I invite you to turn in the Scriptures this morning to Mark chapter 4. Mark chapter 4. We're working through this book, our study in the Gospel of Mark. And last time we considered the well-known parable of the sower. And this morning is somewhat an extension of that parable, a pressing application to that parable. And we're going to look at just a few verses here, 21 through 25 of the well-known parable of the lamp. This is Mark chapter 4 beginning at verse 21. This is the word of the Lord. And he said to them, is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed and not on a stand? For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest, nor is anything secret except to come to light. if anyone has ears to hear let him hear and he said to them pay attention to what you hear with the measure you use it it will be measured to you and still more will be added to you for to the one who has more will be given and from the one who has not even what he has will be taken away may the lord bless the hearing of his word i wonder when you got up this morning and you decided we're coming to church today, we're going to the Ascondido United Reformed Church for worship, for what purpose ultimately did you come? If I went around and surveyed and asked everyone for what purpose did you ultimately come, I wonder what answers would I get? Would it be the same answer? Would I get 500 different answers? What would be the answer to that question? We have for so long been programmed to ask the wrong questions when coming up to the house of the Lord a great tragedy has happened a great tragedy in the most important blessing that God put in place for salvation it is rarely now even appreciated or understood anymore as it should the greatest blessing God gave an answer to that question why you need to be here why do you come why are we here the answer is because god gave you a way to receive salvation and in receiving salvation we worship him in the splendor of his holiness i want that to set in today this receiving something that god has put in place for us to receive so that it would have its its sort of right place in our thinking when we think about church and we think about worship and we think about coming up to the house of the Lord Jesus made a way for us to receive so great a gift but we have to recover and appreciate the way in which the manner in which we receive so great a salvation and that is why Mark has turned us to the issue of hearing his word that is why Mark has really pressed upon us in this gospel Jesus's emphasis and heavy emphasis I I guess I was really impressed with that studying again this week how much this means to Jesus and why it means so much to him Mark has turned us to this issue of hearing Jesus has done wonderful things in this gospel it's been a gospel of power in our study he has healed the sick he has given sight to the to the blind he has shown his shown his undisputed power by by driving out demons out of people the whole demonic realm submits to his call to his word all with the goal that mark has demonstrated he has wanted to set people free he has wanted to save he came to bring salvation and it has been accomplished with power but what has been painful in our study of mark so far or has been something very painful is chapter three in chapter three mark captured it it was a series of responses to him that were shocking why this response when he came with this intention his own family was not believing the relief the religious leaders had come along and said that he has a demon in his teaching you stop and say here has come the light of the world here he has come to give the good news of the gospel to bring salvation to pull people out of darkness to bring them into light and those have been the responses to him what in the world is going on why are people not listening to him and you see this challenges us this morning as we come to this particular part in a section of Mark's gospel, it challenges us at the most basic point and place of our Christianity. It challenges us as to the heart of our Christianity, how we are responding to Jesus. You all come here. You all gather. Are you hearing him? If the multitudes, now think about this thought. If the multitudes could sit and listen to the very voice preached to them of the son of god they heard it and many did not respond what of us that's the challenge of this of course it is jesus is pressing with this issue jesus is pressing hard with this question how do you address the problem that that's the that's the question how did jesus address this problem of people hearing without listening as we looked at last week and that question takes us now to the basic reason jesus is addressing the problem he desires that people who come up before the lord to listen to his word to hear a sermon that they give all of their focus all of their attention to really listen to him to really listen to him listen in such a way that really does profit your soul and that's what this is about today that's what this is about so i thought about taking a large section because it seemed like a series of parables here but but but this parable is the punch after the parable of the sower and that is what this passage is impressing upon us this morning as we come to this particular little parable of the lamp what jesus is emphasizing first in this parable is the purpose for which he speaks the word the response ability to hear that word and the results that follow from respectively hearing that word respectfully so that's that's sort of the outline here as jesus is providing this little parable the purpose the responsibility to hear and then the