New Lessons About the Kingdom
Book of Matthew Chapter 13
We now get to listen in as the Lord Jesus Christ preached in a new way.
The Lord Jesus loved to use parables.
We may not know as much as we like to about the Kingdom of Heaven, but because of King Jesus and His preaching, we know much more of those things that were once mysteries to those who were gathered, to hear the Lord Jesus preach.
The Lord Jesus uses these parables to describe the principles of the Kingdom of Heaven.
So what is a parable?
A parable is a representation of something that is real in life or in nature from which a certain thing is drawn for instruction.
A parable is a mode of speaking for us to learn spiritual things.
A parable is an earthly truth that expresses a Heavenly truth!
A parable is an earthly comparison to a Spiritual truth!
Let us listen to the Lord Jesus:
*****Mat 13:1 The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side.
Mat 13:2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
Mat 13:3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;
Jesus had just preached a sermon and He had healed some who had faith but remember Jesus found not much faith in Capernaum.
Mat 11:23 And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
Since the Lord Jesus had begun His ministry, He had no time to rest so, after a tiring day Jesus just went out to the Sea of Galilee to enjoy a moment of tranquility but it did not last long so, Jesus began to teach some truths of the Kingdom of Heaven.
We should understand that a parable is not a fable.
A fable is just a fictitious story or some legend that may or may not have existed.
A parable was a means of teaching the truth in a fashion that could be easily understood.
We first meet the sower. In the next parable we find this sower is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.
These first two parables set the standard for all the remaining parables.
A sower would sow seed. Today we would say broadcast, casting seed out by hand.
Most time the seed of a crop would be cast upon plowed ground, but this was not always the case.
In some soils the seed was cast before the plowing.
In some wet soils the seed would be trodden down by animals.
Isa 32:20 Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.
The one thing we should clearly understand is that the seed of the Christian is the precious Word of God, the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is the Gospel Seed that will bring great results when presented the right way!
Pro 11:18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.
Psa 126:1 When the LORD turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream.
Psa 126:2 Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The LORD hath done great things for them.
Psa 126:3 The LORD hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.
Psa 126:4 Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.
Psa 126:5 They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
Psa 126:6 He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.
Now let us hear this great parable of the Lord Jesus Christ.
We must be careful where we sow the "Gospel Seed"!
*****Mat 13:4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:
The first danger in sowing the "Gospel Seed" is to sow it upon prepared ground. If the seed is not placed where it can be covered then the birds will come and devour the seed.
I know birds have keen sight but as one who loves to feed the birds, they must have another sense that directs them to seed.
There was always a foot path to divide one field from another and seed that dropped on that foot path just could not grow into a useful plant.
On the day, this parable was taught, this sower was the Lord Jesus Himself.
He as our example, is teaching some who might become future sowers of the Word of God.
The ground that is plowed with the "Gospel Plow" (Grace) is ready to receive the "Gospel Seed"(Word of God).
What we should know is that these "fowl" represent that "wicked thing" we know of as Satan.
*****Mat 13:5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
Mat 13:6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
There are many today who claim to have received the truth of the Lord, but their hearts are so hardened by their sin they just cannot accept it as the complete truth.
It is like seed that lands on stony ground where there is not enough soil to provide the nourishment to the seed. That soil will dry and become nothing, but dust and that seed will never produce.
Stony ground is cold like a cold heart. These people have no spiritual warmth because the Holy Spirit has not moved in.
What did God say?
Eze 11:19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
Eze 11:20 That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
This is exactly what happened to Israel, their hearts turned to stone!
Zec 7:12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts.
Zec 7:13 Therefore it is come to pass, that as he cried, and they would not hear; so they cried, and I would not hear, saith the LORD of hosts:
Zec 7:14 But I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they knew not. Thus the land was desolate after them, that no man passed through nor returned: for they laid the pleasant land desolate.
Remember we serve an unchanging God and stony hearts cannot receive the rainfall from Heaven and they cannot get into Heaven!
Rev 21:6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
They will be scorched by the Sun without having received the Son!
They have no root in themselves.
When we find a Bible believing Church, the Lord teaches us "to put our roots in" so we can grow in Christ.
When we have no root then we cannot grow, we must endure!
Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
Just hearing the Word of God preached and taught will not get you to Heaven, you must receive the Word of God as the truth.
*****Mat 13:7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:
Thorny ground is deceptive ground. When we see growth in bare ground, where weeds grow, we think well "anything" can grow in that place, but this is never true.
Any growth from that seed will soon be choked out.
Thorny ground represents those who receive the Word of God but just want to add it to their lives as they exist and not repent of their sinful ways.
This is the theme of the queer and lesbian and the cross-gender movement today and many other sinners.
They say God made them the way they are, and we just need to accept them for who they are, but God teaches us all that we must be "Born Again".
God forgave me of my sin, but He told me to go and sin no more. It is called to repent!
The Lord Jesus Christ did not come to die just so I could hold on to my sin!
