Good Ground

 

    

    

 

    

 

 

Matt 13:8-9

 

8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

NKJ

 

Today's  verses outline the optimal conditions for yielding a bumper crop.  When the ground (in this case, the soil of our heart) has been tilled until it is soft, the seed can readily be imbedded in the ground.  After that, it is easily received and  nurtured.  The right amount of rain and the right amount of sun, causes the seed to break forth  out of the ground, growing strong and mighty shoots.  Plants that have deep roots and produce an abundant crop.  As Jesus explains:

    

Matt 13:23

 

But 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."

NKJV

 

 

I have seen it all of my years in church.  Two people receive Christ around the same time.  One is excited about his/her conversion, but never really seems to be overly zealous. The other person could be described as "on fire."  They just exude passion, zeal and interest.  They consume Bible study after Bible study.  They are in church every time the door is open.   Fast forward five years.  The first guy attends a lot of Sunday's and has a testimony of being a Christian.  The second guy is now heading up men's ministry, is a youth sponsor and is mentoring new converts.  They were both saved under the same teaching.  In the same church.  At the same time. Why is the one fruitful a hundred-fold and the other only thirty?

 

The amount of attention, focus and care we give to tending our soil makes a huge difference in the outcome of our crop.  I have noticed that on the years that I really add the Miracle Grow to my plants, they spread quickly and I have abundant, cascading flowers.   The years I don't, I have puny, small flowers.  The difference between the two is quite astonishing.

 

The amount of prevalence we give to the Word of God, worship and fellowship is directly proportional to our spiritual state of "bearing much abundant fruit."  God never gives us more of Himself than we truly desire. Producing an increase on the seed of His Word must be a fervent desire  that translates into action.

 

Dear Lord, help me to be good soil to receive your Word and bring forth an abundant harvest.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

Choked by Thorns

 

    

    

Matt 13:6-7

 

  7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.

NKJ

 

When the seeds of the Word of God are going forth, today's verses describe a common condition.  To be really  honest, this is probably the hazard that could most threaten my own personal walk.  What does this verse mean?  According to Jesus,

 

22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. (Matt 13:22)

 

 

 

Can you relate as well?  I am not really tempted by riches.  My problem lies more in allowing the cares of this life to choke out my fruitfulness.  A demanding job, kids,  an incessantly ringing phone, bills,  all of this can definitely act as briars in our lives. All of  these distractions can cause us to lose our focus.   We can find ourselves attending to the urgent, but not the important, needs in our life.

 

I grew up on a farm.  I was blessed to enjoy many blackberry cobblers.  Delicious- and with the added bonus of turning your teeth blue!  Pretty cool when you are a kid.  I loved going "blackberry-picking".  Country folks know that the delicious fruit of wild blackberries actually comes off of a briar.  That's right.  A prickly, sticky briar can produce delicious fruit.  Why does this matter?  Because we need to understand that just because something seems good and is producing some fruit, does not necessarily mean that it is a good thing.  The test of whether or not the fruit is wholesome or a nuisance lies in recognizing its impact in your overall fruitfulness.

 

Baking cupcakes as the homeroom mom is a good thing.  If it keeps you from spending time in prayer and Bible study, it may be a briar.  Enjoying fishing is a good thing.  If it keeps you out of church, it is a briar.  Singing in the choir is a good thing.  If you are doing it to get attention, yep- it could be a briar.

 

We cannot allow anything, anything, to choke out the fruitfulness of the Word of God in our lives.  Jesus must come first.  Everything else is briars.  We can cut the briars back, keep it off the garden and have our blackberries, too!  But when the vine chokes out our fruitfulness, the time has come to do some pruning.  And sometimes, the briars simply  have to be uprooted to protect the whole garden.

 

Are you bearing fruit? Is time in prayer and the Word a priority?  Are good things- maybe even ministry- choking the life out of your vine?  If so, call on the Master Gardener and He will prune you back to health.

 

Dear Lord, thank you for the simplicity of your Word- simplicity because you reveal it to me and enable me to understand it.  Help me to apply today's word.   Show me the true vines from the briars.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

 

Building Your House

 

   

Matt 7:24-27

 

"Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:  25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.

26 "But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:  27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."

NKJV

 

The statistics are staggering. I read an article today that stated that 50% of all first-time marriages, 67% of second marriages, and 74% of third marriages end in divorce.   This provides a bleak view for the future of most of our homes.  Perhaps that is why fewer people are choosing marriage and opting instead, for live-in relationships.  But does that really prevent the perceived threat of being hurt and rejected? Not at all.  Rather, it will likely result in shattered people with even more baggage to bring into marriage.  With those odds, what can we do to protect our homes?

For the remainder of this devotional, please visit me at http://lacedwithgrace.com, where I will be spending the day.

Rootless and Scorched

 

    

Matt 13:3-6

3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.  5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.  6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.