results that follow from respectfully hearing all of this comes and is rooted this morning from the parable that jesus said you cannot understand any other parable unless you understand the parable of the sower jesus is rooting these parables that follow from that one to illustrate again the very truth that he demonstrated in the parable of the sower everything is an outflow of that jesus pressed home the main point of that parable and he's not done now with the issue of hearing he's not done with that that's what drives this next parable how now is he pressing us with hearing what is the application strong he uses to press us with hearing well the problem again is that jesus has been dealing with a series of wrong responses to his very message remember the first he captured this for us in the parable of the sower in the parable of the sower he outlined four kinds of responses to the ministry of the gospel preached we're talking about those who come and sit and listen to it who hear it who hear the word of the kingdom preached to them the sower sows he goes out this is jesus and he says the first one fell on the path it fell on a very matted down hard heart a heart that is very similar to a seed landing on a path it will not receive the word and whatever they hear through the activity of satan he comes and immediately takes it away so that it will not bear any kind of fruits to repentance and he goes on and he talks about remember the parable of the rocky soil where it springs up for a little bit and and when these people are immediately received in and they're excited as fast as they came in as fast as they are out because they are tested when hardship comes in life there's tribulation because of the word life goes south on them we looked at a whole bunch of scenarios last time and the word brings to bear the proper light on the thing that has happened and they no longer want to hear that they didn't know what it meant they didn't understand they have to count the cause and they don't like it and they're gone we've seen that in the ministry constantly and there's another kind of here there's there's those who hear the word and there's thorns these are those who who are in the church there's thorns that choke out the life of the word being heard there was once interest now there's no interest these are those who walk up to the house of the lord and and all the the deceitfulness and And the cares of this life have the effect of choking out the word so that it's not heard. And there really is just no interest in this. There's no interest, really. There's no growth. And then he described the good soil, which was really encouraging. It landed on really good soil, and it sprouted up, and it bore fruit. Why, Jesus says, because they heard the word, they understand the word, they received the word, they accepted the word. Those are all the ways the gospel describes the good soil. And they bear fruit in their life. Some 30, 60, and 100 fold. Now, someone could get a little bit confused about all this, I suppose. He himself spoke the parable. The multitudes walked away. And then he only explained it to those who came back and wanted to know about it. His friends. the disciples, and some others. And it sort of begs the question, well, maybe this is sort of Jesus' fault for not making it clear. I've been really pressing that particular question. Is the problem Jesus? Maybe the blame here, we can even go further, is just on His election. Maybe He really doesn't want that light seen by everyone. Jesus is particularly dealing with that thought right now. In our terms, He's putting out the hyper-Calvinistic doctrine that maybe I'm just not elect. That's the problem. And He is putting water all over that fire. Is Jesus the problem? Is Jesus to blame that some don't come in? Is Jesus to blame for the variety of responses? Is His preaching the problem? how many stood there, listened to God's very voice, and the responses were so different, to which we all should say, why? Why are they so different? Was Jesus just not very clear? Maybe, and we talked about the sermon critiques going on in the kingdom last time. You can imagine all the sermon critiques with all these different kinds of responses. And now Jesus addresses this. He begins another parable. And the first thing he does is address in his intention the purpose of his speaking the word which still goes on to this day right now across the whole face of this world right now the lord has set up preachers and think about it all over today the seed is being cast it is being cast cast cast cast he has set this up it's going out right now and he said to them verse 21 is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed and not on a stand? Well, it's kind of a rhetorical question, isn't it? Did anyone there, when they heard that, not know what he was asking? In other words, everyone must have been standing there thinking, of course not. That's too easy. It's obvious. When you light a lamp and you had no electricity in those days, you needed to do that. So in the evenings, you would take them and you would put them up in the greatest spot of a home where it would shine the greatest light in the home. Everyone knows you do that. Everyone knows you need to do that. It would be absolutely foolish to put that off in a corner and under a blanket. Now, what is he doing here? How do you understand that? That's the question. A lot of commentators will immediately go into our personal witness in this particular regard. This is all about us being lamps in the world, and that has nothing to do with this. Anyone who would look at the original language would be really caught