Mark Chapter 4:1-20

4:1-2 and again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:

Previously Jesus taught in the synagogue but here we see Jesus taking his message once again out to where the people were and taking advantage of the natural acoustics of water to make his message heard to the multitudes. Unlike in the more formal setting of a synagogue in this open air setting people were free to come and go as they pleased. Like most stories this parable would easily grab the attention of those listening and give them a compact and compelling idea to think about for themselves when they moved along on their way. Jesus used simple everyday things to talk of God and showed us that you don’t have to be a scholar to understand God. You can see God within his creation that surrounds us (Rms. 1:20).

Jesus took advantage of his natural surroundings to spread his message. How have we taken advantage of our natural surroundings to spread the gospel? How can we take better advantage of our surroundings in the future? (Acts 17:22, 1 Cor. 9:22, 2 Tim. 4:2)

4:3-9 “Listen! Behold, a Sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.” 9 And He said to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

We’ll discuss the interpretation of this parable later so here we’ll just outline the types of soil listed.

• Wayside – the hard packed soil or paths that surrounded the field. Like pavement these hardened paths are no place for seeds to grow. As the Sower went from one part of his field to another invariably some of the see would fall upon the path.
• Stony ground – this ground had a covering of topsoil but underneath the topsoil was thin and the rocks beneath did not hold enough water to sustain life when the hot sun rose in the heat of day
• Thorny ground – this soil was good enough for life but had been corrupted by the undesirable seeds of weeds and thorns that grow out of control and leave no room for other crops
• Good ground – this soil was porous enough to allow the seeds to gain root and provide protection from predators, it was deep enough to store moisture even during the heat of the day and pure from aggressive weeds and thorns

Even though 3 of the 4 types of soil produce no crop Jesus predicted a handsome return on the Sower’s investment. This return is an example of God’s desire to complete the work that he starts (Phil 1:6)

4:10-11 But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. 11 And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, 12 so that ‘ Seeing they may see and not perceive, And hearing they may hear and not understand; Lest they should turn, And their sins be forgiven them.’”

Why did Jesus teach in parables? Does this statement by Jesus mean that he desired to keep the kingdom of God a mystery to the people around him?

Mystery used in this context refers not to something that is purposefully hidden and concealed but to a knowledge that is available only to those who seek it. The parable is designed to make people think and personally unlock the mystery of God. Jesus could have stated the mystery of the Kingdom of God with such clarity that nobody could have refuted his accuracy. Until a person seeks out the Kingdom of God personally and takes that knowledge beyond their mind and into their heart, life and actions there is no value in that knowledge.

The passage that Jesus quoted here is from Isa. 6:9-10 and is spoken to the people of Israel who have heard God’s truths but do not understand or lived by them. The statement is somewhat facetious, as it attempts to shame Israel into turning away from their empty head knowledge. Having a solid academic foundation is important and we should all strive to know all we possibly can about God’s Word and his truths but knowledge and doctrine without a changed heart is worthless. Knowledge that is not lived out in our lives is not really knowledge at all. It is these type of people who look in the mirror and then instantly forget what they look like (Jam 1:23-24).

How do we take our knowledge of God and put it into action and not become like the people of Israel who heard everything but understood little?

In your own life how could simple head knowledge manifest itself in your life? What steps can you take personally to ensure that the knowledge you have received is knowledge of the heart and not only of the mind?

The mystery of the kingdom of God was given to the disciples because they had the right heart. The asked Jesus to help them unlock what they did not understand and their seeking opened up the mystery. They mystery can be known to use as well if we ask with the right heart.

4:13-20 And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The Sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

These soils represent the ways and attitudes in which people accept the gospel. Additionally they can also represent our lives at different times and circumstances.

• Wayside – represents the hardened heart that may physically hear the word of God but takes no time to think it through our apply it. This hardened heart could be the heart of a person who simply never opens up to God or the heart of a person who perhaps was open at one time but has become so downtrodden and walked upon that they are simply too calloused to hear God’s voice. The world can beat us down pretty good at times.

• Stony ground – represents those people or times when we start out well and with good intentions but failed to comprehend the cost before beginning. As a result the foundation for growth is shallow and when times get hard all hope is given up.

  If you want to grow a good garden in the desert you must remove and break up the existing clay and prepare the ground with new soil. In many of us there are rocks of bitterness, hurt and resentment that exist in our spirits just below the surface. We start and start again but can never maintain growth because we haven’t allowed the Holy Spirit to dig up these rocks and remove this bitterness and hurt form our lives. Over time the good soil on the surface that covers the rocks will be removed we may become hardened.

  To get past this point we must remove the thin covering of ourselves and dig up the rocks of child hood scars, bitterness at work against our employers or at home with our wives. Maybe even resentment against the church. Unless we embark on the painful and hard work we will be unable to sustain any real growth.

• Thorny ground – multiplicity of interests leaves no place for Christ. Concerning God’s Kingdom too often “we forget because we must and not because we will” or want to. When we take on too many responsibilities and opportunities we leave no place for Christ to work in our lives and no time to dissect and apply God’s word to ourselves personally. There were likely many who heard Jesus that day by the sea who were quickly carried away back into commerce or family and took no time to dissect this parable.

  How we structure our time is important if we don’t want to be included in the number of people who are choked out by the cares of this world and in the end “see and not perceive”.

• Good ground – hears the word in its mind, receives the truth of that word into its heart and then puts the truth into action. We must learn, we must meditate, we must find application and then we must act. Like faith, knowledge without action is dead (Jam. 2:17)

The unfortunate reality of the three types of bad soil in our daily lives can be overwhelming at times and almost depressing. But in verse 20 we are given hope. For even if the places of good soil are few and far between God is the one who actually grows the seed who will produce uncommon results where ever the good soil can be found.

How has your spiritual journey been affected by these four types of soil? What does it tell us about God’s heart that he’s willing to provide so much return from the good soil that is found?

Conclusion

“Although part of the seed never grew, the fact remained that at the end of the day there was a splendid harvest.” – Wm. Barclay

The seed is God’s to grow and we ourselves our God’s seed which will not perish (1 Pet. 1:23). Though in our lives we will constantly be threatened by hardness, shallowness and the demanding chaos of everyday life God will provide a harvest if we simply will not give up (Gal. 6:9).

There is no magic formula for perseverance but if we seek God’s Holy Spirit he will provide it (Gal. 5:22). Ours is only to ask, “Am I understanding only in my mind or does my heart and my life reflect what I’ve learned?”