The word of God is a seed to be received.
A seed is an intriguing mystery like nothing else in all of creation. Every spring my family used to plant one of the largest gardens in our neighborhood. We’d break out the tiller and prepare the soil. We’d stake out each row and carefully plant the seeds one by one according to the instructions on the packages. Then we would cover the seeds with dirt, water the soil, and wait patiently for the miracle.
As a young child I used to stare at seeds for hours, sometimes using a magnifying glass. It was almost too much to believe. I couldn’t understand how something so dry and so dead could be transformed into something so extraordinarily new and vibrant. If you would have told me about the miracle of the seed without me having experienced it hundreds of times to know the truth, I would have thought you were crazy. I would have said, "Come on! That humungous fruit tree came that that tiny seed? That lettuce came from seeds as small and light as dust?" Yet every spring like clockwork, I would witness the miracle of the seed. Those seeds would spring to life, slowly emerge from the soil, and stretch toward the sky. And every year that garden produced enough fruit and vegetables to feed our entire family and provided for some of our neighbors as well.
Last week we talked about Jesus' passion for fishing. Jesus was also passionate about farming. He understood and spoke frequently about the miracle of the seed. In Mark 4:31-32 (NIV) he describes the mustard seed, "which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade."
The word of God is like a seed. It is full of promise.
A seed is interesting because it is a lot like a promise. Nothing dramatic happens when it is planted. It lays dormant for days, sometimes even for weeks. But in time it fulfills its promise. It springs to life. It produces fruit. It multiplies. Earlier in Mark 4 Jesus tells us that the word of God is just like a seed. From all appearances God’s word looks dry and dead. Lifeless. But when God’s word is taken off the shelf, opened up, and planted into our souls, it brings about a miracle like no other. At first, nothing seems to happen. There are no dramatic changes. No instant results. But in time, God’s word fulfills its promise. We spring to new life. We stretch upward and grow closer to God. We produce fruit. God multiplies his life through us. In Mark 4:8 (NIV) Jesus explains, "Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even hundred times."
The word of God is just a seed, but it’s a seed nonetheless. It transforms our existence. Jesus was passionate about the word of God. He read it. He memorized it. He prayed it. He planted it. He lived it. He gave it to each of us. It is to be received and taken in by us. This morning I want you to ask, "What am I doing with the seed, the word of God?" I have some questions for you. Are you planting it? Are you waiting on its' promises? Or is it just sitting on the shelf?
This morning I want to introduce someone to you. Erin, could you come forward? This is Erin Kirkpatrick. Erin represents dozens of people who have been memorizing God’s word. This week she became the first person in our church to completely memorize all sixty of the scripture verses in our Hide Them in Your Heart Club! This morning we want to present her with a gift certificate and congratulate her!
She is not alone in her quest, however. I would like everyone who has memorized scripture over the past year, either in our Deeper Life groups or Lifestage Bible Fellowships to stand up for a moment. Let's celebrate that as well. If you are interested in participating, there is information at the welcome center and at the guest reception.
The word of God is a seed to be received. When planted, it will fulfill its promise of transforming our lives. Are you planting it in your heart? Let’s watch this video testimonial.
The word of God is food to be consumed.
We have the image of God’s word being a seed which takes root in our hearts. Jesus also calls the word of God food. Real food. In Matthew, the first book of the New Testament, Jesus is baptized and then goes into the wilderness where he fasts for forty days and forty nights. Let’s pick up right there in Matthew 4:2-4 (NIV). "After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, 'If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.' Jesus answered, 'It is written, Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' "
I’m always curious when someone says, "It is written." I immediately want to know just where it is written. Jesus is quoting a passage in Deuteronomy 8:1-4 (NIV) which says, "Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers. Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years."
God's word is well-prepared.
