The Tabernacle Today

When God Walked on Earth and Water - Matt. 14:22-36

“Here the royal army was again stopped by a sudden rise of the waters, which had only just fallen (almost miraculously) to let the enemy over, who could not else have eluded Lord Cornwallis’ grasp, so close was he upon their rear.” - British General Henry Clinton

“We have…abundant reasons to thank Providence for its many favorable interpositions in our behalf. It has at times been my only dependence, for all other resources seemed to have failed us.” - Gen. George Washington

Matt. 14:22-36

Unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins. - John 8:24

And now, Father, glorify Me in Your own presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed. - John 17:5

The Old Testament records around 85 miracles over 4,000 years of history. Jesus worked 42 recorded miracles in just over 3 years. The N.T. after Jesus records about 25 miracles over the next 30 years. Clearly the frequency and type of miracles Jesus did during His 3 years of public ministry demonstrate that God was actually with us on earth (Immanuel).

Jesus does knowingly send His disciples into storms - V. 22-24

John’s gospel lets us know that after Jesus fed the 5,000 the crowds declared that He was the great Prophet that Moses had spoken of (Dt. 18) and that they were about to forcibly make Him King (Jn. 6:14-15).

What would you have been thinking if you were one of the disciples?

Obeying Jesus got us into this mess – where is He now when we need Him?

Prov. 3:5-6 often gets put to the test in our lives. But Proverbs 3:5-6 does not mean that troubles won’t come (John 16:33; 2 Tim. 3:12).

When we are in a ‘storm’ because we have obeyed Jesus and it doesn’t make sense, we need to remember how much He cares for us and the previous times God has worked in our lives.

Jesus shows Himself strong in the middle of our storms - V. 25-33

The presence of Jesus in your life doesn’t guarantee the ‘storm’ will go away, but the strength of Jesus helps you cope with whatever you face.

Even when God is doing something amazing in our life, when we take our eyes off Jesus and put them on our circumstances, we can be quickly overwhelmed. But Jesus is just a prayer away.

“Courage is being scared to death – but saddling up anyway.” - John Wayne

Our most committed workers here at the Tabernacle need to hear in Jesus’ message to Peter a word for yourself: like a Coach that expects more from his best players, Jesus expects more of you – get used to it!

Now I don’t want any disciple in this room to give up on accepting Jesus’ vision for what you can become and by faith move toward it. The secret of victory in the Christian life is saying “Yes” to God the Holy Spirit, one decision at a time.

The Vision of Jesus

5 G Living:

Do everything you do for the Glory of God

Do everything you do for the Good of your fellow man

Do everything you do for the Growth of your fellow believers in Christ

Do everything you do to get the Gospel to unbelievers

Do everything you do with a grateful heart

Matthew 14:13-21

The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things that are revealed belong to us and our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. - Moses in Deut. 29:29

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. - Shlomo (Solomon) in Proverbs 3:5-6

The compassionate vision of Jesus - V. 13-14

May it be said of us that we saw, we had compassion, we acted to help meet physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs – just like Jesus.

The creative envisioning of Jesus - V. 15-18

What the disciples said about sending the people away made common sense and fit conventional wisdom, but Jesus often challenges what makes common sense and what fits conventional wisdom!

The word envision means “to picture something in your mind.” They could not envision meeting the crowd’s needs – they only saw what they lacked. They forgot that Jesus was with them, and He can do anything!

When a faithful follower of Jesus devotes 100% of themselves and their resources to Jesus, He multiplies their little into enough. Of course He can do it without us, but He loves to include us in what He’s doing!

The miraculous provision of Jesus - V. 19-21

Here we read of Jesus doing by far the greatest food miracle in the Bible. You might object about the time Moses gave the people manna. But Moses didn’t give the people Manna, God did (John 6:32)!

Elisha took 20 barley loaves and fed 100 men, with some left (a miraculous fivefold increase). Jesus took 5 barley loaves and fed 5,000 men, with enough left over to feed the 100 men Elisha fed (a miraculous thousandfold increase). It was truly a miracle worthy of Immanuel.

Bad Mom Good Mom - Matthew 14:1-12

Welcome to Real Housewives of the Roman Empire. I changed the names a little, but that’s the background for today’s Bible passage in which we will sadly read of the death of John the Baptist.

