In Chicago, in the United Church of God, on the first Sabbath of the month, we normally have a Bible study. I call it a Sabbath Bible study. We did it for those people who can't get to a Bible study, although we had many who can. We have a greater number, cannot.
So I tried to, for many years now, we've tried to do that on the first Sabbath of the month.
And I've been going through the discourses of Matthew, which I covered on the pastoral care classes, and I thought I'd share them with the congregation. In the Gospel of Matthew, there are five discourses that he has that explains the teaching of Jesus in a very organized way. The more I learn about Matthew, the more I learn that he's a very good record-keeper and he heads it all down on these five discourses. Today we're going to go through one of his discourses that covers seven parables Jesus gave explaining the kingdom of God. And all seven appear in one chapter in the Bible. That chapter is Matthew chapter 13. So let's turn over to Matthew 13 and give a little background to this particular teaching that I think you'll find very interesting, I hope you find interesting, and profitable. Matthew 13, verse 1, says, On the same day, on the same day as what? Well, this was the Sabbath in which the Pharisees had confronted him about plucking ears of grain on the Sabbath.
You'll find that in chapter 12 in the first eight verses. And then, he healed a man's withered head on the Sabbath the same day. That's chapter 12, verses 9 to 14. He also cast out a demon. That's chapter 12, 22 to 31, which describes the Pharisees' claim was done by Baal's above. It's not a very nice thing to do, is it? But a few verses later, in chapter 12, verse 38, they asked him for a sign. Now, healing a withered hand didn't seem to move him. Or casting out a demon were not enough for that. They said, we need a sign. We need something to see. They missed those two. Well, he roundly condemned them and contrasted their rejection of him with a positive response of the men of Nineveh and the queen of Sheba, who saw things and wanted to learn more. These guys saw things and wanted to learn less. No one defined fault. Competitive nature there. That's the way it was. So it says, on the same day. So this was quite an eventful day. And it's going to get more eventful because it appears that he gave all seven parables in one city. I'll show that to you in a moment. He said, on the same day, Jesus went out of the house.
So he went out of the house. What house? It appears to have been Peter's house. We think this from Matthew 17, verse 24 to 25. And this phrase, in verse 36, if you look at Matthew 13, 36 briefly, it says, Then Jesus sent the multitudes away and went into the house. So he came out of the house and then he gave certain parables to the kingdom of God and then he went back in the house. So this all says it seems to be on one day. So this was quite an eventful day. So on the same day, Jesus went out of the house and he sat by the sea. And great multitudes were gathered together to him so that he got into a boat and sat and the whole multitude stood on the shore. We know sound travels well over water.
It can carry long distances. And the creator of the universe understood the best way to reach a crowd when you don't have one of these microphones. He could just reach out there and do it. Expositor's comments on 13.2, this is the only one of the five major discourses in Matthew that is addressed not to the disciples but to the crowds. The five discourses, since I have so many guests, I should say what they are. The first one is the Sermon on the Mount, three chapters. The second one is Matthew 10, his instructions to those he sent out to preach the gospel. The third one is Matthew 13, which we're starting today, no chance of finishing it. And the next one is Matthew 18, and again, the message to his disciples.
