The Parable of Spiritual Growth: Foundation Built on God

The following message from Pastor Greg Laurie is made possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God. If you would like to know how you can become a harvest partner, just go to harvest.org that's harvest.org Greg Laurie has important insights on building a solid foundation for a virtual world. Just make sure your focus is in the right place. Sometimes, when some other person all the way we fall away vision on a shirt and we see little hypocrisy or consistency turn away. Don't build your foundation on a person don't want a pastor don't go to church building on Christ and use them as depends in large part to the way we build a strong foundation today. What can we do to reinforce that foundation properly focused Pastor Greg Laurie answers that question today on a new beginning. As we examine the familiar in these words of Jesus we see a key to growing a faith of strong will see how some succeed in spiritual growth, while others fail will isolate the prescription for success. Let's grab our Bible for dilute chapter 8 were launching the new series whatever he growing Christian needs to know I want to talk about the essentials that every believer needs and play on regular basis. Dare I say it a daily basis that they want to continue to grow and flourish spiritually. The reverse of that is if you neglect these disciplines in SAR times disciplines you will see your spiritual life begin to unravel. You don't outgrow these principles any more than you outgrow your need to eat food or breathe air just as essential as eating and breathing, and drinking are necessary for our survival as human beings all these things. I'll share with you, are necessary for your spiritual life, to talk about the importance of the word of God in the life of a Christian that's been said seven days without reading the Bible makes one week WTA K so you can neglect God's word to talk about the place of prayer.

How to pray, but it talked about the final place of church and the life of the believer. Also, I want to talk a little bit about resisting temptation and knowing the will of God. So really get into that, but I want to talk to you in this message about spiritual growth.

Kind of a flyover. The title of my message is the parable of spiritual growth. Let's pray father now as we look at these words given to us by Jesus, help us to be people who take the seed of God's word readily into our hearts, and may it take root in May there be fruit that lasts a lifetime. So speak to us as we look at your word now in Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Alright, so that brings us to our text, a portion of Scripture we often call the parable of the sower. The Bible doesn't call it that, but it's been called, so will refer to it as such, I think you could just as easily call it the parable of the soil's because it's really about the different kinds of soil that the seed lands in this is a story Jesus tells to explain to us why some press on in the Christian faith and others do not.

Let's read it together.

Luke chapter 8 starting in verse four when a great multitude to gather it come to him from every city. He spoke by a parable about parables illustration an earthly story with a heavenly meaning he spoke by a parable of the sower went out to sow a seed, maybe as Jesus was speaking to the people. There was a sower off in the distance casting to see that he may have just sower over there, a sower went out to sow his seed he sowed something on the wayside. It was trampled down and the birds of the air devoured it; walking as soon as it sprung up and withered away because of like moisture.

Some fell among thorns, or weeds and the weeds sprang up and choked it, others: good ground and yielded a crop a hundredfold when he said these things, he that has ears to hear, so someone asked him the question, what is this parable me and Jesus says to you, it is been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven but to the rest is given in parables that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand how Christ goes on to explain the parable of the sort very clear here it is. The parable is this the seed is the word of God goes by the wayside are the ones to hear. But then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

The ones on the rock of the rocky soil are those who, when the care received the word with joy. They have no root, they believe for a while but in time of temptation, they fall away, the one that fell among thorns are those who, when they've heard go out on their choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life may bring no fruit to maturity, but the ones that fell in the good ground are those who have incurred the word with a noble and good heart. Keep it and bring forth fruit with patients a better translation would be perseverance or endurance. Now back in these days they didn't sell crops like we saw him today. Today we would have a carefully prepared field and we would put our seeds and in neat little rows and we might have an irrigation system already installed in the seed should be watered and so forth. In biblical times that you just have a sower with a second seed hit ripple little hole in it and just picked that seat up and throw it he just walk on, throw it so would go on the road somewhat gone rocky soil, etc. you get the idea. Almost any indiscriminate matter. He would take the seat and fling it to the wind. That's really how we do evangelism. There is a place for one-on-one evangelism but there's also a place of just taking this even throwing it. Did you know that the word broadcast literally means to so see. So when you broadcast. If you take the word of God, you take an crusade and we put it on television or it's on the Internet where it's on the radio that sort of flinging the seat. Is that really a good idea. Oh yeah, it's a really good idea. I want to get the seed to as many people as possible because there are certain people that will never darken the doorway of a church without turn on the TV or the watch it on their laptop or the hearing on the radio and I've heard so many amazing stories of people who have come to Christ listing our radio show watching the TV show someone wrote me last year about a person who watch the webcast on their computer and this individual was a man that had been prayed for by his wife for years and he was watching the crusade on his laptop and at the end when the invitation was given the wife that I walked in he was kneeling in front of his laptop praying to receive Jesus Christ to see. So that's the power of the word of God.

So we just fling the seaweed broadcast this even reach as many as we can.

Paul writes in first Corinthians 3. My job was to plant the seed in your hearts Apollo sets another preacher.

He watered it, but it was God who made it grow. The ones who plan on the ones who water aren't important, but God is important because he is the one who makes the seed grow the one who plans on the one Waters work as a team of the same purpose. So we all have our role in this summer called to preach. Some are called to establish friendships with people. Others are called to pray for this. Others are called to financially invest in this, but every person plays a role and when that individual comes to Christ. You share the fruit of it. Okay, so look at category number one I want to call them the highway. Here's the highway. Here's a good verse 11 of the date the parable is this the seed is the word of God goes by the wayside of the ones who cure and then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts that they should believe we say so to picture birds eating seed you know if you've ever gone to McDonald's or In-N-Out Burger in your seated outside. You know the moment that Fry hit the ground, will probably want to the ground. These birds are trained, they didn't know they're getting me even more aggressive. I was a restaurant the other day but hopped right up on my table just waiting it out. Don't get me started on Siegel's thinking scavenger birds and other they're out there on the beach is waiting for you so it actually is heard me talk about Siegel's my hatred for them and I don't live Siegel's at all. She said you know you talk about Siegel feels that she said I was on the beach the other day with our family. My little boy was eating a hamburger.

This Siegel grabbed it out of his hands and flew off with the team. That's the picture birds, grabbed the seat immediately. So when a person makes a profession of faith.

Satan is like ready to strike. He's ticked off. He's angry. He's lost one of his own.

He wants that person back and he wants him back now, that's all we need to really be praying for you. Believers, but this is really a description of people that you may share the gospel with and they just don't respond. Second Corinthians 4 forces Satan, the God of this evil world has blinded the minds of those that don't believe so there unable to see the glorious light of the gospel that shining upon no matter what you say, no matter what clever arguments you use there just unaffected sometimes are hostile. Sometimes all scream at you and tell you to get out of there face.

Other times are very nice about it if you would you like to come to the harvest Crusade of the no thank you for asking though. Seriously though, would you like to come, no and no matter how much you process. They keep saying no matter what you say. Nothing seems to penetrate.

It's sort of like water off of a ducks back.

Now we need to be careful because sometimes people act as though they don't want it but deep down inside they really do. The woman at the well is a great illustration of this. This is a woman that was engaged by Jesus and initially she was sarcastic she was flippant. She was disrespectful what he was getting through to her and eventually she believed was the first female evangelist of the New Testament. So sometimes people put up the façade acted like they don't want to cure, but really they do so we need to pray for wisdom from the Lord to know the difference or to a person who really is just putting on an act, but wants to cure than someone who just doesn't want to hear it at all. Category number one. Greg Laurie will have the second half of this message just a moment, everybody Greg Laurie here personally inviting you to join us for what we call Harvest at Home.

It's a Bible study. It's a worship service.

It church in your home, you're not able to get out your church right now. If so, join us Harvest at Home people are listening this from around the world listen to this. We have seen thousands of people make a commitment to follow Christ. Join us this weekend Harvest at Home is dawdling today. We are considering the four categories of hearing described in the parable of the sower. Pastor Greg continues his message now called the parable of spiritual growth category number two. This one is really interesting and surprising.

Look at verse 13.

Those are friendlier heard the word look at this received the word with joy but because they have no root for a while. They believe in and time of temptation, they fall away.

These folks are very different from the colonists hardhearted in different highway characters. These are people that seem to get it now. The idea that Jesus is communicating that rocky soil it when you go to Israel. One thing you'll see there's a lot of in Israel are rocks.

Rocks everywhere and their soil that's embedded with rock so sometimes you could plant a seed there and it would shoot up, but because the rocky soil would stop the roots from going on. It would wither in the sun. That's the illustration Jesus is using. So who are these people, these other people.

In contrast to the ones who said no do you do, with you to a crusade.

Are they to come with you to church and when the invitation is given, they respond they walked forward they pray the prayer and they are so fired up. They don't going to just buy a Bible they buy the biggest Bible you've ever seen. They need a wagon to pull around, you know there they start quoting Scripture when you have a time of worship.