Matthew 14:1-12

As Matthew 1-13 relate to John the Baptist, he was like a booster that helps launch a rocket into space. Once the rocket gets up, the booster has done its job and falls back to earth. One stage is over and another begins.

Bad moms are offended by preaching that calls them to repentance.

Herodias was offended by the preacher because he called out her sin. I sure wish she had done what I have seen many guilty sinners do over the years -Repent of their sin, receive God’s forgiveness, and rebuild their lives around God’s truth, as David and Bathsheba did in their generation.

Bad moms fail to protect their children and instead influence them to sin.

Now before looking at the good mom, let me state clearly that we are all sinners who need to turn to Christ for salvation and forgiveness. All sin deserves judgment, and God can forgive any sin except refusing to repent and turn to him. So repent, receive forgiveness, and rebuild by faith.

Good moms seek Jesus and pray for their children.

Canaanites were the peoples Israel had been commanded to dispossess when they entered the Promised Land. But even though they were enemies of Israel, God still worked among them. Rahab was a Canaanite woman, so Jesus the Jew had a smidge of Canaanite blood in Him.

I believe Jesus was testing this woman to see how she will respond. Will she be offended like Herodias, or will her faith overcome offense and discouragement.

Good moms worship Jesus and model for their children perseverance.

I want to guarantee you that if you humble yourself before Jesus and pray, “Lord, help me” Jesus will hear that prayer and do what’s best for you.

She is acknowledging that Jesus is her Lord and Master, and she is staying where Jesus is, even if all she gets is crumbs. Better to eats crumbs on the way to Heaven’s throne than have a feast in Herod’s hell-bound palace.

Psalm 89 Worksheet

Psalm 89 is the ___________________ Psalm of Book 3 of the Psalms.

Only 4 Psalms have 50 or more verses. Psalm 89 is the ____________________ longest.

Which Psalm has the most verses? Psalm 119, with 176 verses. Then comes Ps. 78, with 72 verses. Then Ps. 89, with 52 verses. Ps. 18 has 50 verses.

Psalm 89 remembers the LORD’s unconditional ________________________ with David that because of God’s mercy (hesed) and faithfulness (emuna and emet) David’s descendant the Messiah will rule Israel forever, even though it doesn’t seem possible to Israel’s exiles when the Psalm was written.

As we read Psalm 89, look for the occurrences of mercy (or steadfast love) and faithfulness.

There are _____ occurrences each of Hesed and Emuna in Psalm 89, and they are together in 5 verses. Hesed and Emet occur together in verse 14.

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Yahweh’s steadfast love and faithfulness are ______________________ V. 1-2

I really like verse 2 – God’s love and His faithfulness are Heaven’s _______________________ foundation and building materials throughout eternity!

The Davidic covenant ______________________ V. 3-4

The first time we read of the Davidic Covenant is 2 Samuel 7:12-17 when the prophet Nathan spoke to David. Seed refers to David’s coming _____________________ – Jesus Christ (Messiah) is the ultimate Son of David who will rule. He is both the ‘Root’ and the ‘Fruit,’ or Offspring, of David (Rev. 22:16).

Micah 5:2-5

Hymn of praise to God V. 5-18

God as Creator and Faithful Ruler of the Universe are spoken of several times in this ‘song within a song.’

Verse 9 speaks of God being able to calm raging storms, which is exactly what the Son of David did when He came to earth as Immanuel, “God with us.” Raging storms are also used to refer to raging ___________ like Egypt (Rahab), which God took care of in the Exodus.

This song within a song says everything is the Lord’s ___________________. Heaven, earth, the world and its fullness, north and south, prominent mountains – God is bigger and stronger than all He has created and cares for.

The joyful sound of verse 15 refers to being among other _______________________ as they ‘shout’ praises and together experience God’s favor! The exiles probably felt isolated, and needed to remember they are part of the assembly of God’s saints, on the winningest team ever!

Yahweh’s _______________________ to David V. 19-37

Read verses 20-23

Yahweh’s promises to David are recounted. The Hebrew root for anointed in verse 20, 38, and 41 is the same used for the Messiah. Verse 27 seems to refer to the Messiah to come, since David was the ‘lastborn’ son. The Son of David will be the _______________________ of the Kings of the earth whose rule will last forever (v. 29).

