Mark 4:1-20
When was the last time you tried to find the will of God for something in your life? Usually we don’t turn to God about decisions unless they are something that is much bigger then we feel able to handle on our own. Big decisions often make us desperate to hear God’s voice. Usually we will in desperation pray or read a book on God’s will or even seek the council of friends or our small group.
Have you been looking for the will of God lately? Maybe you are trying to find what college you should attend or what job you should switch to or maybe your even looking for God’s will in your marriage.
Why is it so hard to know God’s will?
Three weeks ago we talked about Jesus and the stories found in Mark 3. The crowds were coming from everywhere to see the miracles. They were not interested so much in his teaching but they flocked out to see what was going to happen next. The crowds were not the issue or Jesus focus. He went up on a mountain with the twelve men he had picked to be his disciples (small group). There He began to focus on turning them into authentic disciples or Christ followers. He was turning them from audience to army. You may remember at the end of chapter three Jesus was interrupted by someone telling Him that His mother and brothers had shown up and were looking for Him.
Here’s a principle you need to know if you are in ministry. Your family should always get first access. Jesus however decided to make this a teaching moment so He asked a question, “Who do you think are my mother and brothers?” Mark said that Jesus looked around at those seated around Him and declared, “Right here, right in front of you—my mother and my brothers. Obedience is thicker than blood. The person who obeys God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”
The Unspoken Question: How do I know what God’s will is?
The Answer: Mark 4:1-20 
Public Ministry 4:1-9
The setting – 1Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water's edge. Mark 4:1
The method – “2He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said:” Mark 4:2
The content – “3"Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. 4As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times." Mark 4:3-8
The Warning – “9Then Jesus said, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." Mark 4:9 
Private Ministry 4:10-20
The Question – “10When he was alone, the Twelve and the others around him asked him about the parables.” Mark 4:10
The Privilege – “11He told them, "The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. . .” Mark 4:11
The Purpose of Parables – “ But to those on the outside everything is said in parables 12so that, " 'they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!'[a]" Mark 4:12
To Reveal
To Conceal
The Priority of this Parable – “13Then Jesus said to them, "Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?” Mark 4:1
Opening up the parable:
14The farmer sows the word.
The farmer is obviously Christ. The word is His word or the word of God. This is not only how people respond to the gospel as unbelievers but Mark teaches these responses may also be seasons in the life of a believer or Christ follower. You may have a word from God regarding some area of integrity in your job that He wants you to hear and follow or there may be something in your marriage that He wants you to change or in your single life and relationships. How you handle that information will be determined by the condition of your heart (ground) to receive God’s word.
Group one: 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.
The word takeaway means to literally take away what was committed to someone else. The result is no faith. This is like the person flipping channels who gets a brief snippet of a Billy Graham message before changing the channel or hears a little bit of a message on the radio and keeps on scanning. Maybe a Christian at work or on the street hands them a piece of paper with a message on it but they quickly discard it with little effect. (stamp giveaway.) It’s a picture of God trying to get through to someone but the enemy comes and distracts them or robs them. I wonder if that ever happens to Christ followers?
Group 2: 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and (at once) receive it with joy. 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
These are people who get all excited about faith in Christ. Others seem to be doing it so they think they will give it a try. As soon as the call and the cost of being a follower dawns on them they fall away. When it gets unpopular or they get a little flack they fall away. The word for fall away is the word that describes the stick that holds up the box that we would use to catch a rabbit in. It is a stumbling block or something that falls or a point of offence. It is the root word for scandalous.
This is describing people who jump on the Jesus bandwagon. They’ve tried cocaine and alcohol and three or four marriages and none of that worked so they decide to give Jesus a little try. They jump into reading their bibles and everything is great until they come up against a hardship and they are ready to cast off their faith. All of a sudden they realize there is a price tag associated with discipleship.
Don’t you get tired of hearing about famous people who claim to be born again but the fruit of their life doesn’t in anyway bear out? They give lip service to being a Christian and then the next week their committing adultery or making music or films that are an offence to the word of God.