And then Matthew 23, 24, and 25. One long discourse there. Same length, the Sermon on the Mount. And I think you're going to find Matthew 23, 24, and 25 just understanding that it's one discourse, and it's just really, I think you'll find it very interesting. So he said, this is the only one of the five discourses in Matthew that is addressed not to the disciples but to the crowds. Matthew 5 starts off, he went with the disciples, he went up the mountain, and he instructed them there. Matthew 10, it's the, he was with the 12, and it's the same on the other ones. Therefore, Matthew includes in it two major digressions, Matthew 13, 10-23, and 36-43, to explain to his disciples the significance of the parables and to interpret two of them. While these digressions doubtless took place after the public discourse, Matthew moves them back as parenthesis so that the significance of the parables will not be lost to the reader. So when Christ gave the parables of the multitude, he didn't explain it. So in two of them, Matthew puts them back right behind the parable for continuity's sake. I think that's accurate. Okay. Verse 3, then he spoke many things to them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth, went out to sow. Simply stated, a parable is a comparison of one thing to another for the purpose of instruction, a comparison of one thing to another for the purpose of instruction. It can be an everyday story that conveys a spiritual principle. The message of Matthew, which is put out by InterVarsity Press on page 153, says, Such teaching method has enormous advantages. Storytellers are popular all over the world, and Jesus was the world's greatest master of the short story. It holds the attention, enables people to see themselves, and, while dealing with the well-known, it introduces an extra subtle twist that fascinates and makes the hearer reflect. It is a brilliant instrument in skilled hands. A parable. It really is. The Hebrews, by the way, refer to a parable as a mashal, a riddle. James and Fawcett Brown give you this background on parables, so we understand it. On verse 2, The parables are a word there is nothing in all language to be compared for simplicity, grace, fullness, and variety of spiritual teaching. They are adapted to all classes and stages of advancement, being understood each according to the measure of his spiritual capacity. People understand parables better than others. Then on verse 3, James and Fawcett Brown inspect many things to them in parables, saying, These parables are seven in number, and it is not a little remarkable that while this is a sacred number, the first four of them were spoken to the mixed multitude, while the remaining three were spoken to the twelve in private. So four were to the public, and three were given to his students, his disciples. Three were spoken to the twelve in private, these divisions four and three being themselves notable in their symbolic arithmetic of Scripture. Another thing remarkable in the structure of these parables is that while the first of the seven, that of the sower, is of the nature of an introduction to the whole, the remaining six consist of three pairs, the second and the seventh, the third and the fourth, the fifth and the sixth, corresponding to each other. Each pair setting forth the same general truths, but with a certain diversity of aspect.
All this can hardly be accidental, he concludes. This didn't happen by accident. These are organized. The new NIV Study Bible says, parables. Our word parable comes from the Greek parabola, which means placing beside, putting something beside something. And thus, a comparison or illustration. The synoptic gospels, that's Matthew and Mark and Luke, they're synoptic, they have a similar one-eye view of events. John's is a completely different approach. The synoptic gospels contain about 30 of these stories or parables. John's gospel contains no parables, but uses other figures of speech. And he points to other things.
Verse 3, Then he spoke many things to them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the wayside, and birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth. And they immediately sprang up, and because they had no depth of earth, because they had no depth of earth.
But when the sun was up, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground, and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Now, a parable usually has one central point to convey. As we go through these seven, we'll be asking ourselves, what is that one central point that he's looking for? And Jesus concluded it, the parable, by saying, He who has ears to hear, let him hear. This tells us, those with understanding of the parables, that they need to give its very special attention. If you've got ears to hear, listen. Look at Matthew 13, verses 34 and 35. Matthew 13, verses 34 and 35.
34. All these things Jesus spoke to the multitudes in parables, and without a parable He did not speak to them. That it might be fulfilled, which is spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables, and I will other things kept secret from the foundation of the world. Now, those are quotes from Psalm 78. And I mentioned in the congregation that usually when there's a quote from the Old Testament passage, it's not just the quote itself. It's the whole passage that needs to be looked at and understood. It carries more than you might think. Now, we will look at Psalm 78 a little later, but not by 2016.
Don't worry about that. We'll get there before then.
Okay, we read the parable. We went through it. Now in verse 10.
10. And the disciples came to Him and said, Now again, He's not with the multitudes.
So they said to Him, Why do you speak to them, the multitudes, in parables?
