In the sermon 'Eyes to See, and Ears to Hear,' Jason Dohm explores 1 Thessalonians 2:13, emphasizing the importance of recognizing the Word of God as divine rather than human. The sermon highlights the role of spiritual parents like Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, who nurture new believers with care and guidance. It discusses how receiving the Word of God involves more than passive hearing; it requires welcoming it with a disposition that leads to transformation and fruitfulness. This transformation is likened to the parable of the sower, where different types of soil represent the varied responses to God’s Word. The sermon underscores that the ability to truly see and hear God's Word is a gracious gift from God, breaking through human inability to perceive spiritual truths. It encourages believers to be thankful, to pray for God’s intervention in evangelism, and to evaluate the place of God's Word in their lives for spiritual growth.

So our sermon text for today is for Cessalonians chapter 2 verse 13, but I will be starting at verse 1 for context. For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain. But even after we had suffered before and were spitefully treated at Philippi, as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much conflict. For our exhortation did not come from error or uncleanness, nor was it in deceit. But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the Gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.

For neither at any time Did we use flattering words, as you know, nor a cloak for covetousness? God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, when we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us.

For you remember, brethren, our labor and toil, for laboring night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, we preach to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses and God also, how devoutly and justly and blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe. As you know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one of you as a father does his own children, that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into his own kingdom and glory. For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you receive the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, The title of the sermon this morning is, Eyes to See and Ears to Hear. I believe that's the thrust of our single verse this morning, is that God had given these people in Thessalonica eyes to see that His Word was His Word and ears to hear.

And to be able to discern that these were not merely man's words, but that the preaching of Paul and Silvanus and Timothy was the word of God to them. Last week our text was about spiritual parenthood. Paul and Silvanus and Timothy are putting themselves forward as the spiritual parents of these new believers. They say, we acted among you like a nursing mother who cherishes her baby. We acted among you like a nursing mother who cherishes her baby.

We acted among you like a father who treats his own children with varying kinds of instructions. A skillful father who knows what kind of instruction to bring for which circumstance. Who lays aside their own self-interest and is willing to take burdens upon himself in order to be a blessing and not to be a burden to the new converts. Last week we had the conduct of good spiritual parents. We also had the objective of good spiritual parents.

The objective of any good spiritual parent is this, that their spiritual children would walk worthy of God who called them into his own kingdom and glory. So if you're in this room and you're a spiritual parent, then that must be your objective that your spiritual children, those who have received the gospel from you and who you've continued to invest in their lives so that they would make progress in the faith. This should be your objective, that they would walk worthy of God. What a high objective. Who had called them into his own kingdom and glory.

And so Our sermon last week ended with it being God who gives spiritual parents. In other words, it wasn't chance that made Paul and Silvanus and Timothy spiritual parents to the Thessalonians. It was God who gave Paul a vision in the night of a man from Macedonia who said, come over here and help us. That's why they're the spiritual parents. So it wasn't chance that made them the spiritual parents of these new converts.

It was God, and in the same way, it's not chance that gave you your spiritual parents. It was God's kindness to you to send people to you to preach the Gospel, and then after you embrace the Gospel to continue to invest in your life so you can make progress in the faith. How kind God is. This week we just have one verse that is sort of unusual for us. It is about how the Thessalonians received the preaching that Paul and Silvanus and Timothy did.

They went to Thessalonica and they preached their hearts out and their preaching was received in a certain way. This verse is about that. And then this verse is about what that word does, what that preached word does, in those who embrace it. So a shift is happening in this verse. In verses 1 through 12 of this chapter, every verse that preceded this one, it was about the evangelizers, those who were bringing the Word of God to this unreached people group.

And in this verse we have a shift, and it's about the evangelized, the ones who were hearing this preaching of the gospel. And so Paul and Silvanus and Timothy have completed the defense of their ministry among the Thessalonians and now they're turning their attention back to those who have embraced the Gospel. As we go to the text, let's pray. Father, I thank you for your Word. Thank you for the Gospel that reveals you as holy, that reveals us as sinful, and that reveals Christ is sufficient to bring us together.

