Matthew 13:3-23 I am sharing with you my thoughts about verses 3-9 but read verses 18-23 for God's word; The Holy Bible, through the Holy Spirit, clearly shares the entire meaning...
3 "Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed." --- seeds are the believer who shares The word of God, the given nudge/oppurtunity of the Holy Spirit.
4 "As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up." --- The moment the receiver
hears, "it goes in one ear and out the other" it's complicated or
boring... verse 19 tells it best "the evil one comes and snatches away
what was sown in their heart."
5 & 6 "Some fell on rocky
places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because
the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were
scorched, and they withered because they had no root." --- The Word
of God the nudge of the Holy Spirit feels right at the time you hear
with your heart, but you go about your day with no devotion to the Lord.
7 "Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants." --- Here again you hear with your heart but your not willing to repent and if you do repent you still continue to sin, and sin separates us from God.
8 "Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." --- Ahh the good soil like us!
His Word the nudge of the Holy Spirit sets your soul on fire and you
grow in the knowledge of Christ! your light shines before others and
people want to know, what is it about you? Finally verse 9 "Whoever has ears, let them hear." Luke 24:45 "Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures."
God chooses; John 15:16 "You
did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might
go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in
my name the Father will give you."
so Lord I ask you now help the reader to let go and let You God, that once we share the word, "sowed seed" as a witness for You Lord, that we understand and appreciate that it is Your choice to water the sewn seed... in understanding with reverence I ask you to bring the rain! in Jesus Name Amen
The Full Armor of God Ephesians 6
Paul uses the armor of the Roman soldier to illustrate for us being clothed in The Mighty Protection of our Lord Jesus Christ, probably because the Roman soldier was a mighty warrior and their armor was made from the highest quality!
The Helmet of Salvation; The helmet was made not only to protect the cranium, but also had a sloping edge down the back to protect the neck and flaps that draped down between the eyes and ears for protection as well. It was necessary to protect the back of the neck, because one of the best ways to overtake an enemy was to approach from the back and cut off their head. In regards to our spiritual helmet of salvation; if a person isn't “Born Again” then they are not saved by God's grace and have no salvation. When we have life in Christ all things are made new! “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 It is the foundation that the rest of our spiritual lives can live by.
Romans 12:2 “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is–His good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Salvation given to the believer was procured by the precious blood of Jesus, which makes us clean and initiates us into the Kingdom of God.
The Breastplate of Righteousness; "with the breastplate of righteousness in place" It is very important for the child of God. The breastplate is directly related to the use of the shield. Righteousness is a byproduct of faith, as we grow in our spiritual walk with the Lord, we trust in God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.
We can see exactly how one is recognized as righteous by God “By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
The Belt of Truth; "Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist" The belt in the Christian Armor is our knowledge that Jesus walks into battle with us every day! Jesus is the truth of God, sent to us in human form: Jesus said; “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6
Just as the belt held the chain armor down and helped to keep everything in place, Jesus who is in our lives, is the binding force that keeps our lives from falling into ruin. The belt was used to sheath the sword in the Roman soldier's uniform. The sword of our spiritual armor is the Sword of The Spirit. Spirit and Truth always go together, Jesus even calls the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth...
“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—He will testify about me." John 15:26
The Gospel Footwear; "with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace"
Did you know that the Roman soldier's shoes, had nails in the soles? They where placed there for grip and sure footing, much like cleats worn for football or baseball...With our spiritual shoes shod tightly on our feet, we can go through the rough times categorized as rough terrain and come out unharmed. After Jesus sent His disciples out, They returned to Him joyful, saying “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
Jesus replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” Luke 10
The Shield of Faith; "take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one." The Roman shield was rectangular and was about as tall as the soldier himself. He could use it, while using his sword or he could crouch behind it to protect himself from arrows and spears. Before battle, the soldier would soak their shields in streams or lakes until they became saturated with water. No doubt they where heavy, but any flaming arrows that the enemy would shoot at them where quickly extinguished.
What is our shield? It is the knowing that God has our lives in His full view and that He is in control of every situation or circumstance that comes against us...True faith is not only believing that Jesus is the Son of God, but believing Jesus for His promises, His love, His grace and His return. It is believing that whatever comes our way is in His hands. "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1
The Sword of The Spirit; This Roman weapon, was a short double-edged sword, made of superior metals.Their mastery of the sword made their enemies tremble in fear. The sword of the Spirit, IS the Word of God.
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness cannot comprehend it." John 1:1-5
"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." Hebrews 4:12
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The Helmet of Salvation is the basis upon which all the other pieces work efficiently & effectively, just like Christ is the head of the church, the body of Christ operates productively. Our mind is where the Enemy likes to attack first, he tries to convince every Christian at one time or another that we are not good enough to be saved; that the last sin that we committed has exceeded the limit of God's grace. That is a lie straight from hell because the Grace of God knows no bounds and is limitless!
Our unseen enemies cannot enter in on their own, they use the things of this world to plague our mind to distract our thoughts and cause us to give into our worldly desires... When a Christian is convinced that they have exceeded God's "grace limit" in essence, they have removed the helmet of salvation then the other pieces of armor are rendered useless... The Christian no longer believes that they are righteous, so the breastplate comes off. They also believe that they have betrayed the truth, so the belt of truth comes off. Then, when they feel that all hope is lost, they let go of the sword of the Spirit. They feel like God has abandoned them, so the shield of faith is worthless because their faith has withered & faded like the flower. When all is said and done, we have completely stripped ourselves of all armor, making ourselves completely vulnerable...
Lets look at the upkeep of the armor; the Roman soldier had to maintain his armor, sword, and shield. Rusted armor falls apart. The breast plate can easily be penetrated by the weakest weapon, if the handle of the shield breaks off, you can't maintain the weight and hold the sword at the same time. A sword that is not sharp, is also not very effective.... Armor is a high maintenance item, it constantly has to be cleaned, sharpened and shined. How are we to do that with our Spiritual armor? Paul tells us in Eph. 6:18 “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” Other scripture references like Joshua 1:8 “Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.” and these places that can be found in our Bible Psalm 1:2-3, Philippians 4:6, 1 Peter 1:9, Acts 4:12, Hebrews 4:16, Proverbs 8:35, Romans 1:16, last but not least we have the first chapter of James which sums it up nicely.
Paul also said “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” The armor will do us no good if it is neglected... Therefore, our armor has to be on from the time we are awake until the time we close our eyes for sleep.
We are warriors in Christ so suit up!
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"If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen" 1Pet. 4:11 NIV
