Parable of the Sower -The Thorny Places
This is a parable full of hope, full of God’s gospel truth which will set you free. The thorny ground hasn’t been well prepared and we see here three key areas that all of us are affected by: our security, significance and satisfaction. Each of these can have a negative impact if they’re rooted in anything other than God. And thankfully, God has provided a solution for them all.
Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word;
but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things
come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. (Mark 4:18-19)
SECURITY
The worries of this life are the numerous ‘what if? questions that everyone can relate to. What if this, or that, happens? What if this, or that, doesn’t happen? To worry, simply put, is to care about the potential of something unknown that has not yet happened. It’s just potential.
SIGNIFICANCE
The deceitfulness of wealth represents more than money – it also speaks to our significance. Wealth and success aren’t wrong, however they can never fully give you significance. We see this when looking at our finances, and think if we just had a little extra then everything would be easier. Yet after a pay rise, or a gift of money, our finances still seem stretched. Furthermore, wealth shows up the real you. A generous man is generous when he has little and plenty, however someone who is selfish is selfish regardless of their circumstances.
SATISFACTION
Mark talks about desires for other things. It’s not that wanting things (whether they be materialistic or otheriwsel) is bad. It’s deeper than that. It’s thinking that when those desires are fulfilled then we’ll be fully satisfied.
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