by the fact that there is a definite article in front of lamp that for some reason the translations don't pick up. In other words, it means that it goes like this. Does anyone put, is a lamp brought, is the lamp brought in to be put under a basket or under a bed and not on a stand? The lamp. That's what he wants to capture. The lamp. Now, you ask the question, what's he talking about? Who is he talking about? And the answer's easy. Him. Him. Did I come to hide my light? That's his question. Did I come to hide my light to this world? I am, Jesus says, Psalm 119, I am the lamp on the hill. I am the one lighting the path. I am the light of the world. I never came to put my lamp under a bowl. I never came to hide my message. I never came to put it off in the corner. I came and I proclaimed it openly in the streets. I proclaimed it on the mountaintops. That's what he's been doing. And you say, well, I'm a little bit confused about this parable business. I don't understand this parable business. Why is he speaking in parables? All of a sudden, he's just started this new way of preaching. And which is important to note that he didn't start with parables. But for some time now, he has been speaking openly and plainly about the matters of the kingdom. He's been speaking openly and plainly about his person and his work. But the responses of chapter 3 are a huge moment in the Gospel of Mark. Many were not listening, and many were not taking him seriously. And that is what has inaugurated the introduction of parables. Notice you have those responses, and then boom, here come the parables. But what are the parables exposing? Well, we see it in the very meaning of the first parable, which he said is the guide to understanding all the parables. he says the parables are exposing a great divide between those who are in the light and those who are in the darkness jesus said this of course in john's gospel when he gave the glorious announcement in john 3 that god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life and then if you go on and read remember what he said if we get past john 3 16 for everyone who does evil hates the light and does not come to the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed but he who practices the truth comes to the light so that his deeds may be manifested as having been done in god it's it's a remarkable statement here's what jesus is saying to us i'm the lamp in the open i'm proclaiming forgiveness of sins it's witness this when he said son in chapter 2 forgiven are your sins to the paralytic i am announcing the coming of kingdom of god but what has that light brought an exposure of a whole lot of darkness so so why is his light so obscured well why are so many not responding why are so many not looking and seeing the light and jesus is is dealing with a particular problem in this parable of unbelief remember what hebrews said about israel we tend to think of israel going through the wilderness and we we tend to see them as such a different story than us it's the same story and in israel's story as they were going through you know what the author of hebrews says happened every sabbath the gospel was preached to them the gospel was preached to them but for many listen to this statement they did not mix what they heard with faith god has always dealt with his people in speaking the word this is how he brings himself to his people with some they did not they did not mix it with faith they heard it same problem but didn't mix it with faith now that leads us then to what jesus is particularly addressing here he says i'm not hiding my lamp my lamp is out in the open and then he goes on to say in this particular little parable for nothing is hidden except to be made manifest nor is anything secret except to come to light if anyone has ears to hear let him hear which you ask the question well what's hidden if it's not jesus what is hidden what's hidden here today what's hidden here today he's not hidden his message has all been heard today by all of us if he's not the one who's doing any hiding who's doing hiding and that helps now to understand the purpose of the parables the parables are given as light to expose hiding really important they were hiding unbelief and this is jesus's way now bringing it as it all has come out into the open this is jesus's way of explaining the problem exposing unbelief while also exposing belief and faith it's really important and this is what he's doing here with the parables, as he openly rewards those who are hearing him. In other words, my parables, Jesus is saying, bring to light what is hidden. And they are providing a way to further reveal light to those who are in the light. So it's not just that parables are concealing. No, no, no, no, no. No, they're very revealing to those in the light. Jesus is saying this, you can't hide where you are with my word. You can't. The speaking of the word is going to draw out a response. The speaking of the word will, in your life, draw out a response. Either now or on that day, it'll all be exposed. That's the effect of the ministry. That's the effect of the preaching and teaching ministry. now this question then of what is hidden is of immense importance as we understand he's not hidden his lamps are not under a bowl his lamp shining through to the ends of the earth his lamp is is being seen by many he is not hidden there's no lack of light that's been announced by jesus he has preached the gospel everywhere he has come and thrown open his arms saying come to me all of you who are weary and heavy laden i'll give you rest he's announced it on every hilltop I desire mercy and not judgment he said it