I always loved math, especially when the problems got really complicated and took you a couple hours to solve. But here Jesus is, in a sense, giving us a simple math equation. Bread is equal to the word of God. Whenever I cook a meal I realize a few basic things about food. There’s a definite time of preparation when cooking. Even when your meal comes out of a bag or a box, you still have time that is required to prepare it. Using the same math equation, look at the time that was required to prepare God’s word. God’s word was prepared over many years, through many people, bound together through the Holy Spirit.
There have been times when Michelle, my wife, or I have worked pretty hard in preparing a meal, getting everything ready, only to remember that we have to be somewhere in fifteen minutes. And what happens? We quickly hit the seats and wolf down the meal in no time. We could have eaten anything and it would have had the same effect as this nice meal. A well-prepared meal is meant to be enjoyed and savored, not rushed through. It isn’t a race to see who can get to the end of dinner quicker. Using the same equation, many times we sit down to the well-prepared word of God and realize that we have to be somewhere else. We rush through it, not really focusing on anything we are reading. A well prepared meal almost demands that we slow ourselves down to enjoy it.
When I was playing soccer in elementary school, our team always hated playing this one team. Not because they were better than us, but because at halftime they always had great snacks. The referee would blow the whistle and we would head to the benches. The other team was usually losing, but they would be cheering as they ran to the sideline. Out would come all kinds of candy bars and a cooler of soda. When we finally hit our benches, our parents had usually brought a big Tupperware container of oranges and fruit juice boxes. While our team was sitting eating our fruit, the other guys were spinning around falling down and spilling soda on their shirts. We were so jealous. Then the whistle blew and the game was back on. I always wondered why they had to keep trading players through the rest of the game and why by the end of the game they could barely shake our hands.
The purpose of a good meal is to provide energy for the body. In the same way a well prepared meal gives us fuel to tackle the day, God’s word is essential in energizing our lives. There’s plenty of candy bar and soda spiritual food out there, but it’s God’s word that gives us life and life to the fullest.
John 1:1 (NIV) begins with the words, "In the beginning was the word." Later in the same chapter in John 1:14 (NIV) he says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." Jesus takes this a step further in John 6:53-58 (NIV) which says, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever."
So look at this whole equation now. Jesus told the devil that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. The word became flesh in the form of Jesus. Jesus says that his flesh and blood are food and drink. Therefore, if Jesus is the word, then the word of God is real food and real drink for our lives.
The word of God is a foundation to be trusted.
The word of God is a life-giving seed to be received. The word of God is food to be consumed unto eternal life. But the word of God is also a foundation to be trusted. We know from the Bible that Jesus was a carpenter. We should not suppose that Jesus only built knick knacks and small furniture. He probably built houses as well. As a carpenter, he understood the importance of choosing a solid foundation to build on. He understood that a structure stands or falls depending on its foundation.
In Matthew 7:24-27 (NIV) Jesus says, "Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
The interesting thing about a foundation is that you never know how strong or worthy it is until is been tested by the storms of life. There are some who choose to build their lives on money. Some build their lives on their physical attractiveness. Some build their lives around a key relationship. Some build their lives around their jobs, their health, recreation, sports, hobbies, interests, exercise, or television. The list is endless.
But when the storms of life strike, they are caught by surprise. Suddenly, the foundation they were building on erodes beneath them. They lose their jobs. They develop a chronic illness. Their money runs out. Their beauty fades. They lose someone close to them. They no longer have the edge they once did. And their lives come crashing down.
Jesus himself trusted the word of God.
Jesus teaches us that when we trust in the word of God, it will never fail us. It will be the sure foundation that carries us through each and every challenge in life. Throughout his life Jesus demonstrated the trustworthiness of God’s word. When he was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, he turned to scripture as a source of strength and moral clarity. He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 (NIV), "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD." He quoted Deuteronomy 6:16 (NIV), "Do not test the LORD your God." He quoted Deuteronomy 6:13 (NIV), "Fear the LORD your God and serve him only."
