And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, 27 “and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28 “For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29 “But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” 30 Then He said, “To what shall we liken the kingdom of God? Or with what parable shall we picture it? 31 “[It is] like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; 32 “but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade.” 33 And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear [it]. 34 But without a parable He did not speak to them. And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples..”

– Mark 4:26-34: (NKJV)

I was at a public school and I heard a student read a gospel presentation to a group of his peers. It wasn’t a conversation. It wasn’t fancy. It wasn’t deep. He just simply read what amounted to a gospel tract. As far as presentations go, I had selfishly in my heart already judged it to be one of the worst ones I’ve ever seen… but do you know what? Two students gave their lives to the Lord that day!

What happened? While presentation is important, when it comes to the gospel there are a few more important elements at play. One is, as we have been talking through the parable of the soils, the receptivity of people to the word of God. A ready heart and the truth of the gospel, even in small doses, goes a lot further than how well or poor we might judge the gospel to be presented. The second is never underestimate the power that is in the seed (Word of God) that will come out in the soil of our lives under the right conditions.

Jesus continues with these garden metaphors and I’m glad He does because he shows us that the power is in the word of God and ready hearts. As we go out sharing God’s word this week we need to pray for ready hearts to receive the gospel and share God’s word with confidence. If we share and someone doesn’t receive the gospel, the defect is not with the seed, it’s with the soil.

Father, We love you and want to grow in knowledge of you and your word. Thank you for the confidence we can have to share your word. We are grateful that the power for fruitfulness comes from your word at work in our lives. We pray for receptive hearts both for ourselves and others. Please guide us in your will and direction for our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.