Sermon Notes

The Parables of the Kingdom of God

(Mark 4:21-34)

Kingdom of God = God’s sovereign activity in the world resulting in people being in right relationship with himself.

Parable= A Practical Story Used to Teach a Spiritual Lesson

Mark 4:21-26

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.” 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.” And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.

The Kingdom of God is Revealed

Mark 4v21 (NIV)

He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? 

John 8:12

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 12:46

I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.

John 1:5

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

 “To the degree that you welcome the word in your life, you will bear fruit. The more believers accept God’s Kingdom agenda the more fruitfulness God will entrust to them. But disobedience brings spiritual bareness” - Tony Evans

Matt. 5:14

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

The Kingdom of God is to be Shared

Mark 4v26-29

And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

Sowing, Sleeping, Growing, Reaping

1 Cor. 3:6-7

The success of the Christian message does not depend on human effort but by the power of God

After the Gospel is presented, the word of God works in the individual’s heart, sometimes slowly, until the time when God reaps the harvest in that person and saves them

The Kingdom of God is Powerful.

Mark 4:30-34

And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.

God’s reign will not only be more real than the world could imagine but will also be large and more all-encompassing

The earthly ministry of Jesus seemed insignificant to the watching world and yet from it grew a mighty-world-wide church…which is still growing.