0:00:01.716,0:00:05.673 Well, Paul says in Philippians 2, 0:00:05.673,0:00:09.321 "work out your salvation 0:00:09.321,0:00:12.762 with fear and trembling. 0:00:12.762,0:00:15.881 For it is God who works in you, 0:00:15.881,0:00:19.065 both to will and to work (or to do) 0:00:19.065,0:00:21.795 of His good pleasure." 0:00:21.795,0:00:24.147 And so, on the one hand, he says to us 0:00:24.147,0:00:27.063 work out our salvation. 0:00:27.063,0:00:28.445 On the other hand, he says 0:00:28.445,0:00:30.662 God is working in you 0:00:30.662,0:00:33.042 to cause you to want to do what's right 0:00:33.042,0:00:36.949 and to enable you to do what's right. 0:00:36.949,0:00:40.322 So which is it? 0:00:40.322,0:00:42.296 Is it man's responsibility 0:00:42.296,0:00:45.506 or is it God working in us? 0:00:45.506,0:00:47.705 And it's both, isn't it? 0:00:47.705,0:00:49.626 And it's not like a yoke of oxen 0:00:49.626,0:00:50.783 where you do your part 0:00:50.783,0:00:54.060 and God does His part like this. 0:00:54.060,0:00:56.467 But it's more like two cups 0:00:56.467,0:00:59.364 that one fits inside the other one. 0:00:59.364,0:01:02.437 And God is the one moving [br]everything forward, 0:01:02.437,0:01:07.260 but He does it through [br]our willing and doing 0:01:07.260,0:01:10.845 what He's worked in us to will and do. 0:01:10.845,0:01:12.242 So we've heard this morning, 0:01:12.242,0:01:15.304 a little bit of exhortation 0:01:15.304,0:01:19.466 about the necessity for us 0:01:19.466,0:01:22.741 to work out our salvation. 0:01:22.741,0:01:25.881 And beloved, if you don't [br]spend time in the Word, 0:01:25.881,0:01:27.833 and you don't spend time in prayer, 0:01:27.833,0:01:30.141 and you don't spend time [br]with the people of God, 0:01:30.141,0:01:32.469 you're not going to make it. 0:01:32.469,0:01:33.641 But on the other hand, 0:01:33.641,0:01:36.976 God is the one that works in us 0:01:36.976,0:01:39.667 to cause us to want to open that Bible 0:01:39.667,0:01:43.015 and to actually get it open. 0:01:43.015,0:01:46.151 And so we're going to [br]get both barrels today, I trust. 0:01:46.151,0:01:49.503 The first one: those exhortations 0:01:49.503,0:01:51.687 of our responsibility. 0:01:51.687,0:01:54.127 But what we're going [br]to look at this morning 0:01:54.127,0:01:55.825 is a parable of the Lord Jesus 0:01:55.825,0:01:58.374 where He emphasizes what's going on 0:01:58.374,0:02:00.710 behind the scenes. 0:02:00.710,0:02:12.602 And so let's turn to Mark 4. 0:02:12.602,0:02:18.706 And we'll read four verses. 0:02:18.706,0:02:23.596 Mark 4:26 0:02:23.596,0:02:26.627 "And He was saying, 0:02:26.627,0:02:30.993 'The Kingdom of God is like 0:02:30.993,0:02:34.526 a man who casts seed upon the ground.'" 0:02:34.526,0:02:36.596 Now, He's going to tell us something; 0:02:36.596,0:02:39.928 a fact about spiritual reality 0:02:39.928,0:02:42.739 of what the kingdom is like. 0:02:42.739,0:02:44.803 "'The kingdom of God is like a man 0:02:44.803,0:02:47.680 who casts seed upon the ground, 0:02:47.680,0:02:49.410 and goes to bed at night 0:02:49.410,0:02:51.237 and gets up by day and the seed 0:02:51.237,0:02:54.089 sprouts up and grows. 0:02:54.089,0:02:57.856 How he himself does not know. 0:02:57.856,0:03:01.354 The earth produces crops by itself. 0:03:01.354,0:03:05.125 First the blade, then the head, 0:03:05.125,0:03:08.848 then the mature grain in the head. 0:03:08.848,0:03:10.572 But when the crop permits, 0:03:10.572,0:03:13.226 he immediately puts in the sickle 0:03:13.226,0:03:17.249 because the harvest has come.'" 0:03:17.249,0:03:20.679 If you're a Christian here this morning, 0:03:20.679,0:03:21.998 you already realize 0:03:21.998,0:03:24.055 that the greatest Teacher who ever lived 0:03:24.055,0:03:27.548 was the Lord Jesus Christ. 0:03:27.548,0:03:32.404 His emphasis was never lopsided. 0:03:32.404,0:03:35.732 He never had a bump on the tire. 0:03:35.732,0:03:37.196 Everything that He said - 0:03:37.196,0:03:38.882 His manner, His methods 0:03:38.882,0:03:41.464 were always perfect. 0:03:41.464,0:03:44.618 It says in John 3 that [br]He whom God has sent 0:03:44.618,0:03:47.876 speaks the very words of God, 0:03:47.876,0:03:51.712 for He gives the Spirit [br]without measure unto Him. 0:03:51.712,0:03:54.674 So everything: perfect. 0:03:54.674,0:03:56.385 Every response. 0:03:56.385,0:03:59.708 Every emphasis. 0:03:59.708,0:04:02.037 Every manner. Every method. 0:04:02.037,0:04:03.792 And one of His favorite methods 0:04:03.792,0:04:06.743 was the parable. 0:04:06.743,0:04:08.400 There's a special beauty 0:04:08.400,0:04:10.216 and special wonder 0:04:10.216,0:04:13.684 about these parables, isn't there? 0:04:13.684,0:04:17.202 They're so earthy. 0:04:17.202,0:04:21.273 I mean, seeds and farmers[br]and what-have-you. 0:04:21.273,0:04:23.450 And they're so heavenly. 0:04:23.450,0:04:25.419 In four verses, the Lord Jesus 0:04:25.419,0:04:28.870 can say more than all the wise men 0:04:28.870,0:04:31.281 of the ages. 0:04:31.281,0:04:36.170 And He often opened His mouth in parables. 0:04:36.170,0:04:39.968 We read here a little later in v. 33-34, 0:04:39.968,0:04:41.880 "with many such parables, He was 0:04:41.880,0:04:43.818 speaking the Word to them as they were 0:04:43.818,0:04:45.750 able to hear it. 0:04:45.750,0:04:47.277 And He was not speaking to them 0:04:47.277,0:04:49.967 without parables. 0:04:49.967,0:04:52.805 He was explaining everything privately 0:04:52.805,0:04:55.145 to His own disciples." 0:04:55.145,0:04:57.766 And in Matthew, we're told 0:04:57.766,0:05:00.671 that one of the psalms alluded to this 0:05:00.671,0:05:02.154 about the Messiah. 0:05:02.154,0:05:06.218 It says, "I will open [br]my mouth in parables. 0:05:06.218,0:05:11.073 I will utter things hidden from [br]the foundation of the world." 0:05:11.073,0:05:13.381 And so the Lord Jesus Christ 0:05:13.381,0:05:16.319 was speaking in these parables 0:05:16.319,0:05:18.593 things that nobody had ever heard; 0:05:18.593,0:05:20.052 that had never been said 0:05:20.052,0:05:21.715 since the foundation of the world. 0:05:21.715,0:05:24.471 He said, "blessed are your ears," 0:05:24.471,0:05:28.264 to hear such words as we've just read, 0:05:28.264,0:05:31.775 because many prophets and righteous men - 0:05:31.775,0:05:34.889 even kings - desired to hear the things 0:05:34.889,0:05:36.087 that you hear. 0:05:36.087,0:05:38.309 They didn't get to hear them. 0:05:38.309,0:05:40.405 What a privilege we have 0:05:40.405,0:05:43.439 to be able to even study this parable. 0:05:43.439,0:05:44.856 He's telling us some things 0:05:44.856,0:05:47.173 about the nature of the kingdom. 0:05:47.173,0:05:49.638 Very different than the ideas 0:05:49.638,0:05:51.876 that the Jews had at that time 0:05:51.876,0:05:54.619 about the nature of the kingdom. 