The Bible says:
1Jn 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
Those thorns are the cares of this world!
They prick and stick the Word of God, until what God says is meaningless to them.
Those with their minds on this world do not have their minds upon the Lord Jesus Christ!
This world will hinder, irritate, aggravate and trouble a person from pursuing the truth of God!
The deceitfulness of riches is also thorns, that keep us from the truth of God!
When we become self-confident or self-dependent, we have rejected the truth of God who says we need Him!
Joh 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
We cannot change the truth of God or it would no longer be the truth!
2Co 13:8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
Some people see wealth as a blessing from God, but this is rarely the case.
God would never put us in a place where we would feel that we do not need Him!
Then there are some seed that lands on good fertile soil that has been prepared by the Holy Spirit.
*****Mat 13:8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.
Mat 13:9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
The tender heart that has been plowed with the "Gospel Plow" will reproduce the "Gospel Seed"!
The Gospel is not hard to understand.
That Seed is not just the Word of God, but it is the Gospel Seed of the Lord Jesus Christ, the "Good News"!
1Co 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
1Co 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
1Co 15:4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
Not every believer is the same:
Eph 4:6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
Eph 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Eph 4:8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
Eph 4:9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?
Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Not all believers are equal.
Some will work harder than others, but we must also realize the location where Christians do that work.
Remember Moses preached 120 years and only his family went with him on the Ark.
So yes, some may produce 30-fold and others 100-fold, but the object is still to be busy about the work of the Lord once we are saved.
The production of the Gospel Seed lies in the hands of our Savior!
As my Pastor says: "the Holy Spirit was not given to us for our enjoyment, He was given to us for our employment" and this is true.
The Holy Spirit gave us all the Word of God and Jesus says we need to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying!
Now Jesus teaches these parables to His disciples!
*****Mat 13:18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.
Mat 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.
We see immediately that the key to salvation and the work given us by the Lord is understanding the Word of God.
What is the "word of the kingdom"? It can be none other than the "Gospel"!
The "Gospel" is the Words of Salvation saved for us by the Holy Spirit!
The Gospel is pure as Jesus is pure and it is the truth of a Holy God!
Jesus teaches these disciples to hear these parables according to the privileges given to them.
Mat 13:15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
Mat 13:16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
You see it is a privilege to be called of God and then be presented the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ!
It is these soon to be Apostles who were given the privilege first to deliver the "Gospel" to the world!
We must understand that when we present the "Gospel" to some lost soul who has been called of God, then Satan will immediately come to that person to discredit the Gospel in some way.
The Devil will snatch away the truth of the "Gospel"!
The Devil hates the Lord Jesus Christ and will do his best to keep everyone out of Heaven.
He cannot go himself and he does not want anyone else to get there.
It is easier to understand when we understand the truth of the Devil.
*****Mat 13:20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
Mat 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
Rocky ground has not much soil, but it will grow seed until the Sun rises and draws out all the moisture and that seed will die.
In many a person there is an enthusiastic receiving of the truth of God.
Oh how they welcome the truth at least until the real truth sets in.
As Christians we live in an evil and wicked world where we are hated.
Persecution is real folks.
That old heart that was never broken by the "Gospel Plow" has no real life within it.
They have a form of "godliness, but they know not the reality of God's power and the power of everlasting life.
The Lord says to stay away from these people.
2Ti 3:5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.
The Lord says they are ever learning but never able to grasp the truth of Jesus.
2Ti 3:7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
We must understand that being a Christian will draw Satan's crowd near to us to cause persecution.
2Ti 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
This is the place where many so-called Christians go back to their old lives of sin!
But there are still others.
*****Mat 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.
We all know that the love of money is the root behind all the evil in this world!
1Ti_6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
The deceit of riches does hinder, the growth of the Word of God within us!
In our world today sinful so-called pleasures go unhindered. Free to roam this world to cause destruction.
Plagues such as we have just gone through, will make things even worse.
People will become more dependent upon government, which by the way was probably more involved in the cause than we want to admit.
The cares of this world will come to the forefront.
Anxiety and future uncertainty will rule lives that are not dependent upon God.
The Word of God will be choked out by fear of what tomorrow might bring, because they refuse to believe the God who holds tomorrow in His hands.
There will be a great falling away which we see today!
2Th_2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
God has already told us of all these things.
1) We see that the Devil snatches up and devours.
2) We see the Flesh attempts and fails.
3) We see the World surrounds and chokes.
Only the Lord Jesus Christ could have spoken such a simple parable with such a deep and far-reaching meaning.
But there will always be that true believer!
*****Mat 13:23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
There will always be some who hear the truth and cling to the truth for evermore!
What did the Lord our God say?
Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
1) There is hearing.
2) There is understanding.
3) There is "faith".
Without "faith" there is no reproduction!
Through "faith" there is fruit bearing and producing!
These things come by a receptive, teachable heart that is prepared by "Grace"!
Amen