Thank you for your Word which teaches us how we can live a life that honors you, pleases you. God I pray that we would be those people in whom your Word works effectively. Your Word would take root and grow and bear fruit in our lives so that the onlooking world may see our good works and glorify our Father who is in heaven. May it be so in Jesus' name, Amen. So I have one verse and two points.

Here is the first point. Receiving the Word of God as the Word of God. I want to talk about that. So if you are filling in blanks on the handout, it is receiving and as. Receiving the Word of God as the Word of God.

It is possible to hear the Word of God, but not recognize it as the Word of God. To reject that the words that you are hearing are actually coming from God. So that is what this verse is about. Verse thirteen begins with these words, for this reason. Now what reason?

It either has to point backwards or forwards, and linguistically, it could be either. Meaning, when I read the commentators, the ones who know Greek well say, you can't tell from the construction of the Greek whether it's pointing backwards or forwards. It could be either one. But I want to labor to convince you that it doesn't matter one lick whether it points backwards or forwards, because essentially it is the same thing. Let's look at this.

If it points backwards, it would be pointing to the very last phrase of verse 12, which is that God calls them into his kingdom in glory. There is a God of heaven and earth. There is a God who has called everything into existence by the power of his word, who has called them out of darkness and death and into his marvelous light and life and glory and beauty and joy and love who had taken them out of a kingdom of darkness and death where there is no hope into a kingdom of light and life and joy and beauty and that this transfer from that kingdom into this kingdom affords him praise. Meaning nothing could be more fitting than the God who did that for you would receive thanks and praise and honor and glory from your lips and in your life and as long as God gives you breath. What could be more fitting than that?

Or, so that's one choice, reaching back into verse 12 and saying for this reason reaches back into the call of God from one kingdom into another. If on the other hand it is forward, now we are talking about embracing the gospel preaching and recognizing it as the Word of God. Then we are thanking God for that. Is it different? Is being called out of a kingdom of darkness into a kingdom of marvelous light any different than being given the gift of embracing the Gospel and recognizing the Word of God for what it really is.

Not the words of man, but the Word of God. No! These are almost identical things and they are both fantastic reasons to thank God without ceasing. That's really the point, not whether it points backwards or forward, but what is in view. And what is in view here, the continual unceasing thankfulness towards God for the transfer of kingdoms, for the ability to embrace preaching of the Gospel as it actually being the Word of God.

Not just a million other of the words of man, but something unusual, something unique, something that transcends men's words, but is the Word of God. So that is what is in view here, the continual thanking of God. That's what Paul and Silvanus and Timothy are calling us here, to continual thanking of God for that. And when you read this verse, it's easy to minimize or lose that. It's easy to read it this way.

God, thanks for giving us a kind greeting. God, thanks for Letting these people listen seriously for what we've been saying. After all, there are a lot of people who are not greeting them kindly, and there are a lot of people who are not listening seriously to what they've been saying. This is a group who has greeted them kindly and is listening seriously to what they're saying. It's easy to read this verse, God just thank you for that.

They didn't mistreat us and they didn't just dismiss us. Thanks be to God for that. There's so much more here than just that. To read it that way would almost be a thanking of the Thessalonians, but we know we are supposed to thank God in everything and so we just sort of divert a thankfulness for how we've been received to God. It's not that.

It's so much more than that. When we're being genuine, authentic, true, real. We thank the party responsible. Right? When we're being authentic, when we're being genuine, and we give thanks, you're acknowledging, you did this.

You are the responsible party for this. That's why I'm thanking you. This is not me being polite. This is me acknowledging that you did it. That's what Paul and Silvanus and Timothy are doing here.

They're acknowledging that God did it. That God is the responsible party. That's why they say for this reason We also thank God without ceasing because God is the responsible party for everything else that is in this verse. Scripture teaches that whenever anyone receives the Word of God as the Word of God, that was the gracious work of God. This is what the Bible teaches from the first page to the last.