They sing louder than anybody else. They lift their hands higher than anybody else.

They talk to everybody about their newfound faith and you say that is the most amazing conversion I've ever seen, and this goes on for maybe a week or two weeks or maybe a month maybe even two months and then don't seem in church pay. I was in your church lately worry, I'm not into that and more.

What I'm not into that and I believe it anymore. What happened to them today would happen to them there. The seeds sown on the rocky soil. And here's the problem with people like this is they will say to others. I went to the whole Jesus freak phase and you know it didn't work for me. I was into it for a while but but it just didn't work for me or they'll say something like how I try Christianity, but it didn't really take with me.

You know what they never try Christianity because Christianity is in a product like toothpaste. We use its Christ and if it didn't take it's because you didn't do your part. That's what it is seeing the real issue here is our heart was shallow soil. It shot up quickly, but it didn't take why because some people are impulsive by nature do we have any impulsive people out there. It took everything I won't post here the first adopter of all new technologies right. I wanted apples and though I wanted with I didn't even finish the sentence. To me, for I wanted you to hear the person in the line of the store with a hall that X dressed up for sale you buy that stuff here. The person who bought that exercise machine because the promise was you would lose all this weight right if you walk down the street in a neighborhood on a Saturday a lot of people have their garage doors open. You'll see those exercise machines. We see people working on them never put Josie closing off him a really expensive closing those of those people that fill for the infomercial they bought the product. They didn't need there just impulsive by nature, so maybe in their Crusader in the church service up front went forward and they said I would go forward to and they prayed the prayer wasn't real. Didn't take. Here's a little more detail. They fall when time of temptation comes verse 13 says he temptation is going to come to every Christian and trials are going to come to that first Peter four says don't be surprised at the fiery ordeal. That is, come on you to test you as though something strange were happening to you. It's not a matter of if it's just a matter of when. It's been said that Christians are a lot like teabags you don't know what they're made of. And so you put them in hot water and some just can't handle it and they fall away. And then there sometimes persecution that causes them to do that Matthew's version of the same parable gives us a little more light in Matthew 1321 in the same parable Jesus is when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word. Immediately they stumble so that new Christian goes home and that probably announces to their family there.

The following Jesus.

And they're not met with a standing ovation. Some cases are met with mockery and rejection and anger sometimes and outright hostility when they see that they so I didn't sign up for this. They walk away you then you were never really a believer to begin with, we think of our Christian brothers and sisters that are suffering around the world right now we have this huge refugee crisis on our laps as people are fleeing from ISIS and many of those people, not all necessarily but many are Christian, or being targeted because of their faith in Jesus Christ. And they've had to suffer greatly and even in America.

Now there's a greater hostility against the Christian faith we see it all the time that's just too much for you and you're just talking to make it why don't want to be persecuted, then you're not gonna make it as a follower of Jesus. But here's the thing you need to think about. If anyone ever persecute you, and by the way, the word persecute means to Hunter to chase it doesn't always have to be a physical assault or a threat against your life might be that termination of a friendship might be the loss of position at work. It might be shown another way a joke at your expense.

But when you are persecuted. Here's what you should do.

Rejoice. Jesus said blessed are you in a better translation would be happy are you happy are you when men persecute you and revile you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

Rejoice, he says, and be exceedingly glad for so persecuted they the prophets that were before you.

Just make sure it's falsely make sure I'm being persecuted because I'm a follower of Jesus. Not because I'm up noxious or mean or unkind, which is often the case where it is a badge of honor, but every believer will be persecuted and if you're a true believer. These difficulties will not weaken your faith they will strengthen it when we say that again. If you are true believer temptations and persecution and trial will not weaken your faith, it will strengthen or maybe for these people when they realize that following Christ meant denying themselves, that was too much for them and they just walked away. For others it might have been unbelief. You know they built their foundation on their emotions and maybe you had an emotional experience.

When you were converted, how many of you had sort of an emotional experience. When you came to Christ. That's good. How many of you did not say I did not, but some do. And maybe you wake up one morning you don't feel that excitement gets all the tune I'm outta here. You know that's why don't like it when people compare their faith to drugs in the amount of drugs no segment Jesus is the ultimate it was some buckaroo. He's not always going to be the ultimate hi okay you're not always going to be in a euphoric state.

That's part of growing up spiritually that you have to always be on an emotional high. This isn't going to work for you. Sometimes we build our foundation on a person and when a person falls away. We fall away. We build our foundation on a shirt and what we see a little hypocrisy or inconsistency. We turn away.

