Mark 4:1-27 (ESV)

1 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. 2 And he was teaching them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: 3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. 5 Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. 6 And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. 8 And other seeds fell into good soil and produced grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” 9 And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” 10 And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables, 12 so that “‘they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand, lest they should turn and be forgiven.’” 13 And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. 16 And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. 17 And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. 18 And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, 19 but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 20 But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” 21 And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 25 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” 26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.”“

Intro: What have you seen or heard recently that you found ridiculous?

HEART ABUSE
What do we mean by “the heart”? And how do we sabotage ourselves?

THE VITALITY OF THE GOSPEL
Why do we call the true story of Jesus “The Gospel”?

HUNDREDFOLD HOPE
With ears to hear, what is our hope?

YOU CAN PRAY WITH US …
1 - Worship the LORD. Praise Him, Father, Son and Holy Spirit for sowing into our hearts the beauty of the Gospel.

2 - How have you lived believing that you have to have all the answers? Confess your pride and arrogance to the One who knows all things, asking Him to forgive your blasphemy of yearning to know the mysteries that are His alone.

3 - Give thanks to Jesus for His commitment to you even when you were hard-hearted (the path), His work for you even when you chose the world (the rocky ground and the thorns), and His power in you to give you a heart of flesh (the rich soil). Thank Him for His saving Grace that even while we were still confused sinners, He chose to save us.

4 - Who do you know that still hears the words of Jesus as ridiculous? Pray for them, asking the Lord to have mercy on them as He has on you, that they would see the wonder of the Lord and His secrets of the Kingdom.

5 - Ask the Holy Spirit to cultivate in you an open heart to hear the Word and have hope. Pray that the hope of the Gospel would continue to be revealed in miraculous ways throughout the city of Lakeland.