[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on Sunday, the 8th of February, 2015.]
Jesus taught so many of His lessons by telling parables to His audience. He would use language that normal people could understand, giving examples they could easily relate to. Listen and follow along to what is commonly referred to as the Parable of the Sower, as related by Mark in his Gospel account, chapter 4 verses 1 through 9 and 13 through 20…
1 And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
9 And He said to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
13 And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
--Mark 4:1-9, 13-20 (NKJV)
Let us pray... Father in heaven, we have come together this morning in the name of Jesus Christ and by the power of Your Holy Spirit living within us for the sole purpose of worshiping You. Teach us now the lesson You would have us learn. Open our hearts and ready our minds to receive Your message. In the blessed name of Your Son Jesus we pray. Amen.
Sometimes it’s just a matter of perspective…
When Goliath came up against the Israelites, the soldiers all thought, "He's so big we could never kill him." David looked at the same giant and thought, "He's so big I can't miss."
And then there’s the businessman driving along in the country one day when he spotted an old man sitting on a fence rail watching the cars go by. Stopping to pass the time of day, the traveler said, "I never could stand living out here. You don't see anything, and I'm sure you don't travel like I do. I'm on the go all the time."
The old man on the fence looked down at the stranger and drawled, "I can't see much difference in what I'm doing and what you're doing. I sit on the fence and watch the autos go by and you sit in your auto and watch the fences go by. It's just the way you look at things."
Today I’d like to take a look at Jesus’ parable of the sower in a slightly different way. We don’t have to guess at what Jesus meant with this little tale of a farmer and his attempts at sowing seeds, because He gives us the meaning. The seed in this story is the word of God being spread throughout the world. The various places the seed lands – by the wayside, on stony ground, among the thorns, and finally on good, rich soil… These are the people that hear the word, and how it affects them.
The gist is that we want to be the good ground. We want to be the good soil where the seed can take root, just like in the video I showed the kids. Rich dirt that allows those roots to grow deep and strong and to produce results within us that flourish and bear fruit for our Lord.
The good ground is our heart, our attitude, the foundations of our faith. It is a rich, strong environment where God’s word can take root and grow within us, developing the strength we will need to get through those hard times we know will come. Our faith born of this good soil and nourished by our prayer and study will allow is to endure the birds pecking at us, help us cross over the rocky ground, shield us from the scorching sun, protect us from the thorns.
So we’ve figured out what the seed and the soil are, and the birds and thorns and stones, but who is the sower? Who is spreading the seed? Well, God, of course, since it is His word as recorded for us in our Holy Bible. And there’s me - I am a sower, along with all my brothers and sisters who preach God’s word to His children.
But how about you? Don’t you have a bag of seed to scatter as well? All of us who follow Jesus were given that great commission to spread His Gospel throughout the earth. So I wanted to spend a little time today talking about planting the seed.
The Apostle Paul also commented on planting seeds, when he was explaining to the church in Corinth that both he and Apollos served the same purpose and were not in some sort of competition for followers. Hear how he put it in his 1st letter to the Corinthians, chapter 3 verses 5 through 8…
Sometimes it’s just a matter of perspective…
When Goliath came up against the Israelites, the soldiers all thought, "He's so big we could never kill him." David looked at the same giant and thought, "He's so big I can't miss."
And then there’s the businessman driving along in the country one day when he spotted an old man sitting on a fence rail watching the cars go by. Stopping to pass the time of day, the traveler said, "I never could stand living out here. You don't see anything, and I'm sure you don't travel like I do. I'm on the go all the time."
The old man on the fence looked down at the stranger and drawled, "I can't see much difference in what I'm doing and what you're doing. I sit on the fence and watch the autos go by and you sit in your auto and watch the fences go by. It's just the way you look at things."
Today I’d like to take a look at Jesus’ parable of the sower in a slightly different way. We don’t have to guess at what Jesus meant with this little tale of a farmer and his attempts at sowing seeds, because He gives us the meaning. The seed in this story is the word of God being spread throughout the world. The various places the seed lands – by the wayside, on stony ground, among the thorns, and finally on good, rich soil… These are the people that hear the word, and how it affects them.
The gist is that we want to be the good ground. We want to be the good soil where the seed can take root, just like in the video I showed the kids. Rich dirt that allows those roots to grow deep and strong and to produce results within us that flourish and bear fruit for our Lord.
The good ground is our heart, our attitude, the foundations of our faith. It is a rich, strong environment where God’s word can take root and grow within us, developing the strength we will need to get through those hard times we know will come. Our faith born of this good soil and nourished by our prayer and study will allow is to endure the birds pecking at us, help us cross over the rocky ground, shield us from the scorching sun, protect us from the thorns.