0:05:54.619,0:05:58.456 And many of those [br]parables are of that sort. 0:05:58.456,0:06:03.595 But today, we want to look [br]at this parable in Mark 4. 0:06:03.595,0:06:06.655 And what a wonderful parable it is, 0:06:06.655,0:06:08.249 and how thankful we should be 0:06:08.249,0:06:11.081 for the truth that it contains. 0:06:11.081,0:06:13.327 Before we begin, 0:06:13.327,0:06:15.002 I just want to remind you again 0:06:15.002,0:06:17.627 that these parables are 0:06:17.627,0:06:21.986 speaking truth about invisible reality. 0:06:21.986,0:06:23.888 They're telling us something about 0:06:23.888,0:06:27.007 the nature of things in the kingdom. 0:06:27.007,0:06:28.535 And so the Lord Jesus said, 0:06:28.535,0:06:30.943 now there's a realm [br]here that you can't see; 0:06:30.943,0:06:33.220 that you can't understand. 0:06:33.220,0:06:35.478 But I want to tell you something about it. 0:06:35.478,0:06:36.706 This is what it's like - 0:06:36.706,0:06:39.719 the kingdom of God is like this. 0:06:39.719,0:06:43.272 It's like a man who casts [br]seed on the ground, 0:06:43.272,0:06:44.601 and goes to bed at night 0:06:44.601,0:06:47.128 and gets up by day. 0:06:47.128,0:06:48.672 Out of all the Gospels, 0:06:48.672,0:06:50.152 only found here in Mark. 0:06:50.152,0:06:51.688 It's kind of a buried treasure 0:06:51.688,0:06:53.692 you come upon; you stumble upon it 0:06:53.692,0:06:56.082 in the field as you're going through 0:06:56.082,0:06:58.858 the Gospel of Mark. 0:06:58.858,0:07:00.838 So the first question we should ask is 0:07:00.838,0:07:03.492 what is the theme or overall subject 0:07:03.492,0:07:05.927 of this parable? 0:07:05.927,0:07:07.756 Before we get to the details, 0:07:07.756,0:07:09.806 you say what's He talking about here? 0:07:09.806,0:07:11.132 And I think the answer is 0:07:11.132,0:07:13.614 He's talking about growth. 0:07:13.614,0:07:15.772 V. 27 "He goes to bed at night, 0:07:15.772,0:07:20.858 gets up by day, the seed [br]sprouts up and grows." 0:07:20.858,0:07:24.451 V. 28 "The earth produces crops by itself. 0:07:24.451,0:07:27.050 First the blade, then the head, 0:07:27.050,0:07:29.673 then the mature grain in the head." 0:07:29.673,0:07:32.351 So we know right off, 0:07:32.351,0:07:34.129 the Lord is unfolding to us 0:07:34.129,0:07:36.882 some of the mysteries about growth 0:07:36.882,0:07:40.595 in the kingdom; 0:07:40.595,0:07:42.536 growth of the kingdom of God as a whole 0:07:42.536,0:07:44.927 down through church history. 0:07:44.927,0:07:47.755 He said this is the way it's going to be. 0:07:47.755,0:07:50.365 And growth in our individual lives 0:07:50.365,0:07:54.693 and in the lives of other Christians. 0:07:54.693,0:07:56.011 This is the reality. 0:07:56.011,0:08:00.372 He says this is the way it happens. 0:08:00.372,0:08:02.453 So, with that in mind, 0:08:02.453,0:08:03.789 let's look at the details. 0:08:03.789,0:08:07.192 First of all, v. 26, He was saying, 0:08:07.192,0:08:09.067 "the kingdom of God is like a man 0:08:09.067,0:08:11.271 who casts seed upon the ground." 0:08:11.271,0:08:14.877 So the first thing is the [br]prerequisite of growth, 0:08:14.877,0:08:16.907 which is planting. 0:08:16.907,0:08:19.278 You can't have a crop; 0:08:19.278,0:08:22.518 you can't have growth without planting. 0:08:22.518,0:08:24.966 And that is a big emphasis, you remember, 0:08:24.966,0:08:27.034 in the parables. 0:08:27.034,0:08:30.160 It comes up again and again. 0:08:30.160,0:08:35.553 You have a man, a sower, sowing seed. 0:08:35.553,0:08:37.786 And you have that [br]picture; that illustration 0:08:37.786,0:08:41.215 where the seed is the Word of God. 0:08:41.215,0:08:43.460 And then you have this man who 0:08:43.460,0:08:46.639 plants good seed in the field. 0:08:46.639,0:08:48.936 And these plants come up. 0:08:48.936,0:08:51.318 It has to do with God Himself planting. 0:08:51.318,0:08:53.880 Ultimately, the man is God. 0:08:53.880,0:08:58.561 He represents God. 0:08:58.561,0:09:02.160 And God is the one that plants 0:09:02.160,0:09:05.198 the seed in the ground of the Christian. 0:09:05.198,0:09:06.845 You remember what Jesus said? 0:09:06.845,0:09:08.862 Every plant that My Heavenly Father 0:09:08.862,0:09:11.485 has not planted shall be rooted up. 0:09:11.485,0:09:13.318 Isn't this a wonderful thing to think 0:09:13.318,0:09:15.951 that God is in the business 0:09:15.951,0:09:20.341 of planting good seed that springs up 0:09:20.341,0:09:26.780 and becomes a wheat harvest? 0:09:26.780,0:09:29.184 God does that. 0:09:29.184,0:09:32.049 So the seeds are men sown by God; 0:09:32.049,0:09:33.562 converts. 0:09:33.562,0:09:35.641 But then if you go back a little further, 0:09:35.641,0:09:39.215 Jesus uses this matter of the seed 0:09:39.215,0:09:41.453 being the Word of God. 0:09:41.453,0:09:43.021 And you have that aspect of it 0:09:43.021,0:09:44.681 which has to do with, of course, 0:09:44.681,0:09:46.824 this is the way God does save people. 0:09:46.824,0:09:49.147 He plants people and saves people 0:09:49.147,0:09:51.339 through us sowing the seed 0:09:51.339,0:09:53.292 of the Word of God. 0:09:53.292,0:09:54.945 And so both of these, I think, 0:09:54.945,0:09:56.727 are involved here when He talks about 0:09:56.727,0:09:58.990 growth in the kingdom. 0:09:58.990,0:10:02.555 Remember, Paul in 1 Corinthians 3 says, 0:10:02.555,0:10:04.515 "I planted." 0:10:04.515,0:10:05.736 I planted. 0:10:05.736,0:10:09.206 So God uses men to plant [br]the seed of the Word. 0:10:09.206,0:10:11.872 And He uses that seed to save people 0:10:11.872,0:10:15.675 and plant true converts. 0:10:15.675,0:10:20.044 So do we see ourselves as sowers 0:10:20.044,0:10:22.563 planting seed? 0:10:22.563,0:10:25.433 We have seed. 0:10:25.433,0:10:28.696 We've been given the seed. 0:10:28.696,0:10:29.801 And isn't it something? 0:10:29.801,0:10:35.340 The seed looks so insignificant. 0:10:35.340,0:10:38.792 Vance Havner said when he was young - 0:10:38.792,0:10:41.878 I don't know; do they still do this? 0:10:41.878,0:10:44.087 You get your garden [br]seeds in a little package 0:10:44.087,0:10:47.361 and it has a beautiful picture on there? 0:10:47.361,0:10:52.189 And you know it's a [br]promise of what could be. 0:10:52.189,0:10:53.935 But you look inside - 0:10:53.935,0:10:56.242 I mean, lettuce is really the one, 0:10:56.242,0:10:57.592 when you look inside, 0:10:57.592,0:10:59.688 it looks like you're planting pepper 0:10:59.688,0:11:01.155 in the ground. 0:11:01.155,0:11:03.131 It's like how can this possibly 0:11:03.131,0:11:05.844 bring forth a crop? 0:11:05.844,0:11:07.407 Well, you think of Paul standing 0:11:07.407,0:11:11.777 on Mars Hill among the scoffers. 