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Yeshua
is the mighty King who came from Heaven (which
is a real place) to Earth to do battle. He is
a great warrior. He personally personally entered
this great battle between good and evil, God and
Satan, to rescue human beings from sin and death
and Hell. Not only is He a mighty warrior, but
He is also a great teacher. So, He is a Warrior
Rabbi who is able to teach us what life is really
about and wants God really wants and expects from
us. We find our Kingly Scholar teaching often,
in various circumstances and locations. In this
section, Rabbi Yeshua is teaching by the shore
of the Kinneret – the Lake of Galilee. Although
the action has moved from the city to the shore
of the lake, huge crowds continued to follow the
popular miracle-working Rabbi. Let’s find out
what the One who is the Word of God, the One who
came from Heaven to Earth, the One who knows reality
better than any other human being, taught these
crowds. He is teaching them in parables. “Parables
were told by Messiah for opposite effects: on
the one hand, to make the truth more engaging
and clear to those who were willing to hear and,
on the other, to make the truth obscure to those
who lacked spiritual concern” (Charles Ryrie).
He has
already give us The Parable of the Sower
– total commitment to the truth is what is required.
Only that will help us endure to the end and produce
the desired results, and be saved.
He has
already give us The Parable of the Lamp
– after we know the truth, our mission is to boldly
declare the truth to those who remain in spiritual
darkness. We must not hide the truth by keeping
quiet in order to make our life easier.
Now, our
Rabbi King gives us two more parables. The first
is The Parable of the Seed. It teaches
us that truth about God and Messiah and salvation
is powerful, and over time, it will produce the
desired result from individual human beings. So
keep on preaching the truth, and don’t get discouraged.
4:26 And
He was saying, "The kingdom of God is like a man
who casts seed upon the soil; and he goes to bed
at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts
and grows – how, he himself does not know. The
soil produces crops by itself; first the blade,
then the head, then the mature grain in the head.
But when the crop permits, he immediately puts
in the sickle, because the harvest has come."
The sons
and daughters of God are like the man who casts
seed upon the soil. The seed is the truth, the
Gospel – this Message of Salvation that is Good
News. The soil is an individual who we hope will
be receptive to the truth.
This parable
tells us that God and man must both work together
in this great mission to redeem human beings.
Together, those of us who know the Lord work with
God in the task of human redemption. We are co-laborers
and partners with the Almighty in the work of
salvation. The Lord has entrusted a great responsibility
to us. The Son of God will not return from Heaven
to Earth and start preaching the Good News to
human beings – until the Second Coming, when His
Torah goes from Jerusalem to the nations. He generally
will not send angels to declare the Message of
Salvation. He uses those of us who know Him to
reach the lost.
Those
who know the Lord have their job to do, and the
Redeemer has His job to do. Our duty is to tell
people the truth that will save them. We are to
boldly and courageously and enthusiastically and
committedly tell people the truth about the lostness
of man, and about this great personal living God
who loves them, and the need for atonement and
reconciliation, and Heaven and Hell and eternal
life, and the salvation made possible by the Messiah.
When we
fulfill our responsibilities, the Lord will also
be at work, watering that seed, taking that truth
that we have communicated to others, and helping
it make an impact in the minds and hearts of those
He is drawing to Himself. He is going to encourage
the truth along, so that it will sprout and grow
and produce good results in the lives of other
human beings. God, through His providence will
water the seed that we plant. He will bring circumstances
and situations into that person’s life that will
help him be more receptive to the truth. He will
use our words, along with the witness and the
words of human beings. He will use the witness
of creation – like the stars at night, the glory
of a sunset, and the laws and the design that
people discover in nature that point to the Great
Designer. He uses personal contact from one human
being to another, as well as other forms of communication,
like TV, radio, the Internet, books, magazines,
pamphlets, tracts, cassettes, CDs. He uses conversations
and sermons, drama, films, music and art. He uses
good things that happen to us to point us to His
reality – that there really is a good God that
we want to get to know; and He uses tragedies
and sad things to show us that we are weak and
frail, we need help and salvation.
Just like
the man who sows the seed and doesn’t know exactly
how it grows – he doesn’t understand all the complicated
biological and chemical and physical processes
that are at work, as we speak the truth, we won’t
always know what people are really thinking or
how they are responding. What is going on down
deep in a human heart will usually be hidden from
us. We won’t always be able to tell if the truth
that we speak is having its desired impact. Don’t
be discouraged if you don’t see immediate results
or the kind of response that you hope to see.
