In this Bible Story, Jesus speaks about the four soils. He tells of what happens to many different hearts when they come in contact with the word of God. This story is inspired by Mark 4:1-32 Matthew 13:1-23, 31-32. Go to BibleinaYear.com and learn the Bible in a Year.
Today's Bible verse is Mark 4:32 from the King James Version.
Episode 187: As Jesus was teaching crowds on the shores of Galilee, He began to tell a parable about a farmer sowing seeds. The farmer sowed his seed into four different types of soil, yet only one yielded a crop. Not everyone in the crowd understood His meaning, however, and even His own disciples needed Him to explain this to them. But in the end, we find that this timeless parable is a tale about our own hearts in response to God’s Word.
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Let us pray, and when it is sown, it groweth up and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches, so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it, Mark four thirty two. Those who have ears to hear here these words are the staples in which I am listening to to day's reading. Lord, I thank you that you have given me the Bible to help lead and guide me in the way that I should live my life. Jesus, thank you for being the personification of the living Word here on earth. As I meditate on to Day's truth found in Matthew thirteen and Mark fourth one through thirty two, I realize that your word is the seed in which all my purpose and destiny will blossom and come forth. Therefore, my heart will not be like the soil that allowed your seed to lay unprotected, so that other people around me can steal what You've deposited in me. My heart will not be like the shallow soil that could not allow the root of your word to take hold, so that when the trials of life come, it withers under the heat of pressure. I also declare that I will not let your word fall on the thorns of life and become so focused on my trials that they choke your promises out of my thoughts and speech. I declare that my heart and my life is good soil. I declare that I'm healthy and ready to have your word produce a crop of abundance thirty sixty a hundredfold in Jesus name. Amen. Thank you for praying with us today. Continue your time with God by listening to today's Bible story brought to you by Bible in a Year dot com.
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The four soils. In our last story, Jesus accepted a cull and broken woman who had been scorned by the world. He rebuked the Pharisees for their judgment. Now, Jesus reveals more about the Kingdom of God through the story of the Four Soils inspired by the Gospels.
Hello, this is Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible in a Year podcast. In yesterday's episode, Jesus was shown extravagant love and honor by a sinful woman who entered a home and wiped the Lord's feet with her tears and hair before bathing them in expensive perfume. Jesus used this occasion to teach those gathered with him, many of them religious leaders who felt that they were righteous and justified by their good deeds, a lesson about forgiveness and the proper response of those who have received that grace. Today we'll hear Jesus teaching about different ways in which God's word is received and what happens to the seeds planted in different kinds of soil. It's one of the most famous stories Jesus ever gave, so let's hear it now. From the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The seagulls flew gracefully across the face of the calm ocean. The gentle breeze rocked the anchored boats slightly. As Jesus sat at the front of a ship, thousands of people sat on the shore listening to his words and wisdom. They were enraptured by him. Jesus smiled and began to speak of a farmer and his seed. There once was a farmer, and he went out to sow his seed among his land. Some of the seeds fell along the roadside. They were vulnerable and easily swept up by the birds. Other seeds fell on rocky soil. They sprung up quick with water and sun, but they died just as quickly because their roots could not go deep enough. Some of the seed fell among thorny soil. Once they grew, the weeds choked the life out of the planets. Jesus paused for a moment and looked around the crowd. He stood to his feet and lift did his fingers, saying, but there were some seeds that fell on good soil. It was soft, pleasant, and yielded great fruit. Some of the crops increased thirtyfold and sixtyfold, some even one hundredfold. Whoever has an ear to truly hear here. Then the people left back to their homes, and Jesus was by the campfire with his disciples. Silence fell among the disciples as they gazed at the stars. The flames flew up to the skies. The sound of popping wood and crashing waves filled the silence. Do you understand the story I told them today? Jesus asked his disciples. They looked up at him if they were being honest, none of them truly knew what he was saying. Jesus laughed, how will you understand if you don't ask, he said, in jest, He picked up a stick and poked the fire. The soil represents the Word of God, Jesus said, the seeds that fell on the road, and those that hear, but Satan swoops up the truth like the birds. The rocky soil represents those that receive the Word with joy at first, but when hard times fall, their root is shallow and they fall away. The disciples began to nod. They were understanding Jesus as he explained. The thorny soil represents the cares and worries of the Word. Some are so anxious that they are unable to truly receive truth. They are choked by the worries and cares of the world. Jesus grinned from cheek to cheek. Then there's the good soil. For those that hear the word and accept it. They do not toil or worry. They simply receive with gladness. These are those that will bear much fruit for the Kingdom of God.
