The Kingdom Is Like: A man who scatters seed...

He also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground.²⁷Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. ²⁸All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. ²⁹As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come." (Mark 4:26-29)

When we think of a kingdom, we tend to think of medieval times where territories were ruled by kings, protected by castles, and defended by knights. We think of ancient empires that expanded their geographical boundaries by conquest.

The word "kingdom" in the New Testament literally means "rule." The kingdom of God can also be translated "the rule of God." That it, it speaks of God's rule--leadership/ownership--in the lives of those who have trusted His Son, Jesus Christ for salvation. The kingdom of God is not defined by geographical borders... it is made up of those who have pledged allegiance to Him. The kingdom of God is not the local church, but the local church is a part of God's kingdom.

There are several teachings in the Gospels where Jesus begins by saying, "This is what the kingdom of God is like." In each, he gives an illustration, each of which gives us a picture of the kingdom. In today's Scripture, we are told the kingdom of God is like a farmer who is scattering seed. Once the seed is cast, it then grows on its own, without the farmer's help. The power is not in the farmer, but in the seed.

There is power in the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When this seed (message) hits the willing heart (soil) it will sprout and grow.

We learn here that God's Kingdom is both powerful and expanding. As members of His kingdom, we are to scatter His seed. He will take care of the rest!

The Sower & The Seed part 5

Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times."...²⁰Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown." (Mark 4:8 & 20)

The farmer in Jesus' story has been sowing seeds and to this point has seen no real results for his labor. Between the birds, the heat, and the thorns, every seed he has thrown out has been stolen or wasted.

Discouragement is a real threat to all of us. It's interesting that in Jesus' story, this farmer encountered every obstacle imaginable before he found the good soil. This is how life tends to work. In sales, a salesman must push through a lot of "no's" before he hears a "yes." In seeking to reach people at church, we tend to hear a lot of "no's" before we hear a "yes." Because of this, many people quit before they see any fruit for their labor.

If you are where God wants you to be, doing what God wants you to do, in time your effort will bear fruit. Results will come. Keep sowing. Don't give up.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

The Sower & The Seed part 4

Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain....¹⁸Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word;¹⁹but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. (Mark 4:7 & 18)

Misplaced priorities will choke the work of God in our lives. Perhaps you have already experienced this in your life. You are hearing and responding to God's Word, life is moving forward, your life is bearing fruit... and some how you get sidetracked by other things. You lose your focus and not very long afterwards, you begin to spiritually shrivel.

The thorn bushes of life spring up subtly and suddenly. We must be ever on our guard against misplaced priorities. Are the worries of this world choking the work of God in your life? Is making money more important to you than growing spiritually? Are you battling with desires that are not pleasing to our Lord?

It's vital that we evaluate our priorities on a regular basis. We must remain focussed on the most important things and remind ourselves that as we focus on Christ, and His work in our lives, all the other things fall into their proper place.

The Sower & The Seed: part 3

Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root....¹⁶Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. ¹⁷But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. (Mark 4:5-6, 16-17)

As we continue to share The Message, broadly casting the seeds of God's grace to all who will listen, we will encounter people who will receive it with much excitement. Of course, this lifts our spirits as we see fruit for our labor. For a time, these new people are with us in church and it is a really good feeling knowing they are with us because of our talking with them.

Then suddenly, one Sunday morning, we notice that they are not there. The next Sunday, they are not around either. Oddly enough, we cannot find them anywhere. They don't answer their telephone or respond to our emails. It is as if they have vanished.

This is going to happen with a certain percentage of people. Trouble comes... life gets difficult... and instead of pressing into God, they fall away. What are we to do? According to this parable, we are to continue sowing our good seed. The seed is good. The farmer is doing the right thing. Don't take it personally when people fall away. It's not you... and it certainly isn't the seed.

The Sower & The Seed: part 2

As he was scattering seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.... 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. (Mark 4: 4 & 15)

When we share God's message with those around us, whether by way of our testimony or by simply inviting them to join us at church on Sunday, we can get discouraged when we do not get a positive response. Every person who has attempted to bring a friend or family member with them to church has had the experience of that person telling them, "Yes, I'll be there," only to have them not show on Sunday. It can be disappointing as you stand in the lobby, waiting for this person, the worship service is starting, and you come to the realization that they are not showing up.

What happened? According to Jesus, the birds got them. (Sounds like an Alfred Hitchcock movie, doesn't it!)

There are several lessons we can pull from this and whether we are seeking to win our friends to Christ, or we are in a teaching position and are tempted to wonder why people are not receiving and applying what God has given us to share, these lessons will help us keep from taking rejection of the message personal.

1) Satan is at work seeking to hinder what God is working to accomplish through us. Our enemy has a twofold purpose. He wants to keep others from receiving our message AND he wants to discourage us from sharing that message with other people.

2) Satan has birds. For example, let's say you invite a co-working to attend worship with you. They go home and tell their spouse of their plans, only to hear, "You're not buying into that religion junk, are you?" There's a bird. Or, they get up Sunday morning and as they are getting ready the phone rings and it's a buddy with a better offer (at least to them) to go play golf. There's another bird. Saturday night they are out with friends for some strange reason stay out later than normal. You guessed it, another bird.

3) Chasing birds is useless. This may be where the enemy wants to lead us... but we are better off to reject this option.