Verses 30-34 are very clear that even though individual descendants of David will be judged for their sin, the unconditional covenant with David that His Seed will rule will not be ___________________. The promises of the covenant are repeated in verses 35-37.

___________________________ to God V. 38-45

The writer laments as he looks at their current _________________ condition compared to the promised rule. God is angry at His anointed nation (v. 38), seemingly renounced His covenant (v. 39), cast out Davidic rule (v. 39) for now, and the capitol lies in ruins (v. 40).

Prayer for ________________________ based on the promises V. 46-51

Ethan knows the people of God don’t deserve forgiveness and restoration. He appeals for God to act based on His ________________________ promises and faithfulness, not because they deserve it. That reminds me of 1 John 1:9.

Benediction to Book 3 of the Psalms V. 52

Let’s just take a moment and compare the verse (s) at the end of each book of the Psalms. The _______________________ God of Israel is to be praised by all creation throughout the earth from everlasting to everlasting, amen!

41:13 71:18-20 89:52 106:48 150:6

The Why the What and the How

This is the annual time when I get to urge our Tabernacle Family to live by the collective purpose that God has given us in God’s word.

The why our church does what it does is the same why every individual Christian is to do what they do – for the glory of God – to seek to bring God the love and praise He so richly deserves.

The Mission of the Tabernacle is to reproduce faithful and fruitful followers of Jesus Christ.

The How is our TABERNACLE Acronym

Teaching of Scripture

Adoration and Prayer

The 8-week prayer challenge: For the next 8 weeks (until VBS), fast through at least 1 meal a week as you pray for many people to be saved in church and at Vacation Bible School).

Baptist Principles

Evangelism and Missions

Even with the Pandemic stall, we have baptized 113 people since 2017; In the comparable time before I came the Tabernacle baptized 101 people. I baptized 216 people in my first 8 years at my previous church.

We budget roughly $8,250 a month for our church ministries; $6,500 a month for missions we support within a 2-hour drive; $3,600 a month for missions in North America; $6,500 a month for global missions.

Including our Christmas Offerings, we have given over $2,250,000 to missions since 2017 and taken 137 mission trips; In the comparable time at my previous church it was $750,000 and 119 trips.

Radical Generosity

Here’s where our giving stands after the 1st quarter:

1st quarter 2025 budgeted: $280, 251

1st quarter 2025 received: $280,087

1st quarter 2025 spent: $265,528

Tabernacle Board: Richard Chivvis, Chair; Duane Adams, Dan Harper, Stacy Morris, David Thompson, J.J. Vogltanz.

Nurtured Partnerships

We mean two things by “Nurtured partnerships.” We mean the sense of partnership we have with each other in the church family. But we also mean the sense of partnership we have with the ministries we support.

Age-Appropriate Ministries

42 Babies dedicated since 2017/ 40 in comparable time at previous church.

Congregational Love and Encouragement

We have had 120 deaths since 2017/ it was 44 in the comparable time in my previous church.

Leadership Development

Excellence and Fun

Let me urge you to join me in being grateful for our past; sober-minded about our present challenges; and looking forward in faith to all God has for us!

The Passion Prayers of Jesus

“Our technologies permit us to manipulate time and space. They leave distance annihilated, cause things to grow and improve productivity.” - Michael Kratsios

If you are a born again believer, there are two ways that you have already experienced spiritual time travel.

The first way is that the Bible teaches that if you are a believer, you were crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20), died with Christ (Rom. 6:8), buried with Christ (Col. 2:12), raised with Christ (Col. 2:12), made alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:5), raised up with Christ to heavenly places (Eph. 2:6), fellow heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17), are one spirit with Christ (1 Cor. 6:17), will be with Christ after death (Phil. 1:21, 23), will return with Christ when He returns to earth (Rev. 17:14, 2 Tim. 2:12).

The second way is that in the last 72 hours of Jesus’ passion week, He prayed many specific prayer requests that still get answered today 2,000 years after He prayed them!

