MATTHEW 13:1-9
THE MESSIAH’S PAR- forth to sow;
ABLES DESCRIBING 4 And when he sowed, 3 A large number did not
THE KINGDOM OF some seeds fell by the way allow the Word to take
HEAVEN, 13:1-52 side, and the fowls came and permanent root
devoured them up: a. Some dwelt by the
5 Some fell upon stony wayside
DS1

E. How Does a Person places, where they had not b. Some received the
Receive the Gospel?, much earth: and forthwith Word in stony places
DS2

13:1-9 (cp.13:18-23; they sprung up, because they
Mk.4:1-9; Lk.8:4-15) had no deepness of earth:
6 And when the sun was up,
they were scorched; and be-
cause they had no root, they
1 Christ preached a parable The same day went Jesus withered away.
a. On the Sabbath out of the house, and sat by 7 And some fell among c. Some received the
b. By the seashore in a ship the sea side. thorns; and the thorns sprung Word among thorns
DS3

c. Multitudes gathered 2 And great multitudes up, and choked them:
were gathered together unto 8 But other fell into good 4 Only a small number
d. They pressed Him into him, so that he went into a ground, and brought forth allowed the Word to take
a boat ship, and sat; and the whole fruit, some an hundredfold, permanent root
multitude stood on the shore. some sixtyfold, some thirty- 5 Only a few allowed the
2 A sower went forth to 3 And he spake many things fold. Word to bear 100% fruit
sow unto them in parables, saying, 9 Who hath ears to hear, let 6 A strong call: Hear
Behold, a sower went him hear.

SALVATION: MAKING THE GOOD NEWS KNOWN

E. How Does a Person Receive the Gospel?, 13:1-9

(13:1-52) DIVISION OVERVIEW: Parables—Mysteries—Kingdom of Heaven: the eight parables of Mt.13 have to do
with the “mysteries of the kingdom of heaven” (Mt.13:11). By mystery Jesus does not mean something mysterious, but rather
something unknown and not revealed until this present time. What is the mystery, the new revelation? It is twofold.
1. Jesus pictured modern-day Christianity. He said the Kingdom of Heaven is a mixture of good and bad. It includes
professing believers as well as genuine believers; false doctrine as well as true doctrine; false ritual as well as true ritual; hy-
pocritical worship as well as genuine worship; professing belief as well as real belief. (Cp. the Sower and the Seed, the Wheat
and the Tares, the Mustard Seed, and the Leaven.)
2. Jesus pictured the world and its priceless value. He said that He had come to seek and sacrificially purchase the
world. He said that His followers are to laboriously work, seeking to pull men into the kingdom. He said they were unusually
privileged: they had received the new revelation of God to add to their knowledge of the old revelation. Therefore, they were
now responsible for teaching the new as well as the old (cp. the Hidden Treasure, the Pearl, the Net, and the Householder).

(13:1-9; 18-23) Introduction—Sower, Parable of: Christ interprets this parable in verses 18-23. The sower is either the
Lord Jesus Christ or a servant of His (v.37). (The servants of the Lord, ministers or laymen, are “laborers together with God,”
1 Cor.3:9). The seed is the Word of God or the Word of the kingdom (v.19). It is called (1) the “incorruptible seed” (1
Pt.1:23), and (2) “the gospel which...bringeth forth fruit” (Col.1:5-6).
The ground upon which the seed is sown is the heart of the hearers. Christ says two significant things about the ground:
⇒ there are different ways for the ground to hear and receive the Word (seed).
⇒ the fate of the Word, how well it grows, depends upon the ground, that is, the hearer.

Each hearer is personally responsible for how he receives the Word of God.
1. Christ preached a parable (v.1-2).
2. A sower went forth to sow (v.3, 18).
3. A large number did not allow the Word to take permanent root (v.4-7).
4. Only a small number allowed the Word to take permanent root (v.8).
5. Only a few allowed the Word to bear 100% fruit (v.8).
6. A strong call: hear (v.9).

1

(13:1-2) Preaching: Christ preached a parable.
⇒ He preached on the Sabbath.
⇒ He preached by the seashore in a ship.
⇒ He preached as the multitudes gathered.
⇒ The multitudes pressed Him into a boat.


2
(1

3:3) Witnessing: a sower went forth to sow. Note two things.
⇒ First, the sower did go forth.

⇒ Second, the sower did sow the seed (the Word of God) or the Word of the Kingdom (v.19).
22
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