When I was a kid in Sunday school in a Methodist church, which I love to say I never learned a single method. And that was the late 40s or the early 50s. I remember being told that Jesus used parables to make the meaning clearer to an agricultural society. They said that a number of times. So He said He used parables to make it clearer. But as we know, this contradicts Jesus' plain words. He said in verse 11, 11 And He answered them and said, Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. But to them it has not been given. It has not been given to the multitudes to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. There are various mysteries mentioned in the New Testament, but the commentaries are unable to clearly explain them. If you ever want to look it up and see what a commentary says, I think you'll be astonished at the problem of some of these mysteries. Because they're mysteries and you can't explain what you don't know. It's very difficult. Here in Matthew 13, Jesus referred to the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. The kingdom of heaven is so misunderstood, the whole idea as to what it is and what it's about, and when it comes and what involves people as a general rule have no understanding of the kingdom of heaven. Paul mentions various mysteries in Ephesians. In Ephesians 1.9 he said, the mystery of his will. What is God's will?
The world's not a clear idea of that at all, the mystery of his will. In Ephesians 3.4 he refers to the mystery of Christ. Who is Christ and what's his purpose and what does he teach? The world is a mystery to them. Ephesians 5.32 he refers to the mystery of Christ and the church. The mystery of Christ and the church. They don't understand Christ and they don't understand the church. Isn't the church a building down the street? That's what I thought was a kid. The church was a building. In Ephesians 6.19 he refers to the mystery of the gospel. What is the good news? Good news about what? And if it's good news, why do you have to repent? There's a reason. Mr. Armstrong wrote a book called The Mystery of the Ages. First chapter, Who and What is God? Think about how people know about who God is on the face of the earth. What he is, what he stands for, what his nature is.
The mystery of God. The second one is the mystery of angels and evil spirits. That's a mystery to people. Angels and evil spirits. They don't know that they came from the same group one way and went the other. And that's all to be resolved. The third one is the mystery of man. What is man exactly? What are we? Did we evolve? Did we climb from slime or come from scum? What is the mystery of man? And then the mystery of civilization. How did this civilization get formed? We're living in a world that has certain ways of dealing with things. And as we heard in the sermon at peace isn't their strong suit. They don't know the way to peace. So what is civilization? How to get started and what's going to happen to it? And then the mystery of Israel. Why did God call Israel? Did he call them to just throw them away? That's what many people think. People are really mixed up about these things.
They don't know. And then the mystery of the church. What exactly is the church? And then this final chapter was the mystery of the kingdom of God. The understanding of these mysteries and more is given to the faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, but not to others.
Others may think they understand, but they really don't. Some years ago, we were still in a world wide, we were asked to play a video that had to do with paradigms. Remember that? You were here for a long time ago. I mean, that's many years ago. It had about paradigms. Paradigm is a certain way of thinking that you get in your frame of mind, this is how things are. And when it's wrong, you've got a problem. And when you have a certain paradigm about what the church is or what the kingdom is or what it is, and you hear information that doesn't agree with that, that paradigm that's in your head, you tend not to hear what's said. It just passes by unnoticed. If something doesn't fit our mental paradigm, our minds are often unable to hear anything that contradicts what we think we already know. We just tune it out. Like my Sunday school teachers of years ago, they thought Jesus was trying to convert the whole world at that time. And therefore, He must have made it plain. He must have made the parables plain. It didn't matter that He said He didn't. They couldn't take it in because they had a paradigm that He's trying to save the world. So surely He wouldn't say something that was not for everybody, not to make it plain. Jesus wouldn't do that, would He? So His plain words to the contrary, in verse 11 and elsewhere, could not enter their minds. He answered and said to them, because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. To understand God and His mysteries, it must be given. Verse 12, For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has, will be taken away from him. What? Taken away from him?
