Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

““The sower went out to sow his seed, and while he was sowing, some seed fell on the side of the path and was trampled under foot, and the birds of the sky devoured it . . . “Now the parable means this: the seed is the word of God, and those beside the path are the ones who have heard. Then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they may not believe and be saved.“

Luke 8:5; 11-12

These verses are also covered in Matthew 13:3-4; Mark 4:2-4 and Matthew 13:19; Mark 4:15. Jesus told His disciples that if they didn’t understand this parable, they wouldn’t understand ANY of the parables. This parable is about the Word and how it is received by us. Receiving by us is one of the basic principles of Adonai’s kingdom. He gives, we receive. If we don’t know how to receive, we won’t. Like a child who can’t catch a ball, we’ll watch it fall at our feet or bounce off our body or go over our heads. There are people, systems, and powers designed to rob us of the Word. To keep the promises and BLESSING far from us. In the end we have three ways to miss it and only one way to get it (John John 14:6).

It’s important to note that although there was only one successful way to get a harvest, to receive the Word; the sower put it EVERYWHERE. Everyone needs to hear the Word. Everyone needs the opportunity to hear it and choose for themselves whether or not they will receive it (Matthew 24:14). It is not for us to choose who will hear it. Adonai said EVERYONE and He meant EVERYONE. Individually, there are things we can do to prepare to receive. When we don’t do these things, the Word is robbed from us. It is stolen (John 10:10). When we are prepared to receive, then the Word goes to work. Much like seeds in real life. Plant a seed and the soil will activate it. Then the seed will do what it is designed to do and completely reproduce itself into a full, mature, and living plant. The soil is the fuel for the seed. Which brings us to the first way to receive: to not.

The devil has a vested interest in keeping seed from us. He does NOT want the Word getting into the soil of our heart. The chief way he does that is to make sure we do not understand what we are hearing. He can’t always stop us from hearing – because Adonai has put such a focus on us hearing (Romans 10:17). But if he can keep us from understanding, he still wins. The chief way he does THAT is confusion. He keeps us deceived and in the dark. “among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, so that they would not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4). “And the great dragon was thrown down, the ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him” (Revelation 12:9). “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father! That one was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand firm in the truth, because truth is not in him. Whenever he speaks the lie, he speaks from his own nature,because he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). This is direct fruit of the devil’s nature. He cannot tell the truth – everything MUST be twisted in some way. He cannot let the light shine without a fight – he needs the light to be elsewhere so that he can create shadow. So he works at us not understanding the basic reality around us – whether spiritual or physical – in order to keep us from realizing what pieces are the ones that will be a benefit to us (Isaiah 5:20).

Before the Word can get into our hearts, we have to understand it. Even basic understanding – because the Word is multi-layered and there is ALWAYS something new to learn from ANY given verse. This is also the ONLY way that the devil can steal the Word. If ANYTHING is done with it, he has no access. If we hide the Word in our hearts, he can’t get to it. If we accept it, he can’t touch it. But if we don’t understand it. If we hear words but do not apply it, do not reach out and actively think on it to understand it, he can take it. It will be like seed lying on stone. Easily available to predators. Belief, trust in that belief, and the Word is the path by which we are saved (Romans 10:14-17). The Word is THE seed that starts that growth (1 Peter 1:23). We have to HEAR it, UNDERSTAND what we hear, and THEN we can apply it through confession, belief, trust in what Adonai says, and alignment of our behaviour to it (Romans 12:2; 10:9-10). If we don’t receive the Word, we cannot get saved. If we’re saved and don’t receive the Word, we cannot experience the victory Jesus has provided for every area of our lives – spirit, soul, and body.

Who is Ruach HaKodesh in this, then? He is the Crier. The Warner. The Preparer. ‘Seed coming!’ He will shout. ‘Furrow the ground, turn the soil, get ready!’ He is the One who talks to us. Who coaches us. Who prepares us to prepare ourselves so that when the Word comes we will take notice. We will grab a-hold of it. We won’t wait for someone else to do something. We won’t give the devil a chance to scoff, lie, and disillusion us to ignore it. We will take it. We will think about it. And we will seek to apply it when we listen to Ruach HaKodesh about it. It is the first step to receiving: receive it. Or if you rather, don’t reject it. He is also a good sounding board for us. When we don’t immediately understand something, we can grab it. Hold it tight and talk to Ruach HaKodesh about it. To mull it over. Investigate it. To see what OUR bible says about it. What other commentaries say about it. And to listen