NKJV

 

I have seen it, and so have you, if you have been in church for any length of time.  There are always shooting stars.  They come into the congregation, maybe when they have a problem of some sort, they receive Christ and they are on fire. They are there every time the doors open, they are telling people about Jesus, and hungry for the Word.  Everything looks great, then all of a sudden their attendance starts dwindling, and the next thing you know they are back to their old life.  What happened?

 

According to today's verses (v. 5-6) they are those who received the Word but did not have enough soil to put down deep roots.  The rocky places do not allow for much depth or root system.  But there is even more to this:

   

Matt 13:20-21

 

20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;  21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

 

 

As a person in leadership at church, this  is one of the most frustrating phenomena that occurs.  I have even seen people quickly rise to places of leadership, even become ministers, then have this happen.  When hardship or persecution comes, they run and they stumble.  They do not have the "stick-to-it" attitude that ensures success.

 

We all have a flesh to contend with.  For those who have lived a life of sin, there may be more to deal with when they come to Christ.  Obviously a former drug addict will have more baggage and relationship issues to navigate than will a seven year old kid who receives Christ while living in a Godly home.  The power of God is just as effective in either case to help the Christian succeed, but sometimes we allow our dysfunction and the "rocks" of our personality to stunt the growth of our vine.

Christianity is not a guarantee of a smooth sailing, worry-free life.  It is a warfare  and there  will be obstacles to contend with.  But in Christ we have the strength and power to succeed and even thrive.  And on the other side of all of this,  we have a promise of eternity.

 Dear Lord, help me to have deep roots that are not shaken by the storms of life.  Help me to support those who are new in their faith and struggling.  I pray also, Lord Jesus, for the new converts that I know.  Help them to put down a deep root system and not be discouraged.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

 

Planted, not Snatched

 

    

Matt 13:3-4

 

3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.

NKJV    

 

Having grown up in church, I became familiar with the awesome and miraculous  teachings of the Bible at a very young age. My  faith reached the place to receive Christ as Savior when I was five. In truth, I have never really known a life apart from Jesus. For that, I am exceedingly grateful.  But I am also aware that not one everyone was blessed to have such opportunities early in life. 

 

Many studies have shown that childhood is the prime time to win people to Jesus.  If  they do not choose Him in their early years, the likelihood that they will do so late,r goes down significantly.  Why is that?  One  of the things  that I believe contributes  to this  phenomenon is that a child's ability to believe is so much higher than that of an adult.  Children do not have to understand every facet of a situation to just believe. Child-like faith is a beautiful thing, and one that we should endeavor to cultivate throughout our lives.

 

Today's passage talks about a sower, or farmer, planting seed.  In this portion of Scripture, some of the seed fell on the wayside.  It was not planted in holes or trenches, rather it was sown on top the ground.  Because of that, the seed was easy prey for birds to come along and snatch it up and eat it.   In this parable, the seeds mentioned is the truth about the Kingdom of God, or more specifically, that Jesus is Savior.

 

Further explanation is given in verse 18:

 

18 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside.

 

It is so vital that everyone have the opportunity to hear the gospel message.  Without that, how can they ever hear, know, or understand that Jesus loves them and died to give them life eternal?  I have always been puzzled about the various responses of people  when they hear truth.  Some readily receive it and are transformed immediately, others it takes a process, while still others never choose to believe at all.  The parable of the sower explains  so  much  about this process.

 

In light of today's verses, what is our duty as a Christian? Foremost, our duty is to share the gospel.  We have to let people know what the Lord has done for us, within the context of His  Word.  After that, I feel it is important that we pray for those we are witnessing to, that God will prepare their hearts to receive the seed of Truth.   We must pray that the Lord will plow up the soil of their hearts, that it will be softened and prepared to receive it.  Then we must pray that it settles deeply within them.  Finally, we must pray against the  enemy  stealing the truth from them.  Becoming a Christian is such a supernatural phenomenon, that we can never leave out the importance of God's divine involvement.

 

Another important thing to note is that we must share the truth in a way that people can understand.  To tell a person who has never been in church a day  in their life that that they are a wretched  sinner, bound for hell unless  they receive Christ's  atonement for their sin and be redeemed, is like speaking a foreign language to them.  "Christianese" is not a universal language!  What people can understand is that they do not do everything right, that Jesus died to cancel the penalty of that sin and offers  them a relationship with Him instead of an eternity apart from Him.

 

As you witness, pray that the Lord will give you wisdom in your words to speak in the language of your hearer.  If it is an educated person, your approach will be different than with a simple  or illiterate person.  Both are equally valuable, but the soil must be prepared  differently!

 

Dear Lord, help me to have an effective witness.  Show me who to share with, and grant me wisdom and favor to sow seeds that they can understand and receive.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

Tell-Tale Fruit

 

   

Matt 12:33

 

33 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.