that's what I desire I desire in this day of salvation to give you guys all mercy and not judgment not a remarkable statement that's his light what is that light doing exposing hearts you could you could apply this in a few different ways but there are undoubtedly people here for all sorts of different reasons be honest today be really honest today as as this challenge that's the jesus's purpose his intention is to challenge with the goal of bringing you into the light so this is a positive challenge the most pressing thing we have always taught and has not been appreciated as it should and we're trying so hard to recover that is the great importance that you come and your drastic need to hear the word of the Lord. That's the reason everyone's here today. The reason. Think of all the dynamics and challenges that go into this. Think of it just for a minute. Four to five hundred people sitting here. All hearing the same message today. In your brains, the truth is hopping around right now. You're processing it. God gave you a processor. But proper response contingent on how you hear it, how you're hearing it. Think then of this challenge right now. Just think of the real challenge of what's going on right now. Do you think there could be listeners here today who think they don't need much of any of this? Well, of course. They don't know what they need, and they don't really find it that appealing. Do you think we could have people here today whose heart is not in this whatsoever? It's merely other factors that bring them into these doors. I don't have to go through the factors. You know what those factors might be. Do you think there's somebody here right now who's really flirting with choosing a path of sin and is about ready to bolt? and therefore can't hear or is in that path of rebellion. Do you think worry is so pressing down on some people right now? Do you think worry is so bearing down on some people in the course of their life that they are having a real hard time hearing the Word of God to any prophet? Do you think frustrations may be about the Escondido United Reformed Church? Do you think people ever stay away from church because of that? Something's gone wrong, they've had a conflict with someone. I'm not going today. You think that goes on? Do you think? You think it's possible the pastor said one thing in the course of the ministry and that has been the thing that has bothered you and shut you down so that you can no longer receive this ministry? One thing that's bothered you. What happens when our ideas of Jesus, whatever they might be, are not in line with his message? In other words, do you think people tune out what troubles them about the Bible when they hear the things they don't like? Or directly then comes close, too close to home? Judgment, sin. In fact, how many want nothing to do with what Jesus is saying and have made a decision today? How many know they should be in church and have made a decision to say, no, thank you to the Word of God? Now put this in context for a minute. My lamp is burning bright. My lamp is shining. I'm not the problem here. But my lamp is revealing those kinds of responses off in the corner. I've put my light up. I have shined it for thousands of years and that light is revealing today who has come to the light and who is remaining in the darkness. Now do you see how that presses us? That's his intention here. What does Jesus do at this point? here is his famous line right after he says this he who has ears to hear let him hear if you have the ability to hear me right now i want you to really take in what i'm saying to you i want it really to come home to your hearts i want you really really really really to listen to me right now. And then he gives the most pressing call. I don't know how to capture it so strongly, but listen, listen, listen. Listen to what I'm saying to you. This may be one of the greatest gospel calls that we have missed. Maybe one of the greatest gospel calls that we've missed. Maybe one of the most underrated statements of Jesus in the Bible, so important, maybe the most important thing that he could say to you right now in your life, what is it? Ready? Pay attention to what you are hearing. You see it? Pay attention. Really take this in. I'm taken by that response because this was the Son of God. this was the preacher of all preachers the best preacher the world has ever known they got to stand and sit and listen to and he had the problem of many not paying attention we have to feel how real that is today because the new testament says he's still preaching he's still doing this today that's the ministry of the word it's the ministry of the gospel it's a matter of life and death that's why this is the the punch to the parable of the sower And this is what I don't want you all to miss here. This has the intention of grace in it. It's wrapped up with grace, isn't it? Why is he saying this? Why is he saying this? Because it's weighed down with concern for you. Be so careful when you come to hear. In fact, Luke says, pay attention how you listen. How you listen. There's what and how. How. really embrace my message, says Jesus, and think a lot about what's being presented to you. And you stop again and you're reminded, what was his message? What was Jesus' message? What was he saying? It would be something if Jesus ran around and came to this earth and said, you're all doomed for hell. You're all going there. You're all going to be scorched. He had nothing more to say. That we would expect to earn the angry response, right? But that hasn't been his message. What was he doing? Well, he's surely warning about the judgment to come, but he's calling people to come to him and know the love of God in the gospel. That's his intention. This is the Savior. I'm the Savior of the world. I am the light. I am the good shepherd. This is the Son of God speaking to us. So that he wanted people to so take in his message that they would, by faith, receive it and be saved and forever be with Him in glory. That's His intention. That is His intention for you. This whole plea may be the most gracious, loving plea He made because in it He was offering to you the remedy for your sins. He's offering you the remedy and the pathway to heaven. And then come back to thinking about how have we really treated listening to His Word? and that's what's absolutely mind-boggling it's that the masses could respond to him in this way what what in the world why and not take seriously his word when that was his message and that was his goal so doesn't that fact alone impress upon us the great precautions and the great care that we should take to hearing his word now we come back to the parable itself we see what he's doing he just said he is the lamp he did not come intend for us to be in darkness he came to expose the dark corner of our hearts he came to expose the darkness we are in and by his light that we would come and that all would be brought out into the open and that we would would hear and and and that our deeds would be exposed that that that we would say we're sinners and that we need you as our light to save us that's the kind of moment we should all have i'm going to illustrate for you how this works and the problem now. I try to provide a concrete illustration, and there's a really good one. Where is the great parable? Where do we find a great parable being told in the Old Testament? Boys and girls might know. There's one great parable that was told. It was by Nathan the prophet. Remember why? Well, the greatest king in the Old Testament, King David. King David, a man after God's heart, had just committed one of the worst sins. Remember? He committed adultery and then he had with Bathsheba and then had her husband murdered and had ultimately the greatest sin. We don't talk about a lot. Trash. The name of the Lord to Israel. It's what the Lord raised. You've scorned my name. Everyone gets to mock now. Remember what happened? The Lord did something in incredible mercy. He sent Nathan, the prophet, and Nathan does this. And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, there were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb which he had bought and he brought it up and it grew with him and with his children it used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms and it was like a daughter to him now there came a traveler to to the rich man and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man's lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him. David's sitting here processing in the brain this parable. It's terrible. That is terrible. I'm a king. I can deal with that. Did David not know that adultery was wrong? Of course he did. Did David not know that murder was wrong? Of course he did. He had heard the law of God all his life. Did David not know that he shouldn't trash the name of the Lord and take it in vain? Of course he did. What was wrong with David's heart? He functionally at that moment was the soil on the path. Why? It went in one ear and went right out the other, and he could get mad at somebody else for his sin. It's a remarkable moment. Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan as the Lord lives the man who has done this deserves to die and he shall restore the lamb fourfold because he did this thing because he had no pity yeah exactly doesn't that say something about your hearing do you see it illustrated the problem you can hear and not hear you can see and not see and you think you do it's just what jesus is saying did david pay careful attention to what he was hearing the parable at this point because of his sin listen is because of his sin blinded him to his own life and you see that is how we could hear and not hear that is how we could hear and not hear thou shall not commit adultery that is how we could hear and not hear thou shall not commit adultery and then get mad at somebody else or blame the messenger which he could have done but what happened that parable was intended to bring him into the light that parable was intended to bring him into the light and hearing turned to listening when Nathan said you are that man. He could have fought that. Did he? What were the next words out of his mouth? I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan then shows the intention of God in the parable. Don't fear. God has put away your sin. That's just remarkable. What a God we have. For God said, let light shine out of darkness. the light shine may this light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of god's glory displayed in the face of christ and when we see him who visited us who came to us to save us to love us to speak to us we say lord i have sinned i have sinned i'm hearing now it's me i have sinned i now see me and i now see jesus that's hearing and that's the kind of hearing he says that's lasting that's the good soil it's that kind of fact that the word should be having on our life and jesus concludes with what i believe depending on how you're taking in what's being said to you right now either the greatest encouragement to you or the worst news you could ever get it's either or depending on where you are he says with the measure you use it it will be measured to you and even more whoever has will be given more whoever does not have even what they have will