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The parable of the sower, the parable of the sower, this is what we're going to get into tonight and as we're going through our dark sayings series, the parable of the sower. Now I'm going to have you, I hope you brought some bookmarks or something, I need you to, we're going to be going from Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8, those are the three passages that are parallel passages dealing with this parable. Actually this is the first parable that we're doing where there's actually an explanation to the parable and so the other parables that we did there wasn't really an explanation so we kind of had to figure it out and use other scripture and obviously I'm going to be using other scripture but it does, Jesus does expound to his disciples what this parable is talking about but even with that people have some different ideas of what's being said here so I want to go through this. So in Mark 4 there, notice verse 14, so the first thing to see here is what we see is that there's this sower that's sowing out the seed and then there's four different places that the seed falls, one place is in the wayside, the other place is in stony ground, the third place is where the thorns are at and then the last place is on good ground so we have four different cases here that we have to deal with but first what is the seed? So it actually defines that, Mark 4, 14 says the sower soweth the word and in Luke 8, Luke 8 and verse 11 it says now the parable is this, the seed is the word of God so no doubt that the seed is the word of God so when we're looking at this parable that's what we're looking at is that he's sowing out the word of God and so he's giving this illustration of seed falling into these different types of ground showing basically different types of people receiving it or different types of people that are doing something with this word of God so obviously the ground is representing not necessarily the person sometimes but dealing with the circumstances around the person but go to 1 Peter chapter 1 and I wanted to show you what the seed is and this isn't out of the ordinary that we'd be likening a seed to the word of God and so 1 Peter chapter 1, a very famous passage dealing with the seed which is the word of God, 1 Peter chapter 1 and verse 22, it says seeing ye have purified your souls and obeying the truth through the spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren see that you love one another with a pure heart fervently being born again not of corruptible seed but of incorruptible by the word of God which liveth and abideth forever for all flesh is as grass and all the glory of man is the flower of grass the grass whitherith the flower thereof falls away but the word of the Lord endureth forever and this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you and so we see that it's not corruptible seed it's incorruptible seed the word of God is incorruptible seed that liveth and abideth forever now I already preached a whole sermon about what liveth and abideth forever that the word of God is alive and it's preserved meaning that it's going to be preserved forever so it's never going to fail and so we see that the seed is the word of God that makes sense because that's how we're born again is that seed that's sown in our hearts if we believe now go to James chapter and just to show you that the word of God faith comes by hearing about the word of God I kind of want to hit this point a little bit because there's so much stuff out there about how all you can get saved without the word of God you know you don't necessarily need the word of God and all this stuff it's ridiculous especially considering the fact that the word of God is Jesus you know that's like saying you don't need Jesus to be saved or something you know in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God and the word was made flesh and the one among us not to mention he's called the word of life so but all that to say is that the word is very essential to salvation so James chapter 1 and verse 18 it says of his own will begat he us with the word of truth that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures in Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 13 you don't necessarily have to turn to all of these but Ephesians chapter 1 verse 13 it says in whom ye also trusted after that ye heard the word of truth the gospel of your salvation in whom also after that ye believed ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise so this is very you know very essential is that the word is going out and and that the word is what's going to get someone saved and you can't get saved without the word of God okay that's just just the truth of the case here now go to Psalm 126 and actually we're singing bringing in the sheaves is actually where this song that song comes from and so this this the last two verses of this Psalm is dealing with soul winning and that's exactly what this parable is this parable is showing soul winning and this this sower is the soul winner and the the the seed is the word of God so when we go out to win people to Christ what do we take with us the incorruptible seed and so we're sowing the word of God out there sometimes people don't get saved we went out today we sowed some word you know sometimes not everybody some some is going to fall by the wayside and and you know some people it just needs watered so we can plant some seeds someone else comes by and waters and then God gives the increase so that's the illustration that he's giving here and so in Psalm 126 it says in verse five they that sow in tears shall reap in joy he that goeth forth and weepeth what bearing precious seed shall doubtless come again with rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him now the that Psalm I think is going to make a little more sense now we sing this song you may say sowing seeds of kindness bringing in the sheaves you're like what in the world are we talking about you know like why are we bringing in the sheaves are we all farmers you know like what are we doing now it's all an illustration as far as soul winning we're sowing seeds of kindness we're sowing the word of God and we're going to doubtless come again with rejoicing bringing the sheaves bringing the sheaves with us so that's what that Psalm is talking about it's talking about soul winning and you're going forth and weepeth and you're sowing in tears but you're sowing the word of God you're bearing precious seed and it's and you're you're taking that word of God with you and that's what this this parable is dealing with now I think about Mark 16 15 go ye therefore in all the world and preach the gospel or go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature when I see this parable what I see is indiscriminately just giving the word out to everybody and preaching the gospel to every creature letting the chips fall where they may sometimes that seed fell by the wayside but just let it let it go just preach the gospel if anybody will hear it and so that's where people are what would you give it to a to a to a flaming homosexual they won't hear it okay that's just a fact I mean that's just going to be the case so no it's probably not going to happen because you know they had to at least want to hear the gospel before I'm not just like and this isn't talking about taking gospel tracts and throwing them out like you know out in the wind okay that's not what we're talking about don't take it that literally okay when it comes to we're taking bibles and we're throwing them out in the parking lot like hoping people are going to pick them up and read them no we're talking about preaching the gospel this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you okay so we're dealing with bearing precious seed and going forth and weep is you know bearing precious seed we're talking about preaching the gospel okay so obviously you know you can give them the word of God they're not going to get saved without a preacher how should I hear without a preacher and how how can I accept some man to guide me you know as the Ethiopian eunuch said and so obviously you gotta you gotta take the whole bible in context when you're looking at that and so I've definitely but I've heard people say that you know I'm putting gospel tracts on on toilet seats and all this other stuff I'm like who in the world's picking that up anyway you know when I go into the public restroom the last thing we do is pick up anything that's in there so that's just me I don't know I don't know who's like oh man that looks like good reading right there now so anyway all I'm saying with that I'm not saying someone doesn't pick up some of that stuff but it's probably very doubtful and even if they are the chances of them getting saved is pretty much zero okay and so all that to say is that don't take it that far to where you're just throwing tracts out your window as you go down the road so but let's go into the first case here the the the seeds that fell by the wayside so mark 13 we'll start in mark 13 so we're going to be going back and forth between we're going to be in each one of these we're going