Mark 4:1-20 The FarmVille of Your Soul

INTRODUCTION – FarmVille

This is the Farmville parable in Jesus’ time. Just like Farmville, you have to plant seeds and then watch them grow and then harvest them. What Jesus talks about in His parable is the types of soil in which the seed will grow.

Here are the four soils Jesus describes and then His definition:

	Road	Rocks	Weeds	Good Soil
Interest	No Interest	Fun	Worship	Work
Purpose	Crowd	Congregation	Committed	Core
Type	Non-Believer	Believer but non-confessor	Believer, confessor, but not disciple	Believer, Confessor, Disciple, and Evangelist
Example	The Many	Joseph of Arimathea	Simon the Sorcerer	Peter
Reaction	Diverted	Disappointed	Distracted	Developed and Diligent
Result	no change	no depth	no growth	complete

KEY: Some people receive the gospel better than others.

What is Jesus’ point? There are levels of receptivity to the Gospel. Some will hear it and get diverted by. Some will hear it and get disappointed. Some will hear it and get distracted. Some will hear and it and get developed by it. Some of the ones who hear it, get developed by it, will be fruitful. By fruitful, I mean that they will multiply themselves. These last people will be believers, confessors, disciple-makers, and evangelists. These are the people who grow on good soil.

We can also use a variety of planting methods. Different seasons require different types of seeds, as well as forms of planting. There are different environments in which the seeds will grow. The kind of soil makes all the difference.

PLANTING METHODS

Season	Evangelism Opportunity
Early Spring	God’s Plant for Sharing
Late Spring	ALPHA Course
Summer	Vacation Bible School
Fall	Small Group
Early Winter	Special Emphasis
Late Winter	Personal Outreach

What are we looking for in results? new disciples

Type of soil Jesus did not talk about? transplants

Point: Bloom where you are planted.

Photo by Vladimir Kudinov on Unsplash