Mark 4 - Soil Condition Matters!
Mark 4 - Enduring Word Commentary
The Parable of the Sower
4 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. 2 He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said: 3 “Listen! 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, so that they did not bear grain. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.”
Jesus often taught out in the open air, this time at the shoreline of the sea of Galilee. Jesus used the boat as his pulpit. By this time with all of the miracles he was doing, people were interested in what he had to say. The purpose of the signs and wonders he was doing was to point them to the Father.
Jesus' favorite teaching model was parables. Parables were short stories about something people would know about in this instance farming. The were earthly stories with a heavenly meaning. Since he lived in an agrarian society, many people were farmers. Farmers would have been able to relate to this story of sowing seed in order to produce a crop. In this parable
Jesus gives three different scenarios in which the seed was either productive or not productive. The parable has also been called the "parable of the soils", as the soil condition was the key indicator of whether the seed grow and produce fruit.
In the two negative scenarios, something blocked the growth. The hard path did not allow the seed to go down and take root. The rocky soil appeared to produce some growth, but it was premature because the roots were shallow. When the sun came out, the lack of roots cause the plant to wither and die. But every parable has main point. The main point, like a punchline in a joke. In this one it is about the seed that fell on the good soil.
In the good soil, the seed fulfilled what it was called to do, bear fruit. Not just a little fruit, but a prodigious amount of fruit. Not only did it produce fruit, but importantly it did so exponentinally. Jesus will now teach how likely people would be to respond..
9 Then Jesus said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” 10 When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables. 11 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 12 so that, “‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’”
One of the key aspects of parables is that they reward those who seek their meaning and application. Also, parables unlock the secrets to the kingdom of God. Remember Matthew used the term "kingdom of heaven", whereas here Mark uses the "kingdom of God", but they really mean the same thing. Matthew, a Jew, was probably less likely to use the word "God".
The disciples, who wanted the things of God, were given to know the mystery of the kingdom – they could be spoken to plainly. But others were often taught with parables. In the Bible, a mystery isn’t something you can’t figure out. It is something that you would not know unless God revealed it to you. In the Biblical sense of the idea, you may know exactly what a mystery is, yet it is still a mystery because you would not have known unless God revealed it. - Guzik
13 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14 The farmer sows the word. 15 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. 16 Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17 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. 18 Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19 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. 20 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.”
Jesus gives three reasons the seed, whose sole purpose was to bear fruit, did not bear any fruit. The first culprit was Satan. We know Satan's primary mission is to keep the Word of God (Jesus) from being planted in a man's heart. The seed sown among the rocks is the seed that is not able to stand trouble or persecution. We all know being a Christian in our world is not easy. There were be times where you will wonder if it is worth it to follow Christ. You may even persecuted for your faith like many millions of people are around the world. If your roots do not go deep into God's Word, as you abide in Jesus, you will not last for very long. Finally, we know that this world is always trying to lure Christians away by appealing to our worldly desires. Whether it is the lusts of the flesh, the love of money, or a lust for power, they promise everything and end up giving nothing.
But fortunately there is the Good News of the Good Seed. The Good News is the seed which not only hears the word, accepts it, but also most importantly reproduces itself many times over. There are different yields of each seed, but they all reproduce themselves. This reminds us of the Great Commission Jesus will give the disciples before he ascended to heaven.
Some people hear the Word about Jesus, accept it and don't do anything with it. But God's purpose for us is to hear about Jesus, accept Him as our Savior, and then spread the Good News to the whole world. While the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control, the fruit of a disciple is making more disciples.
In the parable of the vineyard, a master rented out a vineyard to some tenants. One day he sent his servants to collect fruit, and they were beaten up by the tenants. This happened over and over until finally, he sent His only Son and they killed him. One day the master would return to the Vineyard and all the tenants would have to give account. How much harvest did they produce.
The point of the message is Jesus will return and people who have been given charge over the Vineyard (which could mean the Church) will be accountable for how they managed it.
The question is what kind of soil are you? As we listen God's Word, as it is preached and taught, and apply it to our lives, we will be Christians who bear fruit for the kingdom of God.
A Lamp on a Stand
21 He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? 22 For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear.” 24 “Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. 25 Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.”
Just as a seed's sole purpose is to bear fruit, a lamp sole purpose is to shine light. No one buys a lamp and hides it under a bushel. That would be dumb.
By its very nature, light is meant to be revealed. Truth is the same way, and God promises that it will be revealed. But that it should come to light: We must not hide this light. If you have the truth of God, you have a solemn responsibility to spread that truth in whatever way God gives you opportunity. It is just as someone who has the cure for a life-threatening disease has the moral responsibility to spread that cure. God didn’t light your lamp so that it would remain hidden. - Guzik
Jesus reminds us that spiritual growth follows momentum, positive or negative. When we have the godly habits of receiving the word and living it, more is built on to that. When we lose those godly habits, they are extremely difficult to get back.
The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”
Jesus goes back to the metaphor of a seed planted which slowly day and night grows because of its very nature. The soil by itself produces grain. It reminds me of the saying, "God's kingdom is going to grow the question is it going to grow through us."
We pray, "Thy kingdom come and thy will be done", when we recite the Lord's Prayer. The reality is God's kingdom will come. It has been coming since the day Jesus arrived, and it will be consummated when He returns. It grows surely and slowly, as we faithfully preach the gospel and be the kind of people Jesus would be if he were us. It grows as we are led by the Spirit to do the things Jesus did. Remember he said, "You will do even greater things than I because I am going to the Father and will send you my Spirit." John 14:12, Luke 24:49
How exactly the seed grows is a mystery to the farmer. Though it grows by a process he cannot see nor fully account for, he has faith in the growing process. So it is with the Kingdom of God: we work in partnership with God, yet the real work is left up to Him – we trust in a process we cannot see nor fully account for.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”
This parable is very similar to the previous one. It shows that God can work with any amount of faith. When we give what little we have in faith, God can use it mightily to grow his kingdom in ways we could not imagine.
Jesus Calms the Storm
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” 33 With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. 34 He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.
“Now the teaching was over; He was weary; He was craving for a period of rest. And so He bade His disciples to cross the lake, and that is the moment to which our text refers – they took Him even as He was… They had not waited till any cloaks were brought. They had not sent a messenger ashore. Weary, and probably hungry, they had taken Him even as He was.” (Morrison)
It was not their fear of the storm that made Jesus say they had no faith. A small boat in a big storm is a scary place, and the initial fear itself isn’t wrong. What the disciples chose to do with the fear made all the difference. (Guzik)
In the span of a few moments, the disciples saw both the complete humanity of Jesus and the fullness of His deity. They saw Jesus for who He is: truly man and truly God. (Guzik)
All this shows the abiding care Jesus has for His people. “There are many Christians today who seem to think the boat is going down! I am tired of the wailing of some of my friends who take that view. The boat cannot go down. Jesus is on board.” (Morgan)
Question to Consider:
1. What kind of fruit are yielding? What might be stopping you from bearing more fruit based on the three obstacles we discused? (I.e. Satan, trials and persecutions, the love of things in the world)
2. Where is God calling you to exercise a mustard seed of faith in your life right now?
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