“Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has will be taken from him” (Luke 8:18; Jesus speaking).
In Chapter 8, Luke records that Jesus teaches the Parable of the Sower, explaining to His disciples that “the seed is the word of God” (Luke 8:11).
He clearly states what is meant by the Seed that falls on the pathway, that these are the people “who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved” (Luke 8:12).
He continues, explaining that those with “no root” may hang in with the church crowd for a while, but that “the time of testing” (v. 13) proves that their religion was of the head and not the heart – that they’d never put their faith in “the root of David” (Revelation 5:5).
In Verse 14 Jesus explains about the Seed that was scattered among the thorns. These “thorns” are the believers who stay in diapers, “choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, [so that] they do not mature.”
And then comes Verse 15. Here Jesus talks about the Seed that is sown in good soil. He said these are the kind of believers He wants us to be, those “who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.”
What does it mean to “persevere?” Don’t miss this: It’s “to persist in anything undertaken; maintain a purpose in spite of difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement; continue steadfastly”(www.Dictionary.com). Jesus didn’t say, “Serve Me and you’ll have it easy.” He didn’t say, “Living for Me and spreading the Good News will make your life problem-free.” No, He said that those who truly love Him will sow the Seed of the Gospel IN SPITE of the difficulties and for one big reason: because He said to.
Jesus has two more interesting statements to add to His talk with the disciples before we get to our starting verse for today. I’ll save all that for tomorrow. For now, let me ask you: Are YOU “produc[ing] a crop?” You betcha. Think about it: what can a “thorn” produce? More “thorns.” “Thorns” hinder the growth of the Kingdom. It takes “good soil” for the Seed to multiply, spreading the Good News of the Kingdom.
“Our lives can become cluttered by many things. Some are obvious, such as material things, the stuff we collect. I really wish I were able to give a lesson on how to prioritize the material things – how to sort them, dispose of some, and put the rest in order – but I'm not qualified... But how well I know that we can surround ourselves with the material things to the extent that we have no time for the spiritual. Look around and you will see all the gadgets and toys and the nice and the fun things that cause us to squander and pay and to wander and play.” (William R. Bradford)
Unless otherwise stated, Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (NIV).
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