be taken from them here's here's his here's here's here's the punch here's the the hard hit of the parable of the sower all intending grace pay really careful attention to the ministry of the word to you because with the measure you use it remember i said earlier hold on to that by diligent use of the means of grace with the measure you use it it'll be measured back to you if you hear more will be given that is so encouraging use it use it use it use it be here be here be here be here which some we've said this to all our life and they don't seem to hear that call use it use it this is plea devote your life to this if there's one thing you're going to devote your life to that's really going to matter devote your life to this he says there are many things that you're doing right now that are not profiting your soul and that you think are profiting your soul and they're not i'm giving you the answer that will profit your soul i'm giving you the answer this morning, and it's free. This is how God communicates to you. This is how God makes himself known to you. God has always dealt with sinful human beings this way. He has spoken his word, and he says, by that word, I preserve you. And it pleases me to save you through the spoken word this is why our heidelberg says that the preaching of the gospel opens the kingdom of heaven to believers and shuts it to unbelievers it's right here in this particular parable it opens heaven's door and it closes it so that the very truth of what jesus said to those who hear more will be given that the ultimate destination when they hear is heaven and jesus says you watch the fruits that will flow in your life from this you watch those who reverently and joyfully those who receive my word and accept my word humbly and believe my word oh i'm going to add a lot he just said i'm going to add a lot to you the gospel will fill you the joy of your salvation will drive you you're going to grow and you're going to grow and you're going to grow that's the 30 60 and 100 fold of the parable of the good soil i'm going to measure it back to which i say if you find yourself spiritually dry miserable complaining about everything under the sun i can trace that back most likely not to a lack of devotions i can trace that back to your very attitude to the word of god when you come here what place does hearing have in your life To those who hear, I'm going to measure it back, he says. He said that. And the truth of what Jesus also says here is shown in their lives. Whoever does not have even what he has will be taken away. It harkens back to the first soil who heard it and the devil came and pulled it. That kind of person represented by the first three soils walk a course of path, a path pining away. But those who have known his power know the forming influence of the word that there is real power here. There is real power here. I have this phrase. We'll close with this. I have this phrase in my Bible. I wrote down. I think about the time in my profession of faith. I still have my Bible. And I'm thinking of you too. Sin will either keep me from this book or this book will either keep me from sin. It was a popular phrase going around at the time. You ever heard that one? Sin will either keep me from this book or this book will either keep me from sin. I think we can do better. Hearing with all my heart will keep me in God's grace from the path of sin and destruction. Or sin and the choice not to hear will keep me from his word and hearing it with profit. It's a tragedy today that the ministry of preaching is the most undervalued aspect of worship today. Never did God say through the use of music, use it, use it, use it, you'll be blessed this way. Never did He say these sort of things and all the things that we're after today in the church. Never did He say those sort of things. Bill, have the church be what you want it to be and then it'll be something for you. People aren't kept that way. I can't help but to close with how wonderful the grace of God is to us. We all know the ability to hear is a gift of grace. And you all know, feeling the weight of that this morning, the barriers are too strong. But think of what he means when he says, blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear. Psalm 143, let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. He who hears the word that way, To the profit of the soul. Taken by the wonders of love and grace. He promises you something today. You will never lack. He will not disappoint you. He will satisfy you more and more and more in the knowledge of his love. So I hope all of us today hear him when he says, pay attention to what you hear. It's the most important thing He could say to you today. Heavenly Father, we are so thankful that You press us where we need to be pressed. We are thankful for Your Word, which breaks into our hearts, and we realize how shallow we are with Your Word, and how in the course of our lives we've heard many sermons, and the most trivial, superficial of things have blocked us from hearing it. And so we fully express our dependence upon You and Your Spirit to break through to these matted hearts. That they would be hearts of flesh that receive your word with profit and that we do not go in the path of Israel who heard the word but did not mix it with faith, but that we would hear your word and believe. Thank you. You care to give us this and do this for us. May every single member here today of the Escondido United Reformed Church hear with profit and pay attention to what they hear and be the good soil that bears great fruit some 30, 60, and 100 fold. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.