message of the good news is starting

with the bad news what is the bad news

well you're a sinner right you're sick

and you need a doctor the good news is

there is a doctor a physician of the

Soul Jesus but you can't go to the

doctor unless you know that you're

you're a sinner that you're sick we've

already seen Jesus make this point

remember the paralytic lower to the roof

what's he say to this guy your sins are

forgiven you've got sin and it needs to

be forgiven okay that's a part of the

message you're like well let's not talk

about Sin very much because that's going

to make people uncomfortable what else

okay this is a big one okay whenever you

talk about coming to Christ and

believing in him and being saved

obviously the message of the Gospel the

message of the kingdom is there's just

one king

it's not multiple Kings there's not just

like you get to pick your king

what if that's the way it was we'll just

pick the king you like no there's

there's a there's a kingdom and there's

a king

you either follow them or you don't but

there's only one option there's only one

way

this is one of the most offensive things

in the world isn't it because our world

is a world of pluralism it's a world of

post-modernity it's a world that says

there's no real absolute truth there's

no one way to God and here we are having

a message like the king loves you wants

to have a relationship with you wants to

save you but there's not any other king

out there this is the king there's just

Aslan right

um and that's going to be offensive what

else we want to change in the message

yeah

yes

yes this is one of the tough things the

wrath of God right judgment from God

some of you were here from our Romans uh

Bible study uh this is now many years

ago the very opening chapter of Romans

starts with this remember Paul on that

book is going to tell you the good news

of the Gospel but he starts with the bad

news and he uses the phrase the wrath of

God in chapter one of Romans not easy

for people to swallow that understand

that and believe that I get that here's

the point I want you to see

even when we throw the seat out there

and tell people the good news that the

kingdom has arrived they're not always

going to receive it but the problem

isn't the message nowhere in this

parable

does Jesus say well the reason it grows

doesn't grow sometimes you just got bad

seed this never happens in the parable

the seed is good there's nothing wrong

with it we need to make sure that we're

not changing the message or modifying

the message as we send it out

the power think about ever thought about

the power in a seed

so tiny so little but yet given the

right circumstances and the right

conditions that thing can just it's

incredible think about it Jesus talks

about this with a mustard seed right

tiny little seed becomes a big tree

that's that's an amazing potential power

so when you share the gospel with

somebody

I know it's hard I know it's easy to

think that this message is offensive and

problematic and maybe I can adjust the

message or modify the message you know

the problem is not the message stick

with the message okay because the

message has enormous power and potential

if it lands in the right spot okay

second thing I want you to see in your

notes today is the reason the kingdom of

answers doesn't is not because of the

sower

this is our second s in our little

series okay so if it's if if I go back

to Home Depot and say hey your seat's

bad they're going to be like well it's

probably you buddy that don't know what

you're doing right and maybe we think

that about evangelism maybe we think

that about spraying the kingdom maybe we

think well

if someone doesn't come to Christ then

maybe I'm a bad

sort of sower right I did yeah the

message is fine maybe you'll concede

that but maybe the problem is the way I

deliver it okay and this is uh the

second thing you want to talk about in

this Parable so what is the sower

the sower is referring to again those

who spread the good news of the Gospel

who announced the kingdom back to verse

14 again the sower sows the word so

anybody that proclaims announces shares

the good news of the king

they're a sewer what that means that

means you're a sower

and I'm a sewer no the sower is not just

pastors

okay the sower is not just people who

are paid to be in Ministry or something

like this

the sower not just your church staff

every believer who loves Jesus and

shares him with another person is a

sower right we're all to be part of this

great Kingdom advancement by spreading

the good news of the Gospel but this of

course is right where we come to it the

second concern we have well money for

the problem is on the sea maybe the

problem is the the way I'm sewing the

seed

and we tend to think that maybe I just

don't have the right technique in my

evangelism uh maybe I need to be more

witty

maybe I need to be more funny or more uh

sort of persuasive or more eloquent or

articulate

and we think well golly maybe if I just

took a couple evangelism classes then it

