The Mysterious Growth | Mark 4:26–29

26 And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

While we know a good bit about the growth cycle of plants, we don’t know everything.  That’s not to say that we can’t know much more through investigation, but we must admit that we have neither observed nor concluded all there is to know.  In a similar way, Scripture gives us need insight into spiritual botany, but God alone knows the full mystery of kingdom growth.

First, we must note the spiritual mysteries of our own growth.  It’s clear that salvation is monergistic, worked by God alone (Eph 2:8–9).  Still, Scripture presents tension between repentance and regeneration—some places seem to describe one giving rise to the other, and vice versa.  Similarly, our efforts seem to be maturing us, yet it is the power of God that actually works within us (Phil 2:12–13).  So, both the salvation and the sanctification processes are largely mysteries to us.  Moreover, we don’t know the number of days of our lives, and God will harvest when He decides our time has been sufficient.

Second, we must note the spiritual mysteries of the kingdom.  We move from the individual stalk to the entire crop, the size of which is also unknown to us.  The kingdom of God gains citizens every day.  In Revelation 20–21, we read about the future, earthly reign of Christ that then moves into God’s eternal reign over the New Heavens and New Earth. 


Today, the kingdom of God is not yet ready, with each conversion being another sprout appearing in the field.  Christians share the gospel, but we must trust the unseen Spirit do His mysterious work to bring kingdom growth.  As Paul said in 1 Cor 3:6, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.”  Once God determines the growth to be ready, He’ll apply the sickle and bring all of His people into His future kingdom. 

Popular posts from this blog

RE: "Pastor Dayna Muldoon EXPOSED"

Image
It enough to make your heart ache.  "Pastor" Dayna Muldoon  has been pitching her tent in Florida, and like Todd Bentley before , false claims to miracles, healing, and prophecies litter her campsites. This video of a Calvary Chapel pastor exposing her as a false prophet has been appearing in various places, and its been uploaded to YouTube multiple times.  Even Todd Friel got animated about this , and nothing gets him hyper. Here's the deal: Muldoon set up her tent-meetings right down the road from Calvary Chapel St. Petersburg , peeking the interests of many attending the church.  When they listened to the message she presented, however, they found it not to be the Gospel, but instead the typical narcissistic message of health and blessings from God. This is coming from a Calvary Chapel crew, folks that are typically non-cessationists themselves.  Many churches, including this particular Calvary Chapel , host after-glow services where one expects similar claims
Click to read more...

Was Rebekah a child when she married Isaac?

Did Isaac marry a three-year-old?  If you've never pondered this question, it's because nothing in the straightforward reading of the text would suggest that Rebekah was a toddler or that their marriage was arranged. Even so, a couple of verses out of context could be used by skeptics to prove anything.  While perusing the web for a related topic, however, I found a thread stating that the Bible isn't against the raping of children .  The cited evidence was this issue, the claim being that Isaac engaged in pedophilia. The question comes from the fact that Genesis 22:23 announces the birth of Rebekah after the binding of Isaac.  Tradition states that Isaac was then thirty-seven, and Scripture says that the two wed when Isaac was forty (Gn 25:20).  Hence, Isaac robbed the cradle. The whole theory is fraught with assumptions, the primary being that Scripture never records a age marker for Rebekah.  Further complicating the matter, however, is Jewish tradition, which spe
Click to read more...

MacArthur: Calvinism in a Nutshell

Image
From YouTube: Calvinism (Also know by Doctrines of Grace or Reformed theology) John MacArthur use Romans 8:28-30 as main text. The five points of calvinism are Total depravity (total inability), Unconditional election, Limited atonement (Also called particular redemption or definite atonement), Irresistible grace (also called efficacious grace), and Perseverance of the saints. Full sermon http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/90-427 Romans 8:28, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren. And these whom He predestined, He also called. And these whom He called, He also justified. And these whom He justified, He also glorified."
Click to read more...