“For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”” Mark 4:25 ESV
Reflection: God generously spreads truth. But how can a truth “be taken away” from us?
The second parable recorded can at first glance appear disconnected to the first. Let’s read it. “And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.””Mark 4:21-23 ESV. Did Mark and Luke just randomly pick this parable to follow that of the sower, or is there a deeper connection here?
We often think of the parable of the lamp “outwardly”, shining for others, as in “let your light shine before men”. But let’s look at the rest of the story here, leading into today’s focus verse. “And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”” Mark 4:24-25 ESV. This is clearly not just about how we shine before men. It is about letting the light shine in us internally, letting the truth shine inwardly, exposing the motives of our hearts. Transforming us to be more like Christ, from the inside-out. If we try to “hide” the truth that God has shared with us, it will not have the intended effect. It might even be taken away from us.
In the parable of the sower, we were presented with the idea that God spreads His truth (seed) generously, across the earth. He is a generous giver, “so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”Matthew 5:45 ESV. But, not all seed fall into “good soil” and end up bearing fruit. In the parable see four distinct situations that Jesus mentioned. They are probably not meant to be comprehensive, covering all life’s situations. But by studying these four, we can get the point He is raising. Bible commentator Matthew Henry wrote the following about the parable of the sower, and the soil, which represents the hearts of men.
“So it is with the hearts of men, whose different characters are here described by four sorts of ground. Careless, trifling hearers, are an easy prey to Satan; who, as he is the great murderer of souls, so he is the great thief of sermons, and will be sure to rob us of the word, if we take not care to keep it. Hypocrites, like the stony ground, often get the start of true Christians in the shows of profession. Many are glad to hear a good sermon, who do not profit by it. They are told of free salvation, of the believer’s privileges, and the happiness of heaven; and, without any change of heart, without any abiding conviction of their own depravity, their need of a Saviour, or the excellence of holiness, they soon profess an unwarranted assurance. But when some heavy trial threatens them, or some sinful advantage may be had, they give up or disguise their profession, or turn to some easier system. Worldly cares are fitly compared to thorns, for they came in with sin, and are a fruit of the curse; they are good in their place to stop a gap, but a man must be well armed that has much to do with them; they are entangling, vexing, scratching, and their end is to be burned, Heb 6:8. Worldly cares are great hinderances to our profiting by the word of God. The deceitfulness of riches does the mischief; they cannot be said to deceive us unless we put our trust in them, then they choke the good seed. What distinguished the good ground was fruitfulness.
By this true Christians are distinguished from hypocrites.”
It is all about what the truth (seed) God shares with us, how we let it shine and affect us, and therefore what fruits result from that seed. Some truths can be very difficult to hear, as they often require us to humble ourselves. Giving up our own selfish ways to follow God’s ways. So, do we let the truth in, let it shine into the deepest parts of our hearts? Or are we selective in which truth we let in? The devil is very glad to pluck from us, distort or torch, the truth that God planted, if we don’t protect it, nourish it, and let it grow. Matthew Henry continues “Christ does not say that this good ground has no stones in it, or no thorns; but none that could hinder its fruitfulness. All are not alike; we should aim at the highest, to bring forth most fruit. The sense of hearing cannot be better employed than in hearing God’s word; and let us look to ourselves that we may know what sort of hearers we are.”
