Mark 4:13, 14,20 (NKJV) And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word…. But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
A tree doesn’t grow overnight but takes years after the seed has been planted in the soil, and it wouldn’t have grown if someone had stolen or a bird had eaten the seed, but only if the seed had remained in the ground and given the right environment to grow. The Word of God is compared to a seed being sown into our hearts, so likewise, we cannot expect our faith to be strong unless we allow the Word of God to take root in our hearts and develop into a conviction. It is not hard for the devil to steal the seed, but what a challenge it would be to uproot a tree!
Faith comes by hearing—the unadulterated Word of God. We live in a fast-paced society where people are keen on quick fixes or life hacks due to the lack of patience. Instead of the Word of God, many prefer a formula for exiting their difficult situations, or are more interested in the miraculous manifestation of the Holy Spirit, or a word from a prophet rather than the teaching of the Word and spending quality time with the Lord. Both the supernatural manifestation of the Holy Spirit and the teaching of the Word of God are important, but we would never last without the Word as the foundation of our Christian life.
Jesus said that understanding this parable would help us to comprehend the other parables. Therefore, truly grasping the fundamental truth of this parable would help us to be fruitful in our Christian lives. The crux in this parable is that when the Word is well received and accepted, it will bring forth a harvest. This means we are the determining factor of how much the Word of God can impact our lives because we have been given the freedom of choice to listen to the Word intently, accept it and act it out diligently, or otherwise.
The seed has tremendous power to produce faith in our lives. If the soil if fertile, or the heart is willing to receive the Word, it will have a multiplication effect of up to a hundredfold. The seed will germinate and take root even though the process may not be visible. As the seed needs water to grow, we also need to meditate on the Word to allow it to take root in our hearts. Jesus said that a mustard seed can grow into a strong tree regardless of the size of the seed. Likewise, we must not underestimate the power of God’s Word in our lives.
Sermon Series: The Seed Can be Stolen but It Is Difficult to Uproot the Tree!
从种子到大树
马可福音 4:13-20 又对他们说：“你们不明白这比喻吗？这样怎能明白一切的比喻呢？撒种之人所撒的就是道。。那撒在好地上的，就是人听道，又领受，并且结实，有三十倍的，有六十倍的，有一百倍的。”
这树并不是一夜之间长出来的，而是在种子播进土壤经年之后才长到这么大。如果一开始种子被人偷去，或者被飞鸟吃掉，这棵树就不会出现。它之所以在这地方，是因为种子一直留在地土中，得到合宜的生长环境。神的道被比作撒在我们心里的种子，同样地，除非我们让神的道在我们心中扎根并成长为信念，否则我们休想拥有强大的信心。对魔鬼来说，偷走种子轻而易举，但是要把一棵树连根拔起哪有那么容易！
信道是从听道来的，从神纯净的话来的。我们生活在一个快节奏的社会。由于缺乏耐心，人们凡事都想一蹴而就或热衷于找到生活小窍门。比起聆听神的话，人们更想要一个让他们摆脱困境的方程式；相比神话语的教导以及在灵修中与神相契，他们更想看到圣灵奇迹般的彰显，或者从先知那里得来的只言片语。圣灵超自然的彰显和神话语的教导是同等重要的。然而，没有神的道作为我们基督徒生命的根基，我们是撑不了多久的。
耶稣提到，理解这个比喻会帮助我们理解其它的比喻。基本上，当我们掌握了这个比喻的基本真理时，它会帮助我们在信徒生命中结出果子来。这个比喻的关键是：当神的道被很好地接收并领受，它就带来丰收。这意味着圣言对我们生命的影响程度取决于我们自己，因为我们得到了选择的自由：是专注地聆听圣言，接受并坚持不懈地付诸行动，还是选择不这么做。
种子里面蕴藏着巨大的力量，能在我们的生命中产生信心。如果土壤是肥沃的，或者说心灵愿意接受这个道，那么它会有倍增的功效，带来百倍的收成。种子会发芽生根，尽管这过程或许不可见。如同种子需要浇水以帮助它生长。同样地，我们要默想神的道，让它继续在我们心中扎根。耶稣也教导我们，不管芥菜种子种下的时候是什么样的大小，它都能长成一棵茁壮的大树。同样地，我们切莫低估神话语在我们生命中的大能。
讲章系列：种子会被偷走，但很难把树连根拔起！