WEBVTT 00:00:04.360 --> 00:00:06.540 You're listening to the Christ Our Cornerstone 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:09.359 podcast, a ministry of Christ Our Cornerstone 00:00:09.359 --> 00:00:12.099 Church in O 'Neill, Nebraska. I'm Pastor Logan 00:00:12.099 --> 00:00:14.160 Merrick, and it's our prayer that this message 00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:16.519 strengthens your faith and draws you closer to 00:00:16.519 --> 00:00:20.120 Christ. Let's dive in. We are going to go to 00:00:20.120 --> 00:00:22.320 Mark chapter four. The title of my sermon today 00:00:22.320 --> 00:00:25.899 is A Farmer's Guide to Evangelism. I figured, 00:00:25.899 --> 00:00:31.039 you know, that's an apt title. One, because of 00:00:31.039 --> 00:00:33.420 what you'll see in the text, and two, well, because 00:00:33.420 --> 00:00:41.570 of my audience so um we're going to unpack quite 00:00:41.570 --> 00:00:48.270 a bit uh 34 verses and i'm gonna move as quick 00:00:48.270 --> 00:00:51.549 as i can but making sure that we're thoroughly 00:00:51.549 --> 00:00:53.530 working through it now you may be like pastor 00:00:53.530 --> 00:00:56.789 logan before we had palm sunday and easter sunday 00:00:56.789 --> 00:01:01.719 we skipped um some portions, some verses from 00:01:01.719 --> 00:01:04.000 chapter three, and that is correct, but only 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:08.439 because as I was preparing that sermon, I realized 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:12.000 I basically preached it on Easter Sunday, not 00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:17.359 realizing it. Because what is taking place, and 00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:20.780 I'll just briefly sum it up, is essentially Lord, 00:01:21.000 --> 00:01:27.200 liar, lunatic, because Jesus is called a liar 00:01:27.200 --> 00:01:30.680 by the Pharisees. And he's called a lunatic by 00:01:30.680 --> 00:01:32.959 his own family in that text. And so I already 00:01:32.959 --> 00:01:35.739 pointed out last week why he is not those things. 00:01:35.760 --> 00:01:38.540 So I thought, well, we'll continue moving on. 00:01:38.620 --> 00:01:39.920 Is that okay with everybody? Or you guys want 00:01:39.920 --> 00:01:41.459 me to go back and preach it again next week? 00:01:41.700 --> 00:01:42.879 Or do you just want me to preach what I preached 00:01:42.879 --> 00:01:49.840 last week? Okay. So the big idea this morning 00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:52.859 that we're gonna unpack is effective evangelism 00:01:52.859 --> 00:01:57.469 combines understanding our message. with insight 00:01:57.469 --> 00:02:01.170 into the condition of the hearts we engage, leading 00:02:01.170 --> 00:02:03.890 to the expansion of God's kingdom. Now, we're 00:02:03.890 --> 00:02:06.590 gonna take this chunk by chunk. I'm not just 00:02:06.590 --> 00:02:09.930 gonna read all 34 verses. We're gonna take this 00:02:09.930 --> 00:02:12.210 chunk by chunk. But before we start in the verses, 00:02:12.270 --> 00:02:16.210 let me ask you this. How many of you have ever 00:02:16.210 --> 00:02:21.229 shared the gospel with someone? Okay, most everybody. 00:02:24.449 --> 00:02:26.370 There's different ways we can do that, right? 00:02:26.770 --> 00:02:29.750 We can go on missions trips, missions trips specifically. 00:02:30.090 --> 00:02:32.169 Hopefully you're going on a missions trip to 00:02:32.169 --> 00:02:36.750 share the gospel with someone. How many of you 00:02:36.750 --> 00:02:38.789 would say, yeah, that's where I have shared the 00:02:38.789 --> 00:02:42.110 gospel the most is on a missions trip? Couple, 00:02:42.270 --> 00:02:46.810 all right. So then was it a conversation with 00:02:46.810 --> 00:02:50.969 a friend, a family member, a neighbor? Okay. 00:02:51.490 --> 00:02:54.219 I'm going somewhere with all this, so. Just hang 00:02:54.219 --> 00:02:56.580 tight with me. How many of you guys would say, 00:02:56.580 --> 00:02:59.419 um, I've shared the gospel in a way that was 00:02:59.419 --> 00:03:02.259 not planned. I was not thinking about going up 00:03:02.259 --> 00:03:07.620 to, uh, this person. It just, I was in line at 00:03:07.620 --> 00:03:11.000 the bank or whatever and the Holy Spirit kind 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:14.780 of gave me the opportunity. I took it and after 00:03:14.780 --> 00:03:18.360 I was done, I looked back and go, Whoa, kind 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:23.139 of blacked out there for a second. Anybody? You're 00:03:23.139 --> 00:03:24.319 like, no, I'm not blacking out. What are you 00:03:24.319 --> 00:03:29.240 talking about? It was a joke. OK. I've I've literally 00:03:29.240 --> 00:03:30.699 shared the gospel in all those ways, whether 00:03:30.699 --> 00:03:32.500 it was on a mission trip, whether it was with 00:03:32.500 --> 00:03:36.259 friends, neighbors or just moments present themselves. 00:03:37.139 --> 00:03:41.319 And the reason why I'm asking you guys this is 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:44.360 because that's what we're going to be unpacking 00:03:44.360 --> 00:03:48.199 today. Now, let me ask you another question. 00:03:48.240 --> 00:03:50.800 How many of you would say you love the idea of 00:03:50.800 --> 00:03:53.259 sharing your faith? But when you actually think 00:03:53.259 --> 00:03:54.939 about doing it, you start to freak out a little 00:03:54.939 --> 00:04:00.060 bit. OK, yeah, that's good. I appreciate the 00:04:00.060 --> 00:04:06.139 honesty, because it is a fair response to feel 00:04:06.139 --> 00:04:11.379 this kind of anxiety. And there's a book. I can't 00:04:11.379 --> 00:04:12.979 even remember the name of the author, but I just 00:04:12.979 --> 00:04:14.740 remember the title of it was so good. And it 00:04:14.740 --> 00:04:16.879 was How to Share Jesus Without Freaking Out. 00:04:17.800 --> 00:04:22.590 And it was good. It's a decent little book. If 00:04:22.590 --> 00:04:24.689 you are one of those people that's like, I kind 00:04:24.689 --> 00:04:26.750 of freak out a little bit at the thought of it, 00:04:26.750 --> 00:04:28.230 highly recommend it. But we're going to unpack 00:04:28.230 --> 00:04:33.470 some of that today. But a lot of us live in the 00:04:33.470 --> 00:04:36.389 tension of evangelism because we know that it 00:04:36.389 --> 00:04:38.930 matters. We know that we should do it. But at 00:04:38.930 --> 00:04:42.170 times, fear gets the best of us and we hesitate. 00:04:43.069 --> 00:04:46.610 As a matter of fact, in my own house, we live 00:04:46.610 --> 00:04:49.810 in that tension because my wife is one who would 00:04:49.810 --> 00:04:53.350 say, I don't have the gift of evangelism, and 00:04:53.350 --> 00:04:56.790 she doesn't necessarily live in this way that's 00:04:56.790 --> 00:04:59.269 like, I've got to share the gospel with everybody. 