I trust you have enjoyed the “Leveling Up with the Word!” series. We have studied the parable of the sower for months. We are wrapping up the series this week. This is the first recap.
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 for 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.”
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. The Word of God has the power to change you from the inside out.
In the parable of the sower, I want us to notice the language Jesus used. Once the seed (the Word of God) is sown into the soil (a person’s heart), Jesus did not say that the seed grows. He said the person grows. The seed (God’s Word) causes the soil (you and me) to grow.
— In Romans 12:1&2, the Apostle Paul talks about our minds being renewed through the power of the Word of God. The word used in the original Greek in that passage is the word translated “metamorphosis.” The type of change a caterpillar goes through to become a butterfly is the type of change the Word of God can produce in your life. You can literally become a new person by receiving, digesting, internalizing, believing and applying God’s Word.
— The moment you were Born-Again your spirit was made new. However, your soul was not. Your soul contains your mind (the way you think), emotions (the way you feel), and will (the way you make decisions). While your spirit was made new instantly through the power of the Holy Spirit, your soul must be made new progressively through the power of the Word of God. The more you meditate and medicate on God’s Word, the more you will think, feel and make decisions like God. In this way, you are being changed from the inside out.
2. Words from God are full of spirit and life.
Jesus said, “The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. The very words I have spoken to you are full of spirit and life.” (John 6:63).
— Jesus was the Word of God in the flesh (John 1:1). He was the embodiment of the Word.
— Jesus was the Word, and as He walked around, He spoke the Word. He was the Word speaking the Word. He was also life! So the words He spoke are full of spirit and life.
— When we receive and release the Word of God, we are receiving and releasing the same spirit and life Jesus spoke of. We are receiving and releasing God’s power. It has nothing to do with human effort or ability. When we declare what God has already decreed, God Himself watches over His Word to perform it! (Jer 1:12).
— The parable of the sower is a parable that exalts the power of God’s Word. The emphasis of the parable is on us receiving what God is saying and then allowing the seed of God’s Word to do what it does (produce a harvest) in our lives.
3. God’s Word can help you identify where you and God are NOT in agreement.
(Heb 4:12 AMPC)
For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.
— The Word of God contains the character, attributes, and nature of God. The more we understand the Word of God, the better we will know the God of the Word.
— The Word of God is like a sword that can go down deep into our lives and separate soul from spirit. Our was Born-Again, so it is perfect. Our soul was not Born-Again, so it must be renewed to think and act like God. The Word of God has the power to expose to us where our hearts are not in alignment or agreement with God. Once we know how we are divergent from God’s will, we can decide to repent and come in alignment/agreement with God.
— The Bible is God’s book. It is alive! It can show you where your thoughts, and the intents of your heart, are either in harmony or discord with God.
— Jesus warned against surface-level Christianity because He knew that many would claim to honor Him with their lips, but their hearts would be far from Him (Matthew 15:8). If you are serious about God and His Word, this won’t be you!
4. The soil (a human being) gets to decide how it receives and responds to the seed (the Word of God) – the choice is yours!
In the parable of the sower, the same seed was provided to four types of soil. This seed produced different results. The sower did not cause the variation; it was the same sower. The seed did not cause the variation; it was the same seed. The soil caused the variation. To be clear, you are the soil in the parable.
The composition of your heart and your attitude towards the Word of God will either cause the Word to flourish inside of you, or it will keep the Word from working. I can exalt the power of God’s Word all day, but if you don’t receive the Word properly, and you don’t give it the priority it deserves in your life, the power of the Word will mean nothing to you because it won’t produce for you! However, if you embrace the Word of God, you read it routinely and think about it all the time, it will produce change IN you and fruit FROM you. At first, the change IN you will be something you notice. Before long, others will notice it too. As this process continues, and you keep renewing your mind to think and act like God, you will get to the point where the change is not just IN you. The change will start to flow FROM you. People will come in contact with Jesus when they come in contact with you. I am a witness! This should be our goal.
That’s enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, this is a season of LEVELING UP for me! I LEVEL UP by giving Your Word the attention it deserves. I meditate and medicate on Your Word day and night. I keep it before my eyes. I do not allow it to depart from out of my mouth. I observe to DO what it commands me daily. Living this way I am making an alignment with my divine assignment and I will get to live the life I was born to live. Your will shall be done, on earth, as it is in heaven, THROUGH ME, for Your glory! I experience heaven on earth. GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
