Jesus said:
Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
Mark 4:3-8
He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Mark 4:9-12
The Lord was saying, “I have given you a special understanding so you can understand these parables. But people who aren’t born again can’t understand.” I believe that the Lord did it this way to preserve these truths that cause the kingdom of God to operate. This prevents ungodly people from taking and using them to their advantage. It safeguards these truths for God’s children.
FOUNDATIONAL
Jesus didn’t use parables to hide truths from God’s children, but for God’s children. They are to give us an edge and knowledge of how His kingdom operates. All of this wisdom about how God intended this world to function has to be funneled through the Holy Spirit. Unless He makes these truths alive and helps us understand, we can’t comprehend the things of God (John 6:63). That’s what the Lord was telling His disciples.
And he said unto them, Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables?
Mark 4:13
Jesus revealed that this parable of the sower sowing the seed is so basic and so foundational that if we don’t understand it, we won’t be able to understand any of His parables. In other words, this parable is the foundation for all the teaching of Jesus. If we don’t let the Holy Spirit unlock and make alive the truths contained in this parable, then we won’t be able to understand any of Christ’s teachings. Now that’s a major statement!
This is like the key that unlocks all the rest of Jesus’s parables, which means that we must get this parable. It’s that basic. It’s that foundational. So, let’s go into the interpretation.
The sower soweth the word.
Mark 4:14
The Lord is not teaching us how to be farmers. He’s using this illustration of how a seed works in the natural realm to tell us how the Word of God works in the spiritual realm.
In Jesus’s day, when a sower went out and sowed seed, they didn’t have a tractor. They didn’t use an implement of some kind to sow the seed in rows and space it like we do today. According to the way people sowed in that time, they dipped their hands into bags full of seed and then threw handfuls of seed out. They just walked along throwing seed everywhere. The seed fell not only onto prepared ground, but also on rocks and on places where there were already thorns and other things growing up.
Likewise, God has taken His Word and made it available to everybody. He has given His Word to us and granted us access to His Word. God has thrown His Word upon every type of ground, or heart, there is. Although there were four different kinds of ground discussed, only one out of the four brought forth fruit.
Every person who reads this book has access to God’s Word. Right now, you are reading some truths from the Word that could change your life. You have access to those truths, but according to this parable, only a small percentage of the people who have access to the Word of God will ever really have it change their lives to the point that they bear fruit. It’s not because God didn’t sow the seed, but due to the condition of people’s hearts.
Only one out of the four different types of ground really brought forth fruit and produced what the seed was capable of producing.
When the Lord first showed me these truths from this parable of the sower sowing the seed, I was just an eighteen-year-old boy. I had just gotten turned on to the Lord. I was excited because I knew that God had called me to minister and given me a vision to reach millions and millions of people with the truth of His Word. But I wondered, How could I ever get that accomplished? I’m a hick from Texas! If I were God, I wouldn’t have picked me.
THE SEED
There’s this guy on my television crew who has a golden radio voice. Yet I’m on this side of the camera, and he’s on the other. I wouldn’t have picked my voice to share the Word on radio and television. What was God thinking?
As a young man, I pondered this call and this vision, wondering, Why did God call me? But as I meditated on this scripture, the Lord spoke to me through this parable and gave me some truths that just changed my life. He showed me that it was the seed that caused the ground to bring forth fruit. The seed has the miraculous power of God in it to make the ground produce.
I was looking at myself and thinking, Oh God, I’m not polished. I’m not a good speaker. I’m not well educated. There I was, a total introvert who couldn’t even look at another person in the face. I was focused on all of my weaknesses, shortcomings, and failures. But one of the truths that this parable taught me was that it’s the seed that brings forth the fruit. The seed!
It wasn’t the ground that had more that produced the best. Actually, it was the ground that had less that produced the best, because it had less rocks and less thorns. God began to show me that I could make myself good ground by just rooting out these things that I had allowed to take root in my life, things that hindered His seed. I started to see that I was just as capable of producing fruit as anybody else is, because it’s not me—it’s the Word. It’s the Word that changes people’s lives, not me. That was a real revelation to me!
This truth rang my bell! It gave me hope. I prayed, “Lord, if it’s Your Word that produces the fruit, then I can study Your Word, learn Your Word, and speak Your Word the same as anyone else. If it’s not based on my fancy clothes, polished voice, or attention-getting mannerisms, but it’s Your Word that is going to change people, well then, praise God! Your Word can live in me the same as it can live in anybody.” That gave me hope. That’s powerful!
This really encouraged me. It’s the seed, or God’s Word, that has the potential. However, before the seed can release its potential, it first has to be sown into a heart.
PUT YOU OVER
As mentioned in a previous chapter, scientists have discovered seeds thousands of years old. When they took the seeds and planted them in the ground, the seeds began to germinate and produce plants. How awesome is that! Each tiny seed had this potential in it for thousands of years, yet it never released any of its potential until it was planted in the ground.
That’s the way God’s Word is. The Word of God is powerful. It’s awesome what the Word can accomplish. But it’s never going to release its power until it gets on the inside of you. Having a Bible sit on your coffee table isn’t going to stop the devil. Carrying one under your arm won’t either. You can lay a Bible on your head until it makes you flat on top, but it won’t cause the blessings of God to come your way. You must take God’s Word and devour it. The Word has to literally become a part of you.
These truths changed my life. They really did. It’s God’s Word that puts you over. It’s God’s Word that opens up doors. When the Lord showed this truth to me, I literally took it to heart. I’ve believed this parable with my whole heart ever since, and I realize that it’s God’s Word that changes people’s lives—not me.
Maybe you’re trying to hone your skills. You’re going to school to learn marketing and business. You’re studying courses on how to present yourself. You’re learning all of these techniques and spending money on polishing yourself. You have the best-looking suits. You have your hair done. You do all kinds of things that, in their place, may be fine and helpful. But do you understand that it’s the Word of God, the truth, and the revelation of God’s Word that will really release the potential in your life? And this isn’t only true of a preacher. This is true of anybody.
Many of my friends are immersed in the business world. Yet it’s the truths of God’s Word that have literally set them free and enabled them to prosper. This is for anybody. The Word of God will help a woman be a better housewife and mother. Honestly, I don’t know how anyone can even conceive of being a parent apart from the revelation and truth that comes from God’s Word. I mean, it’s scary! It’s tough enough being a parent with the Word of God. But without the Word it would be terrible! Raising kids is harder than raising the dead. I’ve had to do both, and it takes a miracle to see kids raised. You need the revelation of God’s Word!
No matter who you are or what you do, the Word of God will put you over in every area of your life.