We are either growing in understanding in the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, or we're losing them. Those to whom the mysteries of the kingdom are given must keep growing in spiritual understanding. You have to keep growing. We all do. Those who don't risk falling away. Events of the last few years have made this painfully clear. We had many friends we thought were seeking first the kingdom of God who are no longer living by God's rules. They've turned away. Not just the spiritual aspects of the law, such as the Beatitudes. When you start trying to live by the Beatitudes, that's a whole new level of understanding above the Sabbath of the Holy Days. But in some cases, some may only do in a physical sense like the Sabbath and the Holy Days and other things. When I was in Australia from 66 to 69, we had a group of Polish people. We just got along together famously. We were very close together. They were fun people and most enjoyable. We were all there together and so on. Then all that happened happened. I was sent back to Australia in 86 to 89 as regional director up north. One of the ladies that had been a couple back in Melbourne back then, one of those four couples, happened to be visiting up there.
She had heard that I was back there, so she called the office and she wanted to get together for dinner. To her surprise, the office was closed on a weekday. She was there for considerable time so she called a few days later and they answered the phone. When I returned her call, I said, well, sorry we didn't get your call. She said, why do you have the office closed on a weekday? I said, we were at the Feast of Tabernacles. She had forgotten that there even was a Feast of Tabernacles. Oh, I remember, she said. We still went out and we had a nice evening together with Evelyn and me. Very pleasant people. It sticks to my mind. I remember we were keeping the Feast of Tabernacles. Of course the office is closed. We've got to be someplace else. They called it atrophy. Don't use it, you'll lose it. It wears down.
So he said, for whoever has understanding of the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, to him more will be given, and he will have more abundance. But whoever does not have, even that which he has will be taken away from him. People forget. They're on a different course and they forget and they go off. Therefore, verse 13, I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Therefore, I speak to them in parables. Mercy is extended, because if he made it super plain that you couldn't mistake it, then mercy is a lot harder. If they didn't really understand, you can say, well, they didn't really understand it, we didn't give them to understand. But if they really understood, then they're culpable, they're responsible. As the minister, I was like baptism. I started thinking of a way out. I said to the man, look, what happens if I'm not baptized? He said, you're responsible for everything you know. I think God inspired that answer. Then I thought, well, I'm going to do this, I might as well do this. I said, I tried to enter it wholeheartedly in that way. But by speaking to them in parables, mercy is extended. They weren't given as explanations of the parables. They won't be held accountable for openly rejecting the Messiah's teaching. However, those who understand His teaching and then reject it are in a different category. Look at Luke 12, if you would, please. Luke 12. And let's begin in verse 45. But if that servant says in his heart, my master is delaying his coming and begins to beat the male and female servants, he starts banging on those who are staying faithful to Christ. He starts to beat the male and female, the other servants, he starts hitting on them one way or another. And to eat and drink with a drunken, he goes off with people who do not know and aren't going that way. He prefers their fellowship to church fellowship. The master of that servant will come in a day when he's not looking for him, in an hour when he's not aware, and will cut him in two. I won't explain that. I think it's pretty clear, but there's a reason why that's there. And appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. He'll be with the unbelievers, not the believers. And that servant who knew his master's will and did not prepare himself or do according to his will shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given from him much will be required.
And to whom much has been committed of him will they ask them more. Remember he said for you it's given to understand the mysteries of the King of Heaven. Much is given. Much is required. So obviously we can't judge these things. God has to. But he says he will.
Verse 13 again, Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled which says, Hearing you will hear, and shall not understand, and seeing you will see, and not perceive. For the heart of this people has grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand, and their hearts and turn so that I should heal them. That's kind of astonishing. Jesus is quoting from Isaiah 6, 9, and 10.
Matthew quotes Jesus as following the Septuagint, by the way. This is for an interest that he was using the Septuagint, which was accepted in the Greek culture there. Jesus tells us they didn't really want to see. Those verses in Isaiah are at the conclusion of an introductory first six chapters. The first six chapters of Isaiah are an introduction to the book.
I want to go back and show you that introduction, the concluding verses. We'll go back to Isaiah chapter 6. Isaiah the sixth chapter. Let's look at these concluding verses of this introduction.