It is easy to hear the word and get all pumped up but then not last because they have never weighed the cost of serving Christ. There is no root. They have not repented at the core level. Jesus is not here to make your life a little better, give you a better job, nicer house or nicer car. Regardless of what you hear or T.V., He just wants you to be a disciple or follower.
Group 3: 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.
You can kill a person instantly with a gun but if you are going to choke someone it would involve squeezing for quite a long time. It doesn’t happen instantly. It is over time. The word is being suffocated or squeezed out. This is about suffocating or choking out the word. There are these thorns that choke out our spiritual life.
Group 4: 20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown."
These are people who take the time to let God in. We look at these people and wonder where their faith comes from. These are people who are surrendered to God and they are people who transform the planet. Observations from the passage:
1. The will of God for a disciple is commitment to His Word.
I need to say something here but I want you super sensitive people who tend to beat yourselves up about everything to relax. For those of you that are hard hearted and jaded listen carefully and try to let a little light into your soul. For everyone else just be receptive to God’s Word.
Are you in God’s word personally and honestly on a regular basis? Not to make you look good or to earn brownie points with God but if the will of God starts with a commitment to His word this is a very important question. I am not talking about listening to me once a week. Are you in the Bible for yourself so God can speak?
Your begging God to know about a new job or some other probing question in your life and God’s first question for you is going to be are you in My word? You may say, “I don’t have time,” and God is going to say when you find time for me I’ll be happy to speak with you. We love to ask God questions but here’s a little principle for you: Unless you to the ABC’s God is not going to take you into trigonometry and algebra spiritually.
2. Hearing God’s Word is no guarantee that it will have a lasting impact in our lives.
To hear and not obey is to not hear at all. Rahab is a classic illustration. She heard rumors about God but she acted on it and comes out in the hall of fame of faith. Contrast this with the children of Israel who had the Red Sea, manna to eat, and a God who was leading them with a pillar of fire by night and a cloud by day and they still missed it and wound up wondering in the desert for forty years.
Obeying and responding is the key to hearing from God.
3. There are at least 3 enemies seeking to prevent God’s Word from taking root in our lives:
We have to recognize that we are in a battle to keep the word out of our lives. Once you get in the word there is a battle to keep you talking about it and trafficking in it instead of doing or living it.
4. God uses His word as the primary instrument to communicate with us and bring about personal “life-change” (fruitfulness) which multiplies our impact in others.
Our response to God’s word in scripture is the prerequisite and foundation to all spiritual growth.
The secret to discovering God’s will is. . .coming to His word honestly and regularly with an absolute willingness to obey. It’s coming and saying, I’m available and willing to take in what You say. Your life and mine are to be blank checks in the hand of God. When He sheds light on something in His word you don’t just acknowledge it and move on you stop and allow it to take root in your life.
a timeless axiom:
“17If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.” John 7:17
This is critical that you hear this today. The goal of Christianity is that you and I grow spiritually and that we move closer and closer to God and godliness. This doesn’t happen overnight but it will happen just like the little children that are born begin to grow and develop.
Some of us in here today need to let God’s word into our lives. We need to cultivate the soil of our hearts and allow Him to plant His word in out lives. How do things grow? Is it sunshine all the time. No, it takes some rain and storms even to produce growth. This is not about a formula or seven easy steps. This is all about a willingness to grow God’s way. To do what He says.
Open the Word. Live the Word. Let the Word of God speak in your life.
Lord, there are some people who are here today who can hardly believe that they are here. There hearts have been hard and they have been hurt maybe even by some Christians and the big step today for them would be that you would break up there hardened ground. They want to come back to you. There are others who are so preoccupied with stuff and weighted down with the cares or riches of this life. They are so messed up with their priorities that they can’t even hear from you right now. Help them to make the big decisions that it will take for them to reconnect with you and be able to take your word into their lives.
Lord you said through this parable and Your teaching that all you want is for us to be in relationship with you. Help us to hear this and to do this in our lives. Help us to be doers of Your Word.
“But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it, and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams.” The Message