Speak the truth to people anyway, and have faith
that the invisible God will be at work, by His
providence, in all these ways, watering that truth!
Like seeds in the desert that may lie dormant
for years, and sprout after receiving rain, little
seeds of truth that we spread can spring up years
later in the right providential circumstances.
The sower
sows the seed of truth. He doesn’t always understand
how life is being generated, how it is growing
and why it is growing, but he sees it growing,
but eventually, the truth ripens in a human heart
and becomes ready for harvest. So, after this
time of preparation, which only God fully understands,
if a person is being drawn to God, and the person
is ready to be reconciled to their Creator, and
make that commitment to become a committed disciple,
we must be there for that as well. Just as God
uses us to sow the seeds of truth, we must help
in the harvesting. On behalf of the Living God,
we must welcome others into Messiah’s Holy Community.
We must teach them, baptize them, disciple them,
and then get them planting seeds of truth and
boldly preaching to others.
The declaration
of the truth done by human beings, and the providential
activity of the invisible God is a very powerful
combination. God’s Word will accomplish that for
which it is sent. Just keep sowing seeds of truth
and don’t get discouraged by what might seem to
be a lack of results, or the right immediate response,
and the preaching of the truth will accomplish
what God intends. It will help save the righteous,
and it will remove all excuses from the wicked.
The
Parable of the Seed tells us that the truth
will impact some individuals. Will the truth about
God and Messiah only be reserved for a few individuals?
Will only a few be saved? The next parable, The
Parable of the Mustard Seed teaches us that
the truth will spread, and make a huge impact.
The truth about God and Messiah and salvation
is powerful, and God is good, and He wants many
human beings to be reconciled to Himself, and
live with Him forever, so they can enjoy Him,
and He can rejoice over them. So, over time the
preaching of the truth will produce a great impact
on many human beings. The emphasis here is not
on the individual, but on the eventual multitude
of believers who will form Messiah’s eternal community.
Multitudes of human beings will be saved, so be
encouraged, and keep on preaching the truth!
4:30 And
He said, "How shall we picture the kingdom of
God, or by what parable shall we present it? It
is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon
the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds
that are upon the soil, yet when it is sown, it
grows up and becomes larger than all the garden
plants and forms large branches; so that the birds
of the air can nest under its shade."
When it
comes to the impact of God’s truth, don’t focus
only on what is right now. If you focus only on
what is, it would be absurd to think that a bird
could ever find shade under a tiny mustard seed!
A bird would more likely eat that tiny little
mustard seed! But what seems unlikely right now,
or even impossible right now, if God is at work,
and the Lord says something great will take place,
something great will take place!
When King
Messiah uttered these words, only He fully understood
the truth. That’s small. And, He only had a few
committed followers from one small nation. What
could one Rabbi and a few Jewish men, living in
a relatively small country dominated and oppressed
by the mighty Roman Empire, hope to accomplish?
How insignificant the salvific enterprise seemed,
and how easily this little flame of truth could
have been snuffed out by powerful forces arrayed
against it – satanic and demonic hatred, and the
mighty pagan Roman Empire and the hostile non-believing
majority of the Jewish nation! Yet, from these
small, humble beginnings, because God is true,
and because Yeshua is the Savior, and because
many of Yeshua’s followers have been faithful
to preach the truth, and because God is at work,
there has been an amazing growth and an outpouring
of truth and salvation that has impacted the entire
world!
This is
expressed by the following thoughts, based on
a sermon originally given by Dr James Allan Francis.
“He was born in an obscure village, the child
of a peasant woman. He grew up in another obscure
village, where He worked in a carpenter shop until
He was thirty. Then for three years He was an
itinerant preacher. He never had a family or owned
a home. He never traveled more than two hundred
miles from His birthplace. He never wrote a book,
or held an office. He did none of the things that
usually accompany greatness. While still a young
man, the tide of popular opinion turned against
Him. His friends deserted Him. He was betrayed
to His enemies, and went through a mockery of
a trial. He was nailed to a cross between two
thieves. While He was dying, His executioners
gambled for the only piece of property He had
– His coat. When He was dead, His body was taken
down and placed in a borrowed grave. Twenty centuries
have come and gone, and yet today Yeshua is the
central figure for much of the human race. All
the armies that have ever marched, all the navies
that have ever sailed, all the parliaments that
have ever sat and all the kings that have ever
reigned have not affected the lives of men as
powerfully as this "One Solitary Life."
