“Again, Jesus began to teach by the lake. . . .  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said, “Listen!  A farmer went out to sow his seed. . . .  Still other seed fell on good soil.  It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times. . . .   Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, receive it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown.”  (Mark 4:1a, 2, 8, 20)
 
We’ve been listening to Jesus tell His story about a farmer who sows his seed.  The farmer is God and the seed is the Word.
 
This week we finally get to the good soil.  We’ve heard about the path and the birds.  We’ve heard about the rocks and the sun.  We’ve heard about the thorns.  Last of all, there is the seed that falls on good soil and produces a bountiful crop.
 
What makes soil good?  The farmer prepares it.  He breaks up the soil and removes all the rocks.  He gets rid of all the weeds.  He uses fertilizer to enrich the soil and add nutrients.
 
How does God prepare you to hear His Word?  He uses His Law.  The Law of God shows you your sinfulness and your need for a Savior.  The Law commands you to love God and love your neighbor, but you know that you have not been loving to others.  The Law condemns you as guilty and deserving of eternal death.
 
When you are crushed by the law, when the law breaks you apart and pulverizes you, then the Good News of the Gospel comes.  Yes, you are a sinner, but Jesus Christ loves you and died in your place.  You do not need to fear death and punishment because Jesus has taken care of everything for you.  And this leads you to bear fruit in your life.
 
The reason why the farmer plants the seed is for the grain it will produce.  He doesn’t just want rows upon rows of good-looking plants.  He wants those plants to bear grain.  And they do, up to one hundred times what was planted.
 
Jesus cares for you and gives you growth so that you produce a crop- more grain, more seed.  Remember that the seed is the Word of God?  As you grow and mature in your faith, you will be the one sowing seed, speaking God’s Word to others around you.  Just like with the different soils, sometimes people will hear the word and not respond, because of Satan or persecution or the worries and cares of this life, but in the heart of those the Lord has prepared, the seed will sprout and grow and bear an abundant crop.
 
Loving Father, thank you for preparing my heart to receive your word.  Grant that I bear an abundant harvest in my life for Your Name and Your glory.  Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

“Again, Jesus began to teach by the lake. . . .  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said, “Listen!  A farmer went out to sow his seed. . . .  Other seed fell among the thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. . . .   Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 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.”  (Mark 4:1a, 2, 7, 18-19)
 
We’ve been listening to Jesus tell His story about a farmer who sows his seed.  The farmer is God and the seed is the Word.
 
This week we hear about the seed sown among the thorns.  Like the seed sown on rocky soil, it sprouts and grows.  This seed is actually in good soil, in fact, it’s so good that other plants- weeds and thistles- grow there, too.  When the seed has to compete for water and nutrients with the weeds, it is choked out and dies.
 
As a pastor, this is probably the problem I encounter the most.  There are some people out there who have received the word and totally ignored it throughout their lives.  There are others who face persecution and wither away.  But more than anything, I am confronted by the problem of weeds in people’s lives.  I can’t tell you how many excuses people give for avoiding Jesus.
 
We all lead busy lives, and we can always find something else to do.  Even in a facility like the one you’re in, there are always lots of activities to keep busy with.  You can always find something else to do, even if it’s watching TV, reading the paper or visiting a friend.
 
All of these things can choke out your faith, but the real concern that Jesus has is for “the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things.”  Worry is the opposite of faith.  When you worry, you don’t trust in God to take care of you.  You assume that your problems are too big for God.  And you trust in other things, like wealth, to take care of you.  As you know, however, your wealth will not ultimately take care of you.  Money runs out, and things get lost or stolen or wear out over time.  Even if you manage to live a comfortable life here on earth, your wealth will not get you into heaven.
 
Your only hope is not to trust in wealth or other things, but in Jesus Christ, who died for you.  Jesus wore a crown made of the thorns of your sinfulness so that you would have forgiveness and eternal life.
 
Loving Father, remove the weeds and thorns from my life.  Give me faith to trust in you and your Son alone for my life both here and now and in eternity.  Through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever

“Again, Jesus began to teach by the lake. . . .  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said, “Listen!  A farmer went out to sow his seed. . . .  Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil.  It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.  But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. . . .   Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy.  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.”  (Mark 4:1a, 2, 5-6, 16-17)
 
We’ve been listening to Jesus tell His story about a farmer who sows his seed.  The farmer is God and the seed is the Word.
 
