Understanding the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven
This week we are going to begin to examine the parables of Matthew Chapter 13. Within these parables are great principles and amazing mysteries which have been hidden from the eyes of man since the beginning of time. In this chapter Jesus speaks eight parables, the first four He spoke to the multitudes who had gathered to hear Him speak. The last four parables He spoke privately to His disciples after they were alone. The first two parables, Jesus gave us the interpretation and this is vital to understanding all parables, as we see later in our studies. "...it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given." (Mt. 13:11)
We see clearly, in the above verse, Jesus is telling His disciples "...it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven." Are you a true disciple of Christ? If so, then it has been given to you to know certain mysteries which have been kept secret from the foundations of the world! (Mt. 13:34, 35). These are things which the Old Testament prophets longed to understand, but could not; things which the holy angels desired to look into, but were not granted, not until grace was given and the Holy Spirit poured out. These things have been freely given to the New Testament disciples! (I Pet. 1:10-12).
In light of such amazing news, you and I ought to feel very excited and extremely privileged! These mysteries were revealed as Jesus began to speak many parables. His disciples had come to Him asking "...why are You teaching the people in parables?" (Mt. 13:10). And He answered them "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given." (Mt. 13:11).
Notice it has not been given to everyone to know these mysteries! Jesus qualifies this statement and tells us clearly, there are some to whom "it has not been given." So what exactly is the qualifying factor? These mysteries are freely given to the hungry, believing heart. Those who are truly seeking Him with all that is within them! Those who are truly His disciples! But to those who are merely religious, carnal and indifferent, it is not given. This would be aimed at the Pharisees of Jesus' day, the "religious" leaders who were consistently at odds with Jesus and His disciples. As a matter of fact, to the religious mind, the carnal and indifferent, even what they think they have will be taken from them (Mt. 13:12).
Now, we are going to look at the first parable of Matthew Chapter 13, The Parable of The Sower. If you will recall, last week, we briefly studied various "layers" of Scripture, Remember? We discussed the literal layer, the spiritual layer and various aspects of the prophetic layer. If you did not read that article; it would be beneficial to read that first. The article was entitled: "Understanding the Prophetic Word." So, with no further ado, let's begin to open up these parables.
Now, we are going to look at the first parable of Matthew Chapter 13, The Parable of The Sower. If you will recall, last week, we briefly studied various "layers" of Scripture, Remember? We discussed the literal layer, the spiritual layer and various aspects of the prophetic layer. If you did not read that article; it would be beneficial to read that first. The article was entitled: "Understanding the Prophetic Word." So, with no further ado, let's begin to open up these parables.
The Parable of The Sower
"Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop; some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" (Mt. 13:3-9).
In Mt. 13:18-23, Jesus explains this parable for us. He gives us some insight on just how we should interpret this parable and the ones which follow. On the surface, or the "literal" layer of Scripture, we see here the kingdom of heaven will be established by "sowing" seed. That seed is the Word of God! As that seed is sown, it will have different effects on various hearts. Some will hear the Word, but they will not understand it; this is because the seed was snatched away by the "birds". The birds here represent the enemy; In His explanation, Jesus plainly tells us that "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." (Mt. 13:19).
It's important to understand about these troublesome "birds" because in the weeks to come, we will see them pop up again in the Parable of the Mustard Seed. And because many expositors overlook this explanation, they misinterpret the Parable of the Mustard Seed by viewing the "birds" in that parable as saints.
Continuing with the "literal" layer of this parable, we see the next heart (soil) to receive the seed is he who received the seed in "stony places." This person, we are told, "...hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 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." (Mt. 13:20, 21).
Have you taken the time and effort to get rooted? Notice the words in bold italics; "because of the word..." When you receive the Word with joy, trouble is not far behind! Satan will try to destroy that seed before it takes deep root, because he knows if you get rooted and grounded in the Word, he is going to be greatly limited as to the damage he can do to your life. Because you have received the Word with joy, persecution and tribulation will begin to storm the gates of your soul. It is going to be a battle to hold on to any revelation you receive from the Lord of glory! If you think for one second, the devil is just going to sit back and watch you receive revelation and grow into a mature, spiritual warrior, you are already deceived! Every revelation, every promotion, every blessing and every thing you have targeted with your faith, will be put to the test. Every advancement will be challenged!
The next heart is symbolic of the person who receives the word, but they eventually fall away because of distractions. These distractions are as "thorns" which spring up and choke the Word that was sown into their heart. These people are eventually carried away captive by the pursuit of riches and other "cares of this world." I can't tell you how many people I have seen, who once were on fire for God, they were in church every time the doors were open. They were so excited about the things of God but now, somehow, they let the fire go out. Now they are lukewarm and indifferent about church and the things of God. How sad this is, but I see a lot of it in the body of Christ. If we want to become true disciples; we had better make up our mind right from the beginning, we will not be sidetracked by the things of this world, period!
