The Bible tells us that God's Word is able to transform someone's life.
So, how is it possible for some people to remain unchanged after years or even decades of consistent church attendance? Alistair Begg looks at the answer to that question today on Truth for Life. We're studying Mark chapter 4, focusing on verses 21 through 25. By way of overview, let's just acknowledge that Jesus is explaining here, following on from the parable of the sower and the explanation that he has provided, he's explaining that there is a direct correlation to the way in which someone listens to the Word of God and the benefit or benefits that they then enjoy or that they in turn fail to receive. Now at the heart of the paragraph is the exhortation, which comes in verse 23 and 24a, and that exhortation is both preceded and followed by instruction. He said to them, Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed?
Instead, don't you put it on its stand? Now, again, let me just say what is being said, and then we'll look at it in detail. The parables Jesus is teaching us were not a means to obscure the truth concerning the kingdom of God. Instead, they were a means that Jesus used to cause the listener to see himself or to see herself in the illustration. So classically, in this parable of the sower, which Jesus says in some sense is the key to all the parables, the listener, who is really listening, really paying attention, will not simply say, Well, this is an interesting story from the agriculture of the first century, but this is a story in which I see myself. And so what we've been discovering, those of us who've been tracking with this, is that Jesus is using the parables as a kind of filter.
As a kind of filter. So that the same people would listen to the story, some would find themselves saying, That's a jolly good story, or I like that, and others were actually saying, It wasn't simply a good story, that was something that God was telling us about himself and about us. Hence the distinction that we're going to see between those who just had ears—which was pretty well everybody—and those who had ears to hear.
So in this instruction number one, the two sub-points. First of all, and just simply and obviously, Jesus asks a question that makes you smile. The big debate, of course, is whether Jesus ever used humor.
I think it's hard to deny that many of his statements have a humorous undertone to them, if not overtone. And in this one, I think he would anticipate that his listeners would smile to one another when he asked the question, Do you bring in a lamp? In other words, do you light one of the clay lamps that were available at the time? Do you light that and then bring it in and put it under a cooking utensil, under a bucket, or do you put it under the bed? And even if children were present, they would say, No, that's not what you do with a lamp. You don't put it under the bed. Why would you, if your bedroom was dark, why would you go and get a lamp or a flashlight and then bring it in and then hide it under the blankets? That would be a very silly and strange thing to do. And Jesus understands that they will understand, too, that the answer to that question is no. The answer to the second question, he asks, is yes. Don't you put it on its stand?
Answer, Yes, of course we do. That's why the lamp is put up on a table or in a point of access, in a point of availability, so that it might shed light to all who are in the darkness. Now, this is actually the parable of the lamp. This is a little parable as well. It's not identified as such—it simply reads under the heading in the NIV, a lamp on a stand—but it is a parable.
The parables were more than simply the extensive statements of Jesus, but they were often these little anecdotal pieces whereby he uses pithy statements and this kind of material in order to make a point, and classically so here. So in this instruction, a question to make you smile, and then, secondly, an explanation to make you think. To make you think. It's a wonderful teaching method, isn't it? That, first of all, the teacher makes you smile, and then he says, Now I want you to think.
It's better than making you grimace. And what does he want us to think about? Well, he wants us to think about the implications of this principle in terms of himself, in terms of the lamp. Because, after all, what is this lamp?
Who is this lamp? Jesus is ultimately the lamp. He hasn't come as a lamp to shine under a bed. He hasn't come as a light to be hidden in the darkness.
He hasn't come as a light to be hidden away somehow. And if people think for a moment that in his use of the parables that is exactly what is happening, then he needs to disavow them of that notion. And so Jesus is pointing out that it would be wrong to conclude that God has brought the kingdom of God near in the person of Jesus with the purpose of actually concealing that kingdom—at least, in the unfolding story of it.
And the contrast that is contained in this instruction is the contrast between the present and the future. For the fact is that what we now see of God's kingdom and what the listeners saw of the kingdom of God didn't fit their expectations. Remember, we've said in previous studies that the Jewish people had a clear understanding that when Messiah came, he would establish his kingdom. They'd brought to that expectation all kinds of ideas, which, at least in the initial unfolding of the story, through the lips of Jesus, they would be forced to say, Well, it's not happening the way we thought. The disciples themselves had those same expectations as we'll see in a subsequent study. That's why they were asking, even after Jesus' resurrection, Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?
You see, they had all kinds of notions. Because the kingdom and the secret of the kingdom, which is in the person and words and works of Jesus, was veiled in this parabolic form, not in order that people would be unable to get it, but in order that those who should get it would get it. And every time we listen to the Bible taught and we consider these things, we need to recognize that what was secret, revealed to the disciples, was veiled in the person of Jesus, was so veiled that only by faith, then and now, would anybody recognize the Son of God in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, if you think about it, as they came on the scenes where Jesus is teaching.
Sure, he was saying dramatic things. Sure, remarkable things were happening, but it still didn't fit their bill. How were they going to come to the conclusion that this Jesus of Nazareth was none other than the Son of God, only by means of faith? And when ultimately Jesus was hanged upon a cross and people stood underneath and looked at that sorry scene, how would anyone ever conclude that here is Messiah, that here is the one through whom the kingdom has come and will come in all of its fullness, however except by the eye of faith? And today, when Jesus is presented in our twenty-first century, in all of the philosophical and cultural milieu which essentially embraces the notion that no one claim to objective truth can ever possibly be true because it defaults by its very claim—the only way that we can find truth is by the amalgamation, by the coexistence of all these things—and then we turn to the Bible, and we read the Bible, and it says there is only one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. And we say, well, that doesn't fit with contemporary notions.
It clearly doesn't. How would a person, how would a teenager, how would a young person ever come to believe and to trust in this Jesus, except by grace and through faith? We see that in our children. We see that in our marriages. It is not an unusual Sunday when husband and wife sit side by side listening to the teaching from this pulpit and one believes and the other doesn't. When brothers and sisters are disunited by their response to the Bible, listening to the same talks, hearing the same illustrations, processing the same information. But, says Jesus, I want you to understand that what is presently concealed will be disclosed and will be brought out into the open. And one day, the one who came by way of the sower will return as the harvester. One day every eye will see him. One day every knee will bow. And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Now, we need to hasten on from instruction to exhortation, and the exhortation emerges from the instruction. Verse 24.
Verse 23. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear, and consider carefully what you hear. What is he saying? He's not simply saying, Listen. He's not simply saying, Hear. He's saying, Hear in a certain way.
Hear in a way that will transform you. It is a solemn call to, if you like, perceive the significance of what is veiled in his parable. It is a solemn call to lay hold by faith on that which he is conveying concerning the kingdom of God, concerning his kingly rule, so that a person said, Well, I need a king for my life. I can control my life. You've come as a king.
Be my king. That's using your ears to hear. Because there is more of significance in the parables than that which is conveyed on the surface. And the benefit of the instruction that he has just given them is directly related to those who believe. Secondly, pay attention. Or, in the NIV, verse 24, consider carefully. Consider carefully what you hear. Luke, when he employs this little section, refers to it in terms of consider carefully how you hear.
And that advances the ball a little, doesn't it? Pay attention. Don't just allow it to wash over you.
Don't let it be like water off a duck's back. And the reason that it's so important to pay attention to it is not because of the one who tells you about it. It's not because of who the teacher of the Bible is. It is important because in this instance Jesus is the teacher. But beyond that and after that, the significance is because of the Bible itself. That's why we say to you as pastors, we say, Make sure that you're paying attention to the Bible, that you're reading it for yourselves, so that you can test and adjudicate whether what is being told you from this pulpit is actually in this Bible. And you should use that as the judge of all the sermons and teachings that you hear. But that said, the reason it is important to pay attention, to give serious attention to God's Word, is because God's Word is God's appointed means whereby men and women come to trust in Jesus and learn to live for Jesus.
God's Word. The story that Jesus is telling here, that story which is then historically left for us in the Gospels, which is then in part explained for us in the epistles and so on, that story of the good news of God's kingdom, of his kingly rule, of his intervention in time, of his coming to subdue our rebellion and to deal with our brokenness—that story is there to be believed. And so it is that when you read your Bible, you will discover that it contains, for example, warnings.
The promises are there to be promises. And the examples of the Bible are there as guides, guiding us into the pathway of Jesus and guiding us into the pathway of faith. So it behooves us always, when we turn to the Bible, to consider it carefully, to believe it thoroughly, and to practice it diligently. If we have time, there's another whole sermon there, but we don't, so it isn't, and so we move. Instruction.
And under instruction I have two subpoints. Once again, measure for measure, and use it or lose it. First of all, measure for measure. You'll see that's what's being said there. Jesus advances his thought.
If you have ears, I think you should be listening, and you should consider carefully what you hear. And the implication is, because—or for—with the measure you use, it will be measured to you and even more. In other words, Jesus is simply saying, well, we've noted that as we abound in all that God provides for us as means, so we find that he abounds to us and in us in all the influences of grace.
You understand what that means? God has appointed means whereby he accomplishes his purposes. The means of salvation, the primary means of salvation, is through the person and work of Jesus. It is a subsidiary means of salvation, the Word of God. It is, in Romans 1 16 terms, it is—this gospel contained in the Bible is the power of God for salvation to all who believe. Therefore, God has ordained that the means of his grace will be brought to bear upon our lives as we abound in them.
So that's why he's given us warnings, that's why he's given us promises, and that's why he's given us examples. That's why he's given us communion, so that we won't forget about what happened on the cross. That's why he's given us suffering, so that we won't begin to take life as if it was just a walk in the park and a bowl of cherries. That's why he's given to us Christian fellowship. That's why he's given to us prayer. That's why he's given to us the Bible. These are all means whereby God has chosen to accomplish his purposes in the lives of those who listen—first of all, as a means whereby we come to faith and then as a means whereby we grow in grace. And if our response is simply superficial and casual, then it will prove, says Jesus, to be of no ultimate value. But when the measure of our response is like the individual in Psalm 1, whose delight is in the law of the Lord, who meditates on it day and night, then he will be like a tree planted by rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season. You see, the fact is—and we know this from experience, and it's underscored by the Bible—the fact is that the most important truths in the Bible have no impact upon us until we are awakened to give them careful consideration. The most important truths of the Bible—not just little truths, not just little sort of argumentative tidbits that people like to dialogue on, no—the most important truths of the Bible are of actually no impact on us at all until we're awakened to a consideration of them.
For example, the opening phrase of the Bible, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Do you believe that? You've heard it a million times. You've read it often. Does it have any impact on you?
Does it have an impact on the way in which you listen to the news, the way you read books, the way you dialogue with your friends? What about the fact of judgment that comes, of giving an answer to God for how we've answered to his initiative in the Bible? That brings us just to our final observation, Use it or lose it. Verse 25, Whoever has will be given more, whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.
In other words, we're back again at the assimilation or atrophy picture. As in the physical realm, you use these weights in increasing reps or increasing weight in order that you might break down the muscle, in order that it might restore itself, in order that it might grow. Or you simply get yourself from the shop on Chagrin Boulevard a rack and a whole selection, beginning with five pounds all the way through, and a bench, and you put it somewhere in your house so that you don't see it very often, so that your conscience won't do it, and you exult in the fact that it is there, quotes, if I ever need it. But in the meantime, your arms are like pipe cleaners, and you cannot go in the street wearing a pair of shorts.
Okay? As in the physical, so in the spiritual. That's what Jesus is saying.
And there's a warning in this, isn't there? Because here we discover why it is that so many derive such little benefit from hearing the Word of God. This tells us, why is it that people can hear the Word of God and derive such little benefit from it? Because they sit under the Gospel regarding it as an exercise, perhaps depending on where they come from in intellectual stimulation. They like to argue with things like that. Or moral exhortation—I need somebody to tell me what I'm supposed to do.
Or emotional exploration—I like the feeling that I get when I go there, or whatever else it is. But they walk out the door, and they're never changed. That's the warning. And the promise is that whoever has will be given more. That our capacity to receive will be increased. As we're saying, Lord Jesus, speak to me through this Bible in a way that I don't fully understand. Become my Lord and Savior.
Be my King. And we discover that our capacity grows, just in the same way that if you've managed to twenty-five-pound dumbbells, and you can do fifteen reps, then you can actually go up to thirty now, although you might not get to fifteen reps, but you're still making progress. Somebody came to me after the first service, running for me, and said, Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute, wait a minute. What's that use it or lose it stuff? I thought we discovered that you can't lose your salvation. Well, I said, actually, what the story is, is that the reason we don't lose our salvation is because we use it. That God does not keep us apart from the means of grace but by the means of grace. So don't go and cherish to yourself some silly notion that you may live as you please and do what you want and pay scant attention to the Bible and not believe it thoroughly and not practice it diligently, and somehow or another convince yourself that all is well with your soul. Jesus did not insist upon the use of means because the use of means was irrelevant.
He insisted upon the use of means because the use of means is vital. God saves us through these means and by these means, and he keeps us through and by these means, and he doesn't save us and he doesn't keep us apart from these means. So you understand why it is that Jesus said, if you have ears to hear, hear and pay careful attention to what you hear.
Do you have ears to hear? You're listening to Alistair Begg on Truth for Life. One of the key factors that separates Christianity from other world religions is the testimony that Jesus and God are one. Jesus was not only fully man but also fully God, and the book we want to recommend to you today helps explain that truth. It's called A Hundred Proofs that Jesus is God, and like the title suggests, the author draws from the Bible alone to point out dozens of examples of how Jesus embodies the same nature and character as God our creator. You'll read about the attributes they share such as being unchangeable or omnipresent or the giver of life. This is a great book to help you as you witness to Christ's divinity.
Let me read to you an excerpt from the book. It says, Jesus' relationship with the Father did not begin when he was born. He had a relationship with the Father in eternity past before the world began. They also had this relationship with the Holy Spirit within the Trinity. These interrelated relationships not only describe the Trinity but prove the deity of Christ. Ask for your copy of the book 100 Proofs that Jesus is God when you donate today to support the Bible teaching ministry of Truth for Life.
You can give a gift through the Truth for Life mobile app online at truthforlife.org slash donate or call us at 888-588-7884. Thanks for listening today. Jesus followers expected the Messiah would usher in a powerful earthly kingdom. Tomorrow we'll hear about God's far greater purpose. The Bible teaching of Alistair Begg is furnished by Truth for Life where the Learning is for Living.
