Bible verses to build your life on

Jesus said: “… whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock…” ~ Matthew 7:24

 

Part 3

 

Verse 23:

“23But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.’”

 

*                  The fourth, fifth, and sixth categories: 4, 5, 6 >

~THE GOOD NEWS!~ Those who hear the Word of God, receive it with joy and put it into practice. They not only hear the Word of God, but they also obey it – these are those who are saved, those who are not ashamed to be followers of Christ, not afraid to be rejected by the world for the sake of Christ, those who look forward to a future Kingdom where Jesus will rule in righteousness! A place where the curse of sin and death will be removed – and the true followers / learners / disciples of Christ will dwell with Him and be a part of the neat things He does – Yeah, exciting!!! These are those who struggle, stumble in hard times, but their commitment to following Christ and putting Him first drives them to their knees and keeps them growing through the trials and tribulations they face. These are those who have an intense hunger for God and His Word, a hunger – a passion that they stoke and keep burning. A hunger to know and understand God and His Word drives them on. This is the heart Jesus describes in Matthew 5:6 - “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they shall be filled.”

 

Words to note: “who indeed bears fruit” – those who follow Christ, will bear good fruit, they will produce seeds that can reproduce. What does this mean. Jesus explains this in Matthew 28:19-20 - “19Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Notice: make disciples, teach them to observe His commands.

 

*                  Words to note: “some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” – Pastor John MacArthur makes an interesting point on these numbers. The planting to production ratio (i.e. what you plant: what will grow to be useful seed) is roughly 1:8, and a planting : growth ratio of 1:10 is considered a really good harvest. But notice, Jesus doesn’t use either of those numbers. Notice the numbers He uses – 100, 60, and 30… to put it in similar terms: 1:100, 1:60, 1:30. In other words, some of those who plant, say, 100 seeds, can expect a harvest of not just 100%, which would be pretty good - but “a hundredfold” -100X; others can expect a harvest not just 60%, but “sixty[fold]” – 60X; and others can expect a harvest not just 30%, but “thirty[fold]” - 30X! To put it another way: 100: 10,000; 100: 6,000; 100: 3,000. So what do those promises of large harvest have to do with the spiritual life of those who follow Christ? Jesus is obviously making a clear point that those who follow Him and learn what He cares about, and learn to love what He loves, to leave behind the things He says to let go of [in other words: hating the things He hates because God hates sin which destroys us], and learn to love others like He loves us – those people, His disciples, His followers – He says that He will use them to reach many for His Kingdom and His glory. Those who present themselves to be vessels fit for the Master’s use – He uses mightily! That’s really cool! God says this in 2nd Timothy 2:19-21 - “19Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.’ 20But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. 21Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.” God is calling us to come out from the things of this world, to come out of this culture – to join Him, to learn of Him, to let Him purify us, so He can use us most effectively, which is the most abundant life we can ever live! He calls us to be in the culture, but different, to let His Word correct our thinking and transform our minds daily. “1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:1-2) Notice, He calls us to make sure that we aren’t conforming to this world, but to make sure that we are getting in God’s Word and allowing His Word to transform us – i.e., not just hearing the Word of God or not just studying the Word of God, but putting it into practice – being hearers and doers. That may require us to stop doing some things we do (God has had to wake me up on a variety of things.) or stop hanging around certain people who will get us in trouble. It may even require us to stop filling our head with things that harm and confuse us – we need to comply, we need to obey Him. But we MUST remember this – when we are putting Him first and are allowing Him to lead and guide us through His Word, that not only pleases Him, but He also promises to bless us, though not necessarily with earthly things. Matthew 6:33 says, “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” What a neat promise!

 

>  What should our strategy with reaching these types of soils/hearts be?: Pray for them, as often as they come to mind, that God would keep teaching them to be hearing and obeying, to keep teaching them everyday what it means to be a follower of Christ. Also praying that God would give them wisdom as they go through trials and tribulations, and persecution – that they will be able to keep their focus on Christ and just keep doing what they know is right. Also, continually asking for His wisdom on how we can please Him better and how to effectively communicate His Word and truth to those around us. Also, looking for opportunities or even making opportunities to talk with them, coach them, pray with them, encourage them, challenge them to keep learning, to keep growing in their relationship with Christ – to keep learning how to seek Him first.