This morning, we continue our series on “The Parables of Jesus.” We will seek to glean “Pearls from the Parables.”
Before we get to the parable, let’s look at a scripture we have been looking at all year. This is something I believe the Lord wants us to meditate on.
(Psalm 126:4 TPT)
Now, Lord, do it again! Restore us to our former glory! May streams of your refreshing flow over us until our dry hearts are drenched again.
This is a season of refreshing and restoring for us.
We have been looking at “The Mother of All Parables.” Let’s get back to it today. Jesus said:
(Mark 4:13-20 ERV)
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.
Yesterday I told you that the soil in our hearts does not discriminate. We will flow in this same vein today.
In response to yesterday’s message, one of you responded and said, “You really brought Prov 4:23 to life this morning.” So, as we get into Part 2, let’s look at this scripture in three translations. It will help set the tone for today’s message.
Proverbs 4:23
New International Version
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
New Living Translation
Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
Good News Translation
Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. If you want to be successful as a believer, you must regularly examine the condition of your heart.
— Take time to reflect on your thoughts, attitudes, and desires.
— Self-reflection and introspection are key to maintaining the condition of your heart.
— Allow the Holy Spirit to reveal any areas that need to be surrendered and aligned with God’s Word.
— Maintain a heart that is open and responsive to the divine promptings of the Holy Spirit. He will show you where you are going astray.
— Be willing to surrender any ungodly desires, wrong motives, or hidden sin to Him.
2. Sow the seed of God’s Word into your heart intentionally and consistently.
— You must get God’s Word through your eye and ear gates regularly if you expect the Word to overtake the weeds (in your heart) and not vice versa.
— Read scripture (to get breadth), study it (to get depth), and meditate on it (to be changed).
— Let His Word saturate your heart and mind, knowing that as you sow His Word, you will reap a bountiful harvest of spiritual growth, wisdom, and understanding.
— As you sow the seed of His Word into the soil of your heart, it takes root, sprouts, and bears fruit.
— The more you saturate your heart and mind with God’s Word, the deeper its roots grow, resulting in increased a changed life!
3. Choose to prioritize the Word of God above all else.
— Make a commitment to seek God’s Word daily and apply it to your life.
— Allow the Word to shape your decisions, actions, and priorities. By doing so, you create an environment in your heart that is yielded to God and open to His divine purpose.
— You will read other books, receive other content, watch videos online, and receive teaching and advice from all sorts of people. But you must make the Word of God your foundation. This means that if you receive teaching that is contrary to the Word of God, you will place the Word of God above it!
— When the Word of God has first place in your life, you refuse to make decisions that go against it.
— When you are committed to living your life based on the convictions you have that are based on God and His Word, you will know which thoughts to receive and which ones to reject. This builds character, and it positions you to walk in another level of grace to become the man/woman you are destined to be.
4. Trust in the faithfulness of God’s Word.
— I wish I could tell you that when God promises something, everything is going to be easy. But honestly, many times, it’s the opposite. You just cannot give up on what God said.
— Even when you face challenges, setbacks, or delays, hold fast to the promises of God. Know that His Word is unchanging and will accomplish what it is sent to do.
— Remind yourself of His faithfulness in the past and the testimonies of those who have seen His Word come to fruition.
— As you sow the seed of His Word into the soil of your heart, you can rest in your belief that it will bear fruit in due season according to His perfect timing.
— Trust in His sovereignty and rest in the assurance that His Word never returns void.
5. Embrace the responsibility of stewarding your heart well and do it by the grace of God.
— Stewarding your heart is a profound responsibility entrusted to you by God. Remember, God will allow whatever you allow. God will permit whatever you permit.
— God has given you the power and grace to manage what you think about all day. You get to choose what you give your attention to. If you don’t use this power (grace) wisely, you will feed the weeds in your heart and starve the Word. If you do that, in a sense, you sabotage yourself in your own mind.
— Take intentional steps to sow seeds of faith, love, and obedience, allowing them to take root and produce a harvest in alignment with God’s will.
— Nourish your heart with the truth of His Word, nurture a spirit of gratitude and worship, and cultivate a lifestyle of obedience to His commands.
— By fulfilling this responsibility, you position yourself to experience a harvest of abundant blessings and spiritual transformation that brings glory to God.
I will use myself as an example:
I know the Lord led me to leave the former company I was with, even though I loved it, because He wanted me to join my wife at Inspired Solutions, and He has plans for Inspired. Now that I am with Inspired, I must “guard my heart with all diligence” because satan will do all he can to get my heart to drift. Satan is constantly attempting to sow seeds of fear, doubt, failure, and unbelief in my heart. I wish I could tell you that since I have been walking with God consistently for almost three decades, that I would be exonerated from such attacks. But I would be lying. Actually, the greater the assignment, the greater the attack.
Remember the pattern I shared with you earlier in this series: God comes, His Word comes, faith comes, but then satan comes. I know what God said to me about Inspired Solutions, so I must meditate on that. The more I remind myself of what God said and why I am doing what I do, the more OPEN my heart will remain to the divine impulses of the Holy Spirit so we can experience what He wants this business to do.
To be clear, I have the power to steward my heart, but I also have the ability to allow it to go astray. If I do, and I succumb to satan’s attacks, I will experience failure, and it will not be God’s fault. It will be my fault because He gave me the grace to steward my heart, and I failed to embrace that grace and do so!
I hope this further drives home the importance of guarding your heart. Your does not discriminate. If you allow seeds of fear, failure, doubt, worry, and unbelief to take root, those things will grow like wildfire in your heart and mind, and your life will be out of control. Not because God wanted you to fail. You failed to embrace the grace to steward your heart and mind.
In closing, I will repeat the scripture we started with. Solomon said, “Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” (Proverbs 4:23).
Declaration of Faith:
Father, this is a season of refreshing and restoring for me! I boldly declare:
I commit to regularly examining the condition of my heart.
I surrender any areas that need alignment with Your Word. I am quick to change.
I am open and responsive to the divine promptings of the Holy Spirit.
I intentionally sow the seed of God’s Word into my heart, and I meditate on it day and night.
I prioritize Your Word, Father, above all else. It is the foundation for my life and living.
I trust in Your faithfulness, Father, even when facing challenges and setbacks. You will never fail!
I steward my heart well by managing my thoughts and attention. I choose to give my attention to things that will keep me on the path to my destiny.
I sow seeds of faith, love, and obedience and position myself for the life You destined me to live.
I guard my heart with all diligence, for it determines the course of my life.
Living this way, I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
1 comment
Powerful word