Someone
observed that “the young rabbi from Nazareth never
wrote a book, and yet the libraries in the world
are full of books that have been written about
Him. As far as we know, He never wrote a song,
and yet more songs have been written about Him
than anyone else. He never founded a college,
yet all the schools put together can't compare
to the number of all His students. He never led
an army, and yet no leader ever had more volunteers.
He never studied psychology, and yet He has healed
more broken hearts than all the psychiatrists
and psychologists the world has ever produced.
He is so important that most of the world marks
time because of Him.”
The gates
of Hell, the corruption of Rome, the death of
the martyrs, the persecution of the saints, the
ignorance of the Dark Ages, the apostate theology
and heretical doctrines that have infiltrated
the Church from time to time, have not prevented
the spread of the truth and the growth of Messianic
Holy Community! The crucified Rabbi is gaining
more followers from more nations than ever before!
Tens of millions of Chinese believe in Him, tens
of millions more in Asia, Europe, North and South
America, Australia and the island nations.
This amazing
growth has attracted the attention of many, even
those who are not His followers. Rabbi Hyman Enelow,
who was not a disciple of the Messiah, nevertheless
observed that Yeshua “has become the most renowned,
most studied and most influential figure in the
history of mankind. The love He has inspired,
the comfort He has given, the good He has engendered,
the hope and joy He has kindled are unequaled
in human history. No Jewish person should be indifferent
to the fact that this one Jewish man has had such
a tremendous part in the religious history of
mankind.”
What is
the Kingdom of God like? How is God operating
in this world? It’s like one little mustard seed,
seemingly so insignificant, yet destined to become
great and mighty. In many ways, the children of
God are still like a mustard seed. We are still
a minority in a world that is hostile to God and
suppresses the truth. In many nations today, Believers
are a persecuted minority. But don’t be discouraged.
Have faith in God and the truth! Don’t give up.
Don’t stop loving and serving and preaching the
truth.
We are
on the right side – the side of truth! We are
on the side of the Son of God! Don’t be discouraged
by the opposition, which seems larger, more powerful,
and more in control. Stay focused on the mission!
Keeping on working hard for the Lord! Serve Him!
Be encouraged!
These
are Yeshua’s four parables that Mark presents
to us.
The
Parable of the Sower – total commitment to
the truth is what is required. Only that will
help us endure to the end and produce the desired
results, and be saved.
The
Parable of the Lamp – after we know the truth,
our mission is to boldly declare the truth to
those who remain in spiritual darkness. We must
not hide the truth by keeping quiet in order to
make our life easier.
The
Parable of the Seed – the truth about God
and Messiah and salvation is powerful, if you
are faithful to tell others the truth, it eventually
will produce the desired result in other human
beings. So don’t get discouraged if you don’t
see immediate results.
The
Parable of the Mustard Seed – have faith that
the truth will continue spread and make a huge
impact on multitudes and multitudes of human beings
who will live with you and with the Lord forever
and ever. So be encouraged, and keep on preaching
the truth!
I recently
received something which summarizes these four
parables. It was written by a young African pastor
and was found among his papers in Zimbabwe after
he was martyred in a bloody civil war.
“I’m a
part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The die
has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The
decision has been made. I’m a disciple of His
and I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back
away, or be still. My past is redeemed. My present
makes sense. My future is secure. I’m done and
finished with low living, sight walking, small
planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed
visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed
goals.
I no longer
need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions,
plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right,
or first, or recognized, or praised, or rewarded.
I live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by
patience, lift by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit
power. My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal
is Heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough,
my companions few, but my guide is reliable and
my mission is clear.
I will
not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away,
turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch
in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence
of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the
table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity,
or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won’t
give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed
up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached
up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of
Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until
all know, and work until He comes. And when He
does come for His own, He’ll have no problems
recognizing me. My colors will be clear!” Quoted
in a newsletter from Central American Missions.
May our
colors and our commitment to God, Messiah, truth
and our mission, be equally as clear!
With
many such parables He was speaking the word to
them, so far as they were able to hear it; and
He did not speak to them without a parable; but
He was explaining everything privately to His
own disciples.
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