Chapter # 4 Paragraph # 3 Study # 4
May 5, 2020
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis:   Jesus taught that the seed that fell upon the rock withered ("stumbled") because the root was exposed to the heat of the sun and called that exposure "tribulation or distress on account of the Word".

Introduction:   Because it has been two months since our last study, let me remind all of us that this "parable" is not a 'presentation' of 'how to self-correct soil types' the way it is most often preached; rather, it is a 'presentation' of an inevitable reality to which the disciples will be exposed once they are sent out to preach "the Word". There is not a word in Jesus' parable about how the disciples ought to try to overcome the soil-problems. Rather, the parable is an explanation of Jesus' clear teaching that there is a deliberate and distinct difference between those who are "given" the "mystery of the Kingdom of God" and those that are not because of the decision by God to visit judgment upon those who have an insufficient regard for the Word of God.

This evening we are going to look at the second type of "landing" for the seed as it is broadcast by the one sowing it. The first type was that of the barren side of the "road" where the seed had no protection from the birds of the air. They were "hungry" and could easily see the seed lying exposed. Jesus interpreted that to signify the kind of person who was highly susceptible to Satan and from whom Satan simply "snatches the seed away" before the person who "heard" it had time to do anything about its "meaning". Now, the second type of "landing" is identified and explained.

• I. The Original Statement of the Parable.
  • A. And "other" was "seed" that fell upon the rock where it was not having much earth.
  • B. And 'straightway' that seed sprang up on account of the "not to have depth of earth".
  • C. And when the sun rose it was 'exposed to its heat' and on account of it not having a root, it withered.
• II. The Explanation Jesus Gave.
  • A. The soil upon which the seed was sown was "the rock-like soils".
    • 1. This word is only used four times in the New Testament and all four are in conjunction with this parable (Matthew 13:5 and 20, and Mark 4:5 and 16).
      • a. It derives from a word that is used in 14 verses of the New Testament, but only once by Mark (in 15:46).
        • 1) It has a prefix attached to it that signals "similarity" (thus, "rock-like") and the original noun is given its meaning in Mark's sole use (a "rock" big enough to have a tomb cut out of it).
        • 2) Thus, the "rock-like" "landing" for the seed thus sown upon it is seriously incapacitated in any ability to provide a suitable host for seed.
      • b. It's meaning is established by Jesus' own explanation: the "rock-like" "landing" has only a "dusting" of "earth" covering it.
        • 1) The "dusting" is sufficient to hold "moisture" against the seed so that germination can occur, but is insufficient to contain enough moisture to feed the germinating seed's need.
        • 2) There is no place for the development of a "root".
    • 2. The characteristic of this "soil type" is that it sponsors an initial germination of the seed, but cannot sustain it.
  • B. The "problem".
    • 1. In the original statement of the parable, the "problem" was a combination of no depth of earth and a withering heat from the risen sun.
    • 2. In the explanatory statement by Jesus, the "problem" was two-fold.
      • a. Initially, the "hearing of The Word" created a "joyful reception".
        • 1) Both of the words ("joyful" and "reception") are words that are intimately tied to "faith" in the Gospel (John 1:12 and 1 Peter 1:8), a fact that Luke freely admits in his record of this parable in Luke 8:13.
        • 2) There is no good reason (other than specious "theology") to disagree with Mark or Luke: the 'reception' was legitimate.
        • 3) Mark simply adds the description of the "reception" as "temporary" (4:17), a condition regularly warned against (1 Corinthians 15:2 and Hebrews 10: 23 and 38-39 being most prominent).
      • b. Then, "on account of The Word, tribulation or distress comes upon them" and they "are scandalized"; a condition Mark says in 9:43 is sufficient to cause one to be cast into the "unquenchable fire".
• III. The Theological Significance.
  • A. It is not because the "faith" was "not true faith" (as in "truly believe").
  • B. It is because of a pervasive theology that says "God justifies those who 'believe' immediately upon their initial "believing"; a theology that contradicts both Abraham's "findings" (Romans 4:1) as well as all of the teachings of the New Testament regarding both a "faith that results in justification" and a "faith that, being too flawed by reason of incompleteness, does not result in justification".

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This is article #154.
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