would then it would really stick when I

talk to people

now I'm not suggesting for a moment that

there's not a lot to learn about how to

do evangelism and I'm not suggesting for

a moment that we can't get better at

doing evangelism

but I think we can say plainly that in

this Parable Jesus does not put the

problem on the sower

nowhere does he say well the reason the

kingdom doesn't grow it doesn't grow

just need a new sower

is the problem no in the parable the

sower is not the problem

even if you're not very good at sewing

think about me in like my lawn I mean

how much skills I really take to throw

the seed on my lawn okay well I mean I'm

sure that someone can do it better than

me but generally speaking you get to see

it out there you got the seed out there

right you don't have to be actually

really sophisticated about the way you

do it so let's talk about this for a

moment we don't do evangelism let's be

honest we don't witness to people

because we think

that we're not going to be good enough

at it right look at my question at the

bottom of point B what are some of the

reasons we resist doing evangelism

where we end up really thinking more

about ourselves and about God yeah

yes yeah

yeah so you're like a used car symbol

salesman at that point right it's like

well I know we're having this meeting

and I've shared the Faith with you let's

let's get out the paper and sign the

contract and close this deal and if I

don't do that I feel like I've failed or

something like that and then of course

the other side of that is that makes

that person feel like they're a project

right that they're like well you're just

trying to you know put a little notch in

your belt here so that's that's one of

the reasons perhaps yeah

is work to understand the word yes

if you're going to share the word with

someone you kind of have to know the

word right and so that's going to take

effort that's going to take study and

knowledge and thankfully you guys are

doing one of the things that you would

do to learn it better which is being a

Bible study that's one of the reasons we

hesitate yeah but another reason we

hesitate

okay

so there is some sense in which we think

well since I can't change a heart I'm

going to bother right I'm not even going

to do anything to address yeah it's all

going to be what it's going to be I

don't make a difference

uh but the Bible doesn't put it that way

right the Bible makes it clear that

people who sow that is the means god

uses to bring people to himself even if

we think that it's not yeah in the back

oh yes if I share my faith they're not

going to like me not going to love me

they're going to think I'm silly weird

or even worse offensive hateful

narrow-minded

and we don't really want to get that

that scoring heaped on us so here's one

that we all have sometimes we don't

share the faith because we're afraid

we're gonna get asked a question we

don't have an answer to

okay what if I just blow it

what if I just fumble the ball what if

they asked me a question I'm like I

don't know and I'm not very good at

answering it and we think to ourselves

well because I'm not a very good sewer I

just won't do it at all

and you realize that what we basically

decided there is to think about

evangelism on a man-centered way it's

all about

me and my skill set and then if my skill

set wasn't good enough well then God's

kingdom just won't advance

God is going to correct that here he's

going to say even the most quote

ineffective sower the one who maybe

isn't the most eloquent and the most

well trained can still be

amazingly useful here at spreading the

gospel uh and uh and seeing the kingdom

go forth and so we need to get out of

our heads this idea that the reason

people respond to the gospels because of

how eloquent and articulate we are when

we when we speak it and say it right

um I was uh remembering there's so many

stories of this throughout the age of

the Church of people who come to Christ

and are converted not because they came

across someone super eloquent

but just someone who just told them the

truth and shared the gospel with them

faithfully and love them

it wasn't because they were the greatest

evangelism evangelist of all time but

just because they did it at all

okay they just simply did it

um and this is going to be uh this is

something that plays out time and time

again I remember the story of Rosaria

Butterfield you may know may may know

the story story of Rosario Butterfield

Rosario Butterfield used to be

a professor at Syracuse University in

New York and she was as Progressive as

liberal as non-Christian as you can get

she was a she was a lesbian she thought

Christianity was insane

and she was very intellectually gifted

obviously you're a professor at Syracuse

University she's going to have some real

intellectual chops

and how was she converted not because

she met someone of equal intellectual

ability to her right who was like

overwhelmed her in debate

she had a pastor in her local town that

just got to know her and started talking