Don't build your foundation on a person. Don't build it on a pastor.

Don't build a church building on Christ and you will stand the test for Greg Laurie and insight on how to find success in the area of spiritual growth and there's a lot more to come as this message continues your new beginning. Now if you weren't able to hear every word of pastor Greg study today, we can help. You can log on and listen online@harvest.org is a study titled the parable of spiritual growth stream. It why your online or download an MP3 for later or get a permanent copy on CD by dialing 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300 everyone pastor Greg care in studio with my friend Darrell strawberry and I have to tell you a story about Darrell.

Not only is he an amazing baseball player. Not only is he a gifted communicator, but he's an excellent bodyguard and I speak from experience because we are at a White House event and the night was going on and on and it was getting later and I said to my wife Kathy. We need to go well. As it turns out there were some very agitated people on the streets doing a lot of screaming and yelling and I'm thinking, how do we get out of here and all of a sudden who walks by, but my friend Darrell strawberry I said hey Darrell what are you doing these is going get ready to leave. I said that I go with you and he said he says sure, come on.

And then we met up with some other guys and I is like the greatest security force around me and I just got really close the demo we navigated our way through it but but does written a brand-new book called churn your season around subtitled how God transforms your life, and Darrell, there's one thing that really got my attention in your new book you dedicate an entire chapter to forgiveness. But you don't just address your own need for forgiveness.

You recounted time when you were the one who needed to extend forgiveness talk to us about the forgiveness was an incredible moment in my life that I needed to understand what forgiveness is all about, because we usually think it's about know about a person when someone is done some to us and affected us and micaceous what was my father had was alcoholic and he had rejected me and yet I kept him out of my life. He beat me when I was a kid I said I really was never going to come out to be anything in there I was I going to be a major-league baseball player play for 17 years and regulation and all that have no relationship with him in my life. And then you know I get saved and God changes me and I just remember him being in the hospital down to San Diego and I was going to do a man's breakfast Saturday morning the gospel to me Friday night about 1 ounce must father to see him and not only more down to see him but he said I want you to go down to him and repent and asked him to forgive you and I was like well, forgive me and all God spoke to me that neither my wife had to call me and pray for me because I told her what was going on and she said you need to listen to God. Need to obey him going through exactly what he said so and I did that and I went down to the hospital and I saw my father walked in and asked Heidi door and I said a few words conversation us and we know the Lord is change me all day God and he said the Lord is change me and I just need – you would you forgive me for keeping him alive in these he shook his head yeah chair rolled out as I've just lost it.

I just laid in his lap cry so hard and I just laid there and just start to feel the presence of God all over me and that he says raise up again. I raised up. He says now the Minnesota prayer and there was out and let him in center press. Would you like except the Lord is change my life and would you like your centering. He shook his ass again and by the Minnesota prayer. He repeated up to me and then a golfer man and I just remember what God spoke to me when I was leaving the hospital staff and he was like Sam all it's never about you and then he said, mom plus I got a car I need you to remember you.

How dare you not forgive him and also gave you an egg and then he reminded me that the forgiveness was not for my father, the forgiveness for me. I carried all my life.

Throughout my baseball career when I was hitting garage running around the bases and take it you are my father's like I'm nothing in here always people during the current calls but I still feel empty and the inside I still have the uniform on it and take your uniform off, but at that moment in the hospital after I got netting and walked out of the hospital. I me God released me and I have never been to say my life is move forward from that point. While powerful story about forgiving a man who really didn't deserve to be forgiven. A man who beat Darrell when he was a little boy but a man that had to be forgiven because Scripture tells us to forgive forgiven people should be forgiving people so there's a chapter in this brand-new book by Darrell strawberry that is titled turn your season around subtitled how God transforms your life so Darrell deals with that topic in this book and much more. And that's why when we want to rush you a copy so you can start reading this amazing story of this amazing guy and what God is done and what God is doing in and through him right now so order your copy of turn your season around by Darrell strawberry yeah that's right.

It's a powerful book, especially for men were sending it to say thank you for your investment to help keep pastor Greg's teaching coming your way here on a new beginning. Your partnership helps us reach lives.

It's as simple as that. People come to know the Lord through this ministry affect last year alone, more than 150,000 decisions were made. So thank you for your investment and be sure to ask for this new book turn your season around. You can write us at a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest time for the next time more insight drawn from the parable of the solar parable of the soils to launch a pastor Greg's new series what every growing Christian needs to know and possible by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God sign up for pastor grades free daily email, devotions at harvest title work