So we’ve figured out what the seed and the soil are, and the birds and thorns and stones, but who is the sower? Who is spreading the seed? Well, God, of course, since it is His word as recorded for us in our Holy Bible. And there’s me - I am a sower, along with all my brothers and sisters who preach God’s word to His children.
But how about you? Don’t you have a bag of seed to scatter as well? All of us who follow Jesus were given that great commission to spread His Gospel throughout the earth. So I wanted to spend a little time today talking about planting the seed.
The Apostle Paul also commented on planting seeds, when he was explaining to the church in Corinth that both he and Apollos served the same purpose and were not in some sort of competition for followers. Hear how he put it in his 1st letter to the Corinthians, chapter 3 verses 5 through 8…
5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.
--1 Corinthians 3:5-8 (NKJV)
Paul was there first and set things up – he planted the seed. Apollos came along afterwards and carried on what Paul started – he watered the plant. Paul says that’s all good, they’re both working toward the same goal, the same harvest that ultimately Jesus will make.
The point I’d like to hold onto here is that for the best results, the seed needs to be nourished after it is planted, whether by the sower or someone else entirely. The word that is spoken into someone’s life must be reinforced and encouraged as often as possible.
In the Old Testament, the prophet Zechariah foretells the results of what Paul is talking about here…
The point I’d like to hold onto here is that for the best results, the seed needs to be nourished after it is planted, whether by the sower or someone else entirely. The word that is spoken into someone’s life must be reinforced and encouraged as often as possible.
In the Old Testament, the prophet Zechariah foretells the results of what Paul is talking about here…
11 “But now I will not treat the remnant of this people as in the former days,’ says the Lord of hosts.
12 ‘For the seed shall be prosperous,
The vine shall give its fruit,
The ground shall give her increase,
And the heavens shall give their dew —
I will cause the remnant of this people
To possess all these.’”
--Zechariah 8:11-12 (NKJV)
The seed – God’s word – will be prosperous and will produce great fruit and God’s people will be the beneficiaries.
In his book of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 16 verse 5, Luke gives us an even clearer description of the outcome of this kind of effort, this time by Paul and his protégé Timothy…
In his book of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 16 verse 5, Luke gives us an even clearer description of the outcome of this kind of effort, this time by Paul and his protégé Timothy…
5 So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.
--Acts 16:5 (NKJV)
The churches strengthened in faith and increased in numbers. And that brings me full circle to that slightly different perspective I mentioned at the start.
Our church family has suffered significant loss over the last five or so years, some from passing from this life but many simply left for whatever reason. Last week the Holy Spirit put it on my heart that this is the time to regain the strength we lost. And not only that, but to grow stronger so we can do more than ever before.
So here’s my challenge to you: This is 2015. Let’s each one of us bring in 15 visitors during the year! That’s just a little more than one a month. Invite them in for a Sunday service, sure, but also for some of our more informal activities, like our meals or Bible Study or Youth Fellowship or our Community Fun Day.
Invite them in and plant a seed! Plant the seed in them that God’s word is spoken and lived here. And if someone plants that seed, let’s all pitch in and water and nourish it.
I’ve been asking God to bring our family 63 new or returning members this year – one for each year I’ve lived on this earth. And please don’t get me wrong – I don’t care about the numbers, but I do care about this family and all the good we do in this world. I want to see our family increase so we can increase what we do. I want to see us grow so our love can grow out further into the community and beyond.
Just last week you planted a seed when you resoundingly approved the Audio/Video upgrades that will help us spread God’s word within these walls and outside into the greater community. We must water and nourish that seed so that it will produce great fruit.
If every person in here this morning brought one guest each month to a Sunday service, we’d have - on average – somewhere between 15 to 25 guests each week! Can we realistically bring in 5 new members a month? If we sit back and wait for the world to beat a path to our door, then no, we won’t even bring in one all year. But with God, all things are possible.
Join me in praying for those 63 new members. Invite your friends or someone you know or even a perfect stranger to come spend a little time with us. I’m not looking to pull someone from another church if they are receiving what they need there. I’m looking for the unchurched, those who may be looking, those who aren’t quite sure about all this “Christianity” stuff, or those who are not being fed where they are. Pray every day that the Lord lead you to one of those folks and that He encourage you to approach them.
Whenever you see something on Facebook, maybe in our Pilgrim Reformed group page, that has something to do with our church, please consider sharing it on your timeline so your friends that might not follow our group page can see what we’re doing. Every now and then, copy some of your email contacts with our church emails, so they can see the upcoming events. Show folks how to access our online service videos. Plant the seed any chance you get, and then go back every now and then and water it.