He frequently quoted Old Testament prophesies that explained how God was working in his life and to challenge those who opposed God’s purposes. He relied upon scripture to establish his identity and re-center himself. When Jesus died on the cross he cried, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" These words are from Psalm 22:1 (NIV). Jesus was finding comfort through scripture. God’s word proved to be a trustworthy foundation for Christ. It most certainly will prove trustworthy to each and every one of us.
The word of God is a lifestyle to be lived.
And this brings us to a last idea concerning the word of God. In the New Testament there is the written word of God, which is the Bible. But there is also the living expression of the word of God, Jesus Christ. In John 1:14 Jesus is described as the Word who became flesh. The reason there is a written and living expression of the word of God is to remind us that God’s word is a lifestyle to be lived.
God’s word isn’t for mental consumption alone. It is to be lived out daily. When referring to the Old Testament law and Old Testament prophets in Matthew 5:17 (NIV) Jesus says, "I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them." Jesus came to live out God’s word in action and deed, and not just in thought. In the analogy of the house built on the rock Jesus isn’t just concerned that we hear the word, but that we put it into practice! Hebrews 4:2 tells us that the message of God is of no value unless combined with faith. Hebrews 4:2 (NIV) says, "For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith."
Again, the word of God is a lifestyle to be lived. It describes the boundaries and parameters with which we are to enjoy life. It defines how we are to relate to one another and to God. It protects us from evil and directs us toward righteousness. It shows us how to maximize God’s blessings in our lives and not have any regrets.
Jesus was passionate about God's word. Are you?
Jesus was passionate about God’s word. He understood that God’s word is life. When you look at these four images of God’s word, which is most striking to you?
Perhaps you are most struck with the image of the seed. Maybe you have difficulty receiving the word of God. Perhaps the soil of your life has become hardened. Maybe God’s word is choked out by the concerns of this world. Maybe the seed never even gets a chance because you refuse to believe.
This morning God is inviting you to receive his word. To believe and have faith. To open yourself up. To know Jesus as the son of God and to trust him for life. Stop by our newcomer’s reception this morning before leaving and discover how to know God in a personal way. Come this afternoon to our New Life Group at 5 PM which will be discussing the movie "The Passion of the Christ".
Perhaps you are most struck with the image of food. You are receptive to the word of God. You believe and you have committed yourself to Jesus, but your soul is hungry and your body malnourished. You haven’t been feeding on God’s word. You have been filling your life with junk food.
This morning God is inviting you to go deeper. Begin memorizing God’s word. Ask someone to explain it to you. Get a version of the Bible you can understand. Start a Bible reading plan today. Get into a Lifestage Bible Fellowship. Join a Deeper Life Group. Quench your hunger for God’s word. Stop starving your spiritual soul!
Perhaps you are most struck by the foundation wall. You know God’s word well, but you are building your life on something less secure. You are putting your trust in the things of this world- wealth, fortune, success, health, or beauty.
Those who have been Christians their whole lives sometimes need to stop and do an internal assessment. There is no greater hope than that which is found in Jesus Christ. In Christ alone, the resurrection and life, we are to place our trust. Stop building your life on the shifting sands of this world.
Perhaps none of these first three images expresses your need, but rather the last. You are a gung-ho Christian when it comes to God’s word. In your mind there is no greater hope and assurance and promise than that which is found in God’s word. But for some reason, that profound trust you have in God’s word is not working itself out in the way you live your life. You are obedient in thought but not in deed. You continually compromise the life God wants you to live by falling into sin.
For you it's time to get serious about repentance. You will not find God’s blessing or the deeper life you seek while walking in the darkness of sin. Come clean before God. Pledge your life to Christ through the waters of baptism. Follow in Christ’s footsteps. Begin practicing Christ’s lifestyle of loving God and loving people. Ask other Christians to pray for you. Ask God to give you strength.
May we all cultivate the passion Christ had for God’s word. Receiving it. Feasting on it. Building on it. And living it out.