And finally, Jesus explains for us, there is only one kind of heart (soil) which will receive the Word and bear true spiritual fruit. This would be the one who understands the Word as it is spoken, they take the time and care to get deeply rooted. They refuse to be shaken when trouble and attacks of the enemy come because of the Word that was sown into their heart. They also have purposed in their heart, not to get distracted by the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches! Only then, can we call ourselves true disciples. Some of us will bear thirty fold, some sixty, and some a hundred fold!
So, on the literal layer of Scripture here, we see this principle:
It's important to understand about these troublesome "birds" because in the weeks to come, we will see them pop up again in the Parable of the Mustard Seed. And because many expositors overlook this explanation, they misinterpret the Parable of the Mustard Seed by viewing the "birds" in that parable as saints.
Continuing with the "literal" layer of this parable, we see the next heart (soil) to receive the seed is he who received the seed in "stony places." This person, we are told, "...hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 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." (Mt. 13:20, 21).
The next heart is symbolic of the person who receives the word, but they eventually fall away because of distractions. These distractions are as "thorns" which spring up and choke the Word that was sown into their heart. These people are eventually carried away captive by the pursuit of riches and other "cares of this world." I can't tell you how many people I have seen, who once were on fire for God, they were in church every time the doors were open. They were so excited about the things of God but now, somehow, they let the fire go out. Now they are lukewarm and indifferent about church and the things of God. How sad this is, but I see a lot of it in the body of Christ. If we want to become true disciples; we had better make up our mind right from the beginning, we will not be sidetracked by the things of this world, period!
And finally, Jesus explains for us, there is only one kind of heart (soil) which will receive the Word and bear true spiritual fruit. This would be the one who understands the Word as it is spoken, they take the time and care to get deeply rooted. They refuse to be shaken when trouble and attacks of the enemy come because of the Word that was sown into their heart. They also have purposed in their heart, not to get distracted by the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches! Only then, can we call ourselves true disciples. Some of us will bear thirty fold, some sixty, and some a hundred fold!
So, on the literal layer of Scripture here, we see this principle:
- The Word of God is good seed
- Only the hungry, believing heart who understands it and stays committed to discipleship, will bear fruit. All others will fall away.
- Those who stay committed, will have various degrees of success; some thirty, some sixty and some a hundred fold!
Now, let's look into the prophetic layer of this parable. A little deeper spiritual understanding shows us yet, another principle. Once the Word is sown into the heart of man, immediately the enemy comes to destroy what God is building. This may sound elementary, but I assure you, most professing believers are experiencing such defeat in their Christian walk, they prove they have lost sight of this basic principle. Just because this is a "basic" principle, does not mean it is simple. As I have grown spiritually, I have found it is the "basics" which we tend to forget all too often and that always proves to be detrimental.
The enemy immediately comes to devour the seed, and if you don't understand what God is sowing into your heart, you will lose what was sown. The enemy immediately begins to challenge your faith by way of tribulation, troubles and/or persecutions. And he never lets up! He tempts you with all kinds of things designed to distract you from deep, spiritual understanding. He bombards you with worldliness, doubt, fear and self-serving. He is a master at what he does. Most professing believers are way over-confident, mostly due to the fact they have misplaced their confidence. They are leaning on the flesh and not a true confidence in the finished work of Christ. They may think they are leaning on the finished work of Christ, but somehow, they have become self-deluded. Remember Peter, he thought he was ready to face the test, but even after Jesus warned him, he denied Jesus three times later that evening. He was way over-confident and he totally under estimated the power of the devil. He told the Lord he was willing to go to jail, even to die for Him if need be. However, we see he was way over-confident. You may rehearse it a thousand times, but the trials and troubles and difficulties always come in a way you fail to anticipate.
Remember, these are "mysteries" we are talking about here. That means we are not talking about simple attacks of the enemy, we are talking about an adversary who has the power to deceive, entice and destroy, a power which has been grossly underestimated by the church for two thousand years. Not only have many underestimated the power of the devil, they have underestimated the power of God too, and it shows in their lives! This is a mystery, not an elementary truth. This is not something you can just say "I already knew that!" This is Jesus warning us here, look out for your enemy is very cunning and he never lets up! He is very good at what he does, so be alert always!
Yet, still, even digging deeper into the prophetic layer here, we can see another principle concerning the church age. This mystery tells us the church will start out with a bang! She will have great success and miracles straight off the starting line. But her confidence will soon be shattered as the enemy moves in unnoticed. She will begin to fall out of love with her Savior. She will take her first step towards "lukewarmness!"
We see this in the Garden of Eden. Apparently, Adam and Eve only enjoyed the bliss of paradise for a short time. Then the enemy showed up and even amidst paradise, he was able to convince Eve she was lacking something and God was not so good after all. This pattern can be seen throughout Scripture. We see the evidence of this in Paul's first letter to the Church at Corinth. They started out with miracles and experienced powerful gifts of the Spirit, yet by the time Paul writes his first letter, he finds himself addressing division within the body and gross tolerance of sinful living within the body. He calls them carnal and unable to move on into the "deep things" of the Lord. And so, as we look at the first letter to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation, Chapters 2 & 3. The first letter to the first church, Ephesus, was very descriptive of this phase of church history. The risen Lord tells the church "I know your works..." they were patient, they had good works, they could not stand those who were evil. They had tested apostles and weeded out the false; yet our glorified Jesus says: "Nevertheless I have this against you,that you have left your first love."
They are warned to repent quickly or else they will no longer be a church functioning with the presence and power of the Spirit. So we see, the first letter to the first church warns us the honeymoon will be short lived in the first phase of church history.
The first of the eight parables in Mt. 13 likewise shows us; out of the four kinds of soil (heart) only one will produce. Yes, thank God, He always preserves a remnant of faithful and obedient disciples to continue His work.
As the weeks go by, we will begin to unravel a deeper, prophetic picture in these parables. Like the Parable of the Good Samaritan we looked at last week, we will begin to see how Jesus reveals the church age progressively as He speaks these mysteries. The church started with a bang but things went south in a hurry. However, she continued to grow despite the attacks of the enemy because, in the words of Jesus: "I will build My church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!"
Praise God!
The enemy immediately comes to devour the seed, and if you don't understand what God is sowing into your heart, you will lose what was sown. The enemy immediately begins to challenge your faith by way of tribulation, troubles and/or persecutions. And he never lets up! He tempts you with all kinds of things designed to distract you from deep, spiritual understanding. He bombards you with worldliness, doubt, fear and self-serving. He is a master at what he does. Most professing believers are way over-confident, mostly due to the fact they have misplaced their confidence. They are leaning on the flesh and not a true confidence in the finished work of Christ. They may think they are leaning on the finished work of Christ, but somehow, they have become self-deluded. Remember Peter, he thought he was ready to face the test, but even after Jesus warned him, he denied Jesus three times later that evening. He was way over-confident and he totally under estimated the power of the devil. He told the Lord he was willing to go to jail, even to die for Him if need be. However, we see he was way over-confident. You may rehearse it a thousand times, but the trials and troubles and difficulties always come in a way you fail to anticipate.
Remember, these are "mysteries" we are talking about here. That means we are not talking about simple attacks of the enemy, we are talking about an adversary who has the power to deceive, entice and destroy, a power which has been grossly underestimated by the church for two thousand years. Not only have many underestimated the power of the devil, they have underestimated the power of God too, and it shows in their lives! This is a mystery, not an elementary truth. This is not something you can just say "I already knew that!" This is Jesus warning us here, look out for your enemy is very cunning and he never lets up! He is very good at what he does, so be alert always!
Yet, still, even digging deeper into the prophetic layer here, we can see another principle concerning the church age. This mystery tells us the church will start out with a bang! She will have great success and miracles straight off the starting line. But her confidence will soon be shattered as the enemy moves in unnoticed. She will begin to fall out of love with her Savior. She will take her first step towards "lukewarmness!"
We see this in the Garden of Eden. Apparently, Adam and Eve only enjoyed the bliss of paradise for a short time. Then the enemy showed up and even amidst paradise, he was able to convince Eve she was lacking something and God was not so good after all. This pattern can be seen throughout Scripture. We see the evidence of this in Paul's first letter to the Church at Corinth. They started out with miracles and experienced powerful gifts of the Spirit, yet by the time Paul writes his first letter, he finds himself addressing division within the body and gross tolerance of sinful living within the body. He calls them carnal and unable to move on into the "deep things" of the Lord. And so, as we look at the first letter to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation, Chapters 2 & 3. The first letter to the first church, Ephesus, was very descriptive of this phase of church history. The risen Lord tells the church "I know your works..." they were patient, they had good works, they could not stand those who were evil. They had tested apostles and weeded out the false; yet our glorified Jesus says: "Nevertheless I have this against you,that you have left your first love."
They are warned to repent quickly or else they will no longer be a church functioning with the presence and power of the Spirit. So we see, the first letter to the first church warns us the honeymoon will be short lived in the first phase of church history.
The first of the eight parables in Mt. 13 likewise shows us; out of the four kinds of soil (heart) only one will produce. Yes, thank God, He always preserves a remnant of faithful and obedient disciples to continue His work.
As the weeks go by, we will begin to unravel a deeper, prophetic picture in these parables. Like the Parable of the Good Samaritan we looked at last week, we will begin to see how Jesus reveals the church age progressively as He speaks these mysteries. The church started with a bang but things went south in a hurry. However, she continued to grow despite the attacks of the enemy because, in the words of Jesus: "I will build My church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!"
Praise God!
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