NKJV

 

The Bible is very plain that we should not judge.  But verses like this one indicates to me that, to a certain degree, we can  judge the fruit a person is bearing.  Truth is, everyone is constantly making judgments  on the type of person that we are based on our words and behaviors.  I think that we make excuses to ourselves about why we do what we do, forgetting that the world is not looking at us with the same rose-colored glasses.  Instead, they see the bare truth.

There are many "Christians" who readily "Praise God" and then immediately break forth into cussing the very next sentence.  They live their lives as if the Bible is not their standard  of conduct, but rather, live according to the dictates of society.  One Facebook status will be a prayer, then next,  a half-naked picture.  When I see this stuff my mind goes, "Tilt, tilt,  does not compute."  How does a person profess to be  a Christian, but have no conviction when they are sinning and hurting their testimony?  How do they not hear the absolute contradiction, if not hypocrisy in their words?!

Understand my heart.  I know we are all human.  We all slip up,  make mistakes, and exhibit poor judgment.  But that is not what I am talking about.  I am talking about those whose tree NEVER bears evidence that they are a peach or apple tree.  Or worse yet, bears fruit that would make you doubt they are what their words promise.  Is there consistent pure, sweet, fruit?  If not, the tree is fairly useless  for  its original purpose.

I once knew a person who seemingly only ever said cruel, hateful and manipulative comments.  In time, I began to wonder about their claim of Christianity.  Shouldn't a well with sweet water occasionally demonstrate sweetness and purity? (At least,  at a minimum.)

How about you?  Is your fruit in keeping with your profession? Let us choose to judge ourselves so that we can avoid being unfavorably judged by others, or worse yet- by God.

Dear Lord, forgive me for the times that my behavior disputes my claims of Christianity.  Lord, please help me to bear fruit that brings you glory.

 

 

Are You the One?

    

Matt 11:1-6

 

11 Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.

2 And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples 3 and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"

4 Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see:  5 The blind see and the lame walk; the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.  6 And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."

NKJV

 

What?!  Offended with Jesus? Offended with the Almighty?  Does that really happen?  You betcha! It happened to Bible greats such as Elijah and John the Baptist,  and happens today to everyday Joe's and Jane's like you and me.

In this passage John the Baptist, the faithful forerunner of Christ, is wasting away in prison.  After spending years preaching, "Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand," John is forced into premature retirement.  The one he heralded; the One he proclaimed,  has rose up in power, just as he predicted.  So where did that leave John the Baptist?  Sitting in jail, possibly questioning his life's work.  All of a sudden, he is no longer sure.  Needing affirmation, he sent some disciples to ask, in essence, "Are you the One I have been waiting for?"

Don't forget that previously John the Baptist himself had pronounced these powerful words:   "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"  (John 1:29)  Where had his confidence gone?  Why is he now doubting when Jesus' ministry was growing exponentially?

Jesus said that there was no greater man than John the Baptist, but here he is- unsure, discouraged, and possibly feeling cast aside.  How can a person go from one extreme to the other?  Very easily.  Very easily indeed.

When we are operating in a powerful anointing, it is easy to speak boldly in the Spirit.  But afterward, when we are feeling like "plain 'ol us", we can struggle with self-doubt and confusion.  Maybe even disillusionment with God. 

I am not sure what John the Baptist expected, but if I were him, maybe I would have thought after a life of sacrifice, maybe Jesus would work a miracle on my behalf. Maybe it was hard to understand why the Lord had not protected him. And for those of us familiar with the rest of the story, we know the plot does not improve for John.  He is later beheaded and made a door prize for a dancing little girl.

What, then, is the moral to this story? Faithfulness to God is not about outcome, but rather, obedience.  All we can do is fulfill our duty and trust God that it will turn out in a way that furthers His Kingdom and is for our good.  That does not mean everything will be good.  It just means that it will ultimately turn out for our good. 

The ending of John the Baptist's life can almost seem like a tragic movie.  The hero dies at the end, and the curtains close.  You leave the theater undone and saddened, but deeply moved. But what is going on here is so much greater, so much more universal and eternal than we will ever perceive.  I have no doubt in my mind that the minute the sword severed John's head, that he was immediately ushered into the presence of God with much fanfare.  A true hero's welcome.  No more to doubt or feel alone.  Then his focus was clear as a bell.

I don't know what you are going through today.  I can only speak to what I feel the Word of God speaks to us.  No matter how lonely and misunderstood you feel, God sees you, He cares and He has not forgotten.  You will walk in your destiny if you will just hold on and obey to the end.  The outcome and reward may not be evident here, but rest assured, in eternity it will be worth it all!

Dear Lord, I need to see life through Your perspective.  Forgive me for times I doubt and harbor offense with Your plan and ways.  I submit to follow you, come what may.  In Jesus' Name.  Amen.