Isaiah chapter 6. Let's begin in verse 9. I also heard the voice of the Lord saying, whom shall I send? That's verse 8. And who will go for us? Then I said, here I am, send me. And he said, go and tell this people. Keep on hearing, but do not understand. Keep on seeing, but do not perceive. Make the heart of this people dull, and there are no more eyes heavy. And shut their ears, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.
That's what he quoted. Now let's read the rest. Verse 11. Then Isaiah said, Lord, how long? How long will they not hear? How long will they not hear? And how long will they not see? And he answered, until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, and the houses are without a man, and the land is utterly desolate. The Lord has removed men far away, and forsaken places, and the forsaken places, are many in the midst of the land.
But yet a tenth of it will be in it, and will return, and will be for a consuming. Excuse me. And a tabernacle, or a tabernacle, whereas an oak, whose stump remains when it's cut down, so the holy seed shall be its stump. There'd just be something, almost nothing left. So, like he said, how long? It's like the flood and nose day. He said, until the cities are laid waste, and without inhabitant, and the houses are without a man, and the land is utterly desolate. They won't know until it actually happens.
It's serious stuff. Okay, back in Isaiah 13. Back in Isaiah 13, verse 16. But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For assuredly I say unto you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. For the first four thousand years of human history, only a tiny few knew anything about God's plan of salvation.
They didn't really know. Even today, most humans have no idea what God is doing on the earth. To be granted understanding of those mysteries is an astonishingly great gift. And I want to emphasize that. It's an astonishing great gift. Notice he says in verse 17, For assuredly I say to you that we know that phrase here in our congregation means, this is really important. I like the NIV translation that says, I tell you the truth.
The King James has verily, verily, verily means true. So, you know, veritas, veracity, and all those things. The NIV, and I like the version of it, I tell you the truth. He said, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men have desired to see what you see and did not see it. They hear what you hear and did not hear it. So we want to be very grateful for our calling.
And we'll see in just a minute. The Exposer's Bible commentary grasped the seven parallel phrases contained between verse 13 and 17. There are a little different layout in each Bible, but the Exposer's Bible commentary lays it out in seven parallel phrases, and it starts off wanting to keep dropping down and it goes back again. So it's kind of, I won't read it all to you, but just to let you know that they're, he says, therefore I speak to them in parables. One, but just read a little bit, because seeing they do not see and hearing they do not hear nor they understand.
Then, down in the second part of verse 17, he said, desired to see what you see and did not hear what you hear and did not hear. But they're parallel thoughts. I won't cover that, but I went to confirm it in the Exposer's and I couldn't find it. So I have a new version of Exposer's, and maybe they shared it around. I had the one I did originally was, I had a different version of it. Okay, let's go on to verse 18. Verse 18.
Therefore, hear the parable of the sower. There's more in that sentence than it meets, the eye. Before I go into that, let's note that the main focus of this parable is not the sower, and the main focus of this parable is not the seed. The main focus of this parable is the soil receiving the seed that accounts for the different outcomes. It's the same sower, it's the same seed, but the soil determines the different outcomes. The soil determines the seed. It's the soil that determines how fruitful the seed will be.
Now in verse 18, in the majority text, it's called ALT 3, but it's from the majority text, which is what we respect in United, and we have for a long time. There are different translations out there. The NIV is built on a different translation than the King James version, or the New King James version. They use different texts. The King James and the New King James use the majority text, of which I understand is about 20,000. I haven't actually counted them, though, but it said to be about 20,000. This translation tries to give you the subtle things of the translation that you might not see. Here's the ALT 3 majority text. Therefore, you, and you is underlined as an asterisk. It means it's both emphatic and plural. Therefore, you, everybody, pay attention to the allegory of the sowing, is the way they translate it. Pay attention! Now, we say, therefore, here. In the Greek, apparently, there's an indication that it's to pay attention. Expositor says, and they don't use the majority text, they use the NIV, 18. He mayest you is probably emphatic, in light of the great privilege extended to you, which prophets and righteous men wanted to enjoy, and the callous spurn, you listen, is the way they commented on it. So he wants those who've been blessed to be given the understanding to pay close attention. That's what we're supposed to do. Okay, let's pay close attention. Verse 19, When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who receives seed by the wayside. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, the message Jesus brought is the good news of the kingdom of God. It's talking about God's world-ruling kingdom is coming, and we can be a part of it. We can participate in it. Change your way of life and begin living as the Father and Jesus Christ live. The sacrifice of Christ will cover your past sins and free you from the wages of sin, which is eternal death. Then start living by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Look to him for guidance in everything you do. I should mention what we used to emphasize more than we do now.
