THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3
Scripture: Mark 4:1-4

There are two ways to look at the passage of the sower who sows the word. It all begins with how we view the four different kinds of soil. If we, like the Pharisees, look to categorize people into one group or another then we potentially miss the most important application of the passage. If, however, we choose the approach of humility, we recognize that each of us potentially have four kinds of soil in us. Every single one of us have wayside soil. Wayside soil was the soil at the end of the row necessary for turning the horse or tractor. Wayside soil represents unplowed ground or that which is incapable of germinating seed due to lack of preparation. When truth is spoken to ears that cannot hear, wayside soil is evident. This kind of ground applies spiritually to every area where there are things God wants to tell us but for one reason or another we are not ready to hear them now. We have not prepared the soil. The soil has never been plowed and we just cannot hear it. Sometimes wayside soil exists because of pain. Sometimes wayside soil exists because of tradition. Overemphasizing a truth over time creates wayside soil where people can’t hear the counter balance. Christianity today is so Priestly that the Kingly is hard for many to hear! After all these years of Jesus the Savior being emphasized look at the number of people in the church who do not have an ear to hear about Jesus the Judge. The real Jesus we are about to face in the book of Revelation kills more than He saves. Some church people cannot hear this because tradition has turned them into wayside soil. Yet where is He honored in the land? It is time to plow the ground so the ultimate truth can come forth in us. The seed first has to be received. As it is watered and germinates, the growth stage is first the blade, then the ear, and finally the full corn in the ear. When we plant corn, there is a predictable growth pattern. When we plant God’s Word, there is a predictable growth pattern. We are all spiritual farmers!