Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:04] Speaker B: Welcome to Hope for Today, a weekly Bible teaching program that will bring you hope for every day.
It is so good to be with you again today. We are honored to be here and consider it a privilege to look into the Word of God with you.
If you were to sum up all of Jesus teaching in one word or theme, what would it be?
This is an interesting question and I don't know if there is only one correct answer, but I would say Jesus teaching revolves around his kingdom. He came to promote his kingdom, so of course there will be many times when he is explaining his kingdom to his audience.
Today's lesson is one of those times. Our title is the Mystery of the Kingdom. Here in Mark 4 Jesus gives us several things his kingdom is like.
Turn there if you can, and J. Mark will explore this topic in today's teaching.
[00:01:05] Speaker A: The portion of Scripture for our study today follows immediately after the Parable of the Soils and is directly related to it. I've titled My Teaching the Mystery of the Kingdom and our text is Mark 4:2134.
Listen carefully as I read this text and see if you can pick out the steps that reveal to us the mystery of the Kingdom.
Here is Mark 4:21.
Also he said to them, Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand?
For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret, but that it will come to light.
If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.
Then he said to them, take heed what you hear with the same measure you use, it will be measured to you, and to you who hear, more will be given for whoever has to him more will be given but whoever does not have even what he has will be taken away from him.
And he said, the kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night, and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, but he himself does not know how.
For the earth yields crops by itself first the blade, then the head, and after that the full grain in the head but when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.
Then Jesus said, to what shall we liken the kingdom of God, or with what parable shall we picture?
Is like a mustard seed, which when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds of the earth but when it is sown, it grows and becomes greater than all the herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the Birds of the air may nest under its shade.
And with many such parables, he spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.
But without a parable, he did not speak to them.
And when they were alone, he explained all things to his disciples.
In this text, we are going to observe several steps that reveal to us the mystery of the kingdom.
The first step that reveals the mystery of the kingdom is its proclamation.
So Jesus moves from the parable of the soils that we looked at last time into teaching about the kingdom of God. He moves from the field to the house, and he uses a common item to illustrate his teaching. An oil lamp.
Every household in Jesus day had these small clay lamps. And so he asks the does the lamp come to be put under a basket or a couch?
Doesn't it come to be set on the lampstand?
You and I both know that putting the lamp under a basket or under the couch where people recline to eat defeats the whole purpose of lighting that lamp in the first place.
Jesus was teaching the people that he did not come to obscure the truth, but to proclaim it. Notice what verse 22 said. For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.
Jesus admits that some things are hidden. And at the time he is speaking, however, the time would come when those previously hidden things, those mysteries, would be revealed.
You see, the point of Jesus coming to earth was to proclaim the truth, to illuminate the teachings of the Old Testament, and to show how those scriptures spoke about him. And I hope you caught it, because Jesus again emphasized the importance of hearing. He says, if anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. And then he follows that up immediately by saying, pay attention to what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you and to you who hear, more will be given. For whoever has to him more will be given. But whoever does not have even what he has will be taken away from him.
As we hear Jesus teachings and put them into practice, we gain a deeper understanding, and. And then that understanding opens up further revelation to us.
But you know, the opposite is also true. If we refuse to listen and obediently practice what we've been given, then our understanding decreases and we have less revelation.
Understanding the mystery would depend on how well the hearers heard.
How well they heard would be proven by the change that took place in their lives.
So are you proclaiming the mystery of the kingdom by your words and by the life that you live? Each day there's Another step that reveals the mystery of the kingdom.
I've called it its progression.
In this context, Jesus reveals another aspect of the kingdom of God. He said it is like a man who scatters seed in his field.
And then Jesus goes on to highlight the miracle of growth.
Think about this. The farmer sows the seed and then he goes on about his everyday life.
He sleeps, he rises in the morning, he works all day, he eats his evening meal, and he sleeps again.
And all the while he is cycling through his days and nights. That seed is growing. But how that seed grows is a mystery to him.
The soil appears to produce a crop on its own.
The soil produces the crop, that's true. But the life is where it's in the seed.
So first the stalk emerges as a tiny shoot, and then as that stalk develops, it forms a head. And eventually that head fills out with mature grain.
You know, that's the law and the order of nature, but it's also the order of grace in the kingdom of God.
Then ultimately this sowing of the seed results in a harvest. That's why we plant, right? We expect a harvest.
And so verse 29 says, but when the grain ripens, immediately he sends in the sickle, because the harvest has come.
From this we learn that the kingdom of God is self propagating.
Even though the sower doesn't understand how or why the seed grows, he does his part by scattering it.
The seed grows and matures according to the laws of nature, and so does the kingdom of God.
An organization with which we partner in Bible distribution operates primarily in West Africa and they focus on disciple making and Bible distribution.
They instruct new converts to Christ and then they train them to become disciple makers. Those who are trained then pass that training on to others, repeating that cycle. And so churches are being planted and people are being delivered from the power and and bondage of Satan. The kingdom is progressing.
And you know something? This progression will continue until the kingdom of God comes in its fullness.
And that won't be here and now. That will be when Jesus comes to rule and reign in righteousness.
But our part now is to faithfully sow the seed of the kingdom with confidence that God will bring about the harvest and in his good time.
As you hear and obey the teaching of the kingdom of God, is spiritual progression taking place in your life? Are you experiencing the joy of being part of the reaping process?
So far we have looked at two steps that reveal the mystery of the kingdom, its proclamation, and now its progression. There is a final step that reveals the mystery of the kingdom. It is its potential.
In verse 30, Jesus asks his listeners to help define the kingdom of God.
So he asks them a to what can we compare the kingdom of God? Or what parable can we use to describe it?
He then chooses the tiny mustard seed to illustrate the potential of the kingdom.
Jesus said that this seed, despite the fact that it is so small, grows and becomes larger than all the garden plants.
It produces large branches large enough that it allows birds to nest in its shade.
So we have to ask the logical question.
How is that like the kingdom of God?
Well, let's think about the context a bit. Consider the influence of the religious leaders. They were backed up by the imperial power of Rome.
Think about that. In comparison to Jesus and his disciples, Jesus didn't have an army. He didn't have access to the temple treasury.
He didn't have power granted to him by the Roman government.
And so, from the world's perspective, he and his followers were a tiny, annoying minority.
And first of all, they were ignored. And later, they were supposedly stamped out.
Remember how the religious leaders and the Roman soldiers mocked him at his crucifixion?
This man is no threat. He can't even save himself.
But you know something? Today the Roman Empire is long gone.
The religious leaders of Jesus day have long been forgotten.
But the kingdom of God has grown into, as it were, a large tree. And people from all over the globe have come to rest in its shade.
At the very first, those who found shade were mostly Jewish believers in Jesus. But it wasn't long until. Until Gentiles were welcomed too.
Through the witness of the disciples and the apostle Paul, people from all over the then known world found rest in that tree.
And today that tree continues to grow until Jesus finally ushers in the kingdom in all its fullness.
Why did Jesus speak to the crowds in parables?
The text states that he taught them as they were able to understand.
You see, the mysteries of the kingdom couldn't be grasped all at once.
Progressive revelation was the only possible way that it could be done.
And that progression could only move at the speed with which the disciples grasped the kingdom concepts and then incorporated them into their lives.
Privately, Jesus explained the parables in detail to his inner circle. But even then, we know they failed to grasp a lot of what he told them.
From our vantage point, we now understand many of the mysteries of the kingdom of God. And Jesus no longer speaks to us in parables.
Many of the things that Jesus spoke in a cryptic way, we now understand them clearly.
Our obedience to his commands and our understanding of the Kingdom of God are proven or disproven by our daily lifestyle choices.
And so I close with some questions.
Do you understand the mystery of the kingdom?
Are you engaged in its proclamation? Are you holding your lamp high so others can see the light?
Are you participating in the Kingdom's progression as you hear and obey the mysteries of the Kingdom of God? Are you making spiritual progress in your life?
And finally, do you understand the Kingdom's potential?
If you do, your life will bear witness to your understanding. That understanding will result in action and you will use your resources, whatever they are, to help fuel the growth of that kingdom.
So let's ask God to help us better understand the mystery of the Kingdom.
[00:12:45] Speaker B: Thanks J. Mark for this teaching. That was a nice outline for this lesson. 3p words to help us understand the mystery of the Kingdom. You know something else? Since the day Jesus ascended, His kingdom has grown.
It really is incredible. It has never been replicated. At this moment there are millions, possibly billions who would lay down their life for Jesus.
And one more thing about this kingdom, the best is yet to come. Read the back of the Bible. The future for his kingdom is very bright.
Let's do our best to usher in this kingdom right where we are and go all in for Him.
If you have any questions about today's lesson or if you would like to contact us, please let us know. You can reach us by email or Internet. Our email address is hopeeraldsofhope.org and our website is heraldsofhope.org There go to the partner tab at the top. Under this tab you will see Contact us from there you can message us directly. Please contact us with the method that is easiest for you. We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Thanks again for joining us for Hope for Today. Here is an encouraging verse from Daniel chapter two. The first part has happened. The last part not yet, but we look forward to the day it will. Here it is. And in the days of these kings the God of Heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. And the kingdom shall not be left to other people. It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms and it shall stand forever.
