THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD

THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD

Luke 8:4-15

4 And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He

spoke by a parable:

5  “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was

trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.

6  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.

7  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.

8  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had

said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

9  Then His disciples asked Him, saying, “What does this parable mean?”

10  And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to

the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not

understand.’

11  “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

12  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word

out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

13  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these

have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.

14  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are

choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.

15  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble

and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.

I. SOME THOUGHTS ON PARABLES

Luke 8:10

10 And He said, “To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of

God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that ‘Seeing they may not see, and

hearing they may not understand.’

1. Parables are interesting even when they are not understood

2. They contain great revelation for those who are open to kingdom principles

3. The soil of the heart is important when it comes to parables

4. Parables allow God to unlock truth to those who are hungry and close it to those

who are not

II. THE PARABLE ABOUT PARABLES

Luke 8:11-12

11 “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

12  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away

the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

1. You must pray the word in

2. You must act on the word

3. You must meditate on the word

4. You should teach the word

Luke 8:13

13 But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with

joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall

away.

1. The emotions with which you receive the word can be deceptive

2. Every word you receive will be tested

Psalm 105:17-19

17 He sent a man before them—Joseph—who was sold as a slave.

18 They hurt his feet with fetters, He was laid in irons.

19 Until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him.

 Test must come or there will be no root system

1 Peter 1:7

7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold

that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and

glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ

 It is not just whether you receive the word but how long you hold on to it

 The danger of not keeping the word is that you will fall away (put away, retire,

depart)

Luke 8:14

14 Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out

and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity

 Subdue competing affections

 Even legitimate affections must be restrained

Luke 8:15

But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a

noble and good heart keep, it and bear fruit with patience.

 Maturity comes from a good heart and perseverance

 You must bear fruit with the word.