THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 4:13-20
“Others like seed sown on good soil hear the word and produce a crop.” (Mark 4:20)
In this story Jesus shows how God’s message can fail to produce a good crop.
Some people reject it right away, but many people receive it.
But of those who receive it, not all of them truly experience it.
For some, God’s message doesn’t go deep, and it dies under pressure.
For others, it is choked out by the worries and pleasures of life.
God’s desire is to use Jesus’ words to transform us, make us ‘very good’ again.
According to Jesus the problem is not in the seed but in the soil.
If the heart is not open, receptive, eager, it will not produce a crop.
“Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica,
for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures
every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Acts 17:11)
What kind of soil am I, what kind of result does God’s message have in me?
Is Jesus’ message making me more generous, self-controlled, forgiving, patient?
The Lord is eager to produce a crop of goodness in me… am I?
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I hear You challenging me about ways that I am closed to Your Voice. Even now I can think of some specific ways Satan is deceiving or distracting me. Lord help me.