We've been taught for decades a kingdom requires four things. It requires a king. It requires a king. And we've got the absolute best. It requires a territory. You don't have a king if you don't have a territory. You're the king of nothing. You've got to have a territory. Eventually the territory will be the whole earth and then the whole heavens.
So you have a king, you have a territory, then you need subjects. If you're a king and nobody listens to you, I mean, you're not really a king. And eventually the subjects will be everyone on the planet. And you have to have laws. If you have no laws, you don't have a kingdom. And the laws of the kingdom of God are every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. That's a simple way to state it. In Luke 11 it says, the seed is the word of God. It's also the part of the kingdom. James 1.18, I'll just read it to you. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we might be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Jesus said the message he brought was from the Father. The good news is the word of truth which comes from the Father. It was combined the two. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, does not understand it, the seed reached the individual but never had the opportunity to grow. Perhaps their middle paradigm was such that they couldn't accept any contrary thoughts. Or perhaps they had other priorities they considered more important. It says, then comes the wicked one and snatches away that which was sown in his heart. I've seen that happen. I gave a public lecture in the early 70s in Durban, South Africa. Things we were discussing, I'm talking to people afterward, and with one person I was discussing John 3 and being born again. It was a young woman, she found that interesting. At first when I was talking with her I explained to her some of the things there in John 3, that was the born of the flesh is flesh, that was the born of the spirit is spirit, the wind blows where it wills, you can't see the wind but you can see the effect of it. Anyway, and she was responding very positively. And then I saw her face just change. Boom. Boom. And her face hardened and it seemed to me that she refused to consider the possibility that her teaching aren't standing on that was wrong. It's just like it shut down. It was positive first and then boom. Winston Churchill once said, some people stumble over the truth but most pick themselves up, dust themselves off and go on as if nothing happened. That's what I thought happened here. God knows but that's the impression it left with me. He said, this is he who received seed by the wayside. The soil was too hard. The seed never germinated. It never sprouted.
Adam Clark said, some seeds fell by the wayside. The hard beaten path where no plow had broken up the ground. He heard but the seed could never take root, could never germinate. Verse 20, but he who received the seed in stony places, on stony places, is he that hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Why do you think receiving it with joy would be a good thing? Oh, great! I understand the kingdom, great! Actually, receiving it with joy indicates shallowness. And he said, I'm not going to do that. I'm going to do that.
It indicates shallowness of soil. When the good news of the kingdom of God is heard with understanding, an attentive hear should comprehend that you will no longer be in charge of your own life. We recently reviewed Matthew 10, verses 37 to 9. We have Matthew 10, verses 37 to 39. He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.
And he who loves son and daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he who does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. He who finds his life will lose it. And he who loses his life for my sake will find it. How can anyone contemplate making such a life-changing decision either immediately or quickly? Oh, yes. I'll give my life to somebody else and they'll run it from now on and that'll be fine.
I first heard Mr. Armstrong on the radio in 1958 to 1959 in Cleveland, Ohio. I had a nutty aunt and uncle that came into the church. And they did come into the church and they started learning and then they tried to talk me into it. And I've got a sale of resistance that you won't believe. They kept trying to talk me into it and the more I heard it. But anyway, when I was driving around, I heard the words from my broadcast, I'd reach out and turn it off as fast as I could. I somehow realized that if I listened more, my life would have to change significantly.