4) The farmer is not at fault. We tend to blame ourselves when this happens... don't! Instead, like the farmer in Jesus' story, keep on sowing your seed. Our responsibility is to sow good seed. Let God take care of the rest.

The Sower & The Seed: part 1

"A farmer went out to sow his seed... The farmer sows the word." (Mark 4:3 & 14)

Whether we are sharing the gospel with an unbeliever, inviting someone to our church, or leading a Bible Study, it is easy to take the rejection of our message personally. When this happens, we become discouraged and stop sharing the vital, life-changing truths of God. The parable of the sower serves to remind us of how God's Word operates in the lives of people and how we, as believers, are to view our responsibility in broadcasting His message.

We are to share our message and leave the results to God. As we study this parable, we see that sharing the Word is a numbers game of sorts. The farmer sowed a lot of seed, not all of the seed produced grain, but some did. Here are a couple of lessons for us to remember concerning sowing:

1) So broadly. The farmer in Jesus' teaching did not seem to be too particular in where he cast his seed. He generously spread it, not worrying whether the ground it fell upon was good ground.

When it comes to sharing God's Word, we really don't know how well the people we are talking with are prepared to receive it. So, sow it anyway! When we do this, we will reach a lot more people than we would otherwise reach. The mistake many make is deciding for others whether they want to hear what we have to say or not.

2) Don't take rejection personally. Jesus gives several reason why people do not receive the Message. None of them are the result of the farmer not being a good farmer! When people reject the Message, we can learn from this parable why that happens. In fact, we'll be looking at that over the next few days.

How Far Will You Go for a Friend?

Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on.⁵When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven." (Mark 2:4-5)

The story of the paralyzed man who was healed by Jesus is one of the most touching stories in the Gospels. Had this man not had four friends who cared enough about him to take the time out of their day to carry Him to Jesus, he would have never experienced forgiveness of his sins and healing from his condition.

His four friends truly went the extra mile to take care of their infirmed pal. Imagine them carrying their friend through the streets of Capernaum, coming up to the house where Jesus was teaching, and finding it packed with people. The doorway was crammed with people trying to get a glimpse of the Miracle Worker. Others were hanging over the windows, watching and hoping for a miracle of their own.

These men could have easily been discouraged and thought to themselves, "Well, I guess today is not our day. Let's take him back home and we'll try again next time."

But they would not be defeated. They took their buddy up on the roof, dug a hole through the roof (I'm sure the homeowner was really excited about that!), and lowered the paralyzed man down to a front row seat.

We all need friends like that! And... to have friends like that, we must first BE a friend like that! When was the last time you went the extra mile for a friend?

Touching the Untouchables

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, "If you are willing, you can make me clean." Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. (Mark 1:40-42)

Leprosy rendered a person unclean and untouchable. During ancient times those with this disease were excluded from society due to their contagious and incurable condition. Perhaps this man at one time had a family, a wife and children, but he had not experienced the warmth of their embrace since his diagnosis of this terrible disease. When Jesus encountered this man, He not only healed him; He touched him.

Jesus' ministry is one of loving the unlovable and reaching out to those many would deem unreachable. All of us have people in our lives whose physical, emotional, and spiritual issues repulse us. We would rather not be around them. We have decided that they are hopeless cases. Yet, Jesus reached out to the hopeless cases. As we allow Him to live through us today, we must do the same.

Who do you know that needs a touch from Jesus? We are His hands and His feet. He is still touching the untouchable... through us.

Mark 1:8--The Holy Spirit

"I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." (Mark 1:8)

Jesus came to free us from our sin AND to empower us to live victoriously. His death and resurrection paved the way for our forgiveness. He paid the debt of our sin. His ascension back to heaven opened the door for the sending of the Holy Spirit, who is our power source.

Mention the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and a lot of people get nervous. Because of the excesses of some, far too many believers have side-stepped the vital role the Spirit has in our lives. The truth is, we are powerless to live out our God-given destiny without the Holy Spirit operating in His fullness in our lives. A believer living without the filling of the Spirit will be about as effective as a child's Christmas toy without any batteries.

Instead of fearing the Spirit, we should seek Him, ask for Him, by faith receive Him, and embrace Him.

"I'm baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. His baptism—a holy baptism by the Holy Spirit—will change you from the inside out." (The Message)

Good Friday

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5)

Love drove Jesus to the cross. Every scathing accusation and insult He endured, each lash of the whip, the pounding of the nails, and the agony of such a torturous death was motivated by one thing: God loves us.

The love of God is the most powerful force on this earth. It can change a life and transform a culture. Today, let's take some time to think about God's love for us and how He demonstrated it for us so graphically at the cross.

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.(Romans 5:6-8)

90 Days of Wisdom: Day 90

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. (Proverbs 31:30)

It is tempting to build your life on your outward appearance. Many fall into this trap and this is why millions of dollars are spent every year on botox, face-lifts, and other types of plastic surgery. Looking like a 20-something doesn't last forever, yet many try to maintain an impossible appearance.

Charm and flattery may gain some immediate attention, but once a person's real character is detected, those who were at first attracted to you are gone. Let's face it, superficial relationships don't last.

Instead, we should focus on that which lasts forever and appreciates over time. Our walk with the Lord, is the only eternal quality we carry through this life. As we age, our looks may depreciate... but if we are walking with the Lord, our inner character improves.