When anyone is able to recognize that the Word of God isn't the words of man, but something that transcends that, that is actually God speaking to us. If you're able to recognize that, God did it. It's the gracious work of God. You didn't deserve that. That's the gracious part of it.

You didn't deserve to be able to see this when so many others can't see that it's actually the Word of God. You didn't deserve it, but God is being gracious to you and giving, supernaturally giving you the ability to see what thousands and millions and tens and hundreds of millions of people cannot see that this is the Word of God. So Paul and Silas and Timothy see the Thessalonians listening to their preaching and recognizing this is God speaking to us. And so, they see that, they see the Thessalonians being given the ability to recognize that this is God. And they say the Holy Spirit's been here.

God did this. That's what's happening in this verse. Don't read over the Thanksgiving as Paul and Silvanus and Timothy being polite. No! No!

They're not being polite. They're acknowledging that what they can see, which is the Thessalonians having the ability to say, this is God speaking to us, is the gracious work of God. So they recognize God did that. Remember what Paul said in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14. We keep hitting this verse but I can't resist bringing it up again.

1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14, Paul says, but the natural man does not receive the things of God. Ok, so let me pause there. We are going to do the whole verse. Let me pause there. Paul says something striking.

People in their natural condition don't receive the things of God. We don't naturally recognize that the Word of God is the Word of God. The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him. You give the natural man the words of God and he says foolishness. This makes no sense to me.

This isn't true. Not only is this not the word of God, it's not even the words of a man who is telling the truth. It's foolishness. The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God for they are foolishness to him, nor can he know them because they are spiritually discerned. So Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14 describes you, me, everybody in their natural condition and it is a condition of utter and complete inability.

You get that? You were born that way. I was born that way in a condition of utter and complete inability to receive the things of the Spirit of God. I don't and I can't because they are foolishness. They just seem like foolishness to you and me unless God intervenes.

Now how can anyone escape this state? You don't receive the things of the Spirit of God because They are foolishness to you. And you can't. Because you just can't receive the things that seem to be foolish to you. It seems like an inescapable state, doesn't it?

Like, how am I going to get out of that condition? It is the Word of God, but I think it's foolish. How am I going to get out of that condition? It is the Word of God, but I think it's foolish. How am I going to get out of that condition?

Ephesians 2 explains it to us. So please turn to Ephesians 2. Turn to Ephesians 2. Ephesians 2 tells us how we get out of that state of utter inability to receive spiritual things, to recognize that the Word of God is the Word of God. Ephesians chapter 2.

I want to read verses 1 through 10. We're here a lot, I know that. Ephesians chapter 2 verses 1 through 10. Paul writes, And you, he made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, Among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. And were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved. And raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works lest anyone should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Paul here is describing the same state both places.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 2, he says that the natural man, the things of the spirit are foolishness to him. He does not and he cannot receive them. In Ephesians chapter 2, he just says you are dead in your sins and transgressions. You are just dead. He is describing the same state of utter inability.

And Then we have some of the most precious words in scripture in verse 4, but God who is rich in mercy. That's how you get out of this state of utter inability that you would never in a thousand lifetimes think to pull yourself out of. But God who is rich in mercy, God reaches into that state of utter inability And it is His grace that saves. Yes through faith. Yes through our faith.

But that faith is a gift not a work. Ephesians 2 is so foundational. If you don't get what's being said here, you end up crediting yourself with being saved. It strips the glory away from God and you pat yourself on the back as if you figured it out. But no, Paul is teaching something completely contrary to that in Ephesians chapter 2.

It is all of grace. Yes, through our faith, but the faith is a gift and not a work. If you believe, you should thank the responsible party. That is God. That is what is happening in 1 Thessalonians 2 verse 13.

They are recognizing and thanking the responsible party for the gift of faith. This totally eliminates boasting and reserves all of the glory for God. This is why we thank God when someone receives the word of God as the word of God. Now let's go back to our verse, back to 1 Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 13. And let's look at the exact wording here.