00:04:59.889 --> 00:05:02.370 Now, don't anyone look in her direction and be 00:05:02.370 --> 00:05:04.769 like, how dare you as a pastor's wife? Because 00:05:04.769 --> 00:05:06.810 I would point that finger and those eyes right 00:05:06.810 --> 00:05:12.189 back at you. But she will do it if the opportunity 00:05:12.189 --> 00:05:15.850 presents itself, but she is not going out of 00:05:15.850 --> 00:05:17.829 the way. And she will tell you, like, I'm not 00:05:17.829 --> 00:05:19.970 sharing anything that she's not, you know, willing 00:05:19.970 --> 00:05:22.519 to share. But it sounds like most of you guys 00:05:22.519 --> 00:05:24.500 are in the same kind of boat as her. Like it's 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:27.240 like, yeah, if the opportunity presents itself, 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:29.720 I'm going to take it. I'm probably going to step 00:05:29.720 --> 00:05:31.740 all over myself, put my foot in my mouth a couple 00:05:31.740 --> 00:05:34.240 of times, you know, whatever. But I've really 00:05:34.240 --> 00:05:36.120 got to just trust that the Holy Spirit's moving 00:05:36.120 --> 00:05:40.860 it right. Like I am not. I will say I there's 00:05:40.860 --> 00:05:42.819 been times I've been uncomfortable to share the 00:05:42.819 --> 00:05:47.420 gospel, but I am not that person. I love sharing 00:05:47.420 --> 00:05:49.699 the gospel and I don't I don't say this is like 00:05:49.699 --> 00:05:53.120 a look at me, I'm an all -star. That's not what 00:05:53.120 --> 00:05:57.259 I mean. I know that one of the gifts of the spirit 00:05:57.259 --> 00:06:00.339 that I have is evangelism. And so I can literally 00:06:00.339 --> 00:06:03.540 bring Jesus into any and every conversation. 00:06:04.480 --> 00:06:06.480 You want to talk about the weather, buddy, I 00:06:06.480 --> 00:06:09.500 will find a way to bring Jesus into that conversation. 00:06:10.379 --> 00:06:12.379 And to give you an example of this, when we first 00:06:12.379 --> 00:06:16.680 moved to Lincoln, I was literally sharing the 00:06:16.680 --> 00:06:21.110 gospel with everybody, whether it was our Drunken 00:06:21.110 --> 00:06:25.009 college student neighbors that we had I was trying 00:06:25.009 --> 00:06:27.990 to hold a Bible study on our front porch with 00:06:27.990 --> 00:06:32.509 those guys we had a guy come to install the internet 00:06:32.509 --> 00:06:35.230 and That poor guy ended up getting a lot more 00:06:35.230 --> 00:06:37.470 than he bargained for because by the time he 00:06:37.470 --> 00:06:39.670 was done I had a date set up with him the next 00:06:39.670 --> 00:06:41.930 day to sit down and talk about the Bible at the 00:06:41.930 --> 00:06:45.990 coffee shop and we did do that and so it's just 00:06:46.160 --> 00:06:48.319 there was, especially when we were trying to 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:49.980 plant the church and plant the gospel, it was 00:06:49.980 --> 00:06:52.560 like, I took every opportunity. I felt like it 00:06:52.560 --> 00:06:55.560 didn't matter who came in my path. Like God had 00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:57.379 placed them there. And so I was going to share 00:06:57.379 --> 00:07:00.779 the gospel with them. But like I said, there's 00:07:00.779 --> 00:07:02.699 also those times where I will shrink back and 00:07:02.699 --> 00:07:06.240 I'm really uncomfortable and I can get to the 00:07:06.240 --> 00:07:10.279 place where I'm going. I shouldn't, I shouldn't. 00:07:10.350 --> 00:07:13.310 say anything right now. Like those times do happen. 00:07:13.350 --> 00:07:17.370 But for the most part, I do enjoy, I would say 00:07:17.370 --> 00:07:20.069 80 % of the time taking advantage of talking 00:07:20.069 --> 00:07:23.709 about Jesus. But here's something that we definitely 00:07:23.709 --> 00:07:27.430 cannot miss. Evangelism is part of our calling 00:07:27.430 --> 00:07:30.069 as believers. Would everybody agree with that? 00:07:31.149 --> 00:07:35.370 Yes. It's not just about who has the gift of 00:07:35.370 --> 00:07:37.449 evangelism. It is the job of everybody, which 00:07:37.449 --> 00:07:40.769 is why we read Mark 16, 15, which was the call 00:07:40.769 --> 00:07:43.910 to all of us of the Great Commission, go and 00:07:43.910 --> 00:07:48.009 make disciples. So the next question becomes, 00:07:48.069 --> 00:07:51.689 how do we actually do this well? And that's exactly 00:07:51.689 --> 00:07:54.149 what Jesus helps us understand in Mark chapter 00:07:54.149 --> 00:07:57.110 four, because what he does is he prepares his 00:07:57.110 --> 00:08:01.250 disciples and us for what evangelism is really 00:08:01.250 --> 00:08:04.250 going to look like. He tells us that when we 00:08:04.250 --> 00:08:07.149 go out, we're going to encounter different kinds 00:08:07.149 --> 00:08:10.610 of hearts. just like different kinds of soils, 00:08:10.670 --> 00:08:13.050 and not all of them are going to respond the 00:08:13.050 --> 00:08:16.529 same way. In fact, some won't respond at all, 00:08:17.410 --> 00:08:23.370 but that part is beautifully not on you. What 00:08:23.370 --> 00:08:25.649 is on you is to be faithful with the message 00:08:25.649 --> 00:08:28.850 and to be light. So we're also going to see this, 00:08:28.949 --> 00:08:31.410 the kingdom of God may start small, but it grows 00:08:31.410 --> 00:08:34.990 with incredible power. So if we will be faithful 00:08:34.990 --> 00:08:39.340 to sow the seed, we will see a harvest. So let's 00:08:39.340 --> 00:08:44.480 go ahead and dive in. We're going to read verses 00:08:44.480 --> 00:08:48.039 one through 20. If you do not have a Bible, would 00:08:48.039 --> 00:08:51.960 love for you to grab one in the back and see 00:08:51.960 --> 00:08:56.960 the verses for yourself. That is our gift to 00:08:56.960 --> 00:08:59.639 you. If you don't have one or you can read it 00:08:59.639 --> 00:09:03.360 right up here. So we're going to go ahead and 00:09:03.360 --> 00:09:08.990 read. Verses one through 20, like I said. And 00:09:08.990 --> 00:09:12.049 again, he began to teach, he being Jesus, beside 00:09:12.049 --> 00:09:15.129 the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about 00:09:15.129 --> 00:09:18.230 him so that he got into a boat and sat in it 00:09:18.230 --> 00:09:20.809 on the sea. And the whole crowd was beside the 00:09:20.809 --> 00:09:24.389 sea on the land. And he was teaching them many 00:09:24.389 --> 00:09:27.169 things and parables. And in his teaching, he 00:09:27.169 --> 00:09:31.389 said to them, listen, behold, a sower went out 00:09:31.389 --> 00:09:34.799 to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:37.740 the path and the birds came and devoured it. 00:09:38.220 --> 00:09:40.460 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it did 00:09:40.460 --> 00:09:42.480 not have much soil and immediately it sprang 00:09:42.480 --> 00:09:46.139 up since it had no depth of soil. And when the 00:09:46.139 --> 00:09:49.220 sun rose, it scorched it and since it had no 00:09:49.220 --> 00:09:52.639 root, it withered away. Other seed fell among 00:09:52.639 --> 00:09:55.000 the thorns and the thorns grew up and choked 00:09:55.000 --> 00:09:59.179 it and it yielded no grain. and other seeds fell 00:09:59.179 --> 00:10:01.740 into good soil and produced grain, growing up 00:10:01.740 --> 00:10:04.500 and increasing and yielding 30 -fold and 60 -fold 00:10:04.500 --> 00:10:08.320 and 100 -fold. And he said, he who has ears, 00:10:08.399 --> 00:10:11.759 let him hear." I'm gonna pause for just a second. 00:10:12.179 --> 00:10:15.919 I know he does not like when I call him out and 00:10:15.919 --> 00:10:18.620 ask for his response, but I'm going to anyway. 00:10:19.200 --> 00:10:25.340 LOL. Is 30 -fold, 60 -fold and 100 -fold really 00:10:25.340 --> 00:10:33.240 good return? What about corn? A hundred fold? 00:10:34.080 --> 00:10:38.019 Take it? Cool. All right. Well, just making sure 00:10:38.019 --> 00:10:41.019 that's good. I felt like that was good, but you 00:10:41.019 --> 00:10:44.279 guys know I'm not a farmer. So, and when he was 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:46.659 alone, those around him in the 12 asked him about 00:10:46.659 --> 00:10:49.759 the parables. And he said to them, to you has 00:10:49.759 --> 00:10:52.240 been given the secret of the kingdom of God, 00:10:52.620 --> 00:10:55.360 but for those outside, everything is in parables. 00:10:55.379 --> 00:10:59.269 So that They may indeed see, but not perceive, 00:10:59.590 --> 00:11:02.169 and may indeed hear, but not understand, lest 00:11:02.169 --> 00:11:05.590 they should turn and be forgiven." That's a hard 00:11:05.590 --> 00:11:08.370 text, by the way. And he said to them, do you 00:11:08.370 --> 00:11:11.750 not understand this parable? How then would you 00:11:11.750 --> 00:11:14.450 understand all parables? The sower sows the word, 00:11:14.789 --> 00:11:17.110 and these are the ones along the path. Where 00:11:17.110 --> 00:11:20.789 the word is sown, when they hear, Satan immediately 00:11:20.789 --> 00:11:23.649 comes and takes away the word that is sown in 00:11:23.649 --> 00:11:27.139 them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground, 00:11:27.340 --> 00:11:30.759 and the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately 00:11:30.759 --> 00:11:33.539 receive it with joy. And when they have no root, 00:11:33.820 --> 00:11:36.120 and they have no root in themselves, and they 00:11:36.120 --> 00:11:38.399 will endure for a while, then when the tribulation 00:11:38.399 --> 00:11:40.580 and persecution arises on account of the word, 00:11:41.019 --> 00:11:43.860 immediately they fall away. And others are the 00:11:43.860 --> 00:11:49.360 ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear 00:11:49.360 --> 00:11:51.919 the word, but the cares of the world and the 00:11:51.919 --> 00:11:54.700 deceitfulness of riches and the desires of the 00:11:54.700 --> 00:11:57.980 other things enter in and choke it out, and it 00:11:57.980 --> 00:12:01.460 proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on 00:12:01.460 --> 00:12:04.039 the good soil are the ones who hear the word, 00:12:04.059 --> 00:12:07.480 accept it and bear fruit 30 fold, 60 fold and 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:12.840 100 fold. So if you are taking notes, my first 00:12:12.840 --> 00:12:20.340 point is so generously entrust the spirit. So 00:12:20.340 --> 00:12:25.620 as we look at Mark one through 20, we look at 00:12:25.620 --> 00:12:27.679 sowing generously and trusting the Spirit. So 00:12:27.679 --> 00:12:30.139 in these first 20 verses, we come to some really 00:12:30.139 --> 00:12:33.600 important things to understand. First, we're 00:12:33.600 --> 00:12:36.000 going to experience different types of soil. 00:12:37.120 --> 00:12:40.799 Those soils, hopefully you understood, represents 00:12:40.799 --> 00:12:47.159 hearts, spirits. And so second, Jesus speaks 00:12:47.159 --> 00:12:49.279 in parables for a reason. So these are the two 00:12:49.279 --> 00:12:52.019 things we're going to unpack at some points inside 00:12:52.019 --> 00:12:54.879 of this first point. So let's start with the 00:12:54.879 --> 00:12:58.019 soils. As you guys know, as I've already said, 00:12:58.419 --> 00:13:02.980 National Hogan is no farmer. Every year, my wife 00:13:02.980 --> 00:13:09.919 and my daughter are committed, committed to starting 00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:14.700 a garden. And every year, well, let's just say 00:13:14.700 --> 00:13:18.159 it's like the Hunger Games. Those plants better 00:13:18.159 --> 00:13:20.679 produce something on their own because we don't 00:13:20.679 --> 00:13:23.779 have green thumbs. And this year, My wife is 00:13:23.779 --> 00:13:25.759 like, oh, we're doing it right. We're doing it 00:13:25.759 --> 00:13:29.740 up this year. We're getting it done. OK, we pastor 00:13:29.740 --> 00:13:33.000 a church of farmers and ranchers. Somebody is 00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:35.000 going to help us. We're going to get this done. 00:13:35.580 --> 00:13:40.779 Right. But it doesn't take a farmer and someone 00:13:40.779 --> 00:13:44.399 who does isn't good at farming to understand 00:13:44.399 --> 00:13:49.840 that soil is a big deal. Right. Like understanding. 00:13:50.570 --> 00:13:53.230 your soils is a big deal, it's a part of it. 00:13:53.809 --> 00:13:58.909 And so there was a time where we had decided 00:13:58.909 --> 00:14:01.269 we were gonna, like I said, we're gonna grow 00:14:01.269 --> 00:14:03.649 a small vegetable garden. And let's just say, 00:14:03.690 --> 00:14:06.769 like I said, it did not go well. It always starts 00:14:06.769 --> 00:14:09.730 out strong, but it never finished as well. And 00:14:09.730 --> 00:14:11.269 there are a lot of reasons for that, but one 00:14:11.269 --> 00:14:13.149 of the main reasons is the soil where we live. 00:14:13.190 --> 00:14:17.529 It's hard, it's compact, and grass barely grows 00:14:17.529 --> 00:14:20.840 in our backyard. It's mostly weeds and dirt in 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:23.039 our backyard. And our chickens that we had did 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:25.419 not help that, by the way. They scratched that 00:14:25.419 --> 00:14:29.259 stuff all up for their little dirt baths. But 00:14:29.259 --> 00:14:32.740 I remember this one time where we were trying, 00:14:32.879 --> 00:14:34.460 we're trying it again this year. I'll let you 00:14:34.460 --> 00:14:35.919 know how it goes. Hopefully it's better, but 00:14:35.919 --> 00:14:38.799 we're trying to get grass to grow in our backyard. 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:42.919 And so, but when I tried to prepare the ground, 00:14:42.980 --> 00:14:45.759 like I said, it is really, really, really hard. 00:14:46.350 --> 00:14:48.669 And so I tried to prepare the ground. I scratched 00:14:48.669 --> 00:14:50.929 it all up. I even do a little hoeing and I'm 00:14:50.929 --> 00:14:54.169 doing like I'm doing it up. Right. And I'm waiting. 00:14:54.250 --> 00:14:57.889 I put the seed down. And I kid you not, the very 00:14:57.889 --> 00:15:00.669 next morning I look out and all that seed that 00:15:00.669 --> 00:15:05.110 I had just laid was being eaten by Blue Jays 00:15:05.110 --> 00:15:09.070 and Blue Jays are jerks. If you did not know 00:15:09.070 --> 00:15:11.409 that, they are jerks, man. They will attack you 00:15:11.409 --> 00:15:15.629 for no reason. And so they ate up. Most of my 00:15:15.629 --> 00:15:18.330 seed and what seed did actually get into the 00:15:18.330 --> 00:15:21.549 ground because it's so dry, even though we tried 00:15:21.549 --> 00:15:23.669 to water it and even though our ground is hard, 00:15:23.710 --> 00:15:26.649 like we did all the things. We got little bits 00:15:26.649 --> 00:15:29.509 of grass and then it just when it got like dead 00:15:29.509 --> 00:15:34.649 summer, it just burned. And so I feel like I 00:15:34.649 --> 00:15:41.519 understand this parable so well. So. Now sure, 00:15:41.519 --> 00:15:44.139 you could blame me for some of the reasons why 00:15:44.139 --> 00:15:46.799 the grass died or burnt, but the point is still 00:15:46.799 --> 00:15:48.799 the condition of the soil matters. And Jesus 00:15:48.799 --> 00:15:51.360 says that's exactly what it's like with people's 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:53.440 hearts. They're going to be the hearts that are 00:15:53.440 --> 00:15:56.019 hard. People who have been through things, people 00:15:56.019 --> 00:15:58.240 who have built walls, and people who want nothing 00:15:58.240 --> 00:16:01.299 to do with God or the message of hope. And when 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:04.639 you share, it feels like seed just hits on the 00:16:04.639 --> 00:16:07.720 surface and gets taken away. How many of you 00:16:07.720 --> 00:16:09.159 guys have ever shared the gospel with someone 00:16:09.159 --> 00:16:15.379 like that? Yeah, I have. I definitely have. I've 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:18.860 had many conversations on the campus of UNL with 00:16:18.860 --> 00:16:22.700 kids and others, and it's just like it bounces 00:16:22.700 --> 00:16:26.820 off of them. But, let me ask you this, does that 00:16:26.820 --> 00:16:29.000 mean that we just skip over those people? If 00:16:29.000 --> 00:16:30.600 we know them and it's like, ah, they're hard 00:16:30.600 --> 00:16:34.460 to it, they're just gonna, they're just, doesn't 00:16:34.460 --> 00:16:36.559 matter my words, I'm just wasting my time, do 00:16:36.559 --> 00:16:42.899 we just avoid those people? No, absolutely not. 00:16:43.259 --> 00:16:45.559 Does it say that the sower looked at the ground 00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:47.120 and was like, this is hard, so I'm not going 00:16:47.120 --> 00:16:51.600 to sow seed there? Nope. We still sow. Write 00:16:51.600 --> 00:16:55.659 this down. Because in the parable, the sower 00:16:55.659 --> 00:16:59.740 is throwing seed everywhere. He's not being selective. 00:17:00.039 --> 00:17:03.419 He is being generous. And we have to trust that 00:17:03.419 --> 00:17:06.039 the Holy Spirit will use our obedience in his 00:17:06.039 --> 00:17:09.700 message to do what only he can do. Now I can 00:17:09.700 --> 00:17:12.140 already hear but pastor Logan, why would I spend 00:17:12.140 --> 00:17:14.160 time sharing with someone who I know is going 00:17:14.160 --> 00:17:16.940 to reject it? What do you think my answer is 00:17:16.940 --> 00:17:26.660 to that? You don't know I know many a hard person 00:17:26.660 --> 00:17:29.859 that I thought was absolutely no way are they 00:17:29.859 --> 00:17:32.559 gonna come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ 00:17:32.559 --> 00:17:38.579 and guess what? They did because it's not me 00:17:38.579 --> 00:17:41.180 who does the saving, it's the Holy Spirit, I 00:17:41.180 --> 00:17:45.079 am just entering into this with him and wanting 00:17:45.079 --> 00:17:48.660 to be obedient. So you don't know who might be 00:17:48.660 --> 00:17:50.839 the next Paul. You don't know what God might 00:17:50.839 --> 00:17:53.779 do in a moment or over time or through a conversation 00:17:53.779 --> 00:17:56.799 that didn't seem to go anywhere. Our job is not 00:17:56.799 --> 00:17:59.859 to determine our outcomes. Our job is to be faithful 00:17:59.859 --> 00:18:02.680 sewers. I told you guys before about my neighbor. 00:18:03.660 --> 00:18:08.549 He is very hard, very antagonistic to the gospel. 00:18:09.049 --> 00:18:12.789 And even more so, like I've had so many conversations 00:18:12.789 --> 00:18:15.289 with him. And one time I really felt like the 00:18:15.289 --> 00:18:18.910 Lord wanted me to give him a Bible. And so I 00:18:18.910 --> 00:18:22.109 wrote a little note to him. I sat the Bible on 00:18:22.109 --> 00:18:23.849 his front porch because he never comes to his 00:18:23.849 --> 00:18:26.950 front door. And about an hour later, I found 00:18:26.950 --> 00:18:30.009 that that Bible back on my porch with a note 00:18:30.009 --> 00:18:31.950 back to me that said, thanks, but no, thanks. 00:18:34.549 --> 00:18:36.309 He's still not a believer, but I'm still going 00:18:36.309 --> 00:18:42.440 to keep sowing seed. It's just how it goes. So 00:18:42.440 --> 00:18:44.619 Jesus talks to us about another kind of soil. 00:18:44.880 --> 00:18:47.500 This is the person who receives the message quickly 00:18:47.500 --> 00:18:51.339 and even joyfully. This is what I call the camp 00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:52.559 high Christian. How many of you guys have ever 00:18:52.559 --> 00:18:54.660 met somebody that get really excited about faith? 00:18:55.339 --> 00:18:57.700 You've shared the gospel with them, they come 00:18:57.700 --> 00:18:59.980 to know Jesus and they're really excited about 00:18:59.980 --> 00:19:02.319 it and then they quickly fall away. Have you 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:05.539 guys ever experienced this person before? Nobody, 00:19:05.579 --> 00:19:09.460 just me, got it, okay. I guess in youth ministry, 00:19:09.500 --> 00:19:11.500 you see it all the time. The camp high Christian, 00:19:11.680 --> 00:19:13.940 you know, you go to camp, you get whisked away 00:19:13.940 --> 00:19:15.740 from all your friends and your phones and all 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:18.140 the stuff and the music's just right and the 00:19:18.140 --> 00:19:20.440 lighting's just right and Pastor Logan's preaching 00:19:20.440 --> 00:19:23.500 just right and sweating away with the gospel 00:19:23.500 --> 00:19:25.440 and then all of a sudden they come to know Jesus 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:27.039 and all their friends come to know Jesus and 00:19:27.039 --> 00:19:30.359 they're crying and snot's flowing all over the 00:19:30.359 --> 00:19:32.539 altars and then they get back with their phones 00:19:32.539 --> 00:19:34.200 and their friends and they go back to school 00:19:34.200 --> 00:19:39.210 and then they're not believers. You guys catching 00:19:39.210 --> 00:19:44.470 it now? So Bible says, Jesus is saying, yeah, 00:19:44.470 --> 00:19:48.430 that's a real thing too. When we get back to 00:19:48.430 --> 00:19:51.029 real life, when following Jesus actually costs 00:19:51.029 --> 00:19:54.210 something, when it means dying to self, that 00:19:54.210 --> 00:19:57.349 sense of excitement and emotion, it fades. The 00:19:57.349 --> 00:20:00.230 root never goes deep enough and it doesn't last. 00:20:00.250 --> 00:20:02.589 And then there's a soil that gets choked out. 00:20:03.690 --> 00:20:06.849 This is the person who tries to add God into 00:20:06.849 --> 00:20:09.329 a life that is already full of other things. 00:20:09.630 --> 00:20:12.529 You know what's interesting is John MacArthur 00:20:12.529 --> 00:20:15.630 in his commentary on this passage, he says that 00:20:15.630 --> 00:20:18.029 the thorns and the brambles with which Jesus 00:20:18.029 --> 00:20:22.130 is talking about are the very thorns that pierce 00:20:22.130 --> 00:20:27.990 his head. They grow all along the sides of the 00:20:27.990 --> 00:20:31.509 road and it gets choked out. And I thought that 00:20:31.509 --> 00:20:36.750 was very ironic. And so John MacArthur calls 00:20:36.750 --> 00:20:41.789 this the rich man's soil. It's a heart that wants 00:20:41.789 --> 00:20:46.089 God, but also wants money, success, comfort and 00:20:46.089 --> 00:20:49.170 control. And when the pressure comes and when 00:20:49.170 --> 00:20:52.490 life gets hard, those other things win and they 00:20:52.490 --> 00:20:54.769 run right back to the smaller gods that never 00:20:54.769 --> 00:20:57.509 truly satisfy. So what do we do with those people? 00:20:57.589 --> 00:20:59.329 Do we just stop sharing the gospel with them? 00:20:59.650 --> 00:21:04.619 No. We continue to sow. Because every once in 00:21:04.619 --> 00:21:07.000 a while, the seed lands in good soil, and when 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:10.299 it does, it changes everything. A life is transformed, 00:21:10.599 --> 00:21:13.359 and a heart is made new, and that is something 00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:16.559 only God can do. Now, let's look at the second 00:21:16.559 --> 00:21:18.480 part. Like I told you, there's a second sub part. 00:21:18.819 --> 00:21:22.740 Why does Jesus speak in parables? He tells us. 00:21:23.539 --> 00:21:26.960 He says, he who has ears, let them hear. What 00:21:26.960 --> 00:21:29.839 does that even mean, though? What does that mean? 00:21:30.700 --> 00:21:33.559 It means not everyone is going to understand. 00:21:34.519 --> 00:21:37.339 Jesus uses parables in a way that reveals truth 00:21:37.339 --> 00:21:40.880 to those who are ready to receive it. And at 00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:43.059 the same time, it conceals it from those who 00:21:43.059 --> 00:21:45.099 are hardened, especially the religious leaders 00:21:45.099 --> 00:21:48.660 who had already rejected him. He purposely hides 00:21:48.660 --> 00:21:54.059 the gospel in the story. And here's why that 00:21:54.059 --> 00:21:56.519 matters for us. It shows us that Jesus is in 00:21:56.519 --> 00:21:58.940 control of how the message is received. He is 00:21:58.940 --> 00:22:01.819 working in ways we cannot see. He is the one 00:22:01.819 --> 00:22:04.559 opening ears, softening hearts and drawing people 00:22:04.559 --> 00:22:07.880 to himself. We are not responsible for that part. 00:22:08.579 --> 00:22:11.339 We sow the seed, the spirit does the work, but 00:22:11.339 --> 00:22:14.500 the seed still has to be sown. And that's our 00:22:14.500 --> 00:22:20.480 role and that's our calling. Let's go to 21 and 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:28.779 25. And he said to them, is a lamp brought in 00:22:28.779 --> 00:22:35.009 to be under a basket? or under a bed and not 00:22:35.009 --> 00:22:38.569 on a stand. For nothing is hidden except to be 00:22:38.569 --> 00:22:40.809 made manifest, nor is anything secret except 00:22:40.809 --> 00:22:44.490 to come to light. If anyone has ears, let them 00:22:44.490 --> 00:22:47.789 hear. And he said to them, pay attention to what 00:22:47.789 --> 00:22:50.549 you hear. With the measure you use, it will be 00:22:50.549 --> 00:22:53.069 measured to you and still more will be added 00:22:53.069 --> 00:22:56.269 to you. For to the one who has more will be given 00:22:56.269 --> 00:23:00.029 and for the one who has not, even what he has 00:23:00.029 --> 00:23:04.009 will be taken away. That is a hard thing to hear 00:23:04.009 --> 00:23:08.230 at the end. Let's see why. So if you're taking 00:23:08.230 --> 00:23:15.410 notes, my second point is shine openly and illuminate 00:23:15.410 --> 00:23:20.190 the darkness. So last Sunday, I talked about 00:23:20.190 --> 00:23:24.970 the danger of creating Christian ghettos. What 00:23:24.970 --> 00:23:27.329 I meant by that, if I wasn't clear on it, is 00:23:27.329 --> 00:23:29.809 these are the places where we isolate ourselves. 00:23:30.109 --> 00:23:32.690 from the world because we're afraid to be influenced 00:23:32.690 --> 00:23:36.109 or contaminated by it. We try to shut ourselves 00:23:36.109 --> 00:23:38.190 away from the world because we're afraid that 00:23:38.190 --> 00:23:43.589 in some way we might become evil if we are to 00:23:43.589 --> 00:23:46.650 interact with it at all. So if we're not careful, 00:23:46.670 --> 00:23:49.190 we can drift into a mindset that says the physical 00:23:49.190 --> 00:23:51.970 world out there is bad and the safest thing we 00:23:51.970 --> 00:23:54.910 can do is just stay away from it, keep to ourselves, 00:23:54.990 --> 00:23:57.109 and stay in our bubble. Do you know what that's 00:23:57.109 --> 00:24:02.430 called, brothers and sisters? Isolation, but 00:24:02.430 --> 00:24:07.630 there is a literal theological belief. It's called 00:24:07.630 --> 00:24:12.690 Gnosticism, which means that the physical material 00:24:12.690 --> 00:24:16.569 things, my physical body is evil, but my spirit 00:24:16.569 --> 00:24:24.869 is not. If you've ever heard of Christian science, 00:24:24.990 --> 00:24:26.750 if you guys heard of the Christian science, that's 00:24:26.750 --> 00:24:29.980 what they believe. It's really just dressed up 00:24:29.980 --> 00:24:34.460 Gnosticism. Mary Baker Eddy is the creator of 00:24:34.460 --> 00:24:38.259 it. It's really like there's nothing new under 00:24:38.259 --> 00:24:40.539 the sun. It's been around. The Greeks were big 00:24:40.539 --> 00:24:44.619 into it. Augustine was a Gnostic before he became 00:24:44.619 --> 00:24:48.380 a Christian. And so again, if we're not careful, 00:24:48.700 --> 00:24:51.920 We can be easily brought into a Gnostic way of 00:24:51.920 --> 00:24:54.940 thinking just by going, no, the world is the 00:24:54.940 --> 00:24:56.759 world is bad. Yes, the world is bad, but it's 00:24:56.759 --> 00:24:58.539 not going to contaminate you. You are sealed 00:24:58.539 --> 00:25:03.380 by the Holy Spirit. So that is not how the kingdom 00:25:03.380 --> 00:25:06.240 works. We're not called to retreat from the world. 00:25:06.279 --> 00:25:10.319 We are called to go into it. Actually had an 00:25:10.319 --> 00:25:12.400 interaction this week. Check this out. This was 00:25:12.400 --> 00:25:14.299 an interesting thing. I actually had an interaction 00:25:14.299 --> 00:25:17.599 this week on Twitter X, whatever you want to 00:25:17.599 --> 00:25:21.960 call it now. You guys know who Brandon Lake is? 00:25:22.180 --> 00:25:24.579 Brandon Lake's a famous worship leader, he's 00:25:24.579 --> 00:25:27.700 written a lot of songs. He was being interviewed 00:25:27.700 --> 00:25:33.400 by Rolling Stone this week and in the editor 00:25:33.400 --> 00:25:37.900 on this interview, it was videotaped. In this 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:42.259 interview, the editor says to him, I'm a Christian 00:25:42.259 --> 00:25:48.980 Buddhist and I've met a Christian Buddhist I'm 00:25:48.980 --> 00:25:53.740 a Christian Buddhist before. He says, I'm a Christian 00:25:53.740 --> 00:25:55.519 Buddhist. And he looks at Brandon Lake and he 00:25:55.519 --> 00:25:59.279 says, do you think that someone like me and my 00:25:59.279 --> 00:26:04.539 beliefs is welcomed into the church, like the 00:26:04.539 --> 00:26:08.480 overall church? So here's Brandon Lake with an 00:26:08.480 --> 00:26:12.859 amazing opportunity. It's literally handed to 00:26:12.859 --> 00:26:18.390 him. And Brandon Lake does what many in the Christian 00:26:18.390 --> 00:26:20.950 music world, I've seen do, when they're giving 00:26:20.950 --> 00:26:23.569 a big platform, all of a sudden, and this is 00:26:23.569 --> 00:26:25.869 the moment to share the gospel, they shrink back. 00:26:25.910 --> 00:26:29.769 And so his response is, I'm sure, yes, and I'm 00:26:29.769 --> 00:26:31.829 sure that Jesus would love to have a conversation 00:26:31.829 --> 00:26:37.690 with you. And so I had commented, and I said, 00:26:38.170 --> 00:26:40.109 on the Rolling Stone article, I commented and 00:26:40.109 --> 00:26:44.930 just said, yes, Brandon, Jesus was ready to have 00:26:44.930 --> 00:26:48.500 the conversation and you missed it. So then a 00:26:48.500 --> 00:26:51.900 guy responds back to me and he says, except a 00:26:51.900 --> 00:26:54.700 true Christian wouldn't be talking to Rolling 00:26:54.700 --> 00:26:58.039 Stone in the first place. And I responded back 00:26:58.039 --> 00:27:00.940 and said, have you completely missed the gospel 00:27:00.940 --> 00:27:04.599 and what Jesus does? That's exactly where I want 00:27:04.599 --> 00:27:08.349 to be. I want to be in front of Rolling Stone. 00:27:08.849 --> 00:27:11.730 Now, listen, I understand that we as Christians 00:27:11.730 --> 00:27:13.809 get taken out of context all the time. I understand 00:27:13.809 --> 00:27:15.509 that the media lies all the time about the things 00:27:15.509 --> 00:27:17.329 that we believe and the things that we say, yada, 00:27:17.329 --> 00:27:20.029 yada, yada. But when it's videotaped and I'm 00:27:20.029 --> 00:27:23.069 asked a question straight up front, that is the 00:27:23.069 --> 00:27:28.970 moment to share the gospel. And so, if you believe 00:27:28.970 --> 00:27:31.740 like this guy who responded to me that... Well, 00:27:31.900 --> 00:27:34.220 no, because you would not be having that conversation 00:27:34.220 --> 00:27:36.559 if you're really a Christian, then I would say 00:27:36.559 --> 00:27:41.359 you're not actually believing the Bible. Because 00:27:41.359 --> 00:27:43.500 here's the thing, brothers and sisters, this 00:27:43.500 --> 00:27:46.380 is not in my notes, but I don't know if I've 00:27:46.380 --> 00:27:49.519 ever said it to you guys. The best thing about 00:27:49.519 --> 00:27:53.980 playing sports is scoring. Yeah. I know that 00:27:53.980 --> 00:27:56.480 we're Husker fans, so we don't get to score touchdowns 00:27:56.480 --> 00:27:59.119 a lot, but at least our basketball team does. 00:28:00.349 --> 00:28:04.049 It's fun to play offense, but it seems like as 00:28:04.049 --> 00:28:05.670 Christians, we're always playing defense and 00:28:05.670 --> 00:28:10.109 we're never playing offense. So if you live like 00:28:10.109 --> 00:28:13.329 this, what I'm saying that shut away, hide your 00:28:13.329 --> 00:28:15.650 lamp under a bed, then you're constantly playing 00:28:15.650 --> 00:28:19.569 defense and you're never playing offense. So 00:28:19.569 --> 00:28:23.910 I get what Brandon was trying to do. I understand 00:28:23.910 --> 00:28:25.750 that he was trying to be gracious, but in that 00:28:25.750 --> 00:28:28.569 moment, he clearly missed a chance to speak the 00:28:28.569 --> 00:28:31.210 truth. and instead he played it safe and he let 00:28:31.210 --> 00:28:36.650 the tone of the room shape his response. So, 00:28:39.910 --> 00:28:44.809 I love how Jesus doesn't avoid what's going on. 00:28:44.910 --> 00:28:47.329 He says, Jesus didn't avoid the world. He stepped 00:28:47.329 --> 00:28:50.509 right into it. He sat with sinners. He had conversations 00:28:50.509 --> 00:28:54.349 with people far from God. He brought light into 00:28:54.349 --> 00:28:58.009 dark places and that's exactly what He's getting 00:28:58.009 --> 00:29:01.049 at in this passage. He uses the image of a lamp. 00:29:01.829 --> 00:29:04.009 You don't light a lamp and then hide it. You 00:29:04.009 --> 00:29:06.970 don't cover it up. You don't tuck it away where 00:29:06.970 --> 00:29:09.529 no one can see it. The whole purpose of the lamp 00:29:09.529 --> 00:29:12.670 is to give light to the room. And if you are 00:29:12.670 --> 00:29:14.890 in Christ, you have been given that light, not 00:29:14.890 --> 00:29:17.849 to hide it and not to keep it to yourself, but 00:29:17.849 --> 00:29:20.930 to let it shine. And that means we live in a 00:29:20.930 --> 00:29:23.549 way that is visible. It's tangible. It's real. 00:29:23.789 --> 00:29:26.750 Our faith is not something we keep locked inside 00:29:26.750 --> 00:29:30.529 these walls. It's it shows up in our conversations, 00:29:30.690 --> 00:29:33.069 in our decisions and how we treat people and 00:29:33.069 --> 00:29:36.650 how we respond when we're even given the opportunity. 00:29:38.109 --> 00:29:39.990 So here's I'm going to ask you, you don't have 00:29:39.990 --> 00:29:42.630 to raise your hands to this, but I want to ask 00:29:42.630 --> 00:29:46.369 you. Last week, we I gave a challenge for Easter. 00:29:47.430 --> 00:29:50.430 Every day, there was a different, simple way. 00:29:50.759 --> 00:29:57.920 to shine the light of Jesus with someone. It's 00:29:57.920 --> 00:30:02.559 ways to just be simply intentional. So my question 00:30:02.559 --> 00:30:12.400 is, did anybody take me up on it? Because it's 00:30:12.400 --> 00:30:16.740 those things that matter. Because it's not just 00:30:16.740 --> 00:30:19.119 a nice idea. This is stewardship. You can write 00:30:19.119 --> 00:30:23.700 this down. What do you mean, Pastor Logan, by 00:30:23.700 --> 00:30:27.880 stewardship? Jesus goes on to say that what we've 00:30:27.880 --> 00:30:30.559 been given is being measured. So I want you to 00:30:30.559 --> 00:30:35.299 think about that. Our time, our homes, our families, 00:30:35.859 --> 00:30:40.380 our talents, our careers, our church, our neighbors, 00:30:41.079 --> 00:30:45.180 all of it has been entrusted to us. So the question 00:30:45.180 --> 00:30:48.579 is, what are we doing with it? Are we using what 00:30:48.579 --> 00:30:51.039 God has given us to shine his light, or are we 00:30:51.039 --> 00:30:53.119 stepping into opportunities, or are we shrinking 00:30:53.119 --> 00:30:55.680 back when things get uncomfortable? You can write 00:30:55.680 --> 00:31:06.900 this down too. What up, Gus? Hey! Through Christ, 00:31:06.940 --> 00:31:09.859 you have been given light. You don't have to 00:31:09.859 --> 00:31:12.259 manufacture it, you don't have to force it, but 00:31:12.259 --> 00:31:14.880 you're called to reflect it. Think of it like 00:31:14.880 --> 00:31:20.150 a mirror. You're reflecting the light. And when 00:31:20.150 --> 00:31:22.349 you live openly like that, when your faith is 00:31:22.349 --> 00:31:24.470 visible and not hidden, it creates opportunities. 00:31:24.609 --> 00:31:27.549 People notice conversations happen and seeds 00:31:27.549 --> 00:31:30.309 get planted. So here's the question you need 00:31:30.309 --> 00:31:32.390 to wrestle with. Where am I hiding my light? 00:31:33.829 --> 00:31:36.230 Where am I choosing comfort over calling? Where 00:31:36.230 --> 00:31:38.809 am I staying silent when I should be speaking? 00:31:39.349 --> 00:31:42.950 Because the world around you is not lacking darkness. 00:31:43.150 --> 00:31:47.279 What it is lacking though is light. So shine 00:31:47.279 --> 00:31:51.039 openly and illuminate the darkness. Let's read 00:31:51.039 --> 00:31:58.119 verses 26 through 34. And he said, the kingdom 00:31:58.119 --> 00:32:01.519 of God is as if a man should scatter seed on 00:32:01.519 --> 00:32:07.660 the ground. He sleeps and rises and rises night 00:32:07.660 --> 00:32:10.920 and day and the seed sprouts and grows and he 00:32:10.920 --> 00:32:15.000 knows not how. The earth produces by itself First 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:18.579 the blade, then the ear, then full of grain in 00:32:18.579 --> 00:32:21.839 the ear. But when the grain is ripe at once, 00:32:21.859 --> 00:32:24.680 he puts the sickle to it because the harvest 00:32:24.680 --> 00:32:29.539 has come. And he said, with what we can compare 00:32:29.539 --> 00:32:32.460 the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we 00:32:32.460 --> 00:32:36.099 use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, 00:32:36.599 --> 00:32:39.420 which when it is sown in the ground is the smallest 00:32:39.420 --> 00:32:42.279 of all seeds on the earth. Yet when it is sown, 00:32:42.380 --> 00:32:45.160 it grows up. and becomes larger than all the 00:32:45.160 --> 00:32:48.019 garden plants and puts out large branches so 00:32:48.019 --> 00:32:50.480 that the birds of the air can make their nest 00:32:50.480 --> 00:32:54.380 in its shade. With many such parables, he spoke 00:32:54.380 --> 00:32:56.799 the word to them, and as they were able to hear 00:32:56.799 --> 00:32:59.299 it, he did not speak to them without a parable, 00:32:59.400 --> 00:33:01.440 but privately to his own disciples, he explained 00:33:01.440 --> 00:33:03.119 everything. Have you ever seen a mustard seed 00:33:03.119 --> 00:33:07.960 before? Holy moly, I've never seen one until 00:33:07.960 --> 00:33:10.920 I looked it up. It's like the size of a grain 00:33:10.920 --> 00:33:17.240 of sand. Very, very, very tiny. So one of the 00:33:17.240 --> 00:33:19.059 most encouraging things about this passage is 00:33:19.059 --> 00:33:22.000 that Jesus reminds us that there is a mystery 00:33:22.000 --> 00:33:25.380 to how the kingdom of God grows. He tells another 00:33:25.380 --> 00:33:27.460 parable about a man who scatters seed on the 00:33:27.460 --> 00:33:29.960 ground. And then what happens? The man goes to 00:33:29.960 --> 00:33:33.400 sleep, he wakes up and days go by, but somehow 00:33:33.400 --> 00:33:37.220 the seed begins to grow. He doesn't know how 00:33:37.220 --> 00:33:40.039 it happens. That's the point. There is a part 00:33:40.039 --> 00:33:42.079 of this process that is completely outside of 00:33:42.079 --> 00:33:45.740 our control. We can plant the seed, we can water 00:33:45.740 --> 00:33:47.839 it, we can be faithful to speak, to live, to 00:33:47.839 --> 00:33:50.640 shine, but the actual growth, the transformation 00:33:50.640 --> 00:33:53.519 of the heart, the moment where someone goes from 00:33:53.519 --> 00:34:01.420 death to life, that is the work of God. Vicki 00:34:01.420 --> 00:34:04.819 May, I'm gonna speak to you now, because I know 00:34:04.819 --> 00:34:09.190 that lol is hiding somewhere. You have a nice 00:34:09.190 --> 00:34:15.150 garden and you do really well with it. Are you, 00:34:15.309 --> 00:34:18.309 with your garden, once you've planted the seed, 00:34:18.690 --> 00:34:21.489 are you going out there each day and doing something 00:34:21.489 --> 00:34:24.269 inside the ground to make that seed do all of 00:34:24.269 --> 00:34:26.829 its work? Are you just letting the environment 00:34:26.829 --> 00:34:32.449 do what it's supposed to do and the laws of what 00:34:32.449 --> 00:34:34.889 God has put in place? It's taking care of everything. 00:34:34.929 --> 00:34:37.070 You're just doing your part to care for and steward 00:34:37.070 --> 00:34:39.530 it, right? Or am I wrong? Do you have some magical 00:34:39.530 --> 00:34:44.210 thing that you're doing? So that's what Jesus 00:34:44.210 --> 00:34:48.389 is saying with this. He's like, hey, the mystery 00:34:48.389 --> 00:34:51.949 lies with me. You just have to be a good steward 00:34:51.949 --> 00:34:54.510 of it. And that, brothers and sisters, should 00:34:54.510 --> 00:34:57.449 be incredibly freeing, should it not? To know 00:34:57.449 --> 00:35:00.809 that it all rests on Him. I just have to be obedient 00:35:00.809 --> 00:35:05.449 and do the little thing. Because some of you 00:35:05.449 --> 00:35:08.260 carry a weight. That evangelism is like it all 00:35:08.260 --> 00:35:10.659 depends on you, like you if you say something 00:35:10.659 --> 00:35:12.800 wrong or if you miss a moment or you don't see 00:35:12.800 --> 00:35:14.900 results you think you failed and that's not what 00:35:14.900 --> 00:35:18.079 Jesus is teaching. He's saying you be faithful 00:35:18.079 --> 00:35:21.000 with what I've given you, you sow the seed, you 00:35:21.000 --> 00:35:23.940 trust me with the growth. Some of you have had 00:35:23.940 --> 00:35:26.199 conversations with people and you walked away 00:35:26.199 --> 00:35:29.440 thinking nothing happened, no response, no visible 00:35:29.440 --> 00:35:34.090 change, it felt like it just fell flat. but you 00:35:34.090 --> 00:35:36.429 had no idea what God is actually doing beneath 00:35:36.429 --> 00:35:39.869 the surface. Just because you can't see it doesn't 00:35:39.869 --> 00:35:42.670 mean he's not working. Growth in the kingdom 00:35:42.670 --> 00:35:47.389 is often slow. It's often hidden and it rarely 00:35:47.389 --> 00:35:50.309 happens on our timeline. Which means we have 00:35:50.309 --> 00:35:53.690 to learn patience. We have to trust that God 00:35:53.690 --> 00:35:56.190 is at work even when we don't see immediate results. 00:35:56.840 --> 00:35:59.340 And Jesus gives us one more picture. He talks 00:35:59.340 --> 00:36:02.400 about the mustard seed, this tiny, insignificant 00:36:02.400 --> 00:36:04.719 looking seed, something that at first glance 00:36:04.719 --> 00:36:07.880 doesn't look like nothing much at all. But when 00:36:07.880 --> 00:36:10.079 it grows, it becomes something large, something 00:36:10.079 --> 00:36:13.039 strong, something that provides shelter and life. 00:36:13.460 --> 00:36:15.579 And that's what the kingdom of God looks like, 00:36:15.820 --> 00:36:18.260 brothers and sisters. It starts small. It's a 00:36:18.260 --> 00:36:21.059 conversation. It's a moment of obedience. It's 00:36:21.059 --> 00:36:24.070 a simple act of faith. Something that feels almost 00:36:24.070 --> 00:36:27.190 insignificant at the time, but in the hands of 00:36:27.190 --> 00:36:29.989 God, it grows into something far greater than 00:36:29.989 --> 00:36:32.369 we could ever imagine. So here's what I want 00:36:32.369 --> 00:36:36.550 you to hear me say. Don't despise small beginnings. 00:36:37.869 --> 00:36:40.130 Don't overlook the simple opportunities. Don't 00:36:40.130 --> 00:36:42.829 think that because it felt ordinary, it wasn't 00:36:42.829 --> 00:36:47.150 meaningful. God specializes in taking small faithful 00:36:47.150 --> 00:36:50.880 acts and producing massive kingdom impact. Here's 00:36:50.880 --> 00:36:56.059 a quote from William Carey. He was a famous missionary. 00:36:59.219 --> 00:37:01.260 I wouldn't live my life, by the way, by what 00:37:01.260 --> 00:37:04.460 William Carey did. He left his wife and kids 00:37:04.460 --> 00:37:06.820 behind. When his wife was going, I don't think 00:37:06.820 --> 00:37:09.940 we're called to go to India. And he goes, see 00:37:09.940 --> 00:37:11.980 you later. Have fun taking care of the kids. 00:37:12.019 --> 00:37:14.300 I'm gonna go share the gospel. I don't think 00:37:14.300 --> 00:37:17.860 that that's how that works, by the way. He sowed 00:37:17.860 --> 00:37:21.179 for nine years, never saw a single convert. Guess 00:37:21.179 --> 00:37:24.280 what? Then his wife goes and joins him years 00:37:24.280 --> 00:37:26.519 later and all of a sudden converts start happening. 00:37:28.079 --> 00:37:30.400 All I'm saying, man, is sometimes our ladies 00:37:30.400 --> 00:37:32.539 hear the Holy Spirit much better than we do. 00:37:33.340 --> 00:37:35.559 But he does have a very good quote. He says, 00:37:35.619 --> 00:37:39.880 expect great things from God, attempt great things 00:37:39.880 --> 00:37:47.159 for God. So that's the posture. We step out in 00:37:47.159 --> 00:37:49.119 faith, we take the opportunities in front of 00:37:49.119 --> 00:37:52.840 us and we share, we serve, we speak, we shine, 00:37:52.840 --> 00:37:55.059 and at the same time we trust God to do what 00:37:55.059 --> 00:37:57.719 only he can do. Because at the end of the day, 00:37:57.900 --> 00:38:01.659 this is his kingdom. And he has already established 00:38:01.659 --> 00:38:04.820 that it will grow, it will expand, it will reach 00:38:04.820 --> 00:38:07.940 far beyond what we could ever imagine. And so 00:38:07.940 --> 00:38:11.139 we must be faithful in the small things. Trust 00:38:11.139 --> 00:38:14.380 him with the results. and expect that God will 00:38:14.380 --> 00:38:16.460 do more than you can ever think possible through 00:38:16.460 --> 00:38:24.139 obedience. And I'm closing with this. Many of 00:38:24.139 --> 00:38:30.219 you have come to me over this last year and you've 00:38:30.219 --> 00:38:36.739 said to me why, and not like I'm doing something 00:38:36.739 --> 00:38:39.800 wrong. You just legitimately care because you 00:38:39.800 --> 00:38:42.429 care for our church, but you've... I've gotten 00:38:42.429 --> 00:38:44.190 the question many times from different people, 00:38:45.170 --> 00:38:47.710 why isn't our church growing? Why does it feel 00:38:47.710 --> 00:38:51.289 like our church is actually shrinking? So if 00:38:51.289 --> 00:38:53.349 you look around on a Sunday morning, we're pretty 00:38:53.349 --> 00:38:58.630 consistent in the mid -80s. If everyone is here, 00:38:58.769 --> 00:39:03.949 we're pushing closer to 100. But many have asked, 00:39:04.090 --> 00:39:08.389 where did everyone go? My answer is always the 00:39:08.389 --> 00:39:11.650 same, I don't know. But I'll tell you this, I'm 00:39:11.650 --> 00:39:14.610 not worried about it. I used to, as a church 00:39:14.610 --> 00:39:18.349 planter, stress myself out every single week, 00:39:19.550 --> 00:39:21.489 hoping and praying that people would show up. 00:39:21.510 --> 00:39:25.769 You have no idea what it's like as a pastor who 00:39:25.769 --> 00:39:30.110 every week for four straight years is doing all 00:39:30.110 --> 00:39:32.349 the things I'm supposed to do with sharing the 00:39:32.349 --> 00:39:34.570 gospel. And Easter comes, we're really excited, 00:39:34.610 --> 00:39:36.880 we're really... We've done all the things. I 00:39:36.880 --> 00:39:39.840 literally went door knocking to over 500 houses 00:39:39.840 --> 00:39:43.460 one Easter. You want to know how many people 00:39:43.460 --> 00:39:52.639 came to church? Me, my family and my staff. And 00:39:52.639 --> 00:39:56.679 I would get so been out of shape and so anxious, 00:39:56.679 --> 00:40:00.019 and I just felt like I was a failure. And so 00:40:00.019 --> 00:40:03.019 now I look at this congregation and I go, I'm 00:40:03.019 --> 00:40:07.889 not doing that. I'm gonna be faithful. I'm gonna 00:40:07.889 --> 00:40:11.929 preach the gospel. I'm gonna love you all to 00:40:11.929 --> 00:40:15.110 the best of my ability. I'm going to counsel 00:40:15.110 --> 00:40:19.309 you, strengthen you, encourage you, and I'm gonna 00:40:19.309 --> 00:40:23.750 trust the Holy Spirit with the rest of it. But 00:40:23.750 --> 00:40:27.269 some of you, and this is where it's gonna sting 00:40:27.269 --> 00:40:33.409 a little bit, some of you look as if this church 00:40:33.409 --> 00:40:38.199 is a cruise ship. And I want to tell you it's 00:40:38.199 --> 00:40:42.480 a battleship. But it's not a modern one with 00:40:42.480 --> 00:40:48.820 engines. Instead, it's an old pirate ship. I 00:40:48.820 --> 00:40:52.179 should have got an eye patch to preach this. 00:40:54.360 --> 00:40:59.179 The kind where everyone rose. And when I say 00:40:59.179 --> 00:41:02.949 everyone, I mean everyone. pulling in the same 00:41:02.949 --> 00:41:05.869 direction, moving with purpose, and working together. 00:41:06.150 --> 00:41:11.070 So let me ask you, do you have an oar? Are you 00:41:11.070 --> 00:41:13.210 rowing? Are you stepping into the mission? Are 00:41:13.210 --> 00:41:15.750 you sharing the gospel? Are you serving? Are 00:41:15.750 --> 00:41:18.690 you shining where God has placed you? Or have 00:41:18.690 --> 00:41:20.769 you just settled into thinking that this is a 00:41:20.769 --> 00:41:23.250 cruise ship, where everyone else will do the 00:41:23.250 --> 00:41:25.710 work, someone else will share the message, someone 00:41:25.710 --> 00:41:28.949 else will serve, someone else will fill the seat 00:41:28.949 --> 00:41:32.250 next to you? Brothers and sisters, that's not 00:41:32.250 --> 00:41:34.210 what we've been called to. This church has been 00:41:34.210 --> 00:41:37.090 entrusted to us. This message has been entrusted 00:41:37.090 --> 00:41:39.849 to us, and we are called to sow the seed, to 00:41:39.849 --> 00:41:42.929 shine the light, and to trust God with the growth. 00:41:43.989 --> 00:41:45.869 But that calling is not just for a few people, 00:41:45.909 --> 00:41:50.670 it's for all of us. So I ask you to pick up an 00:41:50.670 --> 00:41:55.409 oar and row. Let's be faithful together. Let's 00:41:55.409 --> 00:41:59.480 trust that as we do, God will bring a harvest. 00:41:59.840 --> 00:42:03.400 I will no longer stress about who God saves. 00:42:03.739 --> 00:42:05.880 I'm just gonna continue to just be faithful and 00:42:05.880 --> 00:42:07.800 I hope you will enjoy it. Let's pray.