Mission 66 (English podcast)
Matthew 13 An Illustrated Kingdom
The parables were illustrations of spiritual truths, and Jesus spoke in parables so that people who really wanted to know the truth would get the point. But those who had no interest in truth would not understand. This is Mission 66. Your deep dive into the 66 books of the Bible brought to you by Bible teacher and pastor Dr. Louis Ciao in collaboration with Transworld Radio. Let me remind you to download your free study guide of the Gospels. You'll be able to go deeper into God's Word and follow along with each day's program. It's a great companion resource of the audio teaching of John Matthews and Esther Susullo. To get your free study guide of the Gospels, visit mission66.org. That's mission66.org. Get ready for an impactful session as John Matthews, along with his co-host, Esther Susullo, guide us through today's study. We are on the series of studies in the Gospels, and today we'll be looking at Matthew 13, which includes some of the parables of Jesus. Now, our teacher, John Matthews, will help us understand what's being presented here, and he'll be sharing today's theme, "An Illustrated Kingdom." Well, it's good to be with you once again, John. What can we delve into as it pertains to Matthew 13? Esther, great to be with you as well, and so good to be with you, our listeners wherever you're listening to us today. Thank you for being with us. You know, the parables, they contain these golden truths and ways to live, and Jesus used a parable to enable people to understand the ways of his kingdom. So, a parable then is sort of like an illustrated story from biblical times, and it becomes this style of teaching that Jesus uses, even though he was not the one to invent it. So, you know, this was a reality back in that time period and that specific culture, and we could say that it was a really enjoyable way, actually, of learning for the audience. Now, when we try to teach abstract concept, it's a lot harder to understand it by listening to, let's say, mere objective explanations. The parable uses everyday life experiences that these guys, these people, the listeners were familiar with. It's not a story that had necessarily actually happened, but it was based on everyday life. And so, Jesus is not trying to complicate things, but instead he's trying to arouse the curiosity of those who are listening, using everyday scenes and mental images and mind pictures that would have related and they would have been familiar with. And the really interesting thing, actually, is that these parables are sometimes mysterious, and these parables also make a separation between those who are really interested and those who aren't, effectively. So, are we ready? Esther, are you ready? Let's go for it. Let's go. Why not? Why not? Come on, let's go for it, isn't it? So, here we go. In the beginning, where are we? Chapter 13. What do we find here, well, we find the parable of the sower, which is the best-known parable in this chapter. And after, we'll read the parable of the weeds, then the parable of the mustard seed and of the yeast and of the hidden treasure. And then there's the parable of the pearl of great price. And finally, what do we have? We have this parable of the fisherman's net. And we'll get the deal with each one of these separately with our good friend Esther here and all you listening. So, this is going to be a really interesting one. And I think it's important, as well, to point out that when Jesus begins to teach with the use of these parables, you know, he's facing some hostility, yes, he's got people who are following him, but there's also this growing opposition, there's a growing rejection of this new king and his kingdom. And so the parables need to be understood in the light of those circumstances as well. And so you've got chapter 13 here, which begins by setting the scene for us, really. Jesus is sitting in a boat, and that boat is in the Sea of Galilee, and he's talking to a crowd of people who are listening to him from the shore. So here he is, the boat speaking out to these people on the shore. And in verse three, we have this parable of the sower, and Jesus says, "A sower went out to sow, and as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they didn't have much soil. Immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, but when the sun rose they were scorched, and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil, and produced grain, some 100 fold, some 60, some 30. And then Jesus begins to explain what he means by telling this parable, the significance of it, by saying, "Here, then, the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no roots in himself, so endures for a while, but when tribulation or persecution arise on account of the word immediately, he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, well, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, he indeed bears fruit and yields in one case a hundred fold, in another sixty and in another thirty." You know, John, I actually recall how God said through the prophet Isaiah that the word of God will not return empty. But it seems that in the parable of the sower, it appears that lots of the seeds do come up empty. I mean, several seeds fall and some end up in rocky or shallow soil. Others are eaten by the birds. I mean, are there times when the preaching of God's word simply comes up useless? Yeah, I know what you're saying, Esther, and that verse you mentioned there refers to Isaiah 55, and you're right, many people think that the phrase "the word of God does not return empty" means that we will always get what we pray for, or that the word of God will always, eventually, produce salvation. But that's not always true. And what Isaiah actually said was that the word of God always accomplishes the purpose for which God sent it forth, and that it succeeds in the thing that he sent it for. It's never useless and irrelevant, therefore the word of God will always produce an efficient result, and we don't always know what God has in mind when that word goes out. And remember, sometimes the result takes a long period of time to come about, and we may not see the benefit of our sowing or other sowing. Sometimes life circumstances, they choke the sowing of some seed, but we must still keep sowing, and if we're those for whom life is really tough and we seem to be blown around by all kinds of circumstances, as sometimes happens, then we've got a persevere and trust God to strengthen our foundations and our soil, because he will do that if we mean