to her about Jesus got very basic very

ordinary guy who just did it

and just loved her and shared the face

with her and over time it took a while

she finally came to know Christ and

become a Christian now she's out

speaking about Jesus and it's an amazing

conversion story but notice it didn't

happen because the guy who shared it

with her was so eloquent it happened

because he just shared

so here's what I want you to realize is

that there is a sense in which we can't

do our kingdom spreading so to speak

with a man-centered approach where we're

so looking at us right don't forget

God's at work even if you don't feel

like you're the most articulate you can

still

um find ways to spread the gospel

faithfully and God can use it so there's

probably someone in your life right now

that you've not shared the Faith with

family member

parent

co-worker

someone that you play sports with or in

a group with

and we all know the reasons we don't do

it because we think well I'm just not

very good seller now the problem isn't

the seller and the problem isn't the

seed

so we need to Faithfully do what God

asks us to do knowing that he will take

care of the rest all right that leads us

then to the real issue and that's the

soil so let's flip our notes over

here's The Parables payoff the reason

the kingdom advances or doesn't Advance

us as the sower sows the seed is because

of the soil it lands on

now here's here's the first thing I want

you to realize about this can you

control the soil

you me no we can't control the soil of

someone else okay and on one level you

can't even control the soil in your own

heart okay and so I know that might

sound defeating but it's actually

freeing okay your job my job is to take

the wonderful message of the Gospel the

seed and to be a faithful sower even if

we're not the best at it and cast it out

there and and know that God has a plan

for where it's going to land okay he has

a place where it's going to sprout

so what our Parable does here is it

walks through this is the great thing

about this parallel rights Jesus

interprets it for us it walks through

the different kinds of soils that the

seed lands on

and we read these in the story you can

see in that Roman numeral there's four

kinds of soil that the seed lands on

and I want to just say a word about each

of these and here's the thing as we walk

through these the first three

of the soils never produce fruit

the last one the good soil does

so what you have here is Jesus saying

look I know you're wondering why some

believe and some don't why some receive

it some don't Jesus is going to give us

an explanation of that because of the

different soil the different state of

people's hearts when they receive the

message but it's only the good soil that

ends up producing fruit

now here's another thing about this

passage that's a little disconcerting

but

something we should reflect upon there's

some people that might at first look

like Christians

that prove later not to be

and this is some of the soils we'll see

there's some people that start off

it looks like positively but never sort

of make it to the end

and that's a sobering thought

it's only the people who have good soil

in their hearts if you will that end up

producing the fruit

now again since you can't control the

soil you're like well why bother well

because God does

God is going to grow it exactly where he

wants to grow his word okay but we can

be confident he'll do that and we can

just do our part and let God do his part

okay let's walk through the different

soils here and you can see them there's

the soil the path the soil of the rocky

ground soil the thorns and then finally

the good soil and you'll notice I've

given a little parenthetical statement

at each of these what I think it's

referring to

and we'll just walk through these one at

a time let's start with the soil of the

pathway

of course you'll notice in verse 4 as

Jesus talks about the sower as he sowed

some seed fell along the path

now if you've ever done an overseeding

of a lawn or ever planned anything you

know that the worst place for something

to grow is in hard soil okay because the

seed can't get in there which is why you

till the soil right some of you probably

like gardening this is probably

something you already experienced is

that you you till it up you soften it

right so the seed can get in there and

find a place to grow and what is a path

the path is just hard soil and this is

when I remember doing my yard you know

there would be places where you could

see where the kids had run from the

playground to the deck and they had just

worn this path and I could never get

grass to grow in the silly thing right

every town because it was just part just

like a rock because they would run on

the thing I try to plan it there it

wouldn't grow the only way I could get

it to grow is to tear it up and soften

it and then it would grow but Jesus is

saying there are some hearts that are

like that path and we can see he

describes it down in verse 15.

