Open 43 RR Luke 8:4-15 Insert NKJV "Sowers, Seeds, and Soils" Close 111 13:1 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2 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. 3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 "And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 "Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 "But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 "And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 "But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" --------------- The disciples 11 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. 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. 13 "Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 "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; 15 For the hearts of this people have 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 with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.' 16 "But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 "for assuredly, I say to 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. 18 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower: Parable Wayside Trampled Birds ate Stony Ground Sprang up No water, died Thorny ground Sprang up with thorns Thorns took sunlight and nourishment and seed died Good ground Bore fruit 100x/60x/30x\ Factors Seed That which was to reproduce Wayside Seed did not have a chance to start Stony ground Seed did not have the moisture necessary Thorny ground Ground adequate, moisture adequate, but weed seed mingled with good caused weakness Good soil Moisture, good soil, no weeds = good harvest Elements of the parable: Sower = Spirit or Jesus Seed = Word of God Sowing the seed = Preaching the Word Birds = agents of Satan Rocks = Hardness of heart Weeds = Obstacles that Satan puts in our way Good soil = A mind/heart ready to receive God's word Fruit = More seed = proclamation of the word, changed lives. Now, let's dig in and make this practical for us, today. 18 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower: As we look at the parable, there is only one real variable. It is not the sower. The sower consistently does his work, sowing seed anywhere. The seed does not change. The seed consistently tries to grow where it ends up, whether on the side of the road or in the fertile prepared soil. The issue is not the weather, for the same weather affects all of the soils. So what is the variable? The only variable is the soil. What this parable is about is issues of heart/hearing. And more than that, it deals with the response to the work of the Holy Spirit Interpretation Wayside: 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 received seed by the wayside. Lack of understanding Working of Satan Closed minds Gen 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Ex 7.14 So the LORD said to Moses: "Pharaoh's heart is hard; he refuses to let the people go. Hosea 9:16 "Ephraim is stricken, Their root is dried up; They shall bear no fruit.... Mark 6.52 For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened. The intent of what this means to the Christian should be clear. The person who is closed to the Spirit will be unable to produce fruit. And ultimately destroyed. Stony: 20 "But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 "yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. Hears, rejoices Cannot endure troubles (Stumbles) Emotional mind Matthew 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' 23 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' It is one thing to assent in a general way to the agency of the Holy Spirit, and another thing to accept His work as a reprover calling to repentance. Many feel a sense of estrangement from God, a realization of their bondage to self and sin; they make efforts for reform; but they do not crucify self. They do not give themselves entirely into the hands of Christ, seeking for divine power to do His will. They are not willing to be molded after the divine similitude. In a general way they acknowledge their imperfections, but they do not give up their particular sins. With each wrong act the old selfish nature is gaining strength. {COL 48.2} The people in this category are perhaps worse off than those in the first. For they are able to have a little comprehension of the enduring work that God's Holy Spirit wants to do in their lives, get excited about it for a time, then lose interest. Those in this group can become excited over and over again only to lose that excitement and experience a wandering away. With these often excitement is seen as the working of the Spirit, and when the Spirit chooses to manifest himself in another way, they cannot comprehend that he is still working. But brothers and sisters, Satan will use the excitement to draw away a large number of people from the straight and narrow way. Mark my word. Thorny : 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. Hears, grows to some extent Does not bear fruit. Wandering mind Isaiah 53:6. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Grace can thrive only in the heart that is being constantly prepared for the precious seeds of truth. The thorns of sin will grow in any soil; they need no cultivation; but grace must be carefully cultivated. ..... Men may profess to believe the gospel; but unless they are sanctified by the gospel their profession is of no avail. If they do not gain the victory over sin, then sin is gaining the victory over them. The thorns that have been cut off but not uprooted grow apace, until the soul is overspread with them. {COL 50.4} I believe that many of us here have struggled with the thorny ground effect. Who here does not have cares of the world? How many of us here are not somewhat dazzled by the riches that the world tempts us with? I could probably give lists of things that would touch all of us, but the Holy Spirit is speaking to you about this right now, if you will listen. But beyond that, the enemy has an even more subtle agenda. He would be equally delighted for our income job our spiritual works to keep us from the fountain of life. He does not care how much good you are doing if you are not spending time with the one who is Good. If the Holy Spirit begins a work in us, it is the enemy's determined effort to stop it or pervert it. He cares not which. Good Soil: The heart represented by the good soil: Hears, understands Bears fruit, produces Steadfast, understanding As we review the first 3 soils, we see that: All involved sowing All involved the ground. Now we come to the big variable. 23 "But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." But now we can see that the real issue is fruit bearing. Now at risk of insulting you with stating the obvious: The reason for preparing the ground is to reap fruit. The reason for taking the rocks out of the garden is to grow fruit. The reason for weeding the garden is so that the good plants can bear good fruit. The reason for fertilizing a garden is to produce fruit. The reason for a plant to grow is to gather fruit. The reason to sow a seed is to harvest fruit. And the reason that the Holy Spirit works in our lives is that He may increase fruit through us. EGW: "Truth bears fruit in proportion as it is allowed to possess the honest and good heart." John 6:63 "The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life." John 15:8 ""By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples." Ezekiel 36:25 "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 "Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. What does the fruit bearer look like? Ex 35.21 Then everyone came whose heart was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and they brought the Lord's offering for the work of the tabernacle of meeting, for all its service, and for the holy garments. 22 They came, both men and women, as many as had a willing heart, and brought earrings and nose rings, rings and necklaces, all jewelry of gold, that is, every man who made an offering of gold to the LORD. Deut 5:29 'Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever! Psalm 40.8 I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart." 9 I have proclaimed the good news of righteousness In the great assembly; Indeed, I do not restrain my lips, O LORD, You Yourself know. 10 I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart; I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation; I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth From the great assembly. How is this going to happen? Ezek 36.24 "For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 "Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. Every seed brings forth fruit after its kind. Sow the seed under right conditions, and it will develop its own life in the plant. Receive into the soul by faith the incorruptible seed of the word, and it will bring forth a character and a life after the similitude of the character and the life of God. {COL 38.2} Instead of discussing erroneous theories, or seeking to combat the opponents of the gospel, follow the example of Christ. Let fresh truths from God's treasure house flash into life. "Preach the word." "Sow beside all waters." "Be instant in season, out of season." "He that hath My word, let him speak My word faithfully. {COL 41} Love must be the principle of action. Love is the underlying principle of God's government in heaven and earth, and it must be the foundation of the Christian's character. This alone can make and keep him steadfast. This alone can enable him to withstand trial and temptation. If we love Jesus, we shall love to live for Him, to present our thank offerings to Him, to labor for Him. The very labor will be light. For His sake we shall covet pain and toil and sacrifice. We shall sympathize with His longing for the salvation of men. We shall feel the same tender craving for souls that He has felt. {COL 49.3} This is the religion of Christ. Anything short of it is a deception. No mere theory of truth or profession of discipleship will save any soul. We do not belong to Christ unless we are His wholly. It is by halfheartedness in the Christian life that men become feeble in purpose and changeable in desire. The effort to serve both self and Christ makes one a stony-ground hearer, and he will not endure when the test comes upon him. {COL 50.1} As the Holy Spirit speaks to you today, what kind of soil is your heart made of? What do you want it to be made of? I pray that my heart may be soil that will be able to produce much fruit for God. Is that your prayer with me today? Pray. If you have not turned your heart over to the softening work of God's Spirit, and you want to do that right now, would you just stand where you are.