Above all, pray that our good Lord make the ground of this church fertile and productive, that our seed might be prosperous, as Zechariah foretold. And that our church be strengthened in faith and increased in number, as Luke added. It may take a while, but we will start seeing the fruits of our labors.
It all begins with planting the seed. Now let’s get to work.
Amen.
Let us pray… Father, we thank You for this church, for this loving family and the beautiful building we gather in. We thank You for the strength You give us, and for the willingness of so many to labor in the fields serving You. And Father we know we could do even more if our family grows again. Lord, we know nothing is impossible for You so we ask for 63 new or returning family members this year, 63 more pairs of hands to help plant the seeds of Your word throughout our community. Make our ground here fertile, please Lord, and enable our reach to extend farther than ever before. Show us those of Your children who we can plant the seed in, and help us water it often so we can all benefit as it bears fruit.
Hear us now, all mighty God, as we speak to You in the silence and listen for Your reply…
Help us, please Father, to be the very best sowers of Your seed. Strengthen and encourage us to plant the seeds of Your word in the hearts of our fellow man. Bless this church, Lord, that it might grow and flourish, all to Your glory, O God. In that name above all names, the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
Our church family has suffered significant loss over the last five or so years, some from passing from this life but many simply left for whatever reason. Last week the Holy Spirit put it on my heart that this is the time to regain the strength we lost. And not only that, but to grow stronger so we can do more than ever before.
So here’s my challenge to you: This is 2015. Let’s each one of us bring in 15 visitors during the year! That’s just a little more than one a month. Invite them in for a Sunday service, sure, but also for some of our more informal activities, like our meals or Bible Study or Youth Fellowship or our Community Fun Day.
Invite them in and plant a seed! Plant the seed in them that God’s word is spoken and lived here. And if someone plants that seed, let’s all pitch in and water and nourish it.
I’ve been asking God to bring our family 63 new or returning members this year – one for each year I’ve lived on this earth. And please don’t get me wrong – I don’t care about the numbers, but I do care about this family and all the good we do in this world. I want to see our family increase so we can increase what we do. I want to see us grow so our love can grow out further into the community and beyond.
Just last week you planted a seed when you resoundingly approved the Audio/Video upgrades that will help us spread God’s word within these walls and outside into the greater community. We must water and nourish that seed so that it will produce great fruit.
If every person in here this morning brought one guest each month to a Sunday service, we’d have - on average – somewhere between 15 to 25 guests each week! Can we realistically bring in 5 new members a month? If we sit back and wait for the world to beat a path to our door, then no, we won’t even bring in one all year. But with God, all things are possible.
Join me in praying for those 63 new members. Invite your friends or someone you know or even a perfect stranger to come spend a little time with us. I’m not looking to pull someone from another church if they are receiving what they need there. I’m looking for the unchurched, those who may be looking, those who aren’t quite sure about all this “Christianity” stuff, or those who are not being fed where they are. Pray every day that the Lord lead you to one of those folks and that He encourage you to approach them.
Whenever you see something on Facebook, maybe in our Pilgrim Reformed group page, that has something to do with our church, please consider sharing it on your timeline so your friends that might not follow our group page can see what we’re doing. Every now and then, copy some of your email contacts with our church emails, so they can see the upcoming events. Show folks how to access our online service videos. Plant the seed any chance you get, and then go back every now and then and water it.
Above all, pray that our good Lord make the ground of this church fertile and productive, that our seed might be prosperous, as Zechariah foretold. And that our church be strengthened in faith and increased in number, as Luke added. It may take a while, but we will start seeing the fruits of our labors.
It all begins with planting the seed. Now let’s get to work.
Amen.
Let us pray… Father, we thank You for this church, for this loving family and the beautiful building we gather in. We thank You for the strength You give us, and for the willingness of so many to labor in the fields serving You. And Father we know we could do even more if our family grows again. Lord, we know nothing is impossible for You so we ask for 63 new or returning family members this year, 63 more pairs of hands to help plant the seeds of Your word throughout our community. Make our ground here fertile, please Lord, and enable our reach to extend farther than ever before. Show us those of Your children who we can plant the seed in, and help us water it often so we can all benefit as it bears fruit.
Hear us now, all mighty God, as we speak to You in the silence and listen for Your reply…
Help us, please Father, to be the very best sowers of Your seed. Strengthen and encourage us to plant the seeds of Your word in the hearts of our fellow man. Bless this church, Lord, that it might grow and flourish, all to Your glory, O God. In that name above all names, the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment