Why do we tell a story? How many times has someone told you a story like this one? Hey, listen to this. Yesterday, I went to the grocery store. I bought some produce, a pound of hamburger, a few canned goods, and then I came home. You may never have heard someone tell such a story, but if they did, you might ask them, “What was the point of the story?” Generally, we do not tell stories unless something unusual happens or because we are trying to illustrate a point. There must be a purpose to the story.
Today, we find in the Gospel of Mark the culmination of three stories, three parables told by Jesus. Each story is related to the other. All of them involve the use of seeds. These stories have a purpose. That purpose is to help us to understand and to enter the kingdom of God.
Three stories. I mentioned last week that Mark, in his presentation of the ministry, life, and death of Jesus, often arranges things in threes. Last week, in the parable of the Sower, Mark recounted Jesus speaking about three seeds that failed to produce a crop. As you may recall, the seeds along the hardened path were devoured by birds. The seed in the shallow soil sprouted but withered under the sun. The seed among the thorns grew but was choked out by those thorns. Jesus also spoke about three seeds that did produce grain. Then Mark told us about Jesus speaking about three other seeds. One seed produced 30 times itself, another 60 times itself, and a third produced 100 times itself. The first parable of Chapter 4 spoke about three seeds that failed to produce and died, and three seeds that produced life and life in abundance.
Mark also discusses other patterns of three in the Gospel. Three times Jesus predicts his suffering, death, and resurrection (Mark 8:31, 9:31, 10:33-34). Peter denies Jesus three times before the rooster crows, fulfilling Jesus’ earlier prediction (Mark 14:30). In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prays three times, each time returning to find the disciples sleeping (Mark 14:32-41). Three-hour intervals mark the crucifixion—Jesus is crucified at the third hour (9 a.m.), darkness covers the land from the sixth to the ninth hour (12 p.m. to 3 p.m.), and Jesus dies at the ninth hour (Mark 15:25-34). Mark highlights three women—Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome—who witnessed the crucifixion (Mark 15:40) and visited the empty tomb (Mark 16:1). These patterns of three reflect Mark’s concise, deliberate storytelling, emphasizing Jesus’ identity, mission, and the disciples’ journey. The number three, often symbolic of completeness in Jewish tradition, underscores the theological weight of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Today, as I mentioned earlier, we have three parables that deal with the growth of seeds.
The first parable, the Parable of the Sower, we discussed last week. That parable is key to understanding all other parables. It is a parable that deals with judgment against those who only hear the word of God but do not repent, the three seeds that die, and a parable of salvation for those who listen to the word of God, repent, and receive the good news of Christ. These three seeds live and produce a life of abundance.
After that first parable, Jesus introduced two more parables with these words: “24 Consider carefully what you hear,” he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. 25 Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have, will be taken from them” (Mark 4:24-25). As we discussed last week, Jesus used the Greek word akouō 14 times, which is translated into English as either “Listen” or “Hear.” We don’t see the repetition in the English translations of the Bible, causing us to miss the significance of the repetition. Jesus began the introduction to the following two parables using the word akouō, “Consider carefully what you hear [akouō],” or “Consider carefully what you listen to” (Mark 4:24a). Jesus made an important point then, which remains equally essential now. We must pay careful attention to what we read and listen to. Not everything is beneficial for us, and we need to be mindful of what and who we listen to.
The second point is that Mark outlined a three-part process for spiritual growth that addresses the measures we use. For these verses, I would like to switch to the New King James Version, as it highlights an important distinction that is missing from the NIV. “Take heed what you hear [akouō – listen to]. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear [akouō – listen to], more will be given. 25 For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him” (Mark 4:24-25). Mark draws out three things here:
First, with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Jesus was speaking here about our openness to the word of God. The more open you are to receiving the word of God, the more accessible it will be to you. If your measure is small, then what you receive will be small.
Christian author Wilbur Rees wrote satirically, “I would like to buy $3.00 worth of God, please. Not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I don't want enough of God to make me love a black man or pick beets with a migrant worker. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want the warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal, just put it in a paper sack. I want to buy $3.00 worth of God, please." If you only want $3.00 worth of God, that is all you will ever get. So, the first point is that whatever measure you use in seeking God, it will be used to measure what you will receive from God.
Secondly, Jesus said, “and to you who hear [akouō – listen to], more will be given” (Mark 4:24b). To you who listen to God and follow through in what God asks of you, more will be given. The more you seek God and follow God, the more you will want to seek and follow God more, and the more you will receive. This is not a prosperity gospel message suggesting that if you have money and want more, ask God for it. This is a message that says the more you want to know God intimately, the more God will be accessible to you.
Thirdly, Jesus said, “25 For whoever has, to him more will be given” (Mark 4:25a). If you have received Christ and are following Him, then you are guaranteed to be given ever greater spiritual food than you have received thus far. Jesus' apostles saw Jesus’ words come to life in their own lives as they were transformed from a timid, confused band of fishermen into fearless, focused ambassadors of Christ, willing and capable of sharing God’s Word with servants and kings.
Jesus encouraged people to open themselves up to God’s Word so that they could receive the fullest measure of God’s grace, insights, and wisdom possible. From this vantage point, Jesus then shared two more parables.
Jesus began this way: “26 This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day, whether he [the man] sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he [the man] does not know how. 28 All by itself, the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he [the man] puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come” (Mark 4:26-29).
We learn two things here. First, Jesus was describing the process by which the kingdom of God grows. Jesus was moving from the activities of man in the Parable of the Sower, to the activity of the seed in this parable and the one that follows. Jesus’ point was that the kingdom of God begins with someone, here a man, scattering the seed, taken to mean scattering the word of God. Mark had shared with his readers in Chapter 2 how Jesus came to share the word. Mark wrote, “2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he [Jesus] preached the word to them” (Mark 2:2). We must share the word of God. That is our part in the growth of the kingdom of God. If we neglect sharing the word, we have neglected our responsibility to God.
The second thing we learn from this parable is that the growth of the kingdom after sharing the word is done secretly without our involvement. We cannot coax people into faith, or manipulate them into faith, or argue them into faith, any more than a farmer can coax, manipulate, or argue their crops into growing. Share the word and let God do the work to bring the seeds to their fullness.
Jesus then shared another parable, the third on growing from seed. Jesus said, “30 What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade” (Mark 4:30-32). Jesus was again giving insight into the nature of the kingdom of God. Here, Jesus explained that the kingdom of God will grow from a tiny beginning, comparable in size to a mustard seed. The kingdom would grow rapidly such that it would be as though shortly after the seed is planted, a maturing plant dominates the entire garden. Again, the farmer or gardener who planted the small seed had no part in the plant's growth. Likewise, the kingdom of God would not grow because of the efforts of women and men but would grow by God’s will. The parables affirmed that God oversees human history. Humans are not in charge of God’s destiny. God is sovereign.
Then what do we take away from these three parables, all dealing in one form or another with seeds? In recognition of Mark’s approach to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, let’s consider three things.
First, we need to ask ourselves, “What measure am I using to receive from God? Am I holding out a teaspoon as the measure of what I want from God, or am I holding out a bowl? What am I listening to? Do I come to church every week to get another installment of God’s Word? Am I engaging God’s Word with Bible study? What measure am I using to receive from God?”
If you were wondering about the measure people are using these days, here are some statistics. Americans spend, on average:
- 9 minutes per day on pet care – Like a tablespoon
- 420 minutes (7 hours) online – Like a bucket
- 2 minutes on personal worship and religious development – Like a thimble
Whatever measure you use, it will be measured to you. Be careful about what you listen to. I encourage each one of us to change the measure we are using. We should assume that it is too small.
Second, Jesus came with a primary message, “The time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and receive the good news” (Mark 1:15). This was the primary seed scattered by Jesus. The three parables all speak to scattering and planting the seed, the word of God. When Jesus first sent out his Twelve apostles, “12 They [The Twelve] went out and preached that people should repent” (Mark 6:12). The apostles did not engage in fruitless conversations about fine points of theology that most people did not understand. The Twelve followed Jesus’ lead and told people now was the time to repent, to turn toward God and receive what God has for them. Jesus told the Twelve, “11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them” (Mark 6:11). If the people refused to listen, Jesus did not want the Twelve to obsess over the lack of response because some people will choose to be spiritually devoured, wither, or be choked by their unbelief. The Twelve were not to be concerned, but were expected to move on to the next opportunity to share the word of God.
We must ask ourselves, “Am I sharing the word of God simply and making clear that people need to repent?” If you don’t like the word “repent,” then change it to sharing the word of God that now is the time for people to seek God that He may draw near to them. Our job is to plant the seed for the kingdom and then watch God work in that person. You and I need to speak and plant that seed for the kingdom.
Third, we must accept the sovereignty of God. What does sovereignty mean? The word sovereignty means “supreme authority.” We must accept that God is the supreme authority. God is the king of the kingdom of God. In the parables, we saw that the seed, the word of God, once cast or planted in good soil, grew without the farmer doing anything. The seed sprouted and grew to maturity. The shape and size of the kingdom were at the discretion of God, not the sower of the seed or the farmer. God was in charge.
I think sometimes we struggle with our faith journey because we do not accept the sovereignty of God. We believe that there are better ways and better outcomes available and possible if we, and not God, were in charge. And in some cases, what we want appears good to us, healing for someone, comfort for another, or wisdom for a third. How could God think otherwise? However, sometimes it seems as though God has other plans for what will happen. When those good things don’t happen the way we think they ought to go, then we doubt the goodness of God because we feel He is not acting as well as we see ourselves acting. We are, in such moments, whether we intend to do so or not, questioning the sovereignty, the supreme authority, of God. Jesus came to say to the people, “The kingdom of God is like…” and then invited us to enter that kingdom, not to change it or remake it in our image. When we cannot accept the sovereignty of God, we have necessarily altered the measure with which we approach God. I encourage you this week to reflect on and take the sovereignty of God. This is not a simple exercise, but it will expand the measure by which you receive from God.
The time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Repent and receive the good news” (Mark 1:15). Increase the measure you are using to receive God. Accept God’s sovereignty. Share the word of God. This is the point of the stories. Amen and Amen.