The Teaching of Parables and the Kingdom of God (1:15;
4:1-2)
The kingdom of God has been prophesied and is now being
fulfilled in Jesus (Mark 1:15).
Jesus begins to teach through parables in order to describe
the kingdom of God to His disciples.
The Terrain of Two Different Hearts
(4:3-9)
The Unbelieving Heart is described as hard, shallow, and
thorny ground that is unable to produce any lasting
fruit.
The Believing Heart is described as good ground that
produces abundant fruit.
The Target of the Parable (4:10-12)
Jesus’ parables are accessible and relatable, but are not
understandable apart from knowing Jesus; He must open our eyes to
the Truth!
Jesus’ parables expose those who are outside and reveal who
is inside; it comes down to rejecting Christ’s Word versus hearing
and obeying Christ’s Word.
The Totality of the Parable (4:13-20)
Jesus explains and applies the meaning of the
parable:
The Sower represents Jesus and His followers
The Seed represents the Word of the Gospel
The Soils represent four different types of heart-responses
to the Gospel: Hard, Shallow, Thorny, and Fruitful ground
This parable has massive implications on how we interpret
Jesus’ parables and how we carry out Jesus’ mission.
About the Podcast
This is the podcast for Raintree Community Church in Lee's Summit, MO. It features Raintree's most recent sermons.