BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED!

May 11, 2010

BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED!

Mark 4:21-34

David Newcombe

Central Truth

Specifically MADE, all are unique; deliberately PURPOSED, all have different gifts; and lovingly PLACED, all are to bear fruit. Continued GROWTH is a REQUIREMENT!

"But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come." (Mark 4:29)

A Lamp Under a Basket

21 And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 25 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

The Parable of the Seed Growing

26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. 34 He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

When I, a city boy from New Jersey, attended college in Iowa, it was a culture shock. I saw corn and lots of it! At that time, Iowa’s state motto was “A Place to Grow.” I saw farmers (sowers) planting rows and rows and rows of seed. It took days of work to prepare the fields. I am certain that the sowers anticipated a good harvest! Once the sowers put the good seed in the ground, they had no control over the growth. They hoped and prayed for sunshine and the right amount of rain in a nutrient rich soil to produce a bountiful crop. (Isaiah 55:10)

As time passed, the sprouts of green burst forth through the earth’s surface, revealing growth as the seed had taken root. The seeds became rows and rows of green. After several months of expected growth (an old Iowan saying to measure “good growth” is “knee high by the Fourth of July”) . . . came the HARVEST! The seed, now MATURE, was needed for several purposes: food for livestock, gasoline, and MORE SEED! Now that maturity had occurred, the sower returned to the field to HARVEST the crop!

So it is with us as believers. God’s Word is planted in our hearts – God causes the growth, and He returns to the field for the HARVEST. Remember, we reap what we sow, more than we sow, and later than we sow. (Galatians 6:7-9)

We as believers must be assiduously attentive to the Word of God; we must “meditate day and night.” (Psalm 1:2) Paul encourages us in 1 Corinthians 11:1 to be imitators of him as he imitates Christ. When we do that, the Lord is faithful to give us capacity to understand His Word, His plan for our lives, and His plan for reaching the world. (Jeremiah 29:11)

He IS returning for the HARVEST! (Mark 4:29) We, as faithful followers of Jesus Christ, can press on with confidence, KNOWING that our labor in spreading the Good News (seed) produces righteous growth when it takes root in good soil. (Matthew 13:23)

1. Where are you SOWING seeds to a produce a good crop in your life, family, friends, and others?

2. What does SPREADING the “Good News” of Jesus Christ look like now in your daily life, and what can it look like?

3. How are you GROWING in the knowledge of God and His Word? What can you eliminate from your life to permit growth?

4. If He RETURNS today, what would be Jesus’ response to your sowing, spreading, and growing?

FAMILY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What does a lamp do?

2. Like a lamp, does your life show others the way to Jesus?