The prayer of restoration for believers.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” - Luke 22:31-32

The prayer of thanks despite an impending ordeal (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:17-20; 1 Cor. 11:23-26)

The prayer for basic discipleship commitments of followers (Jn. 17:1-26).

-That Christians will grow in their relationship with God (v. 3, 5)

-That Christians will be good stewards of God’s words (v. 8)

-That Christians will know their eternal security in Christ. (v. 9-10)_

-That Christians will experience unity (v. 11, 22-23)

-That Christians will experience the fulfilling joy of Jesus (v. 13)

-That as Christians live in the world they will be protected from the Evil one (v. 15)

-That Christians will ‘bathe’ regularly by obeying the Bible’s truths (v. 17)

-That Christians will reproduce as they go out into the world (v. 18, 20).

-That Christians will be with Jesus and behold His Heavenly glory (v. 24)

-That Christians will be known for having the love of Jesus within (v. 26)

The prayer of surrender despite personal anguish (Mark 14:36)

He was pierced for our transgressions. - Isa. 53:5a

When they look on Me, on Him whom they pierced. - Zech. 9:10b

It was the most unusual trial outcome ever – Jesus was proclaimed innocent, yet executed as if He was guilty.

The prayer of forgiveness (Luke 23:34)

The prayer that our sin caused (Matthew 27:46)

The prayer of completion (Luke 23:46; John 19:30)

The prayer of blessing over a meal (Luke 24:30-31, 35)

The prayer of blessing (Luke 24:50-52)

Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. - Heb. 7:25

Psalm 88 Worksheet

One of the most interesting things about this Psalm and the next is that they are written by 2 men named Heman the Ezrahite and Ethan the Ezrahite.

Heman, Asaph, and Ethan were each descendants of Levi’s sons Gershon, Kohath, and Merari. Asaph was from Gershon; Heman from the line of Kohath; Ethan from Merari (1 Chr. 6:31-48). Heman has the added distinction of being the grandson of _______________________ (1 Chr. 6:33).

Asaph wrote 12 Psalms, 11 here in book 3 of the Psalms; Heman wrote Psalm 88 and Ethan wrote Psalm 89. So 13 of the 17 Psalms of Book 3 are attributed to David’s key music leaders from the tribe of Levi.

The tone of Psalm 88 is very much one of _____________________________. It appears the Psalmist is facing suffering and death is very discouraged. It is not regarded as a Messianic Psalm, but several verses remind me of the suffering Jesus endured.

As I read Psalm 88, look for the different ways death is referred to. Also look for the 3 times he speaks of calling out or crying out to the LORD.

A man _______________________ death cries out to the LORD V. 1-9

This man is despondent, but at least he is __________________________.

Be honest with God in your prayers like in Psalm 88, and then go on to the kind of perspective that Psalm ____________ gives!

The first reference to death is in verse 3, the word grave or Sheol. Sheol occurs 64 times in the Old Testament.

The second reference to death is in verse 4, the word pit or bor. Bor occurs 61 times in the Old Testament.

The third reference to death is in verse 5, “adrift among the dead.” The word for dead is mut, which occurs 693 times in the Old Testament.

The sixth and seventh references to death are the words darkness and depths in verse 6.

The word “wrath” in verse 7 reminds me of when Jesus was bearing our sin on the cross and cried out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me” (2 Cor. 5:21; John 3:36).

Verse 8 reminds me of Jesus “shut up” on the cross, with so many of His followers not there to support Him. Jesus can identify with the Psalmist and any of us who feels neglected or forsaken by _____________.

Verses 1 and 9 begin and end the first section by crying out to the LORD in the midst of this man facing death.

A man ______________________ death cries out to the LORD V. 11-18

Verses 10-12 feature 6 questions that it appears the Psalmist fears the answer is no but Christians now know the answer is ________________ in Christ!

Let’s not forget our count of references to death – verses 10-12 have the eighth through ________________ references to death!

Verse 13 gives the one note of hope that after death, the “___________________________” will come. We borrow that hope from this being near to Psalm 86 by David.

“I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and I will glorify Your name forevermore. For great is Your mercy toward me, and You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.” -Psalm 86:11-12

Back in Psalm 88, the Psalmist wants to know, he wants to feel what David feels and __________________ in Psalm 86, but he is on the struggle bus. Verses 15 to the end make that struggle clear.

Verse 15 gives us at least the 14th reference to death. With other references to being “cut off”, “wrath” and “terrors,” we may get all the way to ________________ references to death.

Why is this discouraging Psalm in the Psalter, meant to be sung by the people? Sometimes getting the way we feel out there begins the ___________________________. Psalm 88 is like parts of the book of Ecclesiastes, that really describe the emptiness in life without God. Ecclesiastes brings to despair to then drive to faith in God (Ecc. 12:13-14). Psalm 89 does that for book 3 of of the Psalms. After the discouraging note of Psalm 88, Psalm 89 includes this thought to God’s people when they feel discouraged:

Nevertheless My lovingkindness I will not utterly take from him, nor allow My faithfulness to fail. -Psalm 89:33

Give All to Gain All - Matthew 13:44-58

When the child of God

Looks into the word of God

And sees the Son of God

They are transformed by the Spirit of God

Into the image of God

For the glory of God

- Warren Wiersbe

When King Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, He was offering Himself up as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Zechariah 9:9 (ESV)

9Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you;

righteous and having salvation is he,

humble and mounted on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Jesus came into Jerusalem on the very day the sacrificial lambs that would become the Passover lambs were brought into Jerusalem from Bethlehem. Jesus is the Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7) who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).

Psalm 118:25-26a (ESV)

25Save us, we pray, O Lord!

O Lord, we pray, give us success!

26Blessed is he who comes in the name [authority] of the Lord!

Let’s do the math: 10 sins a day x 365 days = 3,650 sins per person per year; Multiplying that by 30 years per person equals 109,500 sins per person in a lifetime. Multiplying that by the 117 billion people who have lived in history = 12 quadrillion, 811 trillion, 500 billion sins.

- Jim Denison

2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV)

21For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Matthew 27:46 (ESV)

46And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

John 19:30 (ESV)

30When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished [Tetelestai]," and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Two little parables about the Kingdom’s inestimable value - V. 44-46

What is the point to us of the parables in verses 44-46? To get the greater treasure the man had to first give up everything he previously treasured. And for us to really get Jesus we have to do the same. But when we give our all to get Jesus, two things happen: we gain more than we could ever imagine, and we also gain what was ours back better than before.

Were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small. Love so amazing, so Divine, demands my soul, my life, my all. - Isaac Watts, Verse 4 of When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

Learn to know Christ and Him crucified. Learn to sing to Him and say, “Lord Jesus, you are my righteousness, I am your sin. You have taken upon Yourself what is mine and given me what is Yours. You have become what You were not so that I might become what I was not." - Martin Luther

Another parable about the great ‘sorting’ to come - V. 47-50

Are you ready for the ‘great sorting’ to come after Christ returns?

Hebrews 9:27-28 (ESV)

27And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Remember from Matthew 13 that we are called to be sowers not sorters! Catch all the people you can for Jesus – He will sort out whether they were truly saved or not.

True Disciples will bring forth Scripture treasure - V. 51-52

In chapter 13 Jesus spoke of making what was a mystery in the past known now. Those who love Jesus will be able to explain how New Testament truth comes out of Old Testament truth.

If you don’t take who Jesus is, what He has taught, and what He has done for you seriously, you won’t see God do much either. But if you recognize how valuable this faith is, you will give up everything to gain Jesus!

The Certain Growth of Both True and False Christianity - Matthew 13:24-43

The different branches of Christianity are like that air-conditioner unit – great when working biblically, but troubled by holes that arise in the unit. Some sin and false teaching problems are like bigger holes that reveal problems quicker, but even little problems cause eventual trouble. In today’s parables Jesus warns us to expect this troublesome reality.

Matthew 13:24-43

In Matthew 13’s parables of the Kingdom, Jesus reveals that His spiritual kingdom will grow between His first coming and His return to set up a physical kingdom. In the ‘church age’ we are now in local churches become spiritual ‘embassies’ of the coming Kingdom.

Last week we studied the Parable of the Sower. The Parable of the Sower shows 4 different responses to the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the Parable Jesus urges us to make sure we truly understand repentance and faith as we crown Jesus the King of our life and go on to bear fruit as His subject.