to be starting to mark 13 going to I'm sorry Matthew 13 we're going to be starting in Matthew 13 going to mark 4 and then to Luke 8 and so I just want you to see all these parallel passages and some of them give some more information or different information as we go through it so we're first looking at the seeds that fell by the wayside so this one's going to be pretty simple and I'm just going to tell you straight up I believe this is the only one that's not saved the ones that fell by the wayside the rest are saved so I'm just going to come out and say that because there's a lot of people that say I don't think anybody ever doesn't think these people aren't saved okay the seeds that fell by the wayside but the other ones the other two I do believe are saved the ones in the stony ground the ones in the thorns I believe are saved I'm going to show you that so I'm just going to tell you right up front where I stand on this the rest are saved besides these ones so but I'm going to show you that these aren't saved and so Matthew 13 and verse 4 it says and when he sowed some seeds fell by the wayside and the fowls came and devoured them up so we're going to see what this represents so and go down to verse 19 there is where he's expounding this it says when anyone heareth the word of the kingdom and understandeth it not then cometh the wicked one and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart this is he which received seed by the wayside so now we can see okay what's the fowl represent the fowl represents satan coming and picking up taking away that word out of their heart and notice they didn't understand it so that's what we see here is the seeds that fell by the wayside they didn't understand it and then satan took away that word out of their heart okay so this is actually an interesting case because you know sometimes you can sow the seed and then water it and that seeds still there but in this case satan takes it away from them so where they're not remembering it mark 4 and verse 15 same thing but we see instead of the wicked one we see satan and so this is something and he also gives a time frame on it too so mark 4 and verse 15 it says and these are they by the wayside where the word is sown but when they have heard satan cometh immediately and taketh away the word that is sown in their heart so we see that not only is it taken away but it's taken away immediately okay luke 8 now this is where you know all doubt that these people are saved at all is taken away so luke 8 actually luke 8 if you want just luke 8 i think gives you more clarification on this than any other of the of the passages so if you're just wanting to look at this this parable and wanting to see exactly who satan is not luke 8 is probably the place to go to so luke 8 in verse 12 it says those by the wayside are they that hear then cometh the devil and taketh away the word out of their hearts lest they should believe and be saved so it's clear that they did believe and they didn't get saved so what we see with the seed that's sown by the wayside is that they didn't understand it satan came immediately and took the word out of their heart and they said that they won't believe and be saved okay and so that's the seed by the wayside clearly unsaved people so we see that that happens i'm sure a lot when we go out soul winning we're just giving them that verse giving them some you know some quick verses and stuff like that satan comes and takes that out of their heart and so i don't think necessarily this is dealing with i mean this could be someone that you give a little bit of information they don't necessarily let you go through the whole thing they don't really understand it you know obviously there's cases where i've gone through the whole gospel with somebody and they understood it you know so that's not i don't think that would be seen by the wayside what i see with these are more so the people that you get to go into it a little bit but they don't give you enough time you don't really get to go through it all and so they don't really understand what you're coming at but you did give them some bible verses and so that's the seed by the wayside they don't get saved they don't even understand it and so so now we go into the seed in the stony places so that's the one unsaved person that's the seed by the wayside i believe that's the only case here that we're dealing with an unsaved person now we get into the seed in the stony places so when you see by the wayside there's really no place for that to take root for it to even start growing that's what that means so when you when you get into the stony places and the thorns it's more so the environment that that seed has to grow in right and so in the case of the wayside it doesn't start growing at all meaning it never got born again they never got born again okay in these cases they do start they do they come alive but there's different things that are hindering that seed from growing and so in matthew thirteen so go back to matthew thirteen i'll just read the the parable itself you know of dealing with that in verse five it says some fell upon stony places where they had not much earth and and forthwith they sprung up because they had no deepness of earth and when the sun was up they were scorched and because they had no root they withered away okay so immediate people they withered away you know they're not saved you know all this stuff so but in verse twenty there notice what it says verse twenty it says but he that received the seed into stony places the same as he that heareth the word and anon with joy receiveth it yet hath he not root in himself but deareth for a while for when tribulation or persecution arise because of the word by and by he is offended so what you'll see actually is that he hears the words and he receives it so this is someone that gets saved they receive it and the the key here though is that they don't have root they and the the key with the stony places is that if you have a big stony place you don't have a lot of place for soil okay so that's why it doesn't have much earth and there's nowhere for the roots to go they're not going to go through stone so my brother is good at gardening and I'm sure he would tell you not to plant a tree on you know like under like right on top of a boulder okay that just wouldn't be a good idea you know because you need soil you need that nutrients and the rocks just not going to give it to them and so the what it's basically saying is they're not rooted so what you have here is Christians that are not grounded and rooted okay but mark four in verse 16 well actually you see that word a non and you say well what does a non mean and then and then you'll see by and by well what's by and by mean well it actually you know it tells us that you know what these words mean if you just look at the parallel passage so mark four in verse 16 it says and these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground who when they have heard the word immediately receive it with gladness so what's a non mean immediately and have no root in themselves and so endure for a time afterward when affliction or persecution arises for the word's sake immediately they are offended so what's by and by mean immediately so so you can see definitions of terms when you do these parallel passages as well but we see here that they received it with gladness in both these they received it so these are saved people and Luke actually is going to give us even more validity that these these are believers okay so go to Luke chapter eight and then I want to get into the fact of what is this exactly talking about you know when you're dealing with with the what I believe Christians but then they're on stony ground they don't have root they don't go deep with their roots so Luke eight Luke eight and verse six it says and some fell upon a rock and as soon as it was sprung up it withered away because it lacked moisture so it gives us a little more information just in the parable itself not in the explanation but in the parable itself remember it had no deepness of the earth but it also says it lacked moisture so that's important information there but in Luke eight and verse thirteen notice what it says it says they on the rock are they which when they hear receive the word with joy and these have no root which for a while believe so are these believers yeah for a while they believe and in time of temptation fall away and so these are believers but what it's saying is that basically they're they're fine until persecution tribulation or temptation comes in and then they fall away you say fall away are they falling from grace are they they lose their salvation you see how people can take these parables and just make it say whatever they want but we'll actually see I'll show you some passages that falling away sometimes deals with Christians and deals with believers but it's not talking about losing your salvation but what this is talking about what I what I see this as is Christians that get saved get real excited about the things of God but they don't get grounded and rooted in the word of God themselves and this happens a lot especially in our movement where people get saved get excited they listen to preaching they get real excited about the things of God but they're not reading it themselves and so when when persecution of tribulation arises they get offended and they get out and so this is an important thing that we all need to look to is that we are grounded in the truth we know why we believe it from the word of God and it's not just because our favorite preacher says it and so that's where I see these Christians are the Christians that fall during persecution and tribulation because they are not grounded in the word of God they are Christians that are on stony ground they don't have a deep root and so that's where we need to take heed so but I want to talk about being grounded and rooted go to Colossians chapter one Colossians chapter one so we saw actually three things dealing with these people that are on stony ground they're not rooted they lack moisture and then they fall away so we're going to talk about those three things those three attributes that are dealing with these believers and I believe they're babes in Christ because obviously notice immediately they receive it they spring up so they're just like shooting up and then they they fall away and so those you see that happen a lot I see people get saved and they get really excited about the things of God and as soon as some kind of persecution or tribulation or temptation comes about they're gone okay it doesn't mean they're not saved but that happens a lot and so you see this with babes in Christ a lot and so but in Colossians chapter one look at verse 21 verse 21 and I'm actually going to answer something that you may have wondered as far as how do you answer this passage people have used this passage to try to say you can lose your salvation or you got to do something else I didn't believe but Colossians one verse 21 it says and you that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works ye now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death to present you holy and unbelievable and unreproveable in his sight if you continue in the faith grounded and settled and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye have heard and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven where have I Paul and made a minister so we see here that what the key is here is that it's not talking about that they're saved by if they continue in the faith it says that notice in verse 22 to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight okay that's what that's talking about if you continue in the faith grounded and settled go to chapter two because it clarifies that continuing in the faith or being grounded and settled is not the salvation part it's actually the walking in him part and so notice in Colossians chapter two and verse six Colossians two and verse six it says as ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him rooted and built up in him and established in the faith as ye have been taught abounding therein with thanksgiving so what is the rooted and grounded part dealing with walking in him walking in the truth if we live in the spirit let us also walk in the spirit those are two different things living in the spirit salvation and walking in the spirit is walking in the new man being a disciple of Jesus Christ being continuing in that faith and so and also you know there's only one other place that the word unblameable is used in the bible so when it says to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight go to first Thessalonians chapter three so I want to further prove to you that this if you continue in the faith is not dealing with salvation it's actually dealing with being unashamed and having confidence at his coming okay so we're talking about in first Thessalonians chapter five it talks about that your whole spirit soul and body be preserved unto the coming of our Lord you know and I'm misquoting that a little bit but basically that's what we're trying to do by walking in the spirit being grounded in the faith so that when Christ comes hey we are we're not ashamed that it's coming because we've been doing what we need to be doing we've been walking in the spirit and we haven't been just living in wickedness so the first Thessalonians chapter three and verse 12 notice what it says first Thessalonians 3 verse 12 it says and the Lord make you to increase in and abound in love one toward another and toward all men even as we we do toward you to the end he may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God even our father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints so when it's talking about being unblameable and in Colossians chapter one if you continue in the faith it's talking about at his coming so it's not talking about getting saved it's just talking about hey if you continue in the faith you'll be unblameable at his coming now uh and first uh you know I've read I already kind of talked about this but in first John chapter two it says that too it says now and now let children abide in him that when he shall appear we may have confidence to not be ashamed before him at his coming so that's what we're talking about and isn't that what they're saying in tribulation and persecution and affliction what are we dealing with in the end times tribulation persecution affliction and so we're going to have tribulation but be of good cheer I've overcome the world Jesus said you know and so Jesus we know that through great tribulation we must enter into the kingdom of God and and so or much tribulation and then the great tribulation if we were happened to be there in that time we need to be rooted and grounded that's what this is teaching but you need to be rooted and grounded before that comes okay when the tribulation comes don't say okay now I need to get rooted and grounded okay because you're gonna fall away you're gonna fall away if if you're not rooted and grounded notice it also lacked moisture so go to Ephesians chapter five so not only didn't the the roots didn't go deep so it wasn't grounded on the word of God they didn't have the doctrines down they weren't they weren't firm on maybe even you know the gospel and people are swaying them and bewitching them so to speak kind of like in galatians where they're swaying them on even like doctrines of salvation but even on just other doctrines people are they're tossed to and fro so to speak as children Ephesians five and verse 25 notice what it says Ephesians five verse 25 says husbands love your wives even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it that he might sanctify it and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish so isn't that what we're talking about being unreproveable un unblameable at his coming and so and it's saying washing of the water by the word so it likens the word of God to the washing of water and so that's you know it lacked moisture it lacked the word of God they lacked the word of God they lacked the roots in the ground in the ground and what was the consequence of that they fell away they fell they were offended they were offended and they fell out and so that can happen to any of us and actually I want to show you that in second Peter chapter one you say well it says fall away isn't that bad it can be you know it says you're falling from grace because you know they're talking about the heretics you know that are trying to add works to salvation it says you're falling from grace and then in Hebrews chapter six it says if they shall fall away to renew them again under repentance it says it's impossible dealing with reprobates but you can't just take a phrase like fall away and say it automatically means like you know something to deal with not being saved or something like that you know it's just a vague phrase that can mean a lot of things to fall away from a lot of things but in second Peter chapter one remember we're talking about continuing in the faith and so these people had faith they believed for a while until that tribulation came until that persecution came but in second Peter chapter one verse five it says and beside this giving all diligence add to your faith virtue and to virtue knowledge the knowledge temperance and to temperance patience and the patience godliness and the godliness brotherly kindness and brotherly kindness charity so notice he's adding on to these things he's not saying you need faith he's just saying he said he's already said at the beginning of the chapter that they have that faith but he's saying add to that all these other things but notice what it says in verse eight it says for if these things be in you and abound they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our lord Jesus Christ but he that lacketh these things is blind and cannot see afar off and has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins notice what says in verse 10 wherefore the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling and election sure for if the if you do these things you shall never fall and it continues and says for so an entrance shall be administered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our lord and savior Jesus Christ now the key here is that notice in verse 11 it says that an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our lord and savior Jesus Christ it doesn't say that so an entrance shall be made to you okay because no matter if you if you continue in the in the faith or not you're still going to enter into the kingdom of god but the difference is are you going to abundantly enter into that kingdom right and it says that if you do these things you shall never fall and you won't be unfruitful isn't that what we're dealing with in this passage not being fruitful the last one is fruitful but in both the stony ground and in the thorns where they fell amongst thorns they're both unfruitful and so that's what we're dealing with is being an unfruitful christian here but two different avenues of this these are people that are not rooted and grounded and therefore when when temptation tribulation persecution arises they're offended and then they get out of the work and they're not fruitful and they fall they fall away go to second peter chapter three so at the end of second peter second peter chapter three so they fall and therefore if you fall you're not going to have an abundant entrance into the the kingdom the everlasting kingdom of our lord and savior jesus christ so dealing with the the judgment seat of christ which we've already covered you know you're going to suffer loss you're not going to enter in there like you'd want to enter into the kingdom of god if you fall if you don't do these things you don't add to your faith virtue and virtue knowledge and all this other things that you need to add to it and so and perfecting your faith think of james 2 you know you can have faith it can be dead all day long but it's not going to profit you anything it's going to be unfruitful and you're not going to have anything in the end so second peter chapter 3 and verse 17 notice what it says it says ye therefore beloved saying ye know these things before beware lest ye also being led away with the error of the wicked fall from your own steadfastness so here again we're talking about falling but it's what is it falling from grace is it falling from salvation no falling from your own steadfastness is that exactly what happened with these on the uh they withered away they fell away why because they didn't have any root why because they didn't have any moisture they didn't have the word of god nourishing that root and they fell away that's the christians on stony ground and i see this all the time i see this all the time when especially new christians people that get in and they get excited notice immediately they're with joy they receive it and you see this a lot where they get excited they'll even get baptized sometimes and they'll get excited about the things of god and then persecution comes temptation comes that their old friends are knocking at their door wanting them to go out drinking or partying or something like that and it takes them away or tribulations coming and you know they don't want to they don't want to you know fight the battle so you can see that happening but now let's get into the seed that fell among thorns so that's sad when that happens obviously when you get when you win people to christ you don't want to see them fall out you don't want to see them fall out of church fall out of the things of god and uh but it happens a lot and i believe one of the major reasons is that they're not reading the bible my major advice to any new believer is read the bible read it read it read it get in the church and hearing good preaching is great but you need to be reading it and you need to know it for yourself don't just come to the church and just i mean obviously hearing the word about preach you know he's manifested his work through preaching and that's definitely an avenue but you need to know it on your own you need to you need to study to show thyself approved unto god a workman that needeth not to be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth you need to you need to study to show thyself approved unto god and that's where you're going to be rooted and grounded in the truth and that's where you're going to continue in the faith that's where you're going to be fruitful and you're not going to be barren you're going to doubtless come again with rejoicing bringing your sheaves with you so but the seeds that fell among the thorns so go back to matthew 13 so we're going to go through this whole thing where we we're going to look at matthew 13 mark four and then luke eight to see what this is talking about so obviously with these two the stony ground and among thorns we're dealing with unfruitful christians but there are two different types of unfruitful christians as far or circumstances okay that circumstances they it's more on they don't have the knowledge they don't have the experience and they're they're basically just they're just not ready for the battle this one's a little different because in matthew 13 verse 7 those i'll just read what it talks about in the parable and some fell among thorns and the thorns sprung up and choked them so in verse 22 it explains it and it says he also that receives seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word and the care of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choked the word and he becometh unfruitful it's interesting that it says that he becometh unfruitful it implies that he was fruitful right that he was fruitful but then he becometh unfruitful and and then so mark four mark four and verse seven pretty much says the same thing uh well uh yeah mark four verse seven in the parable it says and some fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it and it yielded no fruit so it's talking about not yielding fruit he becometh unfruitful but notice what it says when it explains this in mark four it says i'm sorry it's in luke that we need to see that but notice in mark four and verse 18 just to see the explanation and it says these are they which are sown among thorns such as hear the word and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches and the lusts of of other things entering in choke the word and it becometh unfruitful so we again see it becometh unfruitful doesn't yield fruit the cares of this world this one it says the lusts of other things entering in so it even adds to that and then luke 8 and verse 14 luke 8 verse 14 luke 8 verse 14 it says and that which fell among thorns are they which when they have heard go forth and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life and bring no fruit to perfection and so this is this is the typical christian that falls into the cares of this life fall into wanting the things and the pleasure of this world and they are they they're not fruitful they become unfruitful they don't yield fruit and they don't bring fruit under perfection i think about the fact that if you ever had like a plant that it was starting to bring forth fruit but it never came it never came to fruition so to speak right it's like they they were getting there but it's like yeah i can't eat that you know like it's just like it started but it just didn't do anything and so that's what we're dealing with here are people that that that cling on to the pleasures of this life and the riches of this world instead of the riches of god and of christ and i've seen this happen with my own friends that were soul winners that were sold out for god and they chose the riches of this world or the pleasures of this life instead of the things of god sadly so i want to say that this this one right here beware my friends beware because this could be any one of us i've seen christians that i would never have thought would have gotten out of the things of god have gotten out of the things of god friends sold out soul winners post-trib pre-rat you know the the reprobate doctrine down all the doctrine down knows how to go soul winning wins people every week choked by the cares of this life choked by the pleasures of this world i've seen it happen take heed wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall this can happen to any single one of us that we can get out of soul winning get out of the things of god get out of reading the bible get out of going to church get out doing anything for god and just getting comfortable because let me tell you something it is not comfortable going soul winning it is not comfortable doing the work of god it's not you know what's comfortable going home relaxing watching tv doing things that you know reading's not exactly comfortable either but you know what it's gonna make you smarter but going out soul winning is not comfortable it's not comfortable going up to a random stranger's door and no wanting to know are they gonna hate me like me or are they gonna listen are they not gonna listen am i wasting my time you know trudging through snow trudging through mud going day in day out sometimes going weeks without seeing anybody saved and you know just trading that for the pleasures of this life it can happen to any single one of us so take heed on this one because i believe that in this room especially the adults i'm not dealing with christians that are on stony ground i'm dealing with christians that are rooted and grounded they have the word of god in their hearts that they have they they have the doctrines they have that good foundation of the word of god i'm not worried about you getting offended i think we should still take heed to that don't you know again wherefore let him to think if he stand think he lest he fall what i am worried about is any one of us getting sucked in to the pleasures of this life getting sucked in to the things that we used to like to do or the things that are just pleasurable and things that aren't necessarily sinful but things that'll get you out of the work work for the night is coming for the work for the night cometh when no man can work we only have a short amount of time and we need to make make good of that time we have go to now you that say today or tomorrow we will go into such a city and buy and sell and get gain whereas you know what uh what shall we even on tomorrow what is your life it is even a vapor that appear for a little time and then vanishes away so we need to do it now we need to remember that because these were choked by the word of by the cares of this world they were choked by the pleasures of this life and then they became unfruitful they didn't bring any fruit to perfection you know what that means they were worthless and so that i've seen this happen that's why this one is so vivid in my mind because i've seen it happen i've seen it happen to people that never thought it would happen to it and so let's take you to that but go to matthew chapter six matthew chapter six because it really comes down to this where is your treasure my friends where's your treasure what do you desire do you desire for for christ to look down and say there's my good and faithful servant he's doing well there's my friend i know that if i give him a mission he'll do it or would you rather god say there's my son there's my daughter but i'm not gonna put him on this mission because who knows if they'd ever do it you know i want i want god to be pleased with me i want to be his friend i want to be his right-hand man when it comes to the things of god knowing that if there's a big mission he wants to get done that i'd be one of the people you pick that's what i want to happen but it's not going to happen if you're going to have the cares of this world and you're going to have the pleasure of this life choking you and just having you in this choke hold and that's exactly what we have today is we have a lot of people that that just live for the pleasures of this life they live for for just what am i going to be what am i going to do on the weekend what kind of pleasure am i going to get into on the weekend you know on the weekends the big the heart sunday i go to work to relax i'm just going to tell you you know when it comes to the weekend everybody's working for the weekend i'm like man i gotta get my sermons done i gotta get ready i gotta get this stuff done it's like the weekend is like the the the works getting getting ready to start and so uh all that to say and i and i enjoy it i'm not i'm not downplaying i like it um it keeps me it keeps me on track but all i'm saying with that is that that's the mentality of the world though the mentality is like friday's almost here friday's almost here i can go you know you know go out party or something like that or even even people that aren't partying i can go out and just relax i can just you know let everything go and and not get anything done no we need to work and we need to we need to stay in the work but go to matthew six and verse 19 matthew six verse 19 matthew six verse 19 it says lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth where moth and rust doth corrupt and where thieves break through and steal but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through nor steal for where your treasure is there will your heart be also the light of the body is the eye if therefore thine eye be single thy whole body shall be full of light but if thine eye be evil thy whole body shall be full of darkness if therefore the light that is in thee be darkness how great is that darkness no man can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will hold to the one and despise the other you cannot serve god and mammon in verse 33 it says but seek ye first the kingdom of god and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you so this is something very clear that you notice it doesn't say where your heart is there where your treasure be it says where your treasure is there will your heart be also find out where your treasure is find that treasure your heart will go to that your heart is deceitful above all things are desperately wicked so don't don't trust your heart to figure out what treasure you need to get to figure out what treasure you want or what you need to have and then your heart will get in that direction force your heart into that direction and so uh but first john talks about this says love not the world not of the things that are in the world if any man love the world the love of the father is not in him for all that is in the world the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the father but is of the world and the world passes away and the lust thereof but he did do with the will of god abideth forever all this stuff's gonna pass away all the stuff's gonna be melted with uh fervent heat all the elements are gonna be melt with fervent heat what's it all gonna matter in the end your house your car all the the boats and all these other things that you could have what is it worth in the end nothing it's all gonna be burned up none of that's gonna last so why work your whole life for that read the book of ecclesiastes all he's doing is despairing he's saying all this stuff that i labored for is vanity and vexations spirit why because he said because i'm gonna have to give it to someone else and who knows that they're even going to be wise so he could be leaving that to a fool is what he's saying and so uh solomon saw that at the end of his life and he said let's hear the conclusion about matter fear god and keep his commandments for this is the whole duty of man and he talks about how everything's going to be brought before the judgment seat whether it be good or bad talking about the judgment seat of christ and so in the end it only matters what you do for eternal value and obviously salvation is is the most important thing you need to get settled but that's all we're talking about here we're talking about christians that are already saved and where is your treasure so moses understood this moses understood go to hebrews chapter 11 hebrews chapter 11 actually gives a lot of insight on moses before he left egypt so moses moses understood he understood the treasures of heaven compared to the the treasures of this world hebrews chapter 11 verse 24 the bible says by faith moses when he was come to years refused to be called the son of pharaoh's daughter choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of god than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season esteeming the reproach of who christ tell me that that moses wasn't a christian esteeming the reproach of christ greater riches than the treasures in egypt for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward moses understood where the true riches lied moses understood that it's better to suffer affliction with the people of god to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season and to that the the riches of christ were better than the treasures in egypt because he had respected the recompense of reward he knew that there was going to be a judgment seat one day there's going to be a judgment seat where all everything is going to be burned up and all the stuff that you did in this life is either going to be wood hay and stubble or it's going to be gold silver and precious stone and if you decide not to to go to church you decide not to go soul winning you decide to not do the things of god and you decide to just live a life where you're just living you know day by day and and living for the pleasures of this world you may not be in huge major sin as far as like living in you know adultery or fornication or anything like that it doesn't matter because in the end all that stuff that you worked for is going to be burned up it's either going to be burned it's going to be burned up literally too not to mention at the judgment seat of christ when all your works are going to be before you and you're going to see here's all the time and everything that i wasted on that because it's all burned up in the fire you're going to suffer loss you're going to be saved yet so as by fire because you know everybody that believes on christ is going to heaven but do you want to suffer loss like that go to second corinthians chapter four second corinthians chapter four this one i've seen over and over and over again and i almost just want to be like what are you doing what are you doing how can you have been that far it's almost like you know i i have decided to follow jesus no turning back no turning back though none go with me still i will follow no turning back no turning back how can you make it that far down the road and say you know what no but i'm just going to live for the world no i'm not going to do what i should be doing i'm just going to do the things that that are comfortable and easy and and not do the things that i need to do for christ i i again i know i need to not yeah take heed you know where for him to think if you stand think he lest he fall but it to me i'm just like how can you live each day knowing that you're not doing what you should be doing and it's just let's not get sucked into that let's not be choked by the cares of this world because they will choke you that's what the world's trying to do they know that they can't you know satan knows that he can't take your salvation away from you he knows that that you're going to have no matter what but you know what he can do he can choke you to where you won't get anybody else saved that's the only thing he can do to you is try to make you unfruitful and try to make you unprofitable make you useless and that's what he's that's his whole mission with christians if he can't take you to hell with him he wants you he wants to make sure that everybody goes to hell that you could have reached and so remember that second corinthian chapter four and verse 17 second corinthian chapter four verse 17 it says for our light affliction which is but for a moment worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory while we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen the things which are seen are temporal but the things which are not seen are eternal and that's what you have to remember that's why it's easy to get sucked into the things of this world because you can see it and guess what the pleasures of those things are now they're instantaneous so that's that's that's that's the alluring part of it is the instantaneous instantaneous gratification and that's what you have that's why people don't want to diet right because there's not instantaneous gratification in dieting and that's why i want to eat the donut because it tastes amazing it's right there and then right but you automatically regret it you know the pleasures of sin you know the pleasures of this world and the you know the pleasures for of sin for a season right and so uh you know that's that's what i think i want to think you're thinking of sweets but that's what it is when it comes to this world you get that instantaneous gratification and that pleasure that happens for a moment okay but how about the light affliction that's for a moment and then you'll have the rewards that last forever so that's what we need to to keep our mindset where your treasure is everywhere your heart be also you don't have to turn there go back to matthew 13 we're going to get into the next one to the last one but in first corinthians 2 9 it says but as it is written eye hath not seen nor ear heard neither have entered into the heart of man the things which god has prepared for them that love him don't worry your your work will not be in vain we are not laboring in vain and i don't care if we go out soul winning we don't get anybody saved god sees that labor he sees that effort he sees what you're doing and he will reward you have respect for that recompense the reward because it's going to be great anything that you think it's going to be it's going to be way more than that just know that god is just and and what he has prepared for us eye hath not seen ear hath not heard it hasn't even entered into the heart of man think about that it hasn't even entered into your heart so if you think about what is how great it's going to be it can't it's got to be greater than that because it hasn't even entered in the heart of man of what he's prepared for them to love him you know blessed to see that the man that endured temptation for when he has tried he shall receive the crown of life and the crown of life which he has prepared for them to love him you know so uh the crown of life enduring temptation you know so anyway so the seed that fell in the good ground so we have those two the stony ground and the and the the among thorns be not one of those you know we we need that we need to take heed to that but those are the same people it's not like they lost their salvation not that they're not saved because they get choked by the cares of this life but the seed that fell into good ground now this is where we want to be so in matthew chapter 13 verse 8 it says but other fell into good ground and brought forth fruit some in hundredfold some 60 fold some 30 fold down into the explanation there it says in verse 23 but he that receives seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word and understandeth it which also beareth fruit and bringeth forth some in hundredfold some 60 some 30 so all these are pretty much saying the same thing uh luke eight we'll skip over matthew four because it's pretty much saying the same exact thing they hear the word they receive it they understand it yeah mark mark for it says they receive it luke uh eight and verse 15 luke eight verse 15 but that on the good ground are they which in an honest and good heart having heard the word keep it and bring forth fruit with patience so now we have the fruitful christian so this is where a lot of people are like well these are the only saved ones because they're bringing forth fruit okay so that's just not the case my friends that this is where you get into that whole argument that christians are going to bring forth fruit that's hogwash okay because what is the fruit of a christian another christian this is much as the fruit of my body is another person like my children then the fruit of a christian is another christian now there's fruits of righteousness you know you'll see other types of fruits the fruit of my lips right but what's the fruit of a christian it has to be another christian it wouldn't make sense if it's like doing a good deed because that's not me okay i'm not a good deed right and same thing with the fruit of the spirit the fruit of the spirit is love joy peace this is given quantities so when we're dealing with fruit we're dealing with quantities of things and so if you're dealing with a tree it's going to bring forth fruit and it's going to have quantities of fruit and that's what we're dealing with so proverbs 11 this is the the famous passage proverbs 11 dealing with what what the fruit of the righteous is but in matthew as you're turning there proverbs 11 verse 30 matthew when it's talking about it says all right the ones that receive it in the good ground it says they hear they hear the word understandeth it which also beareth fruit so notice it's adding to that the other ones understood it and received it right we saw that with joy and anon they received it and so they received it just as much as the ones on the good ground but these also brought forth fruit that's the difference between these ones and the stony ground and the thorns is that these ones actually brought forth fruit so what's the fruit proverbs 11 30 says the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life and he that winnest souls is wise so the fruit what's the fruit the souls actually if you cross reference this and i agree that the fruit would be a tree of life i'm not against that you know that we'd be a tree of life and it's eternal life but if you cross reference what wisdom it says wisdom is a tree of life and if you cross reference that if you said that the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life and he that win his souls is wise the wisdom is likened unto the tree of life and the fruit is likened unto the souls okay so the souls one is the fruit the winning of souls is the fruit of the christian okay but i do also believe that a tree of life because we'd liken say people that you know when it's talking about false prophets and good prophets liking a bunch of trees trees that bring forth good fruit and trees that bring forth corrupt fruit fruit but you're dealing with prophets when you're dealing with that okay you're dealing with prophets that are preaching the gospel or preaching their gospel right they're preaching something so when you look at matthew seven it's not dealing with every all christ all of people combined you're dealing with real prophets false prophets those are two major groups so when you're dealing with uh it's like when you look at you know the sons of god and the sons of belia well there's another group in there okay how about all the unsaved people there okay that are just sons of disobedience and so don't go too far when you're dealing with the trees okay because you'll see where it says you know trees there's fruit with earth without fruit okay and that's where they're going to get into saying well they're without fruit therefore they're not saved okay and so that's not the case uh it says they become unfruitful there's places you know so just because you don't bear fruit or don't win someone to christ if that was the case if the case was that you're only saved if you win someone to christ then a lot less people are saved than you think okay even more than what we think because who in the world i mean it's only independent fundamental pacifier breathing baptists that are actually soul winning good night that would be a slim amount of people that are actually saved and so it's just it's it's not right okay the fruit of the righteous the fruit of a christian is another christian okay and so that's our ultimate goal when you look at this parable what's the ultimate goal to be fruitful that that seed will not only bring forth fruit but that that fruit would bring forth fruit that's the ultimate goal and isn't that the great commission that you win someone to christ praise the gospel to every creature then you then you get them baptized and then you teach them to observe all things which are recommended you so they do likewise so it's just this unbroken chain and if you don't have that unbroken chain then no then there's going to come a time where no one's going to get saved because faith it says the righteousness of god is revealed from faith to faith so you better hope that that keeps going on right people are getting saved then they start getting people saved then they start getting people saved because if that ever broke then we wouldn't be saved right now and so that's the ultimate goal you know we want to get people saved we want to get them baptized we want to get them to start doing likewise i have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth okay so obviously i have no greater i have a great joy to see someone get saved but when i see them win someone in christ i want my younger brother just into the lord when i saw him win someone in christ that was even more joy okay that's that's what i'm talking about and so we need to get into that mindset and so galatian chapter good galatian chapter six i know we kind of already covered this when it came to uh fruit but i just want to talk about being fruitful this isn't automatic this isn't something that's just going to happen just because you're saved and that's what people want you to think is that this is automatic and that's why you have a bunch of lazy no good christians good for nothing christians that salt has lost the saver and christians aren't doing anything in the world because they think that fruit is just coming to church fruit is reading my bible no that's not that's not the fruit of a christian my friend okay now obviously coming to church is a good thing and reading the bible is a good thing but that's not what we're talking about being fruitful being fruitful is multiplying being fruitful is bringing forth somebody and that's what we need to try to do so galatians chapter six verse seven be not deceived god is not mocked for what's our man soweth that shall he also reap for he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption but he that soweth to the spirit shall of the spirit reap life everlasting what's what's the fruit of the rice is a tree of life we're going to reap life everlasting and then notice what it says and let us not be weary in well doing for in due season we shall reap if we faint not now what did it say about these people that reaped that brought forth fruit some 30 some 60 and some 100 now you may say to yourself okay that seems like a low number you know i went 100 people my whole life i've already missed i've already made that mark okay no what this is talking about in due season notice what it says in due season let us not be weary in well doing for in due season we shall reap if we faint not i believe this is a season if you think about trees what's their season annually right now i'm not an arborist okay i'm not someone that's really good on all that type of stuff but i would say every year you know you have a certain period of time where a tree is bearing forth fruit then then it goes through winter it's not bearing anything then come around to spring summer is bearing fruit again so what i believe is this is dealing with that if you want to have a marker as far as how many people you want to win in a year 30 60 100 and so i try to at least make that 30 mark if i can okay but think about this let's say you go out still winning every week and let's say you win let's say you win someone every other week okay being on a conservative route you know you win someone every other week well that's 26 people you're almost at 30 mark let's say you won someone every week because sometimes you're going to win two people you know i've won two people in a day before i've won more than one person a week and so and sometimes it's just you know you got dry spells i'm just saying on average okay but let's say you won let's say you won one person every week that's 52 people a year okay so this isn't crazy to think about this happening because this could happen especially if you're going out every single week and if we get into some receptive areas finally you know we get through all these these hard knocks but sometimes we'll get into those areas where you'll win two three people in one day well that that'll take care of those maybe a couple weeks of dry spells to get you know to keep you on track of one per week right and so this isn't that an ordinary to think hey i can do this i can get 30 people saved a year if i go out every single week that means that if you go out every single week going soul winning you don't even need to win someone every week about half every other week win someone to christ that's not i mean even here i mean i would say on average i win someone every other week and i'd say that's pretty average not not even here but i've talked to other soul winners you know my friend matt stuckey we kind of talked about this as far as uh soul winning it's not that uncommon to say hey i win i win like one person every other week you know because you're going to have times where you win two people and then you're going to have times where you have tries you know you're not going to win somebody a week and so you have those cases so that's why i believe this 30 60 100 comes into cases that i'd look at that as a yearly basis that hey i'm going to try to hit 30 i'm going to try to hit 60 i'm going to try to hit 100 and again i'm not saying that you're like it's all about the numbers and the fact that you're just trying to get that tally but you're just saying you're trying to push it right and so some people are going to be able to win more because they're in more receptive areas some people they have more time to do it so they're going to be able to do that so don't look at and be like oh this person won 60 he won 30 this guy's the better christian okay there's different circumstances and he's blessing them and and basically saying hey some 30 some 60 some 100 and so just giving you some numbers to deal with there to kind of get a little marker as far as what your goals are going to be and so but in uh john chapter four and then we need to hurry here actually go to go to john chapter 15 john 15 that's what i really want to get to that's last thing i want to cover but john chapter four is talking about jesus talking to the disciples says say not ye there are four yet four months and then cometh harvest behold i say unto you lift up your eyes and look on the fields for they are white already to harvest and he that reapeth receiveth wages and gathereth fruit unto life eternal so we talked about this when we were dealing with the parable of the laborers right or entering into other men's labors and stuff like that but what are they gathering fruit unto life eternal right where what are you reaping life everlasting when you go out soul winning that's what you're doing you're reaping life everlasting when you win someone in christ because they now have eternal life and so but john 15 this is really what it comes down to when when you're dealing with this fruitfulness you're dealing with abiding in christ you're abiding in christ remember and now little children abide in him that when he shall appear we may have confidence to not be ashamed before he met his coming remember we were talking about being continuing in the faith being rooted and grounded well abiding in him is how we're going to win people to christ john 15 verse 1 it says i am the true vine and my father is the husband man every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away sound familiar what did he do they were taken away they fell away right these ones that were choked and every branch that beareth fruit he purgett it and it that it may bring forth more fruit so the first thing you need to see here is that you're bringing forth fruit don't be surprised if god's going to try to purge things out of your life isn't that you you start winning people of christ now you're like hey i need to get more serious about this let me start purging some things get these things out of my life so that i can be more fruitful right because if you have things in your life that are holding you back tv you know stuff you know just sinful things or even things that are just getting in your way he wants you to purge that he's trying to purge you make you more righteous so that you can win more people to christ and make no mistake about it if you're if you're not right if you're not right if you're not living for god if you're if you're in sin i'm not saying god can't that you can't never win somebody that way but you're not going to win as many people as if you're living a righteous godly life and getting on the right track filling your mind with the word of god and not with worldly music you're listening to worldly music i'm not saying that you couldn't win someone to christ after you listen to that but you're not going to win as many people as if you're not okay so he's going to purge you so notice you're bearing forth fruit he's not done with you he wants you to bear for bear more fruit okay verse three it says now ye are clean through the word which i have spoken unto you abide in me and i in you as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself excepted abide in the vine no more can ye accept ye abide in me i am the vine you're the branches he that abideth in me and i in him the same bringeth forth much fruit for without me you can do nothing if a man abide not in me he is cast forth as a branch and is withered and men gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned remember the stony ground remember said they withered away remember they sprung up so you see all these applications dealing with the withered they fought fell away they were choked right they became unfruitful why they weren't abiding in christ that's what it comes down to they weren't abiding in christ and you can do nothing unless you abide in christ now it says and they were cast out into the fire and they were burned i guess they all went to hell okay now what you gotta understand is that he's using a picture of something right if you had a tree and certain branches weren't profitable they weren't bearing fruit what are you gonna do you're gonna trim it you're gonna burn the branches because they're useless at that point and so it's not saying they're going to hell it's just saying that he's taking them away he's not using them so you can take that as far as there is a sin under death right there are cases where god you're so withered away and so into sin like saul was and like other people were in the bible god just took you out okay because you're just a reproach to the name of christ and so but in this case all it's really just giving you a picture is the fact that hey you're you're bearing fruit i'm purging away all these people that aren't away from you think about like separation think about how you lose friends even that are saved because you're doing the work of god he's purging you from this stuff why so you can bring forth more fruit because all those branches those dead branches are doing are dragging you down just think of it in a just a physical sense here we're dealing with a tree that has branches that are not doing anything why why would those branches need to take any nutrients right from the vine because it's not doing anything take that away now all the nutrients is going to this this branch that's bringing forth fruit so uh where do we stop there it says verse seven if you abide in me and my words abide in you you shall ask what you will and it shall be done unto you here it is my father glorified that you bear much fruit so shall you be my disciples that's the key here when we're dealing with this parable of bringing forth fruit we're not talking about salvation because the ones that are in stony ground the ones that were among thorns they all received the word they all got saved they all believed but they didn't bring forth fruit you know what that tells me is that if you're not bringing forth fruit then you're not following christ follow me and i will make you fishers of men that's what it means to be a disciple you cannot be done that there's plenty of places where it says unless you're you forsake father and mother and all this stuff you cannot be my disciple it's not talking about salvation it's talking about hey are you willing to give it all up are you willing to forsake your family to do the work of god are you willing to do this to do the work of god and so that's what it's talking about with being bearing much fruit is talking about being a disciple not being a christian being a disciple not being saved being a follower of him and so and at the end there in verse 16 and verse 16 so it says you have not chosen me but i have chosen you and ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit and that your fruit should remain that who's whatsoever you shall ask of the father and my and my name he may give it you there's another key in here you know when it talks about asking you shall receive you need to ask to the will of god who do you think he's going to answer more than anybody else those that are bringing forth fruit those that are abiding in the vine so you want to get a hold of god you want god to answer your prayers then you need to abide in him you need to bring forth fruit and this might be a hard saying and i know i'm preaching to the choir because i'm preaching to people that go out soul winning um but what i'm saying here is that don't get out of it don't get choked by the the cares of this life i'm talking to people that are pretty rooted and grounded but if you're not rooted and grounded get rooted and grounded before the tribulation trials and temptations come you better get into the word of god you better know why you know you believe what you believe don't just say you believe because pastor robinson says it you know uh and i'm i believe i'm teaching you everything right but if you don't know that for yourself you don't search the scriptures daily for yourself you're gonna wither away you're gonna you're gonna be you're gonna fall away and if you don't say in the word of god stay in church stay around god's people then you're gonna be choked by the cares of this life you're gonna be choked by all the pleasures of this world you're gonna be envious of those that are out there having fun on sunday sunday fun day right the sunday's work day that's the way i look at sunday sunday is the time to do work and work for the night is coming for the night cometh when no man can work that's what jesus said he was going to do he must work the works of him that sent me for the night cometh when no man can work and so we need to have that mentality if you're bearing fruit don't get content let god purge you let god make help you to bring for much fruit and so this is a great parable and this is a parable that it really does explain what it's saying although people still have problems with it it seems like some people still think somehow these and it really comes down to they they have a misunderstanding what fruit is and but this is a great passage to show us things that happen to christians when they get saved with the stony ground with the thorns and let's not think that this couldn't happen to us take heed my friends take heed to to this parable and to this lesson that jesus is telling us go out and preach the world the the word of god and the gospel to every creature let the chips fall where they may some are going to fall by the wayside some people are going to get to get saved they're going to get excited and then they're going to be out of it some people are going to get saved they're going to start doing things of god and you're going to be friends with them you're going to be doing you're going to be winning people to christ with them then they're going to get choked by the cares of this life and then they're going to be out but then you're going to have those they're going to be on good ground out of the goodness of their heart they're going to still be striving to purge themselves to bear much fruit to abide in the vine you need to be with those people you need to stick with those people that are wanting to do the work of god and let's not fall back into that type of stuff let's not fall back into the cares of this life this is a great parable dealing with soul winning dealing with the work of god dealing with things that i see all around me with christians and where they fallen how have the mighty fallen it's sad and honestly it's sad and i and i hope to god that those the people that my friends some of the friends that i had that used to be great soul owners used to do great things for god i hope they get back into the things of god but if they don't so be it you know it a lot of people have fallen but other people have stepped up stepped up so uh but that's the parable of the sower the parable of the sower great parable so take these these lessons to heart and let's use them in our lives they finally follow we think from tonight and lord just pray you'd be with us as we go home give us safety in our travels but lord we pray that you'd help us to abide in you help us to read your word to have moisture with the washing of the water by the word lord help us to be rooted and grounded in the truth help us not to be choked by the cares of this life and by the pleasures of this world help us not to be enticed by or be envious of the wicked or be envious of anything in this world because we know it's all going to pass away and lord we just pray that you'd help us to abide in you to bring forth much fruit help us to be a fruitful church to to see many saved to see many baptized and to teach them to do likewise and lord i pray you to use mountain baptist church i pray to use everyone in this room for your glory we pray all in jesus christ name amen