Verse 13, For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it, not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God." So I'm going to stop there for now. There are two Greek words here. The first is, they received the word of God which they heard from Paul and Silvanus and Timothy. So the first Greek word is rendered received here in the New King James. They received the word of God which they heard from Paul and Silvanus and Timothy.

So the first Greek word is rendered received here in the New King James. They received the word of God which they heard from us, from Paul and Silvanus and Timothy. This word means to have teaching imparted to you. So when you go look at the Greek in depth, that's what it means in its expanded form. Received is an excellent rendering of the word.

But if you expand it, it means to have teaching imparted to you. So someone transmits teaching to someone else. There's something, there's content, and it gets transmitted from the teacher to the hearer. And if you're the hearer, the choice you had is that you agreed to sit there and listen. That's it.

That's the extent of this word. Okay, I'll sit still and not stop up my ears. I'll hear what you're transmitting. But there's nothing about your disposition towards what was taught. So you received it.

You sat still and you didn't jam your fingers in your ears. So far that's where we are in the verse. It is clear that the Word of God being spoken of here is preaching. Now at the beginning of the week I had intended, I had thought this would be a sermon about the inspired Word of God, Scripture coming through Paul and the Apostles. But it's so clear that this is about the preached word, not necessarily the written word.

The written word isn't excluded, but these are words that are heard. These are sermons that were preached. That is the Word of God that is being spoken of here. So, I could preach a sermon on how Paul and the apostles received direct inspiration to give us scripture, but I think that would be to teach a wonderful truth from the wrong verse. So, I'm not going in that direction today.

This is preaching. And as you look at the phrase, Word of God or Word of the Lord, throughout particularly Acts, Usually it is an association with preaching and sometimes the preaching is done by the apostles, by directly inspired men through whom scripture came, and sometimes it's preaching done by others. It's not always by those who were inspired to give us inerrant scripture. I think the clearest example of that is Paul in Romans chapter 10. This is a very famous text.

Paul in Romans chapter 10 talks about how essential it is that we send preachers. Because how can they believe if there aren't preachers? How will they hear if there aren't preachers? He concludes that section in Romans 10 verse 17, So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. There is that phrase that we have in our text.

Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the word of God. By what? Directly inspired preachers only through whom scripture comes? No, by anyone who preaches the gospel faithfully. Anyone who preaches a gospel that is consistent and faithful with the inspired word that God has given us.

Yes, the apostles did that, but so many others during this time in the centuries that followed did that as well. And it was the Word of God the whole time, not just when Paul and Peter and James and John did it. It was the Word of God the whole time, and it's the word of God this morning. To the extent that the preacher stands before you today and is faithful to these words in scripture, this is the word of God that is being taught in this verse today. So it was the Word of God that had been preached to the Thessalonians.

And it is the Word of God. It is God speaking to people when He sends us to preach to the world. It is the Word of God. We can stand with such joy and confidence when we stand before people and faithfully give them through preaching the Gospel and Scripture. We can say without blinking or without apologizing, this is the word of God for mankind.

That's the first word. They received the word of God which they heard from Paul and Silvanus and Timothy. They sat still and listened. The second word is they welcomed it. Not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the Word of God.

This word which is rendered, welcomed, by the way there are a number of different translations among the good English translations. There are a couple of different renderings. To me, welcomed is the best one by far. So I love the way the King James has brought this Greek word forward into the English. They welcomed it.

The Greek word literally means to take with the hand. That's the literal meaning of this Greek word. To take with the hand. Here's another place that it's used that will help you to understand what the Greek is trying to communicate. It's used for what Simeon did with baby Jesus in Luke chapter 2 verse 28.

You remember Simeon? He's an old man. He's been waiting for the consolation of Israel. God has actually told him he won't die until he sees with his own two eyes the Messiah. So here come Joseph and Mary into the temple with this baby, and the Holy Spirit lets him know this is the Christ.