0:11:11.777,0:11:13.670 This is what we are. 0:11:13.670,0:11:16.533 We're in a heathen society 0:11:16.533,0:11:18.543 that hates the Word, 0:11:18.543,0:11:21.067 and it looks like those seeds are so small 0:11:21.067,0:11:24.922 and there's a step of [br]faith involved in that; 0:11:24.922,0:11:29.176 in just planting that seed. 0:11:29.176,0:11:33.380 The promise of what [br]can be is on the cover, 0:11:33.380,0:11:35.732 but it requires a step of faith. 0:11:35.732,0:11:38.556 The giant sunflowers, you know, 0:11:38.556,0:11:41.106 that is almost like a tree - 0:11:41.106,0:11:45.142 that starts out from one seed. 0:11:45.142,0:11:48.247 And so are we sowing? 0:11:48.247,0:11:51.497 Brother Kurt Daniel, a [br]pastor there in Illinois, 0:11:51.497,0:11:53.595 you call his number - [br]if you don't get him, 0:11:53.595,0:11:55.056 you get the answering machine, 0:11:55.056,0:11:57.791 and at the end he'll say, 0:11:57.791,0:12:00.230 "and remember the [br]words of the Lord Jesus," 0:12:00.230,0:12:02.532 and then he quotes a verse of Scripture. 0:12:02.532,0:12:05.429 What's that? Planting a seed. 0:12:05.429,0:12:07.019 Well, that won't do any good. 0:12:07.019,0:12:10.283 Well, God says the opposite, doesn't He? 0:12:10.283,0:12:12.411 Ecclesiastes 11:4-6 0:12:12.411,0:12:15.616 "He who watches the wind will not sow, 0:12:15.616,0:12:17.412 and he who looks at the clouds 0:12:17.412,0:12:19.132 will not reap. 0:12:19.132,0:12:23.243 Just as you do not know [br]the path of the wind, 0:12:23.243,0:12:25.335 and how bones are formed in the womb 0:12:25.335,0:12:26.963 of a pregnant woman, 0:12:26.963,0:12:29.953 so you do not know the activity of God 0:12:29.953,0:12:32.826 who makes all things. 0:12:32.826,0:12:35.737 Sow your seed in the morning, 0:12:35.737,0:12:38.939 and do not be idle in the evening. 0:12:38.939,0:12:42.614 For you do not know whether morning 0:12:42.614,0:12:45.448 or evening sowing will succeed 0:12:45.448,0:12:50.084 or whether both of [br]them alike will be good." 0:12:50.084,0:12:52.824 Now, the devil tells you [br]the opposite, doesn't he? 0:12:52.824,0:12:53.746 You don't know. 0:12:53.746,0:12:55.777 Nothing will happen in the morning. 0:12:55.777,0:12:56.835 You don't even know, 0:12:56.835,0:12:59.356 maybe nothing will happen [br]in either one of them. 0:12:59.356,0:13:02.577 God says just the other way around. 0:13:02.577,0:13:04.283 He says sow in the morning; 0:13:04.283,0:13:05.403 sow it in the evening. 0:13:05.403,0:13:07.508 You don't know what I might do. 0:13:07.508,0:13:10.344 I might do something with both of them. 0:13:10.344,0:13:11.783 And it's happened, hasn't it, 0:13:11.783,0:13:14.328 again and again in the most unlikely cases 0:13:14.328,0:13:17.169 where God has taken some seed 0:13:17.169,0:13:19.504 through the instrumentality of man 0:13:19.504,0:13:21.597 planting some little insignificant seed; 0:13:21.597,0:13:26.395 God has planted a real, true Christian. 0:13:26.395,0:13:28.301 And lo and behold, they spring up 0:13:28.301,0:13:31.123 out of dry ground. 0:13:31.123,0:13:35.323 And they're sustained by God. 0:13:35.323,0:13:38.004 So the prerequisite of growth is planted. 0:13:38.004,0:13:39.234 And that has to be. 0:13:39.234,0:13:40.736 God has to plant the person 0:13:40.736,0:13:42.850 and He does it through the instrumentality 0:13:42.850,0:13:46.003 of us planting the seed. 0:13:46.003,0:13:48.074 Secondly, what else is true 0:13:48.074,0:13:53.013 about the kingdom of God? 0:13:53.013,0:13:55.767 Are you listening to this? 0:13:55.767,0:13:59.334 There is a time element involved. 0:13:59.334,0:14:02.390 There is a process involved. 0:14:02.390,0:14:03.774 He goes to bed at night; 0:14:03.774,0:14:04.883 he gets up by day. 0:14:04.883,0:14:06.075 He goes to bed at night; 0:14:06.075,0:14:08.149 he gets up by day. 0:14:08.149,0:14:09.382 What's Jesus saying? 0:14:09.382,0:14:13.013 He's saying there is a [br]time element involved 0:14:13.013,0:14:15.717 in this matter of growth. 0:14:15.717,0:14:20.925 One of the things that a farmer [br]has to have is patience. 0:14:20.925,0:14:24.670 And actually, as I see the weather [br]patterns and what-have-you, 0:14:24.670,0:14:26.231 I think well, you now, 0:14:26.231,0:14:28.575 I really don't want to be a farmer. 0:14:28.575,0:14:30.724 I mean, think of it. 0:14:30.724,0:14:34.691 James specifically brings this out. 0:14:34.691,0:14:36.452 "Be patient therefore, brethren, 0:14:36.452,0:14:37.847 until the coming of the Lord. 0:14:37.847,0:14:40.831 Behold the farmer waits 0:14:40.831,0:14:42.783 for the precious produce of the soil 0:14:42.783,0:14:45.425 being patient about it 0:14:45.425,0:14:47.649 until it gets the early and late rains. 0:14:47.649,0:14:50.261 You too be patient. 0:14:50.261,0:14:52.500 Strengthen your hearts 0:14:52.500,0:14:54.421 for the coming of the Lord is at hand." 0:14:54.421,0:14:59.670 We don't like to think in these terms. 0:14:59.670,0:15:02.350 But, the Lord is telling [br]us something here, isn't He? 0:15:02.350,0:15:04.558 You just picture a farmer 0:15:04.558,0:15:06.791 sitting dejectedly on this tractor 0:15:06.791,0:15:08.153 at the end of the day, 0:15:08.153,0:15:09.611 and you say, "what's wrong?" 0:15:09.611,0:15:12.298 And he says, "I don't have any crops." 0:15:12.298,0:15:13.358 "When did you plant?" 0:15:13.358,0:15:15.430 "This morning." 0:15:15.430,0:15:17.880 It's absurd isn't it? 0:15:17.880,0:15:20.747 That's exactly the way we are. 0:15:20.747,0:15:22.473 Instant. 0:15:22.473,0:15:24.866 I read my Bible every day this week 0:15:24.866,0:15:27.340 and I don't see any growth. 0:15:27.340,0:15:33.837 You know? 0:15:33.837,0:15:35.263 In the area of witnessing; 0:15:35.263,0:15:36.642 in the area of Bible study; 0:15:36.642,0:15:38.269 in the area of prayer, 0:15:38.269,0:15:41.101 this instant mentality. 0:15:41.101,0:15:43.158 Miles Stanford said, "when God 0:15:43.158,0:15:45.362 wants to make a squash, 0:15:45.362,0:15:47.821 He takes just a short time. 0:15:47.821,0:15:49.846 But when He wants to make an oak tree, 0:15:49.846,0:15:54.675 it might take a hundred years." 0:15:54.675,0:16:00.121 There's a time element involved. 0:16:00.121,0:16:04.114 Prime Minister Disraeli there in England 0:16:04.114,0:16:06.434 at one point, the story is 0:16:06.434,0:16:11.574 that he stood up and gave [br]an extemporaneous speech. 0:16:11.574,0:16:14.456 And later in the day, 0:16:14.456,0:16:18.773 they were having some kind of 0:16:18.773,0:16:20.126 state function, 0:16:20.126,0:16:21.608 and one of the ladies of state 0:16:21.608,0:16:22.836 came up to him and said, 0:16:22.836,0:16:24.653 "I want to tell you how much I enjoyed 0:16:24.653,0:16:26.093 that extemporaneous speech." 0:16:26.093,0:16:29.813 She said, "it's been on my mind all day." 0:16:29.813,0:16:31.615 He said, "Madam, that speech has 0:16:31.615,0:16:35.383 been on my mind for twenty years." 