Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven

Sermon OverviewScripture Passage: Matthew 13:1The Bible is a love story in many ways, but it is also a great mystery. There are hidden truths in the Bible that cannot be known by human wisdom.Jesus was the master teacher. He taught in parables—earthly stories with heavenly meanings—which are meant to both reveal and conceal. The meek, the teachable and guidable, could understand, while the scholars could not.Matthew 13:3-9 explains the parable of the sower. There are three basic components of this story: the seed, the sower, and the soil.The seed is the quick and powerful Word of God, pulsating with life and energy. The sower is Jesus—the Son of Man who sows the Word in people’s hearts. The main emphasis of the parable is on the soil, which represents the hearts of men and women. Some receive the seed, while others don’t. Yet, the Gospel does not fail; there is nothing wrong with the seed—the problem is always the soil.First, there is the soil with no reception.“And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them” (Matthew 13:4). The “wayside” is often described as stone, meaning this heart is too hardened to receive the seed, and therefore, will not understand it.There’s also the soil that receives the seed, but it does not take root.Matthew 13:5-6 describes a seed that sprouts too early in the shallow dirt and withers in the sun. This represents those who live in the realm of emotion—who are moved by spiritual things but are not truly changed. They are likely to abandon their faith the moment they face a trial.Adrian Rogers says, “Salvation is the deepest work of God; God doesn’t do the deepest work in the shallowest part.”There’s also the seed scattered among thorns that has no room to sprout. (See Matthew 3:7.)This represents those who want to add Jesus Christ onto their lives but aren’t willing to have their lives changed. They leave their rival crop undisturbed, giving Jesus no room.But thank God there is a fourth kind of soil:the one with no refusal—a heart wide open for the Word to take root.Apply it to your lifeHas God’s Word taken root in you? Are you scattering His Word among the soil? Don’t stop to test the soil—just scatter the seed.