And I didn't want it to change significantly. I sensed that I'd have to give up sovereignty over my own life and completely surrender to God. And at that time, I did not want to do it. I remember that very, very clearly. It took me several years to come to repentance. And God was very merciful with me. He smoothed away, I won't tell you the story, but he made it easy that I could start attending with my aunt and uncle, but not agree with them.
I didn't mind admitting God was right, but I was more reluctant to admit they were right. Of course, I know I'm the only one like that. Those with a service understanding of God's calling do not fully comprehend the cost. Baptism counts the cost of baptism. Count the cost of following Jesus Christ. So while it sounds like either the receiver of joy should be good, it indicates shallow understanding.
Verse 21, yet he had no root in himself. Notice it's the soil. He had no root in himself, but endures only for a while, for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. He had no root in himself. As he stumbles, King James is offended. He's offended and the NIV says, falls away. Stony places indicate shallow soil over large rocks. When he gave the parable, look at Matthew 13.5. This is the explanation he's expanding.
Some fell on stony places where they did not have much earth. So they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. Such soil could only hold a little moisture. So the seed can germinate but the plant can't develop deep roots.
And while there's quick growth above ground, the growth under the ground was insufficient. The plant lacked a strong root system. So when the sun shines bright and the heat is on, it wants to crank up the water to cool things off. There's no water there. In Luke 6, 47, I'll just read it to you. He said, whoever comes to me, and here's my saying, and does them, I will show you whom he is like. He is like a man building a house. Conversion is like building a house, a whole new structure.
He's like a man building a house who dug deep and laid the foundation on THE rock. We have to dig deep and put that foundation there so it stands through the storms. And when the floods rose and the stream beat vehemently against that house and could not shake it, for it was founded on THE rock. This parable was not founded on the rock. Jesus understood that some folks join us only for a while. He said, he who endures to the end shall be saved. As many others have said, Christianity is not a sprint, it's a marathon. By the way, the root of the Greek word translated tribulation is pressure. I know we don't know anything about that. And in this example, the sea germinated. It had enough water to germinate. But it was never a fruit. Expositor says, but without real root, there is no fruit. And external pressure, trouble, persecution, like sun beating on a rootless plant, soon the reveal the shallness of the soil. At once, that's the NIV translation, is a Greek word, he receives the word and as quickly, and it's the same Greek word. In other words, he receives the word as quickly and it's the same Greek word. In other words, he quickly hears and he quickly leaves, falls away. Such temporary disciples are always numerous in times of revival and were so in Jesus' ministry. You know, he had thousands listen to him. When push came to shove, there were 12 apostles and 120 disciples. And that was it, after thousands and thousands of people at various events. Wycliffe refers to these as, quote, the shallow emotional hearers whose initial enthusiasm is completely withered by the invigoration of necessary sun of tribulation and persecution. As I said, Jesus often preached to thousands, but there weren't that many that stayed at the end. We all have to dig deep to know God's word, his promises, the teaching of Jesus Christ, and have the kingdom of God foremost in our minds and hearts. We can't ride on the coattails of others. Verse 22. So far, it's kind of a discouraging scenario, isn't it? I mean, it gets better. Verse 22. Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becomes unfruitful. The good news is a little further down yet.
The cares of this world. The mind is absorbed by cares and worldly interests. That's where the mind is. So here's it, but it's got to work against. This leads to a best divided loyalties. Well, I want to do this and I want to do that, so I'm trying to please both people and you end up trying to serve two masters and you end up in trouble. Then the deceitfulness of riches. I think our age can see that more clearly than perhaps any other. Wages are deceitful. There are people who are very wealthy in the Great Depression and then they were standing on the ledges shortly thereafter because they thought they were rich but they found out they weren't. Many commentaries say that a person can think riches will be peace, security, and joy, but they don't. The biggest problem with wealthy people, the people face, is the tendency to trust in their wealth. That's one of the problems. It becomes a source of security and confidence, believing Christians have God as a source of their security.