0:16:35.383,0:16:36.830 That's the time element. 0:16:36.830,0:16:39.071 You hear one of these brothers get up 0:16:39.071,0:16:42.323 and give an extemporaneous word. 0:16:42.323,0:16:44.870 That's been there a long time. 0:16:44.870,0:16:46.945 That doesn't just happen. 0:16:46.945,0:16:48.178 It takes time. 0:16:48.178,0:16:56.685 God works gradually. 0:16:56.685,0:16:59.859 There's a time element [br]involved with true growth. 0:16:59.859,0:17:02.870 Let me say it another way. 0:17:02.870,0:17:07.020 Growth is imperceptible. 0:17:07.020,0:17:09.234 That's another way of saying it. 0:17:09.234,0:17:12.210 Growth is imperceptible. 0:17:12.210,0:17:15.976 You think of corn plants. 0:17:15.976,0:17:18.696 Just sit; go out in the field. 0:17:18.696,0:17:20.285 I don't know - you all don't have 0:17:20.285,0:17:21.438 much corn down here. 0:17:21.438,0:17:24.050 But you go out and look at a corn plant. 0:17:24.050,0:17:26.206 Just stare at it really hard. 0:17:26.206,0:17:28.693 Keep an eye on it. 0:17:28.693,0:17:31.099 Watch it grow. 0:17:31.099,0:17:37.675 You won't see anything whatsoever. 0:17:37.675,0:17:39.803 You look at your own life really hard. 0:17:39.803,0:17:41.852 Stare at it really hard 0:17:41.852,0:17:43.790 to detect a trace of growth. 0:17:43.790,0:17:47.713 You're not going to see anything. 0:17:47.713,0:17:49.831 That's encouraging, isn't it? 0:17:49.831,0:17:52.901 I mean, you parents - 0:17:52.901,0:17:54.077 you know, this morning, 0:17:54.077,0:17:55.544 your kids walked into the room 0:17:55.544,0:17:58.134 and you said, "My, how you've grown 0:17:58.134,0:17:59.338 during the night." 0:17:59.338,0:18:02.336 No. 0:18:02.336,0:18:04.959 But somebody that hasn't [br]seen them for a while, 0:18:04.959,0:18:07.684 they come in - it's amazing. 0:18:07.684,0:18:10.342 And we forget. 0:18:10.342,0:18:12.225 And the quickest way to get discouraged 0:18:12.225,0:18:14.021 is to look inside all the time 0:18:14.021,0:18:15.879 and keep a real good eye on yourself 0:18:15.879,0:18:24.571 and see whether you're growing. 0:18:24.571,0:18:27.015 We forget how different people are now 0:18:27.015,0:18:30.545 from what they were ten years ago. 0:18:30.545,0:18:32.364 And growth is like that. 0:18:32.364,0:18:33.612 It's imperceptible. 0:18:33.612,0:18:34.951 It's slow. 0:18:34.951,0:18:39.187 It's mysteriously slow. 0:18:39.187,0:18:42.809 There's an apparent slowness about it. 0:18:42.809,0:18:44.858 What is does Jesus tell us? 0:18:44.858,0:18:50.086 Well, He talks about the [br]mystery of growth in v. 27. 0:18:50.086,0:18:51.483 "He goes to bed at night; 0:18:51.483,0:18:52.437 gets up by day." 0:18:52.437,0:18:54.738 There's this time element. 0:18:54.738,0:18:57.424 Time element. 0:18:57.424,0:18:59.242 My mother used to say that she thought 0:18:59.242,0:19:02.212 she could hear corn growing in the night. 0:19:02.212,0:19:03.805 I don't think so. 0:19:03.805,0:19:09.296 I think she could [br]hear the leaves rustling. 0:19:09.296,0:19:11.111 There's a time element. 0:19:11.111,0:19:14.800 But then He says, 0:19:14.800,0:19:17.795 "the seed sprouts up and grows. 0:19:17.795,0:19:21.450 How he himself does not know." 0:19:21.450,0:19:24.116 There's a mystery. 0:19:24.116,0:19:27.230 Now listen to this, 0:19:27.230,0:19:28.558 Jesus said this is the way 0:19:28.558,0:19:31.809 the kingdom of heaven is. 0:19:31.809,0:19:35.600 You do not know how growth takes place. 0:19:35.600,0:19:36.645 That's the way it is. 0:19:36.645,0:19:38.370 You don't know how it takes place. 0:19:38.370,0:19:39.956 That's what He's already said. 0:19:39.956,0:19:41.086 It's mysterious. 0:19:41.086,0:19:43.451 The Gospel takes root in your life, 0:19:43.451,0:19:45.649 and in other's life, 0:19:45.649,0:19:47.167 and you see things happen that 0:19:47.167,0:19:49.585 you cannot figure out. 0:19:49.585,0:19:51.598 It fills you with amazement and wonder. 0:19:51.598,0:19:54.125 And you're not going to [br]have the slightest idea how. 0:19:54.125,0:19:56.522 Jesus said the wind blows where it wishes. 0:19:56.522,0:19:57.869 You hear the sound of it. 0:19:57.869,0:19:59.561 You don't know where it comes from 0:19:59.561,0:20:00.520 or where it's going. 0:20:00.520,0:20:04.949 So is everyone who's born of the Spirit. 0:20:04.949,0:20:07.520 I've never understood growth in myself 0:20:07.520,0:20:08.717 or anyone else. 0:20:08.717,0:20:11.279 We know, like we've heard this morning, 0:20:11.279,0:20:13.038 we know it has to do with 0:20:13.038,0:20:14.444 spending time in the Word; 0:20:14.444,0:20:15.770 it has to do with prayer; 0:20:15.770,0:20:17.358 it has to do with fellowship. 0:20:17.358,0:20:20.749 All those things are the context. 0:20:20.749,0:20:22.785 So how many of you have just decided 0:20:22.785,0:20:25.739 I'm going to read my Bible [br]every day this week? 0:20:25.739,0:20:28.963 How'd you do on that? 0:20:28.963,0:20:30.576 See what I'm saying? 0:20:30.576,0:20:32.138 Underneath it all, 0:20:32.138,0:20:34.941 there's a mysterious working 0:20:34.941,0:20:37.506 of the power of God 0:20:37.506,0:20:39.886 underneath; sustaining everything. 0:20:39.886,0:20:42.955 Work out your salvation [br]with fear and trembling 0:20:42.955,0:20:45.282 for God is working inside of you 0:20:45.282,0:20:49.369 supernaturally, or you're [br]not going to make it. 0:20:49.369,0:20:51.783 You're not going to make it. 0:20:51.783,0:20:54.472 But He is working inside of you 0:20:54.472,0:20:55.624 if you're a Christian. 0:20:55.624,0:20:57.239 And you are going to make it. 0:20:57.239,0:21:01.835 See? 0:21:01.835,0:21:05.001 It's mysterious. 0:21:05.001,0:21:06.965 I've never understood growth in myself 0:21:06.965,0:21:07.963 or anybody else. 0:21:07.963,0:21:09.697 If it's something where you can say, 0:21:09.697,0:21:13.492 I did this, and I did [br]this, and I did this, 0:21:13.492,0:21:15.744 you've probably got some kind 0:21:15.744,0:21:18.113 of Pharisaical counterfeit. 0:21:18.113,0:21:22.322 That's what you've got. 0:21:22.322,0:21:29.449 I've never liked how-to's. 0:21:29.449,0:21:32.434 There's books out on that - 0:21:32.434,0:21:35.132 how to win souls; 0:21:35.132,0:21:40.248 how to have church growth. 0:21:40.248,0:21:42.870 The Lord Jesus said right [br]here there's no "how-to." 0:21:42.870,0:21:45.448 He said you don't know how. 0:21:45.448,0:21:50.976 That just did away with [br]a bunch of conferences. 0:21:50.976,0:21:52.662 You don't need to waste your time. 0:21:52.662,0:21:55.008 I've seen people taking notes on how-to. 0:21:55.008,0:21:56.479 They fill up 20 pages. 0:21:56.479,0:21:59.185 A year later, they're coming back[br]to the same conference; 0:21:59.185,0:22:00.373 filling up 20 more pages. 0:22:00.373,0:22:03.178 Nothing ever changes. 