it, if we're serious about growing closer to him. But the result will not always be positive, and if people choose to ignore it or harden their hearts, then a different outcome occurs. Another word that saves the sorry person is also the same word that condemns those who are not sorry, and Jesus never said anything without a good reason, and the word had to be presented to the doubters so that it would be clearly seen that they had both heard and rejected it. Some doubters would eventually hear and receive it, and now Jesus here takes a minute to explain again why he is speaking, or why he uses parables. He says that some truths are really difficult to be heard and understood by everybody. This is what Jesus says, "To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given." And this is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing, they do not see, and hearing, they do not hear, nor do they understand. And this would be the fulfillment of a prophecy that is found in chapter 6 of Isaiah in the Old Testament. So here we understand that even though the seed is being sown, not all hearts will receive that seed, and so not all of that seed would grow then into something good. Well, then how then can these people who don't understand be held responsible for not understanding or not accepting Jesus' message? Yeah, well, as do we hear this a lot, don't we? And many people would say that this would be unfair on God's part. But remember, just remember what's going on here. Most of the common people heard Jesus willingly and listened to what he was saying. They asked for the meaning behind the parables, and then Jesus would explain it to them. The ones who opposed him the most harshly were the Pharisees. And why did they listen and not understand? Well, that's because their hearts are closed. And there are people who hear the word of God over and over and over again. And sometimes they may even be teachers, masters of the law. And yet their hearts are closed, they have their hearts hardened and refused to understand. But the parables, they were illustrations of spiritual truths. Jesus spoke in parables so that people who really wanted to know the truth would get the point, but those who had no interest in truth would not understand. Now the Pharisees could have understood the point that Jesus was trying to make, but they didn't, in the main they didn't. And that was because they didn't want to understand. You're listening to Mission 66, and we are studying the Bible, which has 66 books. And today we're looking at Matthew chapter 13, which is containing the parables of Jesus. Our teacher, John Matthews, is with us. And John, you mentioned earlier on, you were talking about how people hardened their hearts, and this is why they can't understand the parables. But I wonder whether God hardens the hearts of people, or whether they harden their own hearts? Yeah, it's a great question, Esther. And one, I think many of us, and I've asked myself at times over the years. You know, I think Exodus is a good place to go, because there's a story there where it says that God hardened Pharaoh's heart in Egypt, and so Pharaoh wouldn't let the Hebrews go. But Judas Iscariot is another example, hardened his heart to the point where he betrayed Jesus. So did God harden his heart, or did Judas harden his own heart? Same with Pharaoh. Well, the probable answer is that Pharaoh was proud and obstinate, and hardened his own heart. Judas, we are told, was a thief and a devil to begin with. So God didn't and won't harden anybody's heart, who has not hardened their own hearts already themselves. So pray, I think really praying for God to keep softening our hearts. So we are able, like Samuel, to hear his voice in the still moments is a really, really important thing to do every day, to be receptive to the way he's leading and guiding us as well. It's so important. Yeah. And I do know, and I can say this from experience, John, that the longer you put off obeying God, the harder it gets to obey him the next time. And the more you give into temptation, the easier it gets the next time. Yeah. It's a really helpful insight, Esther, because sin has a way of leading to more sin and more bad habits. And then resisting sin, as you say, leads to more strength, intimacy with God and that peace deep in our souls that so many are crying out for. You know, we see in the next parable here, and this one is the parable of the weeds. This is verse 24, and Jesus puts another parable before them, and this is what he says, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. When the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, "Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?" He said to them, "An enemy has done this." So the servants said to him, "Then, do you want us to go and gather them?" But he said, "No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. Without harvest time, I will tell the reapers, gather the weeds first, bind them in bundles to be burnt, but gather the wheat into my barn." And the same way Jesus explains the parable of the sower. He also explains the parable of the weeds by saying, "The field is the world, and the good seed are the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Therefore, there's no way to separate the wheat from the weeds completely, nor separate the good from the bad in our world. And this parable should then help us understand this and consequently not judge things based on outward appearance, because the weeds here look very similar to the weeds. In this world, even in the church, there are many children of God who may look like children of the devil, and many children of the devil who may look like children of God. And a weed today may repent and become weak tomorrow. So it's really important that we don't always judge a book by its cover. Well, you know, John, interestingly, a friend and I were actually having this discussion the other day, and I really like what the apostle Paul says. He says that even Satan sometimes comes not with, you know, fangs and with horns, but he actually disguises himself like an angel of light in order to deceive people and to lead them astray from God. Yeah. You know, that's incredible and true, and next what we find is this parable of the mustard seed in of the yeast, and this is what Jesus says, "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown, it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." And he tells them another parable, "The kingdom of heaven is like eleven, that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour till it was all leavened." You see, despite the growing opposition, despite those who are rejecting the kingdom of God, we mustn't forget, despite appearances, that the kingdom of God is growing. Sure, it sometimes looks small, tiny, limited as far as our limited eyes can see, but its power is unstoppable, constantly growing. It might not be growing in our town, in our community, in our country, but it's constantly growing somewhere, it's growing fast somewhere as well, because God makes it grow. It's getting bigger and greater, like bread dough rising, and you often can't see what's happening behind the scenes as well. And next, then, we find other parables that head in the same direction which are the parable of the hidden treasure and the parable of the pearl. This is what Jesus says, "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Yeah, this is the kingdom that is constantly experiencing rejection on earth, the kingdom that is growing without the perception of those who are outside of it, those who do not recognize the value of the kingdom. And this is the same kingdom that when discovered by the hearts of those who have been touched by God is suddenly realized and they start to understand the immense value of the kingdom of God. What it actually means, therefore this person will leave everything else in order to gain this hidden treasure of the kingdom that is beyond our ability to value, beyond human value. Therefore, this person will leave everything else in order to gain this hidden treasure. Remember that Matthew himself, remember that story earlier in the book of Matthew, he leaves his tax collecting booth in an instant behind him. He leaves everything that he has ever known at just one word from Jesus Christ. And next, Jesus tells us about the parable of the fisherman's net. By saying again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind and when it was full, men drew it ashore and they sat down and they sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age, the angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And then Jesus finishes off chapter 13 by saying, "Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old." Now in one sense, here he's making the point that both the old and the New Testaments are valid, the old is the foundation for the new but it's more than that. Many of the teachers of the law back then were pretty adept and knowledgeable about what was written. They knew the creation story, they knew Jewish history and heritage, the law of Moses and the prophets. But one who's been trained in the law should also be instructed in the new and to for example be able to show how the Old Testament, messianic prophecies foretold the coming of Christ who is here right now, how the foundations of the old were fulfilled in the new. And this is the reason that today we've got to view the entire Bible, old and New Testaments as one complete work. And you know what, over thousands of years the preaching of the Word of God in whatever age it has been done separates those who want to listen from those who don't. An eternal life in God's great eternal kingdom is of such great value as to like a very valuable pearl that it is worth risking everything in order to have it, in order to possess it. But it is surprising and really tragic that those who reject the truth of God's Word will continue to grow farther from God unless they turn about and turn around. Sure, well John, looking at the wrap up of this chapter, if we correctly view the types of soils talked about in the parable of the sower, we might be able to see ourselves right as fitting one or perhaps more of these types of soils. The question is, am I a rocky soil or am I a good soil? Yeah, good question and I suppose the way we look at it is this way, maybe Jesus wasn't describing types of people. It isn't that this person is rocky soil and that other person is good soil. Maybe in this chapter filled with spiritual truths, isn't it, he's trying to impart or trying to talk about how receptive our hearts are at a given particular time and there have been times in my life where my heart has been like the rocky soil and I wasn't just wasn't ready to listen to anybody, no matter how beautiful the parable might have been, but the situation changes over time sometimes, doesn't it? And the time comes when I was ready to receive into my heart the healing balm of the word and presence of God, the seed, the seed. So just because someone doesn't show interest in the Bible today or may never have shown any interest or may have strayed from the church or has never been to church, whatever their situation is, it doesn't mean that he or she's going to be eternally lost. There may come a time when they recognize their need and come to the Lord and that moment is known by him. If this is you as you listen, dear listener to us today here on Mission 66, consider this your personal invitation from the heart of a Savior who loves you with an immeasurable love, who knows you better than you know yourself, who created you and has a plan for your life. Perhaps you need to come back and let Jesus finish what he started in you. Well, the past was then and this is now and Jesus will receive anyone who asks for forgiveness who repents and will give you a fresh start. And you will hardly believe the joy that comes with walking through life with him. And I think the lesson here in the parables, particularly in the parable of the sower, is that no matter how old we are, no matter how far we may have strayed, each of us should begin today to let the Lord's word come in and produce that good spiritual fruit in our life from now on. This is Mission 66 with our Bible teacher John Matthews and he's leaving us with some biblical gems to further uncover in our own study time, but friend, remember to tune in again next time to learn more about the life and the teachings of Jesus Christ. My name is Esther and until next time, goodbye and God bless you. Let me remind you to download your free study guide of the Gospels. You'll be able to go deeper into God's word and follow along with each day's program. It's a great companion resource of the audio teaching of John Matthews and Esther Sasulu. To get your free study guide of the Gospels, visit Mission66.org. That's Mission66.org. It's a great resource. You can also support the Ministry of Mission 66 when you visit the site. You'll help continue the program here and around the world. Mission 66 is a Ministry of Transworld Radio in partnership with Dr. Louise Ciao. I'm Rob Dempsey. [music] (dramatic music)