Trust in worldly wealth is deceitful. Additionally, wealth can bring pride. The wealthy are often become wise in their own eyes. If so, if they're wise in their own eyes, they're not heading for the kingdom. If you look at Matthew 19, verse 23, Matthew 19, 23, then Jesus said to His disciples, Assuredly I say to you, I tell you the truth, that it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. And again I said to you, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. Some people say this was something that happened at eye of a needle, that's not true. That was something somebody made up and has been going around ever since. Jesus is giving a very impossible scenario here. When His disciples heard it, they were greatly astonished, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus looked at them and said to them, With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Jesus emphatically stated that it's hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. The rich tend to trust in their wealth and lack humility.
Remember the widow that gave a little bit? She was on the right path. Christ praised her for giving while in need. It says, The richest choke the word of the cares of the world, stunt the plant's growth. In the Proverbs it ends toward the second to last chapter, the words of Jacob. Let me read it to you. Proverbs 30 verses 7 to 9. Two things I request of you, deprive me not before I die. Remove falsehood and lies from me. Give me away from falsehood. That means I want the truth. Give me neither poverty nor riches. I don't want either one. I think that's where most of us find ourselves. Feed me with the food allotted to me. Lest I be full and deny you and say, Who's the Lord? Or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God. So I don't want poverty and I don't want riches. Neither one. Just put me in the middle here. Smack dab in the middle. There are wealthy people that think their contributions can buy influence. Such thinking is deceitful. Simon Magus thought he could buy apostleship. Peter told him, Your money perish with you. Once we, again, we see the seed germinated, but it didn't bear fruit.
Okay, let's get to the good news. Verse 23, But he who received the seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it. He who hears the word and understands it.
They understood the good news of the kingdom of God. That's more than seeing the need to keep the Sabbath in the Holy Days. It's more than understanding Jesus will return to the earth and set up the kingdom of God over the earth. It's seeing the carnal mind that's inside us for what it is, and turning to God in repentance and asking for His Holy Spirit to grant us His holy and righteous mind. It's turning from doing our will to seek to do His will in everything. The children of the kingdom produce the fruits of the kingdom.
The seed germinates and their roots grow deep, and all other cares become secondary.
God's Spirit leads them into all His ways. God's laws are increasingly written on their hearts. There are far more people who claim to be Christian, but exhibit the fruits of it. There are far more people who claim to be Christian than exhibit the fruits of it.
And they, who indeed bears fruit, some hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Even on the good ground, brethren, the amount of fruit varies. Yet it is received the same seed from the same sower. We know that some will be over one city, while others will be over five or ten. People grow spiritually at different rates. This indicates that we have to be a part in our own fruitfulness. It involves our individual zeal, motivation, dedication, and subsequent spiritual growth. Earlier I mentioned that the parables usually have one central point to convey. What we'll just say is the central point of this parable.
It's that many who hear the word of the kingdom won't be fruitful. While many who hear the word of the kingdom won't be fruitful, those on the good ground understand it and bear fruit spiritually in various amounts. Let's look at Isaiah 55. Isaiah 55. Let's begin in verse 6. Again, I think these are familiar verses. Isaiah 55 verse 6. This seems especially important for the church. Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call upon him while he's near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Let him return to the Lord and he will have mercy on him and to our God for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your ways my ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, exactly how far is that? How much higher are the heavens than the earth? Nobody knows. They see it as 20 million or 20 billion light years out there and they don't come to a wall. It's bigger still. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as the rain comes down and the snow from heaven and do not return there, but water the earth and make it bring forth and bud that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth. It shall not return to me void or empty or unfruitful, but it shall accomplish what I please and shall prosper the things for which I sent it. For you shall go out with joy and be led out with peace, and the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands, instead of the thorns shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the briars shall come up the myrtle tree, and it shall be to the Lord for a name for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off. It's going to bear fruit in its season and its time. This is our season. This is our time. We'll pick it up next time.
