If you’ve been around church for long, you’ve probably heard the parable of the soils (Mark 4), part of today’s Bible reading. Jesus pointed out that He spoke in parables to reveal secrets of the Kingdom of God to those who would inherit His Kingdom. (Mark 4:11) Yet His parables cloaked the secrets of the Kingdom from those who would not inherit His Kingdom. (Mark 4:12)
So who will inherit God’s Kingdom? Who can understand the secrets hidden in the parables?
It seems obvious that those whose hearts are “good soil” are the heirs to the Kingdom. They are the ones who will receive God’s Word enthusiastically and apply its teachings to their lives. They are the ones who will protect their hearts from being choked by distractions. They are the ones who will prepare their hearts to give His Word even more depth to grow.
Application
So how do you have good soil? How do you make the most of it?
If you’re asking these questions, you’re on the right track! You position your heart to listen. You position your heart to receive all that God would say in His Word. You do everything you can to clean out those things from your heart that would seek to distract you from letting God’s Word grow deeper. You do everything you can to drink in all of the nourishment from God’s Word so it can grow even more.
Here are some practical ways to “do everything you can”: Implement as many Spiritual Disciplines as you can. Prayer, Bible Study, Bible Reading, Bible Memory, Worship, Fasting, Witnessing, Fellowship with other Believers, Giving of your time, talent, and treasures, and Giving thanks.
That will get you started!
There seems to be a great concern among some that they have committed the unpardonable sin and are hopelessly doomed to spend eternity in hell for committing one sin. Well thankfully, Jesus addresses the “unpardonable sin” in today’s Bible reading.
As we look at this sin which can never be forgiven, let’s look at what Jesus actually says and let’s look at the immediate context.
“Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” (Mark 3:28–29 ESV)
So what is blasphemy?
Blasphemy means “to speak against someone in such a way as to harm or injure his or her reputation (occurring in relation to persons as well as to divine beings)—‘to revile, to defame, to blaspheme, reviling”[1] To blaspheme against the Holy Spirit is to slander Him.
Now, look at the context:
“And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” (Mark 3:22 ESV)
From the definition and the context, we can conclude that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is to see God’s works occurring before one’s eyes and speak against God in such a way to attribute the works of God to the devil himself.
Application
Have you ever committed the unpardonable sin? Have you sinned so greatly that God will never forgive you? Look at what Jesus says, “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter.” (Mark 3:28 ESV)
Jesus says that God is able to forgive all kinds of sins of all kinds of people. He can and will forgive all of all. Except for one sin: attributing the works of God to the devil. Have you ever done that? Have you ever seen Jesus do the works of God and say, “No, the devil did that!”
It’s important to note something Jesus says in just a few chapters later. “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness.” Mark 7:21-22 (ESV)
In other words, our lips give away the inclinations of our hearts. An unbelieving heart will speak of its unbelief. And an unbelieving heart will speak against the works of God in such a way to attribute God’s works to the devil.
So have you committed the unpardonable sin? Are you unforgivable? Are you beyond God’s redemption?
The fact that you are concerned enough to ask the question speaks of a heart inclined to believe. An unbelieving heart wouldn’t even care if it had done something so heinous that it couldn’t be forgiven.
So take heart! If you’re concerned that you can’t be forgiven for something, that’s the work of God in your heart to redeem you, not to reject you!
[1] Louw, Johannes P., and Eugene Albert Nida. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains 1996: 433. Print.
In today’s Bible reading, Jesus says, “And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:17 (ESV)
Does that mean that Jesus only came for the Pharisees, Sadducees, and other First Century Religious leaders? After all, they were the most righeous. Right? Uh, no.
Ask anyone who has ever been through a recovery program what is the first step. They will tell you that the first step to recovery — the first step to wellness — is to admit you have a problem. The first step to being healed spiritually is admitting you have a problem. We all have a problem. It’s the same problem. It’s the sin problem.
Adam and Eve’s decision to choose their independence from God in Genesis 3 affected all of us to the very core of who we are. It twisted their DNA and altered every human being who would ever come after them. And like an alcoholic, each of us chooses to participate in sin. When we do, we become addicted to it.
Application
The only way we will gain victory over sin and live a life that pleases God — and gives us ultimate satisfaction — is to admit we have a problem. Admitting that we have a problem begins a life of repentance, turning from our life of self-satisfaction, self-sufficiency (and self-deceit!) and turning to Jesus, accepting His death as our atoning sacrifice for our sin. The result is a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. A relationship that will grow in time as we continue to walk out our life in constant repentance and reliance on God’s Holy Spirit to live a godly life.
If you have never turned from sin and to Jesus, please do it today. If you’d like help with that, give me a shout!
Welcome to a new year of growing in your walk with God. My prayer is that these devotionals will help you to know God better and love Him more.
Our daily Bible readings are from Discipleship Journal’s 5x5x5 Reading Plan. Each day, five times a week, we’ll read the assigned chapter and I’ll post a short devotional thought about that day’s reading. Most of my comments are shorter than that day’s Bible reading. Most people can read the day’s Scripture and my devotional together in less than ten minutes.
If you subscribe to my email newsletter below, you’ll receive these devotionals in your inbox each day we have a reading.
So here’s my first devotional.
Our first reading of the year is Mark 1. Tradition says that Mark wrote what Peter reported to him. Many scholars believe that Mark’s was the first Gospel written down and that Matthew and Luke borrowed from Mark and added material from at least one other main source. The bottom line is that Mark recorded what God told him to write and he wrote as he was carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:21)
Unlike Matthew and Luke, Mark doesn’t include a genealogy for Jesus. Matthew sets the stage for Jesus’ arrival by including the story of the Magi traveling from an eastern country, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Luke introduces Jesus in the context of shepherds hearing the angels’ proclamation on a clear night outside Bethlehem.
Instead of introductions, genealogies, and birth narratives, Mark jumps in with both feet! Jesus is already an adult and He’s about to be introduced to the world!
Mark often uses the word, “immediately” and he uses it nine times in Chapter One. It’s as if he’s writing as quickly as he can so that he can write everything down. I remember classes like that in school! It seemed that everything was important and I didn’t want to miss anything.
Perhaps Mark was so excited about the coming of Jesus as God’s Messiah and knew that Jesus would return soon. Not knowing when, Mark wanted to make sure that whoever read his book would know everything necessary in order to come to faith in Christ. And Mark was very excited about that prospect.
Application
How excited are you about Jesus’ return? He is coming back, you know!
How excited are you about people coming to faith in Christ? What can you do today to help someone know about Jesus?
God inspired — literally breathed out — His Word so that we could be equipped to obey Him in our day-to-day lives. (2 Timothy 3:16-17) If we don’t regularly spend time in His Word, we starve our souls. Our spiritual malnutrition will result in not being adequately equipped and not having a sharp weapon for encountering the Spiritual Warfare that we will face.
Once again in 2020, I will publish my devotional thoughts based on our Daily Bible Reading Plan here on my website. I’ll also publish links to the devotional on my Twitter and Facebook feeds.
This Bible Reading Plan I’m using was developed by the Navigators. Each day (five days a week), we’ll read an assigned chapter in the New Testament. The chapters are in order through a book in the Bible, but the books are not in the book order in the New Testament. In other words, we won’t start in Matthew and read straight through Revelation.
You can follow along by printing a copy of the reading plan or use the YouVersion Bible App. Just download it from the Apple App Store or Google Play. Other versions of the app are available, including the Web. Create a free account and search for Discipleship Journal’s 5x5x5 Reading Plan. Once you’ve subscribed, the app will track your readings. Depending on the translation you use, the App can even read out loud that day’s chapter. If you ever get behind, you can easily catch up. Given the fact that there are only five readings each week, it won’t be difficult to stay within a day or so if you just put in a little effort.
The best way to get my devotionals is to subscribe to my newsletter. Each morning we have a scheduled reading, you’ll receive an email with that day’s devotional. The easiest way to subscribe is to enter your email address below. Check your email and confirm that you want to subscribe.
Please invite your friends, family, and church to follow along as we go through the New Testament, gaining a 2020 vision for our lives and encountering God in His Word. My prayer is that as we dig into God’s Word, we’ll be transformed to be more like Jesus as we grow in a love relationship with Him.
Join me!