This week we hear about the seed sown in rocky places.  This seed does better than the seed sown along the path.  That seed is snatched away by the birds before it has a chance to sprout.  This seed actually sprouts and grows, but eventually withers in the hot sun because it has no roots.
 
There are some people who receive God’s Word gladly.  Perhaps who were raised in the church, or perhaps came to faith later in life.  In the beginning, everything was easy.  Their friends and family were supportive, they enjoyed coming to church, and life was good.  They had joy.
 
But that doesn’t usually last.  Jesus tells us that life as a Christian will be a struggle.  Just as He was persecuted, so you will be persecuted.  It won’t always be fun to be a Christian.  Notice what Jesus says here.  He’s not talking about general “hard times” that every goes through.  Jesus refers to “trouble or persecution [that] comes because of the word.”  When this comes, many will fall away.
 
The hot sun beats down on all the plants.  They all experience the same persecution, the same troubles that come from believing God’s Word.  Some wither while others don’t.  Why is this?
 
Some of the plants have deep roots, the kind of roots that can reach to find moisture even deep underground.  These plants can survive heat and drought.  Other plants have shallow roots.  When all the moisture near the surface of the ground is dried up, the plants dry up, too.
 
If you are going to survive the heat of trouble and persecution, you will need deep roots, a deep faith that trusts that God is with you even when it’s painful, even when it’s hard to be a Christian.  You will need roots that tap into the resources that Jesus gives you to sustain you in difficult times.  If you try to survive on your own, you will wither and dry up.  If your roots reach deep into Jesus Christ, He will sustain you no matter how difficult things get.
 
Loving Father, you sow your seed far and wide.  Keep Satan from taking the word from us, that under your care it may grow and flourish among us.  Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

“Again, Jesus began to teach by the lake. . . .  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said, “Listen!  A farmer went out to sow his seed.  As he was scattering the 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 4:1a, 2-4, 15)
 
Last week we were introduced to the farmer who goes out to sow his seed.  The farmer is God and the seed is His Word.  He does all the work in planting and caring for his crops.
 
But not every seed survives and grows to bear fruit.  Not everyone who hears God’s Word becomes an active, faithful Christian.  This fact can be challenging, and the disciples were asking Jesus about it, which is why He tells this story.
 
You probably wonder about this, too.  You probably have family members and close friends that you’ve talked to about Jesus, maybe more than once, but they still don’t believe.  They haven’t responded to the message.  Why is this?
 
Jesus gives three answers, and we’ll look at the first one this week.  Sometimes Satan comes down and snatches the Word of God away like a hungry bird pecking at seeds.
 
I don’t have many problems with birds in my garden.  Most of the seeds I plant are planted too deep in the ground for the birds to get them.  Rabbits, however, are a different story.  Our neighborhood is infested with rabbits.  For the first two years I had a vegetable garden, we had problems with rabbits getting in.  I had a fence up, but they kept finding ways to get in the garden.  Finally, this spring I added a new section of fence and they haven’t made it into the garden, at least not yet.
 
Just like those rabbits wanted to get at the vegetables, so Satan wants to take the word of God out of your heart.  One reason why some people don’t believe is simply that they don’t listen to God’s Word.  Their hearts are hard and they may hear God’s Word, but they never truly listen to it because Satan convinces them that it’s not important, that it’s not for them, that it doesn’t apply to them.  And before the word has a chance to sink in and grow, it’s gone.
 
The good news is that God doesn’t just sow once.  Even if the seed doesn’t take root this season, there’s always next season.  And God sows even in the most unusual places, where you don’t expect anything to grow.  Sometimes, even despite Satan’s best efforts, the seed manages to take hold and sprout and grow.  Have you ever seen plants growing up through the cracks in sidewalks and driveways?  That gives us hope that not all the seed that falls along the path will perish.
 
Loving Father, you sow your seed far and wide.  Keep Satan from taking the word from us, that under your care it may grow and flourish among us.  Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever