Luke 8
March Memory Verse: "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." Luke 19:10 NIV
Read: Luke 8
Here in Luke 8 we see the first of many parables of Jesus throughout the book of Luke. It is found in verses 4-8. It is a well known parable, but I hope that today we hear it with new ears, we read it with new eyes, and we see our lives through it in a new way.
Jesus tells us that he speaks in parables so that those who desire to understand can. They are designed to show us truths of heaven; therefore, we better take them seriously.
In this parable Jesus shows us - HOW WE GROW WILL SHOW US WHERE WE ARE PLANTED.
Jesus tells us this parable. There was a farmer who went out to sow some seed. As he did it landed all different places. The seed is the Word of God… the Truth of Jesus.
Some seed landed along the path and was trampled and eaten. Some seed landed on the rock, and therefore never grew. Some seed landed on the thorns and it grew for a little while and stopped. Some seed landed on good, fertile soil and grew and thrived.
And then Jesus just said, “He who has ears let him hear…”
I think that Jesus was not just talking to those who He was speaking to but to those of us who He knew would read this thousands of years later.
Our hearts are the ground in which seeds are planted. Sometimes our hearts are hard. Sometimes they are soft. We know by how we respond in time.
James tells us this in James 2:17-18, “17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
Looking back over our lives we have to ask the question, “Which story am I? What does my life show? Where did the seed fall in my life? How has it grown?”
Until we can answer that question honestly we cannot push forward in growing in our relationship with Jesus. Until we can answer that we can not really love Jesus well.
All of this starts with clearly seeing who Jesus is and trusting in Him.
What is something you can do this week to make your heart soft toward God and His Word in your life?
By: Nick Parsons
Read: Luke 8
Here in Luke 8 we see the first of many parables of Jesus throughout the book of Luke. It is found in verses 4-8. It is a well known parable, but I hope that today we hear it with new ears, we read it with new eyes, and we see our lives through it in a new way.
Jesus tells us that he speaks in parables so that those who desire to understand can. They are designed to show us truths of heaven; therefore, we better take them seriously.
In this parable Jesus shows us - HOW WE GROW WILL SHOW US WHERE WE ARE PLANTED.
Jesus tells us this parable. There was a farmer who went out to sow some seed. As he did it landed all different places. The seed is the Word of God… the Truth of Jesus.
Some seed landed along the path and was trampled and eaten. Some seed landed on the rock, and therefore never grew. Some seed landed on the thorns and it grew for a little while and stopped. Some seed landed on good, fertile soil and grew and thrived.
And then Jesus just said, “He who has ears let him hear…”
I think that Jesus was not just talking to those who He was speaking to but to those of us who He knew would read this thousands of years later.
Our hearts are the ground in which seeds are planted. Sometimes our hearts are hard. Sometimes they are soft. We know by how we respond in time.
James tells us this in James 2:17-18, “17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.”
Looking back over our lives we have to ask the question, “Which story am I? What does my life show? Where did the seed fall in my life? How has it grown?”
Until we can answer that question honestly we cannot push forward in growing in our relationship with Jesus. Until we can answer that we can not really love Jesus well.
All of this starts with clearly seeing who Jesus is and trusting in Him.
What is something you can do this week to make your heart soft toward God and His Word in your life?
By: Nick Parsons
16 Comments
Pray, pray, pray with hopeful anticipation that God will soften my heart and allow the seed in me to multiply.
Love it Joey! Thanks for leading the way!
I'm with Joey on this one...when I find it difficult to share Christ with a friend, I know it is my stoney heart that needs to look to the cross. But I also would admit that sometimes doing a compassionate work for a friend tends to revive my soul as well, after which I praise God for allowing me to change during that work.
Yes! Prayer is such a big part! Loved watching our college students pray for soft hearts for their friends last night.
Today verse 39 jumped out at me. Jesus commanded the man to whom He brought the demons out to "return home and tell how much God has done for you". That's his command for us too! With our changed lives, our command is to share our story of what Jesus has done for us. We are to invite others in to the life change that comes from relationship with Him.
Yes! When we are IMPACTED by Jesus we will help OTHERS be IMPACTED by Jesus!
For me it is also to pray. Pray for a softened and broken heart that is prepared for the Word and work of God. Pray for a heart that is ripe with nutrients so that the fruit of God will grow and be multiplied x100 fold.
Love it dude! God is using you!
I love the clarity of this parable - it makes so much sense to me. It's so easy to be exposed to the Word of God rather than to feast on the Word of God. Great word today Nick!
There seems to be a common theme in the comments today, and that is prayer. Well, my thoughts are no different. I think so many times I can come to my quiet time and not ask God to use his word to reveal himself to me. I do it because I know that I need to, and I do it because I want to, but if I were to pray over what I were reading, if I were to pray through the scripture as I was reading, then I could hear from God in a more powerful way, and that would let his word sink in more. It would allow me to have the right mindset about God's word, and it would allow me to see things through his eyes. I pray that my quiet time will not just check a box for me, but that I will prayerfully ask God to reveal himself through his word.
Yes! So big!
Shoot. I need to delete Sudoku. :(
I guess I could do a better job of spiritualizing my response, but a thorny plant or a stone in the field hinders growth in myriad ways. It occurred to me this morning that if I had spent that extra time in the Word instead of on Sudoku, little by little it would pay off in ways I probably can't imagine right now....
HA! We all probably have those distractions in our lives that need to go!
Setting aside time for God is something that I need to work on. Time with God isn't meant to just be fit into my schedule wherever I have a little time to spare. I need to set aside time to dig deep into the word and time to pray consistently for God to work in me.
Love the way you are growing Dale! So cool to see! Love you dude!
I am sure that Jesus has said the same to me as He said in verse 25...where is your faith? I need to keep my eyes focused on Him and nothing else of this world. Seeing His greatness would also increase my faith.