The Parable of the weeds in the field - V. 24-30, 36-43

So far we have learned that God is actively working in the world to bring people to Himself, and Satan is actively working to keep people lost.

Here we read that Satan has another strategy to keep people lost – outward forms of religion without the true new birth in Jesus experience. Verse 38 says the Devil is the one who sows the weeds among the wheat.

The Greek word for weeds/tares is zizanium. Scholars believe Jesus was referring to darnel (lolium temulentum), a poisonous weed that bears a close resemblance to wheat right up until the ears of grain appear. It is actually called “false wheat” by those who have had to deal with it.

The thief comes to kill, steal, and destroy, but I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. - John 10:10

These verses do not mean there is not a place for church discipline – in Matthew 18 we will see that there is. But it should serve as a rebuke to the growing number of zealous Christians who spend more time ‘weed-eating’ then they spend sowing, planting, and watering wheat.

Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” - Matt. 19:28

In the parable of the weeds, Jesus makes clear that outward forms of Christianity will include both true and false Christians. Make sure that Jesus really is your Lord and Savior.

The Parables of the mustard seed & the leaven - V. 31-33

Some take both parables to illustrate the phenomenal growth of true Christianity; Some take both parables to illustrate the phenomenal growth of false Christianity; And many, like me, take the first to illustrate the phenomenal growth of outward forms of Christianity in churches and denominations, and the second to illustrate the pervasive inward growth of false teaching in those churches and denominations.

What Jesus said in the parable of the mustard seed has become true – the few dozen people gathered around him as He gave the great commission in Matthew 28 have grown to over 2.4 billion people on earth.

In the parable of the leaven, Jesus is warning about how false teaching will also be a formidable problem as outward Christianity grows.

Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” - Matthew 16:6

Evangelical beliefs include those who testify of the new birth in Jesus and who believe the Bible is totally trustworthy and is our final authority.

Jesus told us that false believers and false teaching would proliferate even as true Christianity grew. So don’t be surprised and don’t be Barney Fife as you interact with others. But do keep personally growing in grace and truth, and speak the truth in love to others.

The Sower the Seed and the Soil

When the child of God

Looks into the word of God

And sees the Son of God

They are transformed by the Spirit of God

Into the image of God

For the glory of God

-Warren Wiersbe

Every one of the seeds in the pack I gave you can become the flower it was meant to be if it finds receptive soil as it is planted. In today’s passage we see Jesus tell a little story about the different responses there will be to His gospel during the church age we now find ourselves in.

Matthew 13:1-23

Introducing the parables of the Kingdom - V. 1-3, 10-17

But Matthew 13 features the first occurrence of the word parable(s) in the New Testament, and the most occurrences of the word in the Bible. The word Parable(s) occurs 48 times in the Bible, 12 in this chapter alone.

The 35 Parables that Jesus told in the New Testament are little stories with big meaning comparing God’s activity in the present age to everyday matters we can relate to. Jesus’ parables often paint a picture of a wrong response from His critics and a right response by His followers.

In the 7 parables of the Kingdom in Matthew 13, Jesus for the first time reveals the secret (the mysterion) of the spiritual kingdom that will grow between His first coming and His return to set up a physical kingdom. The secret includes the church age we are now in where local churches become spiritual ‘embassies’ of the coming Kingdom.

The word for secret is the Greek word musterion (G3466-27x); it means that which is known to the ‘initiated’ (mustos). That which was not fully revealed to O.T. saints has now been revealed to Jesus’ followers.

Matthew 13:13-17 uses the Hebrew poetry device of chiastic structure, where the first and last points echo each other and so on toward the big point in the middle.

Jesus explains the parable of the Sower - V. 3b-9,18-23

The 4 different responses to the gospel:

The Not-now response (rejection) - V. 19

The Shallow response (belief without repentance) - V. 20-21

The double-minded response (distraction) - V. 22

The Devil got the wayside folk, the flesh took care of the rocky-ground folk, but the world chokes out the word for the thorny ground folk.” - J. Vernon McGee

The fruit-bearing response (this one understands) - V. 23

The Jewish poetic device of chiastic structure in Matthew 13:13-17: