Understanding His Teaching

Main Passage: Mark 4:1-34

Memory Verse
And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables.
Mark 4:11

Devotion
If we rated Jesus by today’s standards it’s hard to say how we would rate him. Jesus told stories called parables which may have been helpful for some people to remember, but they were also difficult for some people to understand. Today’s teachers usually have to teach something so that everyone understands it, but Jesus didn’t mind it if only a few people really understood. The reality is that Jesus was a master teacher. He knew that some people were probably just there to see him or see a miracle. Jesus wanted his message to be heard by people who really wanted to hear. The people who heard the message and understood it were blessed by it and now had the opportunity to live out his teaching. Hopefully as Christians we are constantly working the soil in our lives to make sure that our hearts are prepared before we read scripture and listen for God’s voice. We want to hear the words of scripture, understand what they mean, and strive to live them out. Many of us have grown up in an environment where we already have a pretty good understanding of what the scriptures say, but it's a whole different level of understanding that causes us to live them out. As an example, think about seat belts. Most people know that the law requires you to wear one. They have an awareness of the law. A police officer can probably recite the exact law. He's not only aware of the law, but he knows it. Finally, someone who's been in an accident and was saved by wearing a seatbelt, has a profound understanding of why we are supposed to wear seatbelts. We've been saved by Jesus. We should long to have a profound understanding of his Word so that it moves us to action and faithfulness.

Questions to Ponder

• Are you a person who really wants to hear from Jesus?

• What level of understanding do you have of scripture? Is it just an awareness, a knowledge or a true understanding?

• What kind of soil are you? How do you receive the words of Jesus when you read them?

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