The Heart of the Matter Part 1

Psalm 119:18- ‘Open my eyes, that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. ‘

Matthew 13:1-23- ‘That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach. And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. And others fell on the good soil and *yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.” And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, ‘You will keep on hearing, but will not understand; You will keep on seeing, but will not perceive; For the heart of this people has become dull, With their ears they scarcely hear, And they have closed their eyes, Otherwise they would see with their eyes, Hear with their ears, And understand with their heart and return, And I would heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. “Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” ‘

The Very Nature of God Himself

The Parable of the Sower

Lord, why do you speak in parables (v. 10)

Understanding the truth of God is NOT about intelligence– it is a GIFT OF GOD through the Holy Spirit 

While seeing they do not see, do not hear or understand (v. 13)

Believing is a condition of the heart, not just the mind

What might keep me from having a heart to believe the Word?

1) We resist change: John 7:17–It’s not going to be comfy
— If you ask I am willing to be pliable 
— It’s not my way or the highway 

2) Treasuring disobedience: Psalm 66:18–‘If I regard wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not hear; ‘
— I want to see and know God, BUT…
— Blessed are the PURE IN HEART

3) Apathy: Jeremiah 29:13-14–‘You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord , ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the Lord , ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’ ‘
— I will be found by you
— People aren’t really seeking Jesus for the Truth

*4) Harboring hate towards others: 1 John 4:20–‘If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. ‘
— Hatred becomes an idol

*5) Valuing the opinion of others more than God’s: John 5:44– ‘How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? ‘
— Making the opinions of others an idol leads to an unbelieving heart

WHAT IS THE INTENTION OF YOUR HEART TODAY?

*I put an asterisk next to numbers 4 and 5 because I have come to recognize that I struggle with these two the most and need to work on this and pray about this daily.

Where do you see yourself in this? What are your struggles? Think this over and reflect on it and pray about it 🙂