Day Thirteen – Friday, January 17, 2025

One Year Journey Through the New Testament

Matthew 13

Welcome to our journey through the New Testament!

Parable of the Soils

Mark 4:1–20; Luke 8:4–15 (Parallel)

1 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. ² And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.³ Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. ⁵ Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. ⁶ But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. ⁷ And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. ⁸ But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ⁹ He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”¹⁰ And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”¹¹ He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. ¹² For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. ¹³ Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. ¹⁴ And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,And seeing you will see and not perceive;¹⁵ For the hearts of this people have grown dull.Their ears are hard of hearing,And their eyes they have closed,Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,So that I should heal them.’¹⁶ But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; ¹⁷ for assuredly, 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.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:1–17.

Points to Ponder:

• This passage begins to recount identify the usage of parables by Jesus. In preaching and teaching, Jesus often used practical stories to illustrate the points of His messages.
• In this particular case, Jesus uses an agricultural story about sowing seed to demonstrate the spreading of the gospel. He demonstrates the condition of the soils that might have received seed and how that soil responded to the seed itself.
• When the disciples asked why He used parables, Jesus went on a journey to explain that many were not spiritually sensitive enough to hear the message regardless, and the parables may shroud the meaning just enough that they would need to change their heart to receive it. However, those open to the message of the gospel would hear the message in the parable and be saved./

Explanation of the Parable

¹⁸ “Therefore hear the parable of the sower: ¹⁹ When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. ²⁰ But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; ²¹ yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. ²² Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. ²³ But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:18–23.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus then proceeds to explain the parables.
• Seed sown on the wayside is like a person who hears the message but does not understand it, and then the message is lost.
• Seed sown on stony soil is like someone who receives it, but it does not take root, so it does not stand the storms and pressures of life and is lost.
• The thorny soil represents someone who receives, but competing forces choke out the possibility of the seed flourishing.
• The good soil, though, represents one who hears, understands, and the seed takes root, grows into a plant, and produces fruit. The promise here from Jesus is that good soil will produce 30, 60, and 100 times the original. Does this mean that every Christian should lead at least thirty people to salvation in a lifetime? Something to think about.

Parable of the Wheat and Tares

²⁴ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; ²⁵ but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. ²⁶ But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. ²⁷ So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ ²⁸ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ ²⁹ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. ³⁰ Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:24–30.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus shares another agricultural parable, about a sower who had evil enemies sow tares, or worthless grass, among the wheat he had sown.
• Upon seeing the crop grow, the servants noticed the tares and asked if the owner needed them removed. He responded to leave them alone so as not to uproot the good plants as well.
• At the harvest time, the reapers will sort out the good from the bad, and the good will be useful to the master, while the bad will be burned up.
• Lord help us all to be useful to You!!

Parable of the Mustard Seed

Mark 4:30–32; Luke 13:18, 19 (Parallel)

³¹ Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, ³² which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:31–32.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus went on another farming tale by describing the mustard seed in relation to the kingdom of God. Elsewhere, the mustard seed is compared to faith. In this passage, Jesus uses it to demonstrate the kingdom of heaven.
• The mustard seed is small, almost insignificant in appearance.
• When it is planted and watered, it is bigger than any herb and becomes a tree that birds can nest in.
• The kingdom of God may seem to start small, but it will grow if we plant the gospel and water the seed with care and compassion and discipleship.
• Lord, help us to grow the kingdom like the mustard seed grows!

Parable of the Leaven

Luke 13:20, 21 (Parallel)

³³ Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.”³⁴ All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, ³⁵ that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:“I will open My mouth in parables;I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world.”

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:33–35.

Points to Ponder:

• In this passage, Jesus moves from the field to the kitchen. He describes the process of leavening meal (flour) with yeast.
• The implication may be that the gospel should permeate its surroundings, spreading to the corners of its area of influence
• Help us, Lord, to permeate our space with the gospel.

Parable of the Tares Explained

³⁶ Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.”³⁷ He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. ³⁸ The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. ³⁹ The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. ⁴⁰ Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. ⁴¹ The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, ⁴² and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. ⁴³ Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:36–43.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus explains this parable a bit further here.
• He explains the plight of those who follow the devil and do his bidding. Satan’s minions, if you will, will be gathered and burned forever in hell.
• God will sort them out. You just do what God has called you to do and trust Him to take care of the rewards/punishment when He comes.

Parable of the Hidden Treasure

⁴⁴ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:44.

Points to Ponder:

• In this story, Jesus speaks of a treasure, perhaps a gem or a piece of gold or silver, that someone found in a field.
• He puts it back in the ground, and then proceeds to buy the field so that he can have this great treasure.
• He then will have great joy upon buying that field.
• This could represent myriad things, but it seems that when someone finds the gospel, he or she should sacrifice whatever necessary to have the gospel and accept its wondrous grace.

Parable of the Pearl of Great Price

⁴⁵ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, ⁴⁶ who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:45–46.

Points to Ponder:

• This (and the previous) parable speaks to the value of something so precious that someone would rejoice at its discovery. In this case, it is a pearl of high value.
• When the merchant found the pearl that was worth a great deal of money, he sold all that he had and went and bought it.
• Lord, help us give all that we have to serve You. You are the pearl of great value!!

Parable of the Dragnet

⁴⁷ “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, ⁴⁸ which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. ⁴⁹ So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, ⁵⁰ and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:47–50.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus moves from the field to the kitchen to the market, and now to the boat.
• This parable somewhat parallels the parable of the tares, describing a catch of fish with both good and bad fish in the net.
• The bad were thrown away, much like the wicked will be cast into the furnace of fire, hell, for eternal weeping and pain.

Parable of the Householder

⁵¹ Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?”They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.”⁵² Then He said to them, “Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old.”⁵³ Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:51–53.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus stopped after the previous several stories and asked if the listeners understood what was said.
• They answered that they did understand. Jesus proceeded to give them one more descriptive illustration. He said that every scribe would deliver old and new things in their teachings, which should happen, and is the will of God.
• Then Jesus left Capernaum where He had been teaching.

Rejection at Nazareth

Mark 6:1–6 (Parallel)

⁵⁴ When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, “Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? ⁵⁵ Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary? And His brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? ⁵⁶ And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this Man get all these things?” ⁵⁷ So they were offended at Him.But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” ⁵⁸ Now He did not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), Mt 13:54–58.

Points to Ponder:

• Jesus traveled from Capernaum to Nazareth, His home town.
• He taught in the town of His upbringing, and the people around Him questioned His wisdom and work.
• They knew His family, and they were offended at His authoritative teaching because He was a little boy with their kids.
• Jesus then offered the famous quote: “A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house.” The sad thing is that He could not do many mighty works in Nazareth because of their unbelief.
• Lord help us not to take You for granted or become too familiar with You that we cannot believe in you for miracles and great works!

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All Scriptures from New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Join us this afternoon at 5:00 pm for a discussion of this chapter live online. Live@5 with Dr. Greg Sloop can be found on Facebook on the Dr. Greg Sloop page or on the Kannapolis Church of God Facebook page or Youtube page.