Our reading today is an illustration of the kinds of hearts that receive God's truth, and how the seeds of truth grow or wither in each kind of soil. Jesus is speaking to his followers, a larger crowd at first, and he's using an agricultural image. This is something his audience would have understood well. He spoke to the crowd telling them of a farmer who went out to spread seed. Farming was much different in those days. No high tech farming equipment, of course, precise planting of seeds and neat little rows. This farmer was just walking across his plot of land, scattering seeds. It almost seemed haphazard. I picture a man with a bag of seeds in one hand, dipping his other hand into the bag and pulling out a handful of seed that he tosses here and there, letting them land where they may. So as he walks along, the seed falls on four different kinds of soil. Some doesn't even make it to the ground. It hits the path and birds quickly eat it up. Some falls among rocky ground, and though they sprouted, the seeds lacked nutrients and water, so the plants withered. A third bunch fell among the thorns. The soil was good enough for the plants to grow, but the environment around them was hazardous and toxic, and the thorns choked out the crops. But some of the seed fell in a good soil. It grew strong and healthy and produced a great crop, yielding one hundredfold. That's the good stuff. Jesus then said to the crowd, whoever has ears to hear, let him hear. The disciples asked why he spoke in parables, and he responded that the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven had not been given to them, but to the disciples. In other words, Jesus was going to give these men special insight into the things of God, into the Kingdom of God, to prepare them for what is to come. Jesus also said he spoke in parables to reveal truth to those who would respond to it and receive it. He said in Matthew thirteen, sixteen and seventeen, blessed to your eyes because they see in your ears, because they hear. For truly, I tell you any prophets and righteous people long to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it. The disciples were hungry for understanding, so Jesus explained this parable to them. The seeds represented the word of God and the soil represented human hearts. Some hear God's word, but the enemy comes and snatches away the word. It never takes root in the heart, so it never grows. The rocky ground represents the hearts that accept the word quickly, but without any depth. The root of truth doesn't establish itself, and so when troubles arise, those people fall away from the word. Still others represented by the thorny ground, receive the word and it sprouts in their heart, but worldly worries choke them out and they never produce any fruit. The good soil represents the heart that receives the word and bears much fruit. This is the heart of the believer who understands God's word. The truth of the Gospel grows in their heart, and they yield fruit for the kingdom because they believe what God has said. That's an important word for us here as believers today. We are to be sowers of seeds. We are to give the Gospel to the world and spread it to the hearts of men. The yield does not depend on us, and we are not to pick and choose where we sow the seed. We are to share all the Gospel with all men, until the whole world hears. Some will receive the truth and yield fruit, but others, for various reasons, will either never receive the word or will never bear fruit. Nevertheless, it is the calling of every one of us who name the name of Christ, who are followers of Jesus, to be witnesses of the Gospel, to sow the seeds of truth, and to trust God for the harvest. God, we thank you that your word is always effective, that it always accomplishes your purposes. May we boldly proclaim your truth. Thank you that we have been called to participate in the ministry of the Gospel by sowing seas among men and women, that as many as will receive Christ can be saved by your grace and your love. Because of your cross and resurrection, we pray in the name of Jesus. Amen. Thank you for listening to Today's Bible in a year. I'm Pastor Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the pray dot Com app and make Bible study and prayer the priority of your life. And if you appreciate this podcast, please share it with someone else. I also want to encourage you to go to Jack Graham dot org. That's Jack Graham dot org for information. God bless you.