Mark - Lesson 5...Continued from page 4
Thomas Klock
DAY SIX: Following Christ
There is much we can learn about following Christ and living a life that will bear fruit for His kingdom from this parable. Here are a few thoughts you might want to ponder.
1. The most obvious thing you need to ask yourself is, What kind of soil am I? It is our prayer that by this time in the study, you have received that seed of the Gospel and it is beginning to bear fruit. Choose the one below that best describes your heart’s soil right now, and what you plan to do about it:
Along the wayside: Perhaps you have heard the Gospel or God’s Word, but it seems to be gone as soon as you heard it, and has made no impact in your life.
Rocky soil: Perhaps you heard the Gospel and got excited or emotional about it, and felt it’s time for you to change and follow something bigger than you are, and maybe you have even fooled some people including yourself that you are truly born again, but you are giving up because things get too hot and heavy, or are being persecuted by others because of it.
Thorny soil: Perhaps you have heard the Gospel and feel it’s the right thing, and you get almost to the point of making a commitment to follow Christ, but then your personalproblems, worries, lusts, and other things are choking out the beginnings of the growth taking hold fully
Good soil: You haven’t got everything down perfectly, and sometimes the things that have destroyed the other seedlings still tempt you, but you made the choice to receive Christ as your Lord and Savior, and are doing the best you can in the power of the Holy Spirit to get to know Him, and make Him known to others.
2. Another application from this passage is for those who are doing the work of sowing the Gospel into others, or otherwise sharing the Word of God with others. What we need to remember is that in this parable only one of four types of people respond to the Gospel, or let God’s Word be implanted, grow, and bear fruit in their lives. When we sow the seed into another’s life, we will get different reactions to it; or we may never see the results of that seed implanted.[vi] The plants that grow and bear fruit successfully take the longest, so because we don’t see results right away, don’t give up praying and sharing the Word with them. Like Isaiah as we read this week, he was going to a seemingly unresponsive people, yet a remnant would be saved; so we have to proclaim the Word regardless of the response: “for the test of ministry is not outward success but faithfulness to the Lord.”[vii] Remember also what the apostle Paul said about these things in 1 Corinthians 3:6, 7: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase” (nkjv). Write out some ways that this encourages you to not give up sowing the seed!
3. Thirdly, this lesson showed us our responsibility in making sure our hearts are the receptive and good soil that His Word can take root in and bear fruit for Him. Jesus said, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you” (John 15:16, nkjv). Based on the things we studied, how will you proactively seek to make the soil of your heart more receptive to His Word, beginning today?
Scripture Memory: Hopefully you now can write out this week’s passage completely by memory. Do so now, and keep on reviewing it do you will be ready to share it with others in your group time.
Mark 4:24, 25:
[i] R.C.H. Lenski, Commentary on the New Testament: The Interpretation of St. Mark’s Gospel (Peabody: Hendrickson Publisher, Inc., 1946, 2001), p. 163.
[ii] Unless otherwise indicated, Greek word and phrase information in this lesson is based on A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. In Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1932, 1933, 1997); James Strong, The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible: Showing Every Word of the Text of the Common English Version of the Canonical Books, and Every Occurrence of Each Word in Regular Order, Electronic Edition (Ontario, Canada: Woodside Bible Fellowship; in Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1996); Kenneth S. Wuest, Wuest’s Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: For the English Reader (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co; in Bellingham: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1984, 1997); and Spiros Zodhiates ed., The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament, Electronic Edition (Chattanooga: AMG Publishers; in Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1992, 1993, 2000).
[iii] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, Vol. 1 (Wheaton: Victor Books/SP Publications, Inc., 1989), p. 121.
[iv] This information is largely based on Robert A. Gundry, A Survey of the New Testament 4th Edition (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1970, 1981, 1994, 2003), pp. 136, 137.
[v] D.A. Carson, Matthew. In Frank E. Gaebelein ed., The Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Vol. 8 (Grand Rapids: Regency Reference Library, 1984), p. 648.
[vi] Mike Stallard, Hermeneutics and Matthew 13, Part II (Conservative Theological Journal, Vol. 5:16, December 2001), p. 338.
[vii] Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Comforted (Colorado Springs: Chariot/Victor Publishing, 1992), p. 30.
© 2005 by Harvest Christian Fellowship. All rights reserved. Written by Thomas Klock for Men’s Bible Fellowship, 2005-2006.
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