and these are the ones along the path

he's going to tell us who they are where

the word is sown when they hear Satan

immediately comes and takes away the

word that is sown in them in other words

their heart is so hard the seed never

even starts

and Satan comes in the birds are

symbolic here in the parable of Satan

comes in and grabs it and takes it away

by the way this first heart is probably

arguably the most common heart in the

world

is a heart that hears the gospel and it

kind of bounces right off let's just

think of it that way it just stays

purely on the outside right it's like

you drop that seed on the hard ground

it's never gonna you know never gonna go

anywhere I can remember my yard I plant

seed in these places and I can remember

looking out the window and seeing the

birds eating the seed

and I'd run out and chase them off

come back in a few minutes later they'd

be eating the seed again I'm like all

right that's it you know nothing I can

do about that why because the sea never

never gets in there and it's on the

surface and the birds just pluck it and

take it away

so most people who don't know Christ

number one heart here describes them the

word hits them and bounces right off

you know what that means and we'll see

as we go is that the only way that

someone receives the good news of Christ

is if God softens their heart right

um and we'll get there when we get there

now in a room like this I Pray There's

No One With This Heart Right Where The

Gospel keeps hitting you and you just

say yeah no thank you he's bouncing

right off but at the end of this we were

going to ask the question not just about

other people's hearts but the big

takeaway is what about our own

all right second type of soil

the soil with rock on it the rocky

ground here's where you see in verse 5.

