Jesus Addresses the Soil of Our Hearts | Dr. Stephen Conley

Text: Mark 4:1-20 (Part 2)

1. The Teaching of Parables and the Kingdom of God (1:15; 4:1-2)

• The kingdom of God has been prophesied and is now being fulfilled in Jesus (Mark 1:15).
• Jesus begins to teach through parables in order to describe the kingdom of God to His disciples.

1. The Terrain of Two Different Hearts (4:3-9)

• The Unbelieving Heart is described as hard, shallow, and thorny ground that is unable to produce any lasting fruit.
• The Believing Heart is described as good ground that produces abundant fruit.

1. The Target of the Parable (4:10-12)

• Jesus’ parables are accessible and relatable, but are not understandable apart from knowing Jesus; He must open our eyes to the Truth!
• Jesus’ parables expose those who are outside and reveal who is inside; it comes down to rejecting Christ’s Word versus hearing and obeying Christ’s Word.

1. The Totality of the Parable (4:13-20)

• Jesus explains and applies the meaning of the parable:
• The Sower represents Jesus and His followers
• The Seed represents the Word of the Gospel
• The Soils represent four different types of heart-responses to the Gospel: Hard, Shallow, Thorny, and Fruitful ground
• This parable has massive implications on how we interpret Jesus’ parables and how we carry out Jesus’ mission.