CHURCH FOLK, WHICH KIND ARE YOU?
Mark 4:1-21
In This text we have three characters, We have the Word, Jesus represented today
by the preachers and teachers. You have the hearers, church folk like you and me.
Then you have Satan represented by birds, and people who reject the Word. The story
is a cross-section of the world, believers and nonbelievers.
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V:1. Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water\’s edge.
Jesus is the Word, our star teacher. He is the supreme example of what a preacher
should be. He is our High Priest devoted to the task of exemplifying the righteousness
of God. A truth whose author is Jesus Christ.
We only have one textbook, the Holy Bible which is the word of truth.
A truth that does not change. A truth that needs no revisions. A truth that is complete.
A truth that is eternal.
Jesus our Holy Teacher taught from His Word. According to the aging of the Dead Sea
Scrolls, the Old Testament was completed 250 years before the birth of Jesus in the
flesh (Text and Canon Institute). At 12 years old, He was found in the Temple in
Jerusalem discussing the Word with the teachers of the Law. At 30 years old, his
first recorded reading of the Word in the synagogue in Nazareth was from the Book
of Isaiah. Throughout His ministry on earth, Jesus taught His Word.
JESUS, THE GREATEST STORYTELLER
V:2. He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said:
Jesus taught more than 30 parables in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and
Luke. Each parable was designed to illustrate divine principles. The parables
were heard by His disciples and the general population that followed Him
during His 3 ½ years on earth. Jesus\’ stories painted pictures of divine truths.
TYPES OF CHURCH FOLK
V:3 \”Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where they did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants so that they did not bear grain. 8 Still other seeds fell on good soil. It came up, grew, and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times.\”
During the 1960\’s I spent my summer months on my grandfather\’s farm. I remember
him plowing up the field with his horse and plow. I remember the neat rows of
dirt. He planted seeds of all types in different sections of the field. The results
were corn, peas, greens, tomatoes, and every fruit and vegetable we needed.
My summer experiences still remind me of the grace God showed in multiplying
the work we do. A seed planted by Grandfather was multiplied manyfold.
The farmer is God. The Seed is Jesus. The sowing is the work. God’s work is
available to everyone.
Jesus spoke to his listeners in parables from time to time. The Greek meaning of
a parable is a fictitious narrative of common life conveying a moral.
According to Jesus\’ Words, He spoke in parables both to hide the truth and to reveal
the truth. The parable was to hide the truth from unbelievers and to reveal the truth
to believers.
To the believer, the parable was designed to reveal our ignorance and force us to
study and meditate on the Word. The meditation on the Word involves the activity of
the Holy Spirit who was given to us as our teacher. The Activity of the Holy Spirit
brings light to God’s word to believers.
Nonbelievers do not have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and are left in darkness.
They hear the story but not the meaning behind the story. They may get some delight
from the story but no spiritual enlightenment.
Notice, God, divided His listeners into four groups. Only one in four received
the Word. What an advantage it is to have the ability to understand God’s Word.
None of us deserve the Word, but by His grace and mercy, He gave us the mindset
to study and benefit from it.
I liken the four groups to churchgoers. You can go to church but not
believe the Word.
DEAF EARS, THOSE OUTSIDE THE CHURCH
The seed that fell on the path, is the Word that fell on deaf ears. The hearer
influenced by Satan rejected the Word immediately. Even the Word rejected
became food for someone. God\’s animals and the birds benefit from God\’s work.
Those who reject the Word have a reason that they carry to others who might
believe.
THE CASUAL CHURCH GOER
The seed that fell on rocks is the casual churchgoers. The casual church
goer shows up for Christmas, Easter, and funerals.
The hearer that comes to Church, gets excited about the message, but
remain unchanged. The casual churchgoers make no effort to apply
the Word to their lives. They may come to church out of tradition
but never develop faith. Monday morning is a new week of relying
on one\’s self.
THE SIDELINE CHURCH GOER
The seed that fell on thorns is church members who sit on the sideline.
They keep the bench warm but never get involved in the work of the church.
The work of the Lord is secondary to them. They are busy pursuing their
goals and neglect their spiritual development. They are taught the Word but
refused to believe.
THE FAITHFUL SERVANT
The faithful servants study the word, believe the word, and apply it to their
lives. They are actively serving God. They lend their time and resources
to building the body of Christ.
APPLY THE WORD TO YOUR LIFE
V:9. Then Jesus said, \”He who has ears to hear, let him hear.\”
To hear the word is to understand and obey it. It is a personal choice
the believer makes to understand and apply the Word of God to His life.
Anyone can read the Word. But it takes a personal desire to want to live
according to the Word.
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V:10 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11 He told them, \”The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables 12 so that,
\”\’they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,
and ever hearing but never understanding;
otherwise, they might turn and be forgiven!\’\”
A true disciple takes the time to investigate the Word of God. We are not expected
to know the word by reading. The reading of the Word should promote the
study of the Word.
2 Timothy 2:15
Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
In this day and age, we have all the tools we need to study God\’s Word. We have
libraries and bookstores full of commentaries. We have Bible Study programs
on the internet. We can probably find sermons in every verse of the Bible.
Most importantly, we have The indwelling of the Holy Spirit to guide us to all
Biblical truths.
John 14:26
But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
The Word of God is made available to everyone. However, the Lord did not
choose everyone to understand His Word.
GET AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORD
V:13 Then Jesus said to them, \”Don\’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14 The farmer sows the word. 15 Some people are like seeds along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 But since they have no roots, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop — thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times what was sown.\”
We have to take time to study God’s Word. Some parts of God’s Word are
easy to understand. Some parts of Scripture are difficult to understand.
We need to start with the easy verses and move to the more difficult doctrine.
In my mind, Proverbs is one of the easier Books in the Bible to understand. It is
full of common sense versus practical application. It does not make
any difference where you start your study of God’s Word. Just start somewhere
in the sixty-six books of the Bible.
Notice the Word of God is its own interpretation. Jesus spoke the parable to
all the people who came to hear Him. Many came to be in the crowd, many came to
get something. Some came to judge Jesus. We have no indication that anyone in
the crowd asked the meaning of the parable.
After the meeting, the disciple came to Jesus for clarification.
The disciples wanted to know the deeper meaning of the parable. They
would not rest until they got an understanding from the Lord.
We should not rest until we understand the passages of the Scriptures we read.
Jesus gives those who ask the understanding they seek.
Matthew 7:7-9
\”Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
Believers have no excuse for not growing in the Word.
