Jesus - Accomplishing Great Things without a Smart Phone - Mark 4:21-34

Sermon Series: Spare Me the Details - Just Give Me Jesus

My guess is that you have noticed our culture's obsession with technology.  I would also guess that you probably aren't exempt and that you have a particular interest in one or more pieces of technology.  I do, and mine is with smart phones.  Unfortunately I do not own a smart phone.  But I have seen them in action and I've heard the advertising and I hope one day to own some kind of smart phone like an iPhone, Droid, or Blackberry.  Here's the message that I've heard and that I have bought into - that having a smart phone will make you much more productive and will actually help you accomplish great things.  It is in fact the tool that turns average Joes into guys who accomplish great things.  Just think about all that you can do with a smart phone.  You can use it as a phone, you can email, you can surf the internet, you can update your Facebook or Twitter accounts, you can use it as a navigation system, you can download and listen to music or movies, you can watch live sports, and you can even live face chat with another individual.  Now that is an awesome tool that can do a whole lot of awesome stuff.  And when you're a 'less than awesome guy' having an awesome tool like that can totally change who you are and what you accomplish, right?  While having an interest in technology and the amazing things it's doing, we aren't supposed to love and treasure cool gadgets and gizmos - we're supposed to love and to treasure Jesus.  And one of the amazing things to consider about Jesus (especially in our culture where technology plays such a huge role in everything) is that Jesus didn't come into the world with a smart phone.  Jesus came into the world with a different tool - the message of the gospel.  And with the gospel message Jesus did accomplish and assures us that He will continue to accomplish great things (things even an iPhone can't accomplish).  So as we consider the text of Mark's gospel in chapter 4, verses 21-34 let's draw attention to three particular results Jesus assures us of when He goes to work with the gospel.

Last week we looked at chapter 4, verses 1-20 and pointed out that the parable of the sower helps us to understand that Jesus is the gracious Giver of the gospel.  The evidence in the text we pointed to was that He unsparingly scattered the seed of the gospel on all of the different types of soil.  While three of those soil types (i.e. the path, the rocky ground, and the thorny ground) would never produce any crop Jesus still made sure to scatter seed onto those soils so that everyone would have an opportunity to hear the good news.  The second piece of evidence we saw was that Jesus revealed "the secret of the kingdom of God" to certain individuals.  These individuals had not done anything to earn this revealing but were simply individuals to whom Jesus determined to give this insight to.  And while Jesus played a huge role in determining this the parable still pointed out the requirement of the disciples and those who would closely follow Jesus to continually be hearing the message of the gospel and allowing it to penetrate and shape their lives.  

In verses 21-25 Jesus uses a different parable with different imagery but continues to make very similar points.  Here Jesus begins a parable about a lamp.  Your text probably begins something like this, "And He said to them, 'Is a lamp brought in . . .'"  Now right away we have to understand the significance of the lamp because their are some things that seem to indicate that this lamp is important.  First we have to look at some Greek grammar.  Immediately preceding the word 'lamp' in the Greek is something we call the "definite article" - the word "the."  So a better translation for our English Bibles would be, "And He said to them, 'Is the lamp brought in . . .'"  This isn't just 'a' lamp but rather 'the' lamp.  This begs the question then, "What is the lamp that Mark is referring to?"  And to answer this question we have to know that on some occasions in the Old Testament (OT) a 'lamp' is used as a metaphor for God, for the coming Messiah, or for the OT Law.  So these indicators point to Jesus as "the Lamp" which is brought in in this parable.  Verse 21 then continues, "Is a lamp (Jesus) brought in to be put under a basket, or a bed, and not on a stand?"  Jesus was asking a question concerning the point for which He was sent to take on flesh and make His presence among men.  Was the purpose to keep Him concealed and to subject Him to the things of this world?  The answer to that question is 'no.'  Like a lamp is to be put on a lamp stand where it's light can shine, Jesus was sent to be a light and to reveal those things which had been a secret (vs. 22).  His job was to do that which He talked about in 4:11.  He was to make known the gospel message and to reveal the secret of the kingdom of God.  Then in verse 23 and 24 Jesus reminds us of our responsibility to hear.  In verses 13-20 the gospel message was unable to penetrate the heart, grow, and bear fruit in the hearts and lives of those who were not continually hearing the gospel message.  But in verse 20 we see the gospel penetrating the heart, growing, and bearing much fruit in the hearts and lives of the people who were continually hearing the gospel message.  Just as hearing was a significant responsibility of the people in verses 13-20, it is emphasized here again in verses 23-25.  Three times in verses 23 and 24 Jesus makes a point to challenge the crowds to 'hear" - ""If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.'  And he said to them, 'Pay attention to what you hear . . ."  He also challenges the crowds with the exact same message of verses 13-20 but states it in an entirely different way.  In verses 24 and 25 the idea is that for those who are continually hearing the gospel and having the secret of the kingdom of God revealed to them, the more that will be revealed to them.  Just as was made clear in verse 20, those who were continually hearing were bearing fruit in miraculous amounts.  But for those who were not continually hearing the gospel and who had not received the secret of the kingdom of God ("the one who has not" - vs. 25), "even what he has will be taken away."  The same thing that happens to the individuals in verses 13-19.  The gospel was given to them - it was scattered on every kind of soil.  But because they were not continually hearing the gospel, the message of the gospel is taken away or dies without being able to bear any fruit.  So in this short parable we see clearly Jesus identified as the lamp - the One who has come to make known the secret of the kingdom of God.  And the tool that He uses to accomplish this is the message of the gospel.  Jesus assures us that when He goes to work with the gospel He will accomplish something great.  In verses 21-25 we see the first result that Jesus assures us of when He goes to work with the gospel - that He will continually reveal the gospel to those continually hearing it.  So we need to keep ourselves rooted in the gospel message of Jesus and the way we do that is staying in God's Word (the Bible).  We have to devote ourselves to actively reading the Bible everyday and allowing it's message to penetrate our hearts and shape our lives.  Jesus assures us that if we will continually keep the gospel in front of us He will continually reveal its truths to us, and that will cause us to continually grow and bear fruit.  

The second result that Jesus assures us of when He goes to work with the gospel is found in verses 26-29.  And in these verses we find Jesus teaching a different parable.  In verse 26 Jesus begins with some very exciting words, "The kingdom of God is as . . ."  In this parable Jesus is going to be comparing the kingdom of God to something.  Now stop and consider for a moment how you would finish that statement.  If someone were to ask you, "What is the kingdom of God like?" how would you answer them.  Most of us would probably try to think of something grand and exquisite wouldn't we?  And many of us probably begin to feel some anticipation rising in our own hearts and minds as we think, "What will Jesus compare the kingdom of God to?"  But how many of us would expect the rest of verse 26?  "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground."  Really?!?!  That's what the kingdom of God is like?  This is the best Jesus can do?  The kingdom of God is like a man scattering seed on the ground?  Not exactly what most of us would expect, huh?  But while the comparison may not be all that exciting at first, the truth of Christ's comparison should really excite our hearts.  In verse 26 the man has scattered the seed (probably once again the gospel message - vs. 14) but then note what he does to and for the seed in verse 27.  The answer is nothing.  Jesus says the man sleeps and rises each day but makes no mention of the man doing anything to or for the seed.  But Jesus also points out in verse 27 that the seed is doing something - it is sprouting and growing (even though the man who has sowed it doesn't know how.)  Verse 28 describes the process of the seed's growth and demonstrates that without any help from the man it still grows in a very orderly and methodical way, "first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear."   This process is taking place in many of the seeds that have been sown until verse 29 when Jesus notes that "The grain is ripe" and that "the harvest has come."  While not appearing at first to be a very impressive comparison, Jesus presents some exciting truths.  First He notes that God's starts with a seed!  Not a fully grown and mature tree, not a fully grown and mature kingdom, church, or individual.  God starts with a seed.  A small and seemingly insignificant seed.  Jesus also notes in this parable that the seed has power within itself.  It doesn't need the man in the parable to help or assist it before it can sprout and grow.  Rather the seed has the power to generate life and growth on its own.  Thirdly, Jesus notes man's responsibility in this parable is to sow and then to wait in faith for the harvest.  Which points to a fourth truth - that a harvest will indeed come.  The message of the gospel is powerful to bring about both salvation and sanctification and to lead us into eternity with God.  This is awesome!  In the parable of Jesus that Mark tells in 4:26-29 Jesus assures us that when He goes to work with the gospel, He will produce a harvest.  It's not us causing the gospel to work.  It's not us who are producing the harvest.  It is Christ who does these things.  We simply have to have the faith that God will grow a fruitful harvest.  Which should raise the question for each of us - "Do we?"  Do we have the faith that Christ will accomplish and bring about a great harvest when He comes with the message of the gospel?  It's probably a question we would all affirm with our lips but I wonder how many of us are really convinced of it?  It's easy to see something small and insignificant like a seed and not be convinced that it can grow into a great tree.  It's easy to see a handful of small and insignificant seeds and not be convinced that they can produce a great harvest of food.  But it is with something seemingly small and insignificant (the gospel message) that God chose to make an enormous difference in our world.  We have to believe and have faith that this is true.

The section of Jesus' parables comes to a conclusion with a final parable in verses 30-34.  And Jesus starts off this parable just like He did the last one - by comparing the kingdom of God to something.  In verses 26-29 the comparison wasn't that impressive, so it would seem that perhaps Jesus has the opportunity to close this teaching time of parables with a really impressive comparison.  When Jesus asks the question in verse 30, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it?" it's hard to believe that once again He answers with something that seems small and insignificant.  In verse 31 Jesus answers His own questions by saying, "It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth."   But like the last parable, while the comparison seems unimpressive at first, the truth of the parable demonstrates something awesome.  In verse 32 Jesus reminds the crowd that while the mustard seed is incredibly small, "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."  Jesus demonstrates that while the gospel message and the kingdom of God may start out small it will not remain that way.  It grows "larger than all the garden plants" Jesus says.  And then Jesus uses some important imagery when He talks about the branches and says, "so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."  In the OT there are a handful of occasions when the prophets would use the metaphor of birds nesting in branches to demonstrate the inclusion of non-Jewish individuals as a part of God's chosen people.  So not only does the kingdom of God grow in size but it also grows in scope, including people from every tribe, nation, and tongue.  Jesus uses a parable that starts off focusing on the obscurity and insignificant beginnings of God's kingdom, but He assures us that when He goes to work wit the gospel His kingdom will not remain small.    

Mark's conclusion in verses 33 and 34 also remind us once again of where we need to position ourselves as disciples and followers of Christ.  Verse 33 tells us that Jesus continued to teach the crowds using parables, but verse 34 says that "privately" He was explaining the parables to His disciples.  If we are going to be followers of Christ who are continually hearing the gospel and continually having the truth of the gospel revealed to us, then we must stay in close proximity to Christ.  Jesus didn't broadcast the explanations to the crowds, but only explained them to His closest followers in private.

Most of us would acknowledge that because Jesus is God's Son He can accomplish amazing things.  But allow me to encourage you with one other verse from the Bible.  In Romans 1:16 Paul writes, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . ."  The truth is, not only is Jesus powerful, but the gospel message is as well.  Jesus came into this world, on His own able to accomplish great things.  But what's more, He came with a tool.  And the tool He came armed with wasn't a iPhone, or a Droid, or a Blackberry.  It was something far more powerful than those things will ever be.  He came armed with the gospel message, which is also able to accomplish great things.  Jesus assured us that when He, the powerful Son of God, went to work with the gospel message, the powerful tool of God, then He was going to accomplish great things.  He would continue to reveal the truths of the gospel, He would produce a great harvest, and He would cause His kingdom to grow in both size and scope.  (Let's see a smart phone do that.)  I pray that we'll be faithful to keep sowing and waiting in faith, fully convinced that the things He assures us He will do, He will accomplish.

Questions for Small Group Discussion

1. Read verses 21-25.  In this parable we find that Jesus is the lamp that has come into the world to reveal the message of the gospel and the secret of the kingdom of God.  We see specifically in verses 24 and 25 that Jesus assures us that when He goes to work with the gospel He will continually reveal the truths of the gospel to those who are continually hearing it.  Do you ever get the impression that those who have been believers longer sometimes spend less time in God's Word?  If so, why do you think that is?  What might some of the consequences be?

2. Read verses 26-29.  In this parable we find Jesus comparing the kingdom of God to a man scattering seed.  Jesus presents a picture in which man is responsible for scattering the seed of the gospel and then simply waiting in faith for God to work in and through the seed to cause it to grow.  In the parable Jesus assures us that when He goes to work with the gospel He will produce a harvest.  Do we ever get frustrated that God's kingdom comes like a seed and not like something that comes fully grown and developed?  If so, why?  Why is waiting in faith so hard at times?  How can we stay encouraged when we are tired of waiting in faith?

3. Read verses 30-34.  In this parable we find Jesus comparing the kingdom of God to a grain of mustard seed.  While the parable begins by focusing on the obscurity and insignificant beginnings of God's kingdom it ends by focusing on the incredible growth in size and scope of God's kingdom.  In the parable Jesus assures us that when He goes to work with the gospel His kingdom will not remain small.  The growth of the kingdom is a given.  Why do we sometimes get anxious when we don't see any evidence of growth?  Is there something else that we ought to turn our focus and attention to?

4. What step of faith does this passage of scripture require us to take as individuals and as a small group?  How do we work this out on mission?