And then in Luke 2.28 we see these words, He took him up in his arms. Simeon took Jesus up into his arms. He welcomed him up into his arms. This is the word. To take with the hand.

Now this is not what you do with the word of man. You don't take up the word of man into your arms like Simeon who had been waiting all his life for the consolation of Israel and had been promised he would see the Messiah with his own two eyes. And then at the end of his life he is in the temple, he is an old man, and hears the baby and he takes him up into his arms. You don't take up the word of man like that. No way!

Not me! I've been alive too long to regard the Word of Man like that. I've seen it fail too often. I've seen my own words fail too often. Those who have been alive long enough have learned the frailty of the words of man too well.

They will be taking it up like Simeon took up Jesus. Here's what Matthew Henry says. I think this gets right to the heart of the matter, Matthew Henry says, we should receive the word of God as the word of God, with affections suitable to the holiness, wisdom, verity, and goodness thereof. The words of men are frail and perishing like themselves, and sometimes false, foolish, and fickle. God's word is holy, wise, just, and faithful, and like its author, lives and abides forever.

Let us accordingly receive and regard it." Here's what Matthew is saying. Here's what Matthew Henry is saying. Think two important things. The first important thing that Matthew Henry is saying is that the words are like their author. If you get human words, they're going to be like their human author.

At best they are going to be passing, at worst they are going to be false and foolish and fickle. That is what he says. They are just like their author, just like the man who said them. And the same is true of the Word of God. They are just like their author.

They are eternal. They are everlasting. They are holy. They are altogether true. You can build your life on them.

That's the first thing that he says. The words are like their author. Man's words are like their author. God's words are like their author. The second thing that he says is this has a tremendous implication for how we receive them.

This has tremendous implications for how we receive them. If it is the word of God, you better come under these words with reverence. If it's the word of man, you can take it or leave it. We're all granted that. If it's the Word of God, we're not at liberty to treat them like the words of men.

We should come with trembling if it's the Word of God. So not only did they receive the Word of God, not only did they sit still, not plug their ears, they welcomed the Word of God. They took the Word of God by the hand, welcomed it, they received it, is what it really is. Not the words of man, the eternal, holy, just, wise, faithful words of God. That was point one, receiving the Word of God as the Word of God.

Here's point two. The effective working of the Word of God in believers. If you're taking notes on the handout, effective believers are the blanks. The effective working of the Word of God in believers. When someone welcomes the Word of God, like Simeon welcomes Jesus in the temple, This word begins to have a transforming effect.

It can't be any other way. If you believe, really believe, not just receive but welcome, not just Sit still and let it come into your ears, but take it by the hand. Embrace it. It begins to have a transforming effect on your life. You cannot be the same as you used to be, because it's living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.

Paul and Silvanus and Timothy can look at the lives of the Thessalonians and see that they didn't just receive it but they welcomed it. We're going back to chapter 1, verses 2 and 3. We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers, remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and father. So they look at the Thessalonians and they see work of faith, labor of love, patience of hope. They see fruit.

They see transformation. They see the effective working. That's how they know that they were given the gift to be able to recognize the Word of God as God because they see it's taken root and it's grown and it's bearing fruit. So Paul and Silvanus and Timothy say, this has the fingerprints of God all over it, because you're bearing fruit. It's effectively working.

So you believed. You didn't just receive it, you welcomed it like Simeon welcomed Jesus. It's taken root. You're bearing fruit. It's effectively working in you.

So I know you believe. There's evident fruit. Now listen to this. I am on really well tread paths today. I am going to give you 2 Timothy 3, 16 and 17.

You know it by heart. In 2 Timothy 3, verses 16 and 17, Paul writes, all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good word. When we hear those verses, normally the thrust of our thoughts is inspiration. They are perfect words. They are God breathed words.

That is literally what it means. These words are given by inspiration. They are God breathed. God breathed out these words and so they are His from start to finish. Every syllable is.

So they are perfect and inerrant and infallible and sufficient. It's good for that to be the thrust of our thinking. But there is a second thought here which is they have an effect. This isn't all intellect. This is about fruit bearing.

It is about the perfection of the words, but it's also about the effect of the words. That the man of God may be complete. By the way, when it says man of God here, The Greek word is gender neutral. Actually, the NIV does better than all the other English translations to render it servant of God. It really should be a gender neutral word because the Greek is a gender neutral word.

So, you don't want to read that as the man of God is in the person who stands in the pulpit. That is not what the verse is saying. It is the person of God. God's son or daughter may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. Not just the preacher, no.

All of his sons and daughters are given what is needed in this word when you welcome it. For your thorough equipping, for your completion, I say it most weeks, being saved isn't the finish line, it's the starting line, and then you run the race. It's not the finish line, your justification is not the finish line, it's just the starting line and then it's time to grow and advance and make progress towards the finish line. And we need to become more and more and more and more equipped. We need to become thoroughly equipped.

The Word of God is for that. We need to become more and more and more complete. Brought to maturity. The Word of God is for that. I want to conclude with A text that brings these two elements together.

Here are the two elements from our verse, our text for this week. The receiving of the Word of God as the Word of God and then the effective working of that in the ones who welcome it. So we have these two elements and they are brought together in Matthew chapter thirteen. So please turn to Matthew chapter thirteen. Matthew chapter thirteen.

I am going to begin in verse 3. This is the parable of the sower. I am going to read the parable and then I am going to skip to Jesus' explanation of the parable where he says, this is that, this is that, this is that, this is that, tells you exactly what it means, and then we are going to go back and cover the middle section last of all. Ok, so Matthew 13 beginning in verse 3, Then he, Jesus, spoke many things to them in parables saying, Behold a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside, and the birds came and devoured them.

Some fell on stony places where they did not have much earth, and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop Some a hundredfold some sixty some thirty He who has ears to hear Let him hear Now I'm going to skip to verse eighteen to the explanation of this parable. Jesus says starting in verse eighteen, Therefore hear the parable of the sower.

When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Yet he has no root in himself but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.

Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becomes unfruitful. He who received the seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it who indeed bears fruit and produces. Some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty. A couple of comments on the parable and the explanation of the parable. To relate it to our text in 1 Thessalonians 2 verse 13.

This parable teaches that all received but not all welcomed. So There is a tight connection between what Paul is saying and what Jesus has taught. The seed goes out on four different types of soil. All of the soil types received it. The words entered the ears.

It's not a comment on the disposition towards what was taught. It's just saying, seed fell on you. You got seed, but not all welcomed. And the explanation of the parable makes it clear who just received and who received and then welcomed it. There are two soils that appear to welcome it.

In other words, something springs up. The first soil is never in question. It was never understood. Nothing ever springs up. And it's stolen away by the enemy of souls.

But there are two that it appears like they have not just received it. They have not just had seeds hit the ground, but that they have welcomed it because something springs up. But in one case, tribulation and persecution arise. And in another case, the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches come. And what seems to be one thing, proves to be another thing.

It looked like they welcomed it, but time and circumstances prove that it's not really that. It only seemed that way. And then we have the one soil where the seed is truly welcomed and how do you know? Fruit. 30, 60, 100 fold.

Lot of fruit. Varying degrees of fruit, but in all cases a lot of fruit. I wish my investments did as well. One to thirty, I'll take it. One to sixty, even better.

One to a hundred, even better. But in all cases a lot of fruit. At the end that's how you can know where was the seed really welcomed. And I just received it, it didn't just hit the ground, it just didn't appear for a little while. But where was it really welcomed?

The fruit. Now let's go back and look at this middle section. I want to back up to verse 9 because I think verse 9, Matthew 13 verse 9 bridges the parable with this middle section. Jesus tells the parable and then what does he say? He says there is something strange.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear. And the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables? He answered and said to them, Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, But to them it has not been given. For whoever has to him more will be given and he will have an abundance, but whoever does not have even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.

