Digging Deeper

Mark 4:1-20 The Parable of the Sower

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. He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”

Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 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 so that,

“‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving,

and ever hearing but never understanding;

otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”

Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed 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. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 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. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.”

We are living in difficult times. And the future is unknown.

It’s vital that we nurture our relationship with Jesus Christ and persevere and press into knowing Him on a regular basis.

We are like the seeds that the farmer sows in the field.

For any relationship to flourish, there must be intentional time spent for communication and presence. This is so very true in our relationship with Christ.

We need to be intentional about regularly reading or listening to God’s written Word. This is one of the primary ways that we hear from Him and can know His will.

If we ignore time reading (or listening) to God’s written Word we will easily be influenced by other voices (whether they be the voice of our own self-seeking thoughts, the unrelenting narrative of the world, or even the voice of the enemy).

We also cultivate our relationship with Jesus through prayer. Prayer is communication with Jesus and is direct fellowship with Him.

If we neglect our relationship Jesus, we’ll eventually shrivel up spiritually. Our lives will be overtaken by “the cares of this life,” “the lust/desire for other things,” and “the deceitfulness of money” – all of which choke out God’s life (Mark 4:19).

We need to have ongoing conversation with the Lord throughout the day, as well as specific times set apart to talk to Him, listen, and be in His presence.

This can even be done while walking or driving.

As a supplement to the Frank Viola book, INSURGENCE: Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, a series of articles that were not originally included in the book as chapters are available on the website. Have a read of this chapter “AWARE OF HIS PRESENCE,” which you can read HERE. (Follow the link to download the article https://insurgencebook.com/Aware.pdf )

The challenge for you this week is three-fold:

1. Make a fresh commitment to re-engage your relationship to Christ and deepen it.
2. Carve out a time when you can read or listen to God’s Word throughout the week.
3. Schedule a time when you can talk to the Lord and give Him your undivided attention during the week.

Don’t let your relationship with Him slip.

In other words, be intentional about feeding your relationship with Jesus.

This weeks worship playlist is available here:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLHnJn7EgQjAyr3sWYWo6MpB9NXnTP6u4k

Have a good week

Jacquey