Mark 4:26-29 (NKJV) The Parable of the Growing Seed
26 And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, 27 and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29 But when the grain ripens, immediately He puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
Remember:
How can we understand parables?
- Read them in context.
- Interpret them in the plain, normal sense, not in the allegorical sense.
- Remember whom Jesus is speaking to, their beliefs, their culture, and the situation.
- Search for cross-references of the same terms.
- There is usually just one main point of the teaching.
V26 “And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground…” When Jesus refers to the Kingdom of God, He means 1) the final kingdom where Jesus reigns in Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:3-9) and 2) the spiritual kingdom (Romans 14:17, Ephesians 5:5, and 2 Timothy 4:18). The Jewish leaders and most of the people of Israel rejected Jesus (John 1:11), so the earthly kingdom was set aside for a time, but will be fulfilled in the Millennium. The Kingdom of God has a King (Jesus), rules, worldview, lifestyle, and way of life that Jesus wants.
V27 “…and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.” At that time in history, people did not know the science behind what stimulates the seed to sprout and grow. All can sow, but only God can give life, and that life grows. The food we need for spiritual growth is the Bible, with daily reading and studying, prayer, and fellowship with other believers.
V28 “For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.” The order of growth. This is applied to the kingdom, to our lives as Christ-followers, and to the church. When one first believes in Jesus, there is much to learn. This is the reason Jesus said, “Matthew 28:19-20 (TCENT) Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
V29 “But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” As Christ-followers, we must grow, then we bear fruit. Compare Matthew 3:8, Matthew 7:17-19, John 15:8, and Galatians 5:22-23.
Adrian Rogers (source from Precept Austin) writes: “Adrian Rogers applies the truth of this parable in what he calls “the law of dissemination.” The law of dissemination says this: You must sow, if you would reap. There can be no reaping unless you put seed in the ground. Now, in the laws of biology, we know there’s no such thing as spontaneous generation. There can be no life without, first of all, sowing to produce that life. God’s entire economy, in the physical realm, and in the spiritual realm, is based upon this principle: There can be no reaping unless we first disseminate—unless we first scatter, unless we first sow. As a matter of fact, the Lord Jesus said the entire Kingdom of Heaven is based on the principle of sowing and reaping. You might want to put in your margin, Mark 4:26. Jesus said, “So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground” (Mark 4:26). He said this: “The whole Kingdom of Heaven is based on this, as if a man should cast seed into the ground.” And so, what is the first law? It’s the law of dissemination. What does it say? You can’t reap unless you sow. Got it? Got it! Move to the second law of the harvest. (The Law of the Harvest)”
We learn:
- About spiritual growth.
- More things about the Kingdom of God.
Questions:
- Are you bearing spiritual fruit?
- Are you getting the nutrients needed for growth—reading and studying the Scriptures, praying, and fellowshipping with others?