This morning we continue our series entitled, “Refined Focus”. Last week I introduced you to the parable of the sower. Let’s get back to it today. Jesus said:
“The farmer is like someone who plants God’s teaching in people. Sometimes the teaching falls on the path. That is like some people who hear the teaching of God. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the teaching that was planted in them.
Other people are like the seed planted on rocky ground. They hear the teaching, and they quickly and gladly accept it. But they don’t allow it to go deep into their lives. They keep it only a short time. As soon as trouble or persecution comes because of the teaching they accepted, they give up.
Others are like the seed planted among the thorny weeds. They hear the teaching, but their lives become full of other things: the worries of this life, the love of money, and everything else they want. This keeps the teaching from growing, and it does not produce a crop in their lives.
And others are like the seed planted on the good ground. They hear the teaching and accept it. Then they grow and produce a good crop—sometimes 30 times more, sometimes 60 times more, and sometimes 100 times more.” (Mark 4:13-20 ERV)
Jesus mentions four types of soil. Thus far we have only covered the first: the soil along the path. This soil represents the people who hear the Word of God, but do not understand it. Because their understanding is unfruitful, satan comes immediately and snatches the Word from their hearts. As we seek to further investigate this type of person, I am led to share with you something Matthew documented about this same story.
In Matthew’s account Jesus explained, “This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving”… But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.” (Matthew 13:13, 14 & 16).
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
- The Father can give spiritual understanding of His Word, but to those who are not sensitive to receive that understanding, the Word of God makes no sense.
- The Word of God is alive. The Bible is a spiritual book designed to speak to your spirit, not your senses. This is why the Bible does not have to make sense. You cannot validate the teachings of the Bible with sense-realm evidence.
- Understanding the Word of God requires faith; a faith that perceives God’s words to be true even without sense-realm evidence to validate them.
- If you have the faith to see the Word, hear the Word, and understand the Word of God, your life will be changed forever.
- You must approach the Word of God with spiritual eyes and ears. If you do, the Holy Spirit will give your spirit divine understanding.
- If it is true that satan can (and will) come immediately to snatch the Word away from those who do not understand what God was saying, then it is also true that he cannot snatch the Word from you when you have divine understanding. When you comprehend the Word of God, with a spiritual comprehension that can only come by God’s Spirit, you are in position to retain that Word. That Word is then seed that will produce a harvest in your life.
- Spiritual understanding is critical, because you will never maximize what you do not understand.
Closing Confession: Father, this is a season of refined focus for me. I bring my life into focus in 2016 by giving careful attention to Your Word. Your Spirit enables me to SEE the Word, HEAR the Word, and UNDERSTAND the Word of God, so I am changed by the Word I SEE, HEAR and UNDERSTAND. Your Word is an incorruptible seed, whereby I was Born-Again. Now that I am made new, I get Your Word down in my heart continually. Your Word comes through my eye gate and my ear gate every day. Once it’s in there, it produces as seed. Your Word is the seed and my heart is the soil. Your Word produces a harvest in my life. It produces change IN me and fruit FROM me, making me a blessing everywhere I go. I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