0:22:03.178,0:22:05.080 You've got to be cast upon God 0:22:05.080,0:22:06.713 like Brother Merle used to say. 0:22:06.713,0:22:08.861 The Bible's not a how-to book, 0:22:08.861,0:22:11.055 it's a what-to book. 0:22:11.055,0:22:13.612 A lot of the stuff Nathan [br]was saying to us today, 0:22:13.612,0:22:17.257 that's what-to, you know? 0:22:17.257,0:22:19.258 You be strong; you be stable. 0:22:19.258,0:22:21.647 How in the world am I going to do that? 0:22:21.647,0:22:25.707 Well, you've got to go to God. 0:22:25.707,0:22:29.816 Usually what happens in true growth 0:22:29.816,0:22:32.073 is you're crying out to God for change. 0:22:32.073,0:22:33.848 You've tried this. You've tried that. 0:22:33.848,0:22:35.375 You've gone to this conference. 0:22:35.375,0:22:36.855 You've gone to that conference. 0:22:36.855,0:22:39.071 You've tried squinting your eyes harder 0:22:39.071,0:22:42.718 when you repented. 0:22:42.718,0:22:46.161 And none of it worked. 0:22:46.161,0:22:47.382 And then, lo and behold, 0:22:47.382,0:22:50.968 you look back and it's: [br]God has changed me; 0:22:50.968,0:22:53.373 set me free from this. 0:22:53.373,0:22:56.729 He's working in my life. 0:22:56.729,0:22:58.872 Isn't it wonderful? 0:22:58.872,0:23:00.509 He says it happens - 0:23:00.509,0:23:02.505 it happens how? You don't know. 0:23:02.505,0:23:05.117 I don't know how this happened. 0:23:05.117,0:23:08.558 But I know, yes, I had to spend time 0:23:08.558,0:23:09.871 in the Word. 0:23:09.871,0:23:12.344 Yes, I had to cry out to God. 0:23:12.344,0:23:13.807 Yes, on all that, 0:23:13.807,0:23:15.666 but in the end you look back. 0:23:15.666,0:23:17.131 You know I used to think 0:23:17.131,0:23:18.784 that victory over sin would be - 0:23:18.784,0:23:21.252 I'd be standing there like these hunters 0:23:21.252,0:23:23.457 in Africa, you know, 0:23:23.457,0:23:29.258 with my rifle and my foot [br]on the head of the lion. 0:23:29.258,0:23:35.681 This is Charles with victory over sin. 0:23:35.681,0:23:37.825 It's more like you're shaking your head 0:23:37.825,0:23:40.442 saying I can't figure out how in the world 0:23:40.442,0:23:42.594 God ever set me free from that, 0:23:42.594,0:23:47.134 but it sure is good to be free from that. 0:23:47.134,0:23:49.138 And now I see how bad it was. 0:23:49.138,0:23:52.147 I couldn't even see how bad it was before. 0:23:52.147,0:24:00.940 Isn't that true? 0:24:00.940,0:24:03.661 It's mysterious. 0:24:03.661,0:24:05.300 The mistake that people make 0:24:05.300,0:24:07.029 is to take their own experiences 0:24:07.029,0:24:09.003 and try to get a formula that you can 0:24:09.003,0:24:10.276 give to everybody else, 0:24:10.276,0:24:12.637 and if they do that it'll work. 0:24:12.637,0:24:14.936 It won't. 0:24:14.936,0:24:18.715 God uses things in one person's life 0:24:18.715,0:24:21.278 and the next person reads [br]that same book or whatever 0:24:21.278,0:24:24.581 and they don't get a thing out of it. 0:24:24.581,0:24:26.614 You remember with the ark. 0:24:26.614,0:24:28.093 They said, well, take that, 0:24:28.093,0:24:29.550 it will work for us. 0:24:29.550,0:24:33.547 No, it won't. 0:24:33.547,0:24:35.437 Well, what else does He teach us? 0:24:35.437,0:24:39.822 Growth is miraculous - v. 28. 0:24:39.822,0:24:42.883 "The earth produces crops by itself." 0:24:42.883,0:24:48.803 Presto! They just pop out of it. 0:24:48.803,0:24:50.493 That's what Jesus said. 0:24:50.493,0:24:51.851 In other words, He's saying 0:24:51.851,0:24:55.056 there's something supernatural about this. 0:24:55.056,0:24:56.780 You can't explain this on your own. 0:24:56.780,0:24:58.745 "The earth produces crops by itself." 0:24:58.745,0:25:02.563 It's beyond man's power totally. 0:25:02.563,0:25:05.022 And it's incredible how it happens. 0:25:05.022,0:25:08.778 There's a power there outside of us. 0:25:08.778,0:25:11.008 And we don't know. 0:25:11.008,0:25:14.795 We're not the one that grows the seed. 0:25:14.795,0:25:16.261 God is the one that does that. 0:25:16.261,0:25:19.081 All we do is put the seed into the ground. 0:25:19.081,0:25:22.701 And so there's a miraculous [br]aspect about growth. 0:25:22.701,0:25:27.754 There's power and vitality [br]in the seed itself. 0:25:27.754,0:25:29.855 Peter talks about being born again, 0:25:29.855,0:25:32.324 not of corruptible seed, [br]but of incorruptible 0:25:32.324,0:25:34.405 by the Word of God 0:25:34.405,0:25:37.785 that lives and abides forever. 0:25:37.785,0:25:40.226 Romans 1:16 "I am not [br]ashamed of the Gospel. 0:25:40.226,0:25:44.558 It is the power of God unto salvation..." 0:25:44.558,0:25:46.528 1 Thessalonians 2:13 0:25:46.528,0:25:50.261 "The Word of God which performs its work 0:25:50.261,0:25:52.012 in you who believe." 0:25:52.012,0:25:53.651 And I like that where Paul says 0:25:53.651,0:25:56.252 in Acts 20 - he says I commend you to God. 0:25:56.252,0:25:57.831 We've done this often with people 0:25:57.831,0:25:59.719 leaving the church and going back 0:25:59.719,0:26:01.041 to China or wherever. 0:26:01.041,0:26:02.359 I commend you to God 0:26:02.359,0:26:05.215 and to the word of His grace 0:26:05.215,0:26:08.198 which is able to build you up 0:26:08.198,0:26:10.520 and give you an inheritance. 0:26:10.520,0:26:14.189 It's just wonderful, isn't it? 0:26:14.189,0:26:17.370 There's life in the seed itself. 0:26:17.370,0:26:18.906 The very idea of seed - 0:26:18.906,0:26:22.030 it's the Greek word semen. 0:26:22.030,0:26:27.336 1 John - "God's seed remains in him." 0:26:27.336,0:26:29.676 So there's something [br]miraculous about the seed, 0:26:29.676,0:26:32.247 but there's something miraculous also 0:26:32.247,0:26:34.491 about the earth. 0:26:34.491,0:26:39.705 The earth brings forth fruit of itself. 0:26:39.705,0:26:42.781 Isaiah 61 says this: 0:26:42.781,0:26:45.197 "I will rejoice greatly in the Lord. 0:26:45.197,0:26:47.436 My soul will exult in my God, 0:26:47.436,0:26:49.558 for He has clothed me with garments 0:26:49.558,0:26:51.603 of salvation; 0:26:51.603,0:26:54.244 He has wrapped me with [br]a robe of righteousness 0:26:54.244,0:26:56.124 as a bridegroom decks himself 0:26:56.124,0:26:57.699 with a garland, 0:26:57.699,0:27:01.295 and as a bride adorns [br]herself with her jewels. 0:27:01.295,0:27:05.415 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, 0:27:05.415,0:27:09.402 and as a garden causes the things 0:27:09.402,0:27:13.055 sown in it to spring up, 0:27:13.055,0:27:15.579 so the Lord God..." 0:27:15.579,0:27:17.934 He's the Garden here, see? 0:27:17.934,0:27:20.831 The garden causes the things sown in it 0:27:20.831,0:27:22.018 to spring up. 0:27:22.018,0:27:26.435 "So the Lord God will cause 0:27:26.435,0:27:30.563 righteousness and praise to spring up 0:27:30.563,0:27:31.962 before all the nations." 0:27:31.962,0:27:35.421 Now that's what we're talking about here. 0:27:35.421,0:27:36.872 What Jesus is saying is 0:27:36.872,0:27:40.029 God is at work underneath the surface 0:27:40.029,0:27:43.890 to make things spring up supernaturally 0:27:43.890,0:27:46.785 that could not otherwise happen. 0:27:46.785,0:27:49.573 You remember in 1 Corinthians 3, 0:27:49.573,0:27:52.302 "What then is Apollos? What is Paul? 0:27:52.302,0:27:54.342 Servants through whom you believed 0:27:54.342,0:27:57.119 even as the Lord gave [br]opportunity to each one. 0:27:57.119,0:28:00.535 I planted. Apollos watered. 0:28:00.535,0:28:05.070 But God was causing the growth." 0:28:05.070,0:28:06.593 You know, if you think about it, 0:28:06.593,0:28:09.396 what are you really doing when you[br]put a seed in the ground? 0:28:09.396,0:28:11.657 You're not doing anything. 0:28:11.657,0:28:13.745 You put water on it. 0:28:13.745,0:28:18.631 God is the one making that [br]germinate and grow. 0:28:18.631,0:28:22.348 Are you listening to me? 0:28:22.348,0:28:26.245 God causes growth. 0:28:26.245,0:28:28.567 The only way you're ever going to grow 0:28:28.567,0:28:32.996 is if God causes you to grow. 0:28:32.996,0:28:35.541 That's the only way. 0:28:35.541,0:28:37.603 The only way you're ever going to change; 0:28:37.603,0:28:39.409 the only way you're ever going to be 0:28:39.409,0:28:41.572 more Christlike is if God causes you 0:28:41.572,0:28:45.762 to become more Christlike. 0:28:45.762,0:28:49.823 And that's what He's promised to do. 0:28:49.823,0:28:57.751 That's what He's promised to do in you. 0:28:57.751,0:28:59.512 What a glorious thing! 0:28:59.512,0:29:02.177 The only hope anybody has - 0:29:02.177,0:29:05.177 none of us will ever rise any higher 0:29:05.177,0:29:07.279 than God lifts us by His grace. 0:29:07.279,0:29:11.292 You're not going to do it. 0:29:11.292,0:29:12.875 But He will do it. 0:29:12.875,0:29:17.557 He will do it. 0:29:17.557,0:29:20.420 The Lord God will cause righteousness 0:29:20.420,0:29:22.788 and praise to spring up 0:29:22.788,0:29:25.599 before all nations. 0:29:25.599,0:29:27.146 That's the only hope we have. 0:29:27.146,0:29:31.229 God working in us to will and do 0:29:31.229,0:29:32.627 of His good pleasure; 0:29:32.627,0:29:35.211 causing growth. 0:29:35.211,0:29:37.146 He causes you to will. 0:29:37.146,0:29:38.595 He gives you that desire, 0:29:38.595,0:29:40.602 and then it's a long ways from the time 0:29:40.602,0:29:42.564 you start thinking I want to be more holy 0:29:42.564,0:29:44.118 in this or that; 0:29:44.118,0:29:47.071 it's a long ways before [br]you're actually there. 0:29:47.071,0:29:50.745 He works in you both to will and to work 0:29:50.745,0:29:53.921 for His good pleasure. 0:29:53.921,0:29:55.878 So if our Christianity can be explained 0:29:55.878,0:29:57.315 by human psychology 0:29:57.315,0:29:58.663 or turning over a new leaf 0:29:58.663,0:30:00.237 or trying to be better or so on; 0:30:00.237,0:30:02.220 there's no miracle, 0:30:02.220,0:30:03.850 there's no outside power, 0:30:03.850,0:30:09.577 then you're not a Christian. 0:30:09.577,0:30:13.541 What an encouragement this is God's work, 0:30:13.541,0:30:16.857 and He will accomplish what concerns us. 0:30:16.857,0:30:20.033 Alright, number five. 0:30:20.033,0:30:23.854 The progressiveness of growth. 0:30:23.854,0:30:26.245 You see it in v. 27, it sprouts up. 0:30:26.245,0:30:28.082 First of all, it has to sprout up 0:30:28.082,0:30:29.781 and it grows. 0:30:29.781,0:30:33.340 V. 28, "First the blade, 0:30:33.340,0:30:35.683 then the head, 0:30:35.683,0:30:39.335 then the mature grain in the head." 0:30:39.335,0:30:40.467 Progressive. 0:30:40.467,0:30:42.211 Now that's simple, isn't it? 0:30:42.211,0:30:44.590 This and then this and then this. 0:30:44.590,0:30:46.715 We don't want that. 0:30:46.715,0:30:48.876 What we want is: 0:30:48.876,0:30:51.531 go from here over to there. 0:30:51.531,0:30:54.819 You know, you could have [br]such-and-such experience. 0:30:54.819,0:30:58.008 That puts you clear over here. 0:30:58.008,0:31:01.176 You could enter into [br]entire sanctification. 0:31:01.176,0:31:03.114 Just have this happen. 0:31:03.114,0:31:05.297 Skip over all that stuff. 0:31:05.297,0:31:07.028 It's kind of hard going through 0:31:07.028,0:31:12.673 all that stuff anyway. 0:31:12.673,0:31:14.379 A lot of teaching is like that. 0:31:14.379,0:31:16.606 Anything that is held out to you 0:31:16.606,0:31:17.762 that makes you think: 0:31:17.762,0:31:20.463 if I could just have such-and-such, 0:31:20.463,0:31:22.885 I could skip over these stages. 0:31:22.885,0:31:25.745 That's a false teaching. 0:31:25.745,0:31:29.601 And you may have people say 0:31:29.601,0:31:31.484 that they've entered in and they have; 0:31:31.484,0:31:33.393 there's been some special thing 0:31:33.393,0:31:34.740 happen in their life where 0:31:34.740,0:31:36.695 they're in a different plane; 0:31:36.695,0:31:38.571 a higher plane than they were before. 0:31:38.571,0:31:40.612 That happens. 0:31:40.612,0:31:42.479 But beloved, I'll guarantee you this, 0:31:42.479,0:31:44.382 they're still going through the stages 0:31:44.382,0:31:47.808 just like you are. 0:31:47.808,0:31:49.971 First the blade, then the head, 0:31:49.971,0:31:52.751 then the mature grain. 0:31:52.751,0:31:58.398 That's always the way it is. 0:31:58.398,0:32:01.706 You see somebody that's [br]entirely sanctified, 0:32:01.706,0:32:03.966 you're looking at Jesus. 0:32:03.966,0:32:06.763 And He's the only one - 0:32:06.763,0:32:12.641 until heaven. 0:32:12.641,0:32:15.994 The holiest man in the world today 0:32:15.994,0:32:18.064 has so much sin, he'd be in hell. 0:32:18.064,0:32:20.791 (incomplete thought) 0:32:20.791,0:32:22.909 Can you imagine the way Jesus 0:32:22.909,0:32:25.010 handled a towel? 0:32:25.010,0:32:26.839 There's nobody in the world 0:32:26.839,0:32:29.726 that could hold a towel the way Jesus did 0:32:29.726,0:32:32.238 and wash somebody's feet. 0:32:32.238,0:32:37.016 You can't begin to be [br]like Him in that sense. 0:32:37.016,0:32:43.390 But we can walk in His steps. 0:32:43.390,0:32:45.132 Growth is progressive. 0:32:45.132,0:32:47.226 And you see here the utter stupidity 0:32:47.226,0:32:49.581 of the professing church in this. 0:32:49.581,0:32:52.687 There's some former football player 0:32:52.687,0:32:54.486 or singer or whatever; 0:32:54.486,0:32:56.624 they get converted and two weeks later, 0:32:56.624,0:32:59.263 they're speaking to a [br]crowd of 1,000 people. 0:32:59.263,0:33:03.562 Or 10,000. More like 20,000 people. 0:33:03.562,0:33:06.778 You take some little immature plant, 0:33:06.778,0:33:09.703 at best, and stick them out there. 0:33:09.703,0:33:13.706 That's not the way it is. 0:33:13.706,0:33:14.791 That's folly. 0:33:14.791,0:33:16.646 There's a process involved. 0:33:16.646,0:33:18.934 Hudson Taylor, before he became 0:33:18.934,0:33:20.745 the head of the China Inland Mission 0:33:20.745,0:33:22.625 had to spend years in obscurity 0:33:22.625,0:33:26.802 as a nobody learning things from God. 0:33:26.802,0:33:28.975 And I like that two volume set 0:33:28.975,0:33:30.612 on the life of Hudson Taylor. 0:33:30.612,0:33:33.451 Volume 1: The Growth of a Soul. 0:33:33.451,0:33:37.582 Volume 2: The Growth of a Work of God. 0:33:37.582,0:33:39.592 This tells my age, 0:33:39.592,0:33:41.790 but back when I was young, 0:33:41.790,0:33:42.886 we always talked about 0:33:42.886,0:33:44.419 the Empire State Building. 0:33:44.419,0:33:48.665 Boy, this is the tallest [br]building in the world. 0:33:48.665,0:33:50.799 Well, anyway, they said it took as long 0:33:50.799,0:33:52.344 to put that foundation in, 0:33:52.344,0:33:54.104 and there's as much in the foundation 0:33:54.104,0:33:57.576 as there is in the rest of the building. 0:33:57.576,0:34:00.765 Picture building some of these 0:34:00.765,0:34:04.164 massive things that they've got now 0:34:04.164,0:34:07.220 on a five-foot foundation. 0:34:07.220,0:34:10.315 How long would that last? 0:34:10.315,0:34:12.765 I think it's the Washington Cathedral 0:34:12.765,0:34:14.740 I saw years ago with my mother. 0:34:14.740,0:34:16.503 And in one way, it's impressive 0:34:16.503,0:34:18.232 looking at those top spires 0:34:18.232,0:34:19.396 and everything up there, 0:34:19.396,0:34:21.186 but to me, the most impressive thing 0:34:21.186,0:34:23.500 was when they took us [br]down into the basement. 0:34:23.500,0:34:26.239 And they said, now this rounded wall here 0:34:26.239,0:34:28.710 is part of one of the pillars 0:34:28.710,0:34:30.707 that supports this building. 0:34:30.707,0:34:32.906 And you could barely see the curve in it 0:34:32.906,0:34:37.780 it was so big. 0:34:37.780,0:34:42.106 Any life that is real 0:34:42.106,0:34:46.120 has as much underground[br]or more underground 0:34:46.120,0:34:49.634 as there is above the surface. 0:34:49.634,0:34:53.184 It's always that way. 0:34:53.184,0:34:57.476 (incomplete thought) 0:34:57.476,0:34:59.602 You're looking up there at those spires 0:34:59.602,0:35:01.592 of the building, 0:35:01.592,0:35:04.928 when God is driving foundation piling 0:35:04.928,0:35:07.838 in your life that is much harder - 0:35:07.838,0:35:12.506 hard stuff that you've got to learn. 0:35:12.506,0:35:18.571 I was talking about the [br]hymn the other night. 0:35:18.571,0:35:21.122 I like that hymn, I think Vance Havner 0:35:21.122,0:35:22.011 quoted it: 0:35:22.011,0:35:24.363 "Many a rapturous minstrel 0:35:24.363,0:35:25.903 among the sons of light 0:35:25.903,0:35:28.111 will say of his sweetest music 0:35:28.111,0:35:31.392 'I learned it in the night.' 0:35:31.392,0:35:33.093 And many a rolling anthem 0:35:33.093,0:35:35.791 that fills the Father's throne, 0:35:35.791,0:35:37.867 sobbed at his first rehearsal 0:35:37.867,0:35:41.484 in the shroud of a darkened room." 0:35:41.484,0:35:43.878 That's God putting the foundation 0:35:43.878,0:35:45.855 down under the building. 0:35:45.855,0:35:48.284 There is a slowness involved. 0:35:48.284,0:35:53.068 There is a process involved. 0:35:53.068,0:35:54.367 Don't let anybody trick you 0:35:54.367,0:35:55.863 into the idea that you can jump 0:35:55.863,0:35:56.755 from here to here. 0:35:56.755,0:35:59.869 You're not going to shortchange anything. 0:35:59.869,0:36:02.640 You might say, well, I'm going to 0:36:02.640,0:36:04.340 memorize the whole New Testament. 0:36:04.340,0:36:05.302 Well, that's great, 0:36:05.302,0:36:06.981 but it's not going to make you 0:36:06.981,0:36:09.745 a spiritual giant. 0:36:09.745,0:36:16.914 I mean, it's stages. 0:36:16.914,0:36:20.423 Well, the progressiveness of growth. 0:36:20.423,0:36:23.730 Then, the certainty of growth. 0:36:23.730,0:36:25.570 Now remember, the Lord is describing 0:36:25.570,0:36:31.648 the way things are in the kingdom. 0:36:31.648,0:36:35.211 It's like a man who plants [br]seed in the ground. 0:36:35.211,0:36:36.933 And he goes to bed at night. 0:36:36.933,0:36:38.791 This comes up. It grows. 0:36:38.791,0:36:40.671 It grows. It grows. 0:36:40.671,0:36:42.730 And then it dies and withers. 0:36:42.730,0:36:44.230 That's not what He says. 0:36:44.230,0:36:45.804 That's not the way it is when God 0:36:45.804,0:36:47.401 is involved in this. 0:36:47.401,0:36:51.079 It is going to make it. 0:36:51.079,0:36:53.254 It's certain. 0:36:53.254,0:36:57.966 It's going to grow. 0:36:57.966,0:36:59.325 When men plant things, 0:36:59.325,0:37:00.300 they often die. 0:37:00.300,0:37:01.120 Not so with God. 0:37:01.120,0:37:02.293 And you can look at that 0:37:02.293,0:37:05.016 in relation to church history as a whole. 0:37:05.016,0:37:06.765 That little seed that was planted 0:37:06.765,0:37:07.642 at the beginning, 0:37:07.642,0:37:12.095 it becomes a great tree. 0:37:12.095,0:37:13.856 And God's not going to fail.[br] 0:37:13.856,0:37:15.469 The church is not going to fail. 0:37:15.469,0:37:17.049 He's advancing His kingdom. 0:37:17.049,0:37:18.790 He's going to do it. He will do it. 0:37:18.790,0:37:20.570 It will bring forth a crop. 0:37:20.570,0:37:22.947 It will grow. 0:37:22.947,0:37:26.438 It's a certainty. 0:37:26.438,0:37:28.231 Colossians - Paul talks about this. 0:37:28.231,0:37:29.723 He says "you previously heard 0:37:29.723,0:37:31.452 in the Word of truth - the Gospel 0:37:31.452,0:37:33.631 which has come to you, 0:37:33.631,0:37:35.358 just as in all the world also, 0:37:35.358,0:37:39.917 it's constantly bearing [br]fruit and increasing, 0:37:39.917,0:37:42.243 even as it has been doing in you also 0:37:42.243,0:37:44.732 since the day you heard of it 0:37:44.732,0:37:46.840 and understood the grace of God in truth." 0:37:46.840,0:37:49.649 So growth is certain. 0:37:49.649,0:37:51.935 The church isn't going to fail. 0:37:51.935,0:37:53.671 And growth is also certain 0:37:53.671,0:37:58.148 in the life of every true believer. 0:37:58.148,0:38:01.347 Why? Because it's not dependent upon man. 0:38:01.347,0:38:03.234 "Being confident of this very thing, 0:38:03.234,0:38:05.206 that He who began a good work in you" - 0:38:05.206,0:38:07.266 God did it. 0:38:07.266,0:38:10.214 "...Will perform it until the [br]day of Jesus Christ." 0:38:10.214,0:38:12.959 We're confident of that. He's the one. 0:38:12.959,0:38:15.739 He'll do it. 0:38:15.739,0:38:17.343 God says in the New Covenant 0:38:17.343,0:38:18.724 there in Ezekiel 36, 0:38:18.724,0:38:21.771 "I will cleanse you of all your filthiness 0:38:21.771,0:38:22.990 and all your idols. 0:38:22.990,0:38:25.997 I will put My Spirit in you and cause you 0:38:25.997,0:38:27.520 to walk in My statutes." 0:38:27.520,0:38:29.655 I'm so thankful. 0:38:29.655,0:38:32.126 He's saying I'm not going to quit on you. 0:38:32.126,0:38:33.755 You may fight this. 0:38:33.755,0:38:36.258 You either fight it or embrace it, 0:38:36.258,0:38:37.336 but if you fight it, 0:38:37.336,0:38:39.532 eventually you're going to embrace it 0:38:39.532,0:38:43.617 if you're a child of God. 0:38:43.617,0:38:46.760 I will cleanse you. I'll [br]cause you to walk... 0:38:46.760,0:38:50.028 It's a hard way though sometimes 0:38:50.028,0:39:00.190 if we resist what God's [br]doing in our lives. 0:39:00.190,0:39:05.247 Jesus said, "blessed is everyone who has; 0:39:05.247,0:39:08.347 to him more shall be given. 0:39:08.347,0:39:10.950 And he shall have an abundance." 0:39:10.950,0:39:12.440 And that's a wonderful thing. 0:39:12.440,0:39:14.225 If you have anything that's real, 0:39:14.225,0:39:16.312 it'd be better to be the weakest Christian 0:39:16.312,0:39:17.925 in the world today, 0:39:17.925,0:39:20.823 if you have just a [br]little grain that's real, 0:39:20.823,0:39:23.355 because you're going to get more. 0:39:23.355,0:39:26.750 And eventually, you're [br]going to have a lot. 0:39:26.750,0:39:28.344 Isn't that wonderful? 0:39:28.344,0:39:30.937 This little tiny thing [br]of grace in the life 0:39:30.937,0:39:32.766 of a true Christian; 0:39:32.766,0:39:34.376 He says blessed are you. 0:39:34.376,0:39:35.827 Now him that does not have, 0:39:35.827,0:39:37.064 even what he thinks he has 0:39:37.064,0:39:38.722 shall be taken away. 0:39:38.722,0:39:40.383 Better to be the weakest Christian 0:39:40.383,0:39:43.735 in the world, than the strongest looking 0:39:43.735,0:39:48.783 false professor. 0:39:48.783,0:39:51.608 Every branch in Me that bears fruit, 0:39:51.608,0:39:53.103 He purges it; He cleanses it 0:39:53.103,0:39:55.235 that it might bring forth more fruit. 0:39:55.235,0:39:57.331 (incomplete thought) 0:39:57.331,0:39:58.865 "Herein is My Father glorified, 0:39:58.865,0:40:00.873 that you bear much fruit 0:40:00.873,0:40:07.105 and so prove to be My disciples." 0:40:07.105,0:40:10.740 Some 100, some 60, some 30, 0:40:10.740,0:40:11.927 but all have fruit. 0:40:11.927,0:40:12.933 They're all growing. 0:40:12.933,0:40:14.586 They're all producing fruit. 0:40:14.586,0:40:16.967 Alright, last point. 0:40:16.967,0:40:23.860 Final outcome of growth is harvest time. 0:40:23.860,0:40:26.231 And He tells us that here. 0:40:26.231,0:40:29.603 V. 29 "When the crop permits, 0:40:29.603,0:40:33.327 he immediately puts in the sickle 0:40:33.327,0:40:37.360 because the harvest has come." 0:40:37.360,0:40:39.823 Why do you plant seed? 0:40:39.823,0:40:44.178 You plant them in order to get a harvest. 0:40:44.178,0:40:46.680 God is going to have a harvest, beloved. 0:40:46.680,0:40:48.656 He's going to have a harvest. 0:40:48.656,0:40:51.933 There's not going to be one missing. 0:40:51.933,0:40:54.430 Think of this. 0:40:54.430,0:40:58.136 Jesus says everyone that [br]the Father's given Me 0:40:58.136,0:41:00.108 will come to Me. 0:41:00.108,0:41:01.424 And He that comes to Me, 0:41:01.424,0:41:04.844 I will certainly not cast out. 0:41:04.844,0:41:05.828 Why not? 0:41:05.828,0:41:07.035 Why won't He cast us out? 0:41:07.035,0:41:08.714 Well, because He says, I came down 0:41:08.714,0:41:12.174 from Heaven to accomplish [br]a specific purpose. 0:41:12.174,0:41:13.505 I came down from Heaven 0:41:13.505,0:41:14.757 not to do My own will, 0:41:14.757,0:41:16.453 but the will of Him who sent Me. 0:41:16.453,0:41:19.319 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, 0:41:19.319,0:41:21.637 that of all that He has given Me, 0:41:21.637,0:41:24.319 I lose only a few and [br]then I raise up the rest 0:41:24.319,0:41:25.626 at the last day. 0:41:25.626,0:41:29.712 No, that's not what He said, is it? 0:41:29.712,0:41:31.558 That of all that He has given Me, 0:41:31.558,0:41:35.795 I lose not one! 0:41:35.795,0:41:37.606 Think of this. 0:41:37.606,0:41:39.396 Every plant that My Heavenly Father 0:41:39.396,0:41:41.716 has not planted, shall be rooted up; 0:41:41.716,0:41:44.609 but every plant that My [br]Heavenly Father plants 0:41:44.609,0:41:48.017 is going to make it all [br]the way to the harvest. 0:41:48.017,0:41:49.367 And there is a day coming - 0:41:49.367,0:41:51.812 I think of it whenever [br]we're together like this. 0:41:51.812,0:41:54.477 Do you realize the hilarious joy 0:41:54.477,0:41:56.025 we're going to have in seeing 0:41:56.025,0:41:58.081 one another in heaven? 0:41:58.081,0:42:00.089 What a day of rejoicing that will be! 0:42:00.089,0:42:03.829 Why? Because it's [br]the rejoicing of harvest. 0:42:03.829,0:42:04.837 The crop's in. 0:42:04.837,0:42:05.758 Up until that time, 0:42:05.758,0:42:07.539 you're kind of gritting your teeth. 0:42:07.539,0:42:10.137 I don't know if so-and-so's [br]going to make it or not. 0:42:10.137,0:42:11.848 I hope they're real. 0:42:11.848,0:42:13.773 And there they are! 0:42:13.773,0:42:14.828 You see them there - 0:42:14.828,0:42:16.192 they're shining like the sun 0:42:16.192,0:42:19.243 in the kingdom of their Father. 0:42:19.243,0:42:23.521 What a day of rejoicing that will be! 0:42:23.521,0:42:27.044 When the harvest is in. 0:42:27.044,0:42:28.248 And we'll look back 0:42:28.248,0:42:31.318 and it will be 10,000 times 0:42:31.318,0:42:34.632 more wonderful than we ever thought 0:42:34.632,0:42:36.390 as we see the providence of God 0:42:36.390,0:42:41.415 in keeping His people and so on. 0:42:41.415,0:42:44.279 There is a harvest coming. 0:42:44.279,0:42:46.813 And it's going to be a great ingathering 0:42:46.813,0:42:55.055 and a time of rejoicing. 0:42:55.055,0:42:56.948 Another angel came out of the temple 0:42:56.948,0:42:58.608 crying out with a loud voice 0:42:58.608,0:43:00.144 to Him who sat on the cloud. 0:43:00.144,0:43:01.628 Put in your sickel and reap 0:43:01.628,0:43:04.273 because the hour to reap has come, 0:43:04.273,0:43:07.191 because the harvest of the earth is ripe, 0:43:07.191,0:43:10.393 and He who sat on the cloud 0:43:10.393,0:43:12.788 (capital 'H' He) who sat on the cloud 0:43:12.788,0:43:14.722 swung His sickle over the earth 0:43:14.722,0:43:24.050 and the earth was reaped. 0:43:24.050,0:43:25.847 Jesus is telling us the nature 0:43:25.847,0:43:28.825 of the kingdom of God. 0:43:28.825,0:43:30.347 And He's taking us back 0:43:30.347,0:43:34.186 behind the scenes, 0:43:34.186,0:43:38.307 and showing us how growth takes place. 0:43:38.307,0:43:39.806 It takes place supernaturally 0:43:39.806,0:43:42.877 by the power of God. 0:43:42.877,0:43:46.446 And He will not have a crop failure. 0:43:46.446,0:43:48.328 But He's going to take every one of us 0:43:48.328,0:43:50.632 through all the stages necessary 0:43:50.632,0:43:52.442 to get there. 0:43:52.442,0:43:53.893 Amen.