other seed fell on Rocky ground where

did not have much soil and immediately

it sprang up since it had no depth so in

other words it's a little better it's a

little soil there it's not completely

hard it has some initial

action if you will and then Jesus

interprets it down in verse 16. and

these are the ones sown on Rocky ground

he describes it the heart here the ones

who when they hear the word immediately

receive a joy

but they have no root they endure for a

while but when tribulation or

persecution arises they fall away

this is what I call you can see it in

the little parenthetical statement there

the fair weathered heart

fair weathered hearts are very common in

the Christian world

this is particularly common with young

people

okay young people maybe high school or

college to hear the gospel and think yes

I want to follow this Jesus and they

start off with a level of excitement

but you know what happens is that life

happens

and when life happens sorrow happens

suffering happens difficulty happens

and what you thought maybe had been true

faith is choked out

by the by the worries and the

difficulties of life

this is why we all know people that we

were in our younger years with it we

thought we're Believers and later we

found out they are not Believers anymore

if they ever were they just walked away

from whatever vestiges of Christianity

there was and so there are people like

that they start off good but they don't

make it and when things get bad they go

for the exits the fair-weathered fans

it's like fair weather it's like sports

teams right you know they always ding

you for a sports team are you only

around when we're doing well

and the sports team does poorly no one

shows up fair weathered fans just go

look at the Panthers games and you'll

see plenty of these right it's like well

I'm all for you when it's going well but

when it's bad I'm not gonna be around

okay because suffering and persecution

is one of the main reasons that people

say I don't think Christianity is for me

because what does Jesus say you're going

to have if you follow him suffering and

persecution

and so there is a sense in which we all

need to ask whether we're fair weathered

fans you know who's the the poster child

of the fair weathered fan I know this

sounds sobering but it really is true is

the person of Judas

he started off as part of the 12. No

Doubt excited for this great New Kingdom

Jesus was going to bring and he thought

it was going to be wonderful

but then what does Jesus start talking

about suffering

persecution

take up your cross

follow me and Judas we know this from a

number of passages is like yeah I

thought I was going to have glory and

you know success and riches and this was

going to be the great Kingdom I don't

know where you're going Jesus I don't

want anything to do with that

so he takes us 30 pieces of silver and

off he goes and you realize some people

are in it

but they're not really in it for Jesus

they're in it for whatever they think

they can get

from Jesus

and by the way people go to church for

this reason

people go to church because not for

Jesus there's no personal relationship

there they're in church because whatever

they get from church maybe it's you know

friends or a social home or maybe

encouragement from time to time but it's

not rooted right in the person of Christ

here's the thing

you're not going to make it through the

tough times

if you're not really committed to the

person of Christ and the second heart is

a fair-weathered heart it's not in it

for Christ it's in it because of the

benefits and when the hard times come

out it goes now remind you something

about Christian Life it reminds you that

that perseverance is the mark of a True

Believer okay A True Believer is marked

by staying with it over time and not

leaving or bailing on the faith

now all of us feel I think the pinch of

that second heart right you can be a

True Believer

and still feel the the the the

difficulty of hard things in your life

making you think I don't know if I want

to keep doing this right you ever had a

day where you wake up like that you're

like I know I'm a Christian I know I

love Jesus but this is hard

okay so if you feel that don't don't

panic that's normal okay the issue isn't

whether you feel it's hard the issue is

do you keep running okay do you keep

going and the second heart gives up

and they turn away to other things

all right let's look at the third one

the distractive heart this is the soil

of the thorns and this one

okay I'm going to just say it

this is the heart I see a lot in

Charlotte North Carolina

soil of the Thorns what is going on here

look at what Jesus says uh in verse 7.

other seed fell among the thorns and the

Thorns grew up and choked it and yielded

it yielded no grain

and then he interprets it for us down in

verse 18. and others are the ones sown

among the Thorns they are those who hear

the word

okay there's some initial hearing but

look what happens in verse 19 but the

cares of the world and the deceitfulness

of riches and the desires of other

things enter in and choke the world word

and it proves unfruitful

ah here is a whole different kind of

heart

one of the hearts is well persecution

suffering no thank you but another heart

is what I call here the distracted heart

it's a heart that's just enamored with

other things that seem

just as beautiful as Jesus or maybe more

beautiful than Jesus to that particular

heart

this particularly is true in affluent

places okay people who are blessed by

God nothing wrong with being a fluent by

the way nothing wrong being blessed by

God but you just need to know the

temptation of your situation right

whatever situation you're in

we can find ourselves drawn into the

attractions of the world that we really

are distracted away from Jesus because

of the wonderful things

that might be available to us look at

this language in verse 19 the

deceitfulness of riches isn't that

interesting phrase

by the way he's not saying that money in

itself is bad

we know this because other passages make

it clear what is being referred to what

the problem here is the Love of Money

is the root of all evil not money

it's often misquoted in another passage

that same thing here and the desires for

the things of the world

so even true believers can be tempted by

that and even true believers struggle

with that but for some people they're so

enamored with the things of the world

that they never really grab a hold of

Jesus and off they go and this is

something we need to also guard against

in our hearts right that we just become

we don't fall in love with Christ we

fall in love with whatever thing we're

enamored with in the world that is so

easy to do

so I think this is uh you know we look

all these hearts are in Charlotte but I

think the third one is one that we

probably need to give particular

reflection of and this this can

challenge us to how we're spending our

time

and how we're doing our things but I

think what this really gets at is your

affections okay

you'll notice that when you start

talking about the heart you're not just

talking about actions not just talking

about what you do or don't do what you

what you and I need to figure out and

spend some self-reflection in is

thinking where is my affection lie right

what do I find that I am delighting in

what excites me

that tells you a lot about the state of

your heart now don't be discouraged if

you're not always excited about Jesus

you know the spiritual life is up and

down right so that's not our Point our

point isn't like you have to be always

on cloud nine but a general trajectory

right a general direction in your life

where you find yourself enamored with

Christ more than the things of the world

all right let's look at the last heart

it's the heart of a True Believer

not a perfect person

not a person always does what they need

to do but someone who does love Jesus

and you'll notice that this is a heart

softened by the spirit look at verse 20.

but those that were sown on the good

soil

are the ones who hear the word and

accept it and notice the next next

phrase and bear fruit

did you catch those three things

this is the True Believer they hear the

word you got to hear the word to to to

to start the whole scenario and notice

they say accept the word

right and so you're receiving it you're

acknowledging it's true you're you're

you're bringing it into your life but

then this third one is key and bear

fruit

what is the mark of a true Christian

that they bear fruit

are you saved because you bear fruit no

you bear fruit because you're saved

okay so you're not bearing the fruit

hoping that God loves me bearing the

fruit hoping I can work my way to heaven

no the fruit is not the cause of

Salvation it's the result of it

so you can think of it this way fruit is

the evidence that someone has a soft

heart

that loves Jesus

now you're thinking to yourself well how

much fruit all right how much fruit is

enough for me to think that you know I

really do know Jesus and love him and

that my heart is soft and has received

the word I'm not one of those other

people that's distracted heart or the

fair weather heart

well what I love about this passage and

this is just so the Brilliance of

Jesus's teaching he doesn't simply bear

fruit but he reminds us that there's

different levels of it look at this next

Clause some 30-fold some 60-fold some

hundredfold

this should be comforting to you every

every True Believer will bear fruit at

some level

but not all bear the same amount of

fruit okay that's just part of the

Christian Life it's part of the way

things go some some folks because of

whatever thing God is at work in their

life bear more fruit some bear less

fruit and it's not a competition by the

way we're like I gotta bear more fruit

than the person at my table or something

like this

that's all up to God to to determine you

know uh or sort of how that all works

our recognition here though is simply a

recognition that all True Believers bear

some fruit okay

and we know this is important why

because there's a lot of people who say

they're believers

say they're Christians but never exhibit

any signs in their life that they're

really following Jesus okay and what

Jesus is saying here in this Parable is

that no if you really do know me and

love me you'll bear fruit some a lot

some maybe not as much but all

Christians bear some fruit

now

here's the key point you can see it

there at the end of Roman numeral 3. the

advance of the kingdom is determined by

the response of individual human hearts

does that mean that God's at the mercy

of individual decisions of people no

because God is the one who softens those

hearts okay God is the one who works in

hearts

so here's the big point when you think

about advancing the kingdom and growing

it we have a role to play the role to

play is to take the good news that of

the king of Aslan that he's come to

claim this world for himself and to sow

it to spread it to share it that's our

part and it's going to land in a lot of

different hearts some hearts are soft

some aren't that's God's job to soften

hearts and receive our job is to be the

ones who sow it

um and who announce it

now of course

when we think of it that way we think of

the passages about other people but it's

also about us right one of the big

takeaways and I mentioned this at the

very end there is

which soil are you

now our prayers were all the last right

they were all hopefully the good soil in

the sense that it's soft and receptive

to God's word but I think it's also fair

to say that even if we're the good cell

we can still recognize acknowledge we

may be tempted by the other parts right

even if they don't fully Define us

we can still acknowledge you know what

I'm kind of a fair-weathered heart we

can sort of acknowledge I'm kind of a

distracted heart even if you're a true

believer that can still be things you

struggle with and so I think this is

part of the the self-diagnosis today is

to say what heart is mine and when you

want to change your heart what do you do

you don't just say heart I want you to

change good luck with that right you

know it doesn't work and by the way you

know Hearts can't be just be changed by

sheer willpower because you've tried to

change other people's hearts

in your life and how'd that go

not good right you have a child that you

feel like you're trying to get to and

you can't get in their hearts you you

have a friend or a parent or co-worker

like why can I not get in there because

you you because you don't have the

ability to that's a spiritual act that

God does so you pray

God changed this person's heart and

maybe the better prayer even God changed

my heart right that I might trust you

even more all right this is going to be

a lot of interesting conversation on

this one in the groups so let's do that

let's transition and talk about how this

passage applies to our life let me pray

for us

Lord there's

a lot here that's convicting

there's also a lot here so encouraging

Lord you grow your kingdom because

you're in control

well we play a role but Lord you are the

one that advances it through the way you

change the human heart Lord help us to

trust that

and also to do the part you've asked us

to do to sow the word Faithfully knowing

the problem isn't the sower the problem

isn't the word

the real thing is the heart and we leave

that in your hands we pray this in

Christ's name amen