And In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled which says, Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, And seeing you will see and not perceive, For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed. Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them. But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear. For assuredly I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it." A couple of points from this middle section.

Jesus is explaining how it is that two people can hear exactly the same words exactly at the same time exactly in the same location and one is transformed down to the core and will never be the same and the other one goes away and it's like they never heard anything. They were just sat beside each other. They heard the same words and the same tone of voice. One receives it as the word of God and they are changed forever. The other one goes away and it is foolishness to him or to her.

Jesus is explaining how this can be. Notice in verse 15 Jesus is quoting Isaiah chapter 6 verses 9 and 10 and he says they have closed their eyes. He says their hearts have grown dull. We can go straight to Romans 1 and see how a heart grows dull. It grows dull through rebellion, through just living out what you want to live out in the natural man.

It puts you on this downward spiral where your mind becomes twisted through your rebellion. And here as Jesus quotes Isaiah 6, he says they have closed their eyes. So this is the nature of the blindness. Okay? This is the nature of the blindness.

They close their eyes. Of course they're blind. It's willful blindness. They're happy to be blind. They intend to be blind.

They can't stand seeing. They are willfully blind. Just a few chapters later in Matthew chapter 16, it's this famous chapter where Peter gets it. It just becomes crystal clear to him who Jesus really is. It's his confession of Jesus.

Jesus has been asking who do people say that I am and they give him options. Some people say you're the prophet, some people say you're Elijah, some people say you're the Christ. Jesus says who do you say that I am? Peter says this. This is Matthew chapter 16 verse 16.

Peter says, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Perfect clarity about the identity of Jesus. You're the Christ. God promised to send you to redeem. You're the Son of the Living God.

What does Jesus say immediately after that? The very next verse, verse 17, Jesus answered and said to him, blessed are you Simon, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. Peter, you've been blessed. Flesh and blood didn't reveal that to you. You wouldn't know that I'm the Christ, the Son of the living God, if all you had was flesh and blood talking to you.

God has blessed you. God has revealed this to you. It's God breaking through the willful blindness as an act of pure mercy. There you have it. Why do some seeds take root and produce fruit, a lot of fruit, 30, 60, 100 times.

Why? God has broken through willful blindness, willful deafness, as an act of pure mercy. Applications, I have four of them. Four applications. Four applications.

Number one, for the born again, are we sufficiently aware and therefore thankful? You're born again. Let's say you're here and you're listening, and you have a right assurance that you're the Lord's. Are you sufficiently aware and therefore thankful? I don't think I've said anything new to anyone today.

These are all things that you've heard before. But they're so easily forgotten, or they end up in the back of our minds when they should be at the front of our minds. Where we know that if we have received the Word of God as the Word of God, that God did that and God deserves the thanks and the praise. So I am asking the born again to pull that from the back of your mind to the front of your mind. Be aware.

If you're hearing the preaching today and you have the grace to say that is the word of God. That's not the word of that knucklehead in the front. That is the word of God. Be aware that God did that. Jesus said to Peter, you're blessed.

My Father revealed that to you. Number two, For those who are not yet born again, cry out to God for eyes to see and ears to hear. If you've been resisting the calls of the Gospel, there's no visitors in the room. Everybody knows everybody in the room. Every week there is a call of the gospel.

If you have been resisting it, if you have been pushing it off in time, maybe later, maybe later, maybe later, Cry out to God. These things aren't separate. The fact that it is the gift of God and the grace of God doesn't make it magic. It doesn't work magically. God is working through the means that He has commanded.

In other words, He has commanded that churches would have preaching. That's not magic. He enters into what He has commanded to do these things. So you're here again. You're hearing preaching again.

Maybe it has seemed like foolishness to you. The Word of God says it's foolishness because you're still in the natural state. Okay, So you should cry out to God. He receives sinners. He receives sinners.

Just because it is the work of God doesn't mean we shouldn't ever do anything. Of course not. God enters into the things that he has commanded. He's commanded you to repent. You can know that.

He's commanded all men everywhere to repent. If you repent, He enters into that. You'll find that He gave that to you as a gift so that you won't be able to boast. You'll look back and see. Cry out to God for eyes to see and ears to hear.

Don't willfully be ignorant of these things. Don't be willfully blind. Don't shut your eyes and say, I can't see. That's madness. Do you see the madness of that?

I can't see. Well, yeah, open your eyes. Number three. Consider what this means for our evangelism. This is so important.

We have parents who are listening who are evangelizing their children. And we as a church are going out into the community in formal ways and In informal ways. We all got neighbors and we don't have a program for that. That's fine. You live in that neighborhood.

You are deputized by God to preach the gospel. And then we're doing some formal things. We're going to nursing homes, we're going outside the abortion clinic, and we're serving hot dogs in parking lots. This verse means a lot for us. For parents who are sharing the gospel and sharing the gospel and sharing the gospel with little ones or big ones in their house.

And for us as we're out in our community. And Getting a grip on this, that it is God who makes someone recognize that the Word of God is the Word of God. That's God. You can't say any words in any order to make them recognize that. You've got to know that.

It's not word order. It's not timing. It's God. Getting a grip on this will make us more patient and more prayerful. How so?

If you don't have a grip on this you get impatient. Like maybe I'm not saying it right. Or, they're stupid. It's either one or the other or both when we get impatient with our evangelism. Either, like, I'm impatient with me, I must not be saying it right or I must not be timing it.

I haven't picked the right time for it. No. Just keep being faithful. God hasn't done it yet. But we have reason to pray and believe in God for that.

So you might not be saying it right. I think we should say it right. But the fact that they haven't received the Word of God as the Word of God doesn't have to mean that. So you can become impatient with yourself. I'm not saying it right or you can become impatient with them.

I've told them a thousand times about Jesus and they will not forsake their sin and embrace it. I just can't keep saying it. They are either stupid or belligerent or no it is worse than all that. They are dead. They are dead.

You are preaching to the corpse in faith. That's all we can do is preach to the corpse in faith. Just be faithful and one day God might show up and raise them from the dead. And use the preaching. So it will make us patient with ourselves and with them.

Because then the weight is on God and He can bear it. And it will make us prayerful. You're not going to go out there and pull the lever to get the result. That's not how it works in Griffin's parking lot or in the nursing home or the abortion clinic or in family worship. You don't pull the lever and get the result.

God has to do it. This is the work of God. And so we should pray. So we should cry out to God. So we should Call on God.

He's told us to pray. He's told us He will answer our prayers. He hears the prayers of His people. Pray! Pray!

We're so prayerless about our outreaches. Like we are on and off that in 30-60 seconds. I'm not talking about you, I'm talking about me. I'm on and off of that in 30 or 60 seconds. What are we thinking?

Only God will give us what we're hoping for. Number four, finally, if you're frustrated with the pace of progress in your spiritual life, consider the place of the Word of God in your life. The Word of God works effectively in those who believe. So I'm a believer and I'm frustrated with the pace of progress. Okay, here's one area we've got to look at.

What place does the Word of God have in my life? If I give it a better place, a bigger place, a more prominent place, will I have more progress? Probably. I'm sort of frustrated about the pace of progress in my life. I think I should be further by now.

I'm looking at 1 Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 13 and I'm saying I got a big hole here. And I get paid. I'm in the Bible all week but there's in the Bible and then there's in the Bible. I'm always ready for the sermon. I always do my homework.

But the Word of God could have a lot bigger, better, more careful, more prayerful, more thoughtful place in my life and I would go further faster. Let's pray. God we thank you for your word. What a blessing it is to be able to know that this is your word. These are not the words of man.

You have spoken to mankind, and to some they can receive it as your words. Thank you God. May we be a people who come with reverence to hear you speak. God, I thank you that this word works effectively to those who have welcomed your words as your words. And we pray for an increase, Lord, of effective working in our lives.

We ask it in Jesus name, Amen.