Guest Speaker: Pastor Neil Lindwall

NIV Matthew 13:1-9 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. 2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. 3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. 9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

NIV Matthew 13:10 The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

NIV Matthew 13:11-17 He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. 

1 The Parables of Jesus Conceal & Reveal. 

13:11 “Secrets” = mystērion – mystery. In the N.T. a Kingdom “Mystery” is “a Spiritual Truth Understood Only by Divine Revelation”.

2 The Parables Fulfill Prophecy.  

Matthew 13:18-19 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.

Good Seed on Hard Soil.  

[Heart (2588/kardía) is mentioned over 800 times in Scripture, but never referring to the literal physical pump that drives the blood. only used figuratively, both in the OT and NT.] "the affective center of our being" with the capacity of moral preference, i.e. volitional desire, choice (see P. Hughs, 2 Cor, 354). the "desire-producer that makes us tick" (G. Archer), i.e generating "desire-decisions" that establish who we really are. Excerpts from HELPS Lexicon.

What Causes Hard Soil? 

• Lack of Understanding.  
• Compaction by Worldly Influence.  

Hebrews 3:13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

• Pride. 
• Unrepentance.  
• Influence of Satan

Hebrews 4:7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

NIV Matthew 13:20-21 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 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.  

Good Seed in Rocky Soil.  

What Causes Rocky Soil?  

• Shallowness
• Stinking Thinking. 
• Lack of Commitment / Conditional Faith
• Fear of Man
• Love of Comfort

Matthew 13:5-6 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.

NIV Matthew 13:22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. 

Good Seed in Thorny Soil.  

What Causes Thorny Soil?  

• Worries
• Pleasure Seeking
• Purposelessness LHCAG.ORG/GIFTS
• Emotionalism
• Discontentment

Php 2:12-13 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.  

Matthew 13:23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” 

Good Seed in Good Soil.

What Makes Soil Good?

• Preparation
• Actively Listening for Understanding
• Devotion
• Obedience Perseverance & Patient Endurance
• Surrender to God’s Work

Remember: 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.

If You Want the Harvest, Do the Work

How Is My Soil? 

What Am I Doing To Prepare For Growth?