Announcements
Meetings
- Sunday Morning – 10:00 AM.
- Sunday Night – 5:00 PM.
- Thursday Night Bible Study – Online @ 7:00 PM.
Tithes and Offerings
- There is an Offering button in the giving section below as well as on the Home Page upper left corner.
- You can also mail your gifts to LSF – PO Box 103 – Warrens, WI 54666
Quarterly Business Meeting – 2020 Q3 – Follow Up
- Capaul’s stopped out. It will take 2-4 hours to fix. Called Monday with no response.
- Closet items are being moved back in.
Song
Giving
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (CSB)
6 The point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make every grace overflow to you, so that in every way, always having everything you need, you may excel in every good work.
Scripture
Memory Verse
Matthew 5:39 (CSB)
GO THE SECOND MILE
39 But I tell you, don’t resist an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.
Memory Section – Matthew 5:38–42
Matthew 5:38–42 (CSB)
GO THE SECOND MILE
38 “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. 39 But I tell you, don’t resist an evildoer. On the contrary, if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. 40 As for the one who wants to sue you and take away your shirt, let him have your coat as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two. 42 Give to the one who asks you, and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
Use Your Light To Sow The Word, Cultivate The Soil And Build The Kingdom
Fill Up – Share Out – Trust God
The Parable of the Sower
4 Again he began to teach by the sea, and a very large crowd gathered around him. So he got into a boat on the sea and sat down, while the whole crowd was by the sea on the shore. 2 He taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them,
3 “Listen! Consider the sower who went out to sow.
4 As he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it.
5 Other seed fell on rocky ground where it didn’t have much soil, and it grew up quickly, since the soil wasn’t deep. 6 When the sun came up, it was scorched, and since it had no root, it withered away.
7 Other seed fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it didn’t produce fruit.
8 Still other seed fell on good ground and it grew up, producing fruit that increased thirty, sixty, and a hundred times.” 9 Then he said, “Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”
– Mark 4:1–9 (CSB)
Types of Soil
The Path – Hard Ground
The Seed is devoured by birds.
Rocky Ground
The Seed springs up quickly. The Soil is not deep so the root can’t take hold. It withers away.
Thorny Ground
The Seed comes up but the thorns choke it so it doesn’t produce fruit.
Good Ground
The Seed grows up, produces fruit that increases thiry, sixty and a hundred times.
Why Jesus Used Parables
This is a reference to Isaiah 6:9-10.
10 When he was alone, those around him with the Twelve asked him about the parables. 11 He answered them, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to those outside, everything comes in parables 12 so that
they may indeed look,
and yet not perceive;
they may indeed listen,
and yet not understand;
otherwise, they might turn back
and be forgiven.”
– Mark 4:10–12 (CSB)
The Parable of the Sower Explained
13 Then he said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand all of the parables? 14 The sower sows the word.
15 Some are like the word sown on the path. When they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word sown in them.
16 And others are like seed sown on rocky ground. When they hear the word, immediately they receive it with joy. 17 But they have no root; they are short-lived. When distress or persecution comes because of the word, they immediately fall away.
18 Others are like seed sown among thorns; these are the ones who hear the word, 19 but the worries of this age, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
20 And those like seed sown on good ground hear the word, welcome it, and produce fruit thirty, sixty, and a hundred times what was sown.”
– Mark 4:13–20 (CSB)
Results From Each Soil
The Path – Hard Ground
The Word is stolen by Satan immediately.
Rocky Ground
The Word is received quickly. The Soil is not deep so the root can’t take hold. It withers away.
Thorny Ground
The Word is heard, but the worries of the age, the deceitfulness of wealth, and desires for other things choke it out. It is unfruitful.
Good Ground
The Word is welcomed and produces fruit that increases thirty, sixty, and a hundred times what was sown.
What if we could make a difference here? What if through discipleship we could invite others along to show them Jesus?
This isn’t just telling them about Him, but living His life in front of them. Would we be able to work the soil so it could receive the Word?
Could we break up the hard ground and so it could at least receive the Word? Could our actions remove or replace the rocky soil so the root could grow deep and not wither?
Could we encourage those in the thorny ground to trust in Christ for provision? Can we strengthen each other in the unity of the Spirit where our allegiance is to Christ alone?
Using Your Light
21 He also said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed? Isn’t it to be put on a lampstand? 22 For there is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing concealed that will not be brought to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him listen.” 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear. By the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and more will be added to you. 25 For whoever has, more will be given to him, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.”
– Mark 4:21–25 (CSB)
Are You The Jordan River Or The Dead Sea?
The more we hear the Word of God, the better we are able to share it. God doesn’t reveal it just for our own knowledge, but to pass it on.
When you are learning the things of God keep this in mind. What you receive from Him you are to pass on to others.
The Jordan River is full of life. It flows down through Israel and brings needed water to the land. In the same way, as you receive living water from the Spirit of God you should be letting that overflow to those around you.
The Dead Sea on the other hand keeps everything that flows in. There is no life in this body of water.
God wants you to be like the Jordan and not the Dead Sea.
The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 “The kingdom of God is like this,” he said. “A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day; the seed sprouts and grows, although he doesn’t know how. 28 The soil produces a crop by itself—first the blade, then the head, and then the full grain on the head. 29 As soon as the crop is ready, he sends for the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
– Mark 4:26–29 (CSB)
We share the Word, we shine our light, but it is God who saves. As we have seen, there is unproductive soil.
This shouldn’t stop us from doing our part. We must continue passing on what the Lord shows us. Keep staying in step with the Spirit of God.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to describe it? 31 It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. 32 And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade.”
– Mark 4:30–32 (CSB)
The kingdom can start with a small gesture of kindness. A cup of water, a kind word, an opportunity to give Jesus credit for your actions.
What started in an unlikely manger, leads to a cosmic King. God’s kingdom is growing. It has no end.
26 I issue a decree that in all my royal dominion, people must tremble in fear before the God of Daniel:
For he is the living God, and he endures forever; his kingdom will never be destroyed, and his dominion has no end.
– Daniel 6:26 (CSB)
Next Steps
What is the takeaway from today?
- You can’t share from an empty vessel. Ensure that you position yourself to receive from the Lord.
- Be intentional in your relationships to share what God is showing you.
- Realize that God uses the small, unlikely things to build His kingdom. It will always be in step with his Spirit.
We can never stop feeding ourselves and the world around us.
If you start a garden and just till the grass under you have grass that continues to grow that you must deal with all season but your garden will grow.
If you continue planting every year and build the soil the grass becomes less and your bounty from the garden grows you still have weeding to do bt becomes more manageable as you pull up the weeds.
One more thought my Grandma Sharlet had one of the most envied flower gardens in our area she didn’t just plant them and watch them grow. She got up early before the heat of the day and did the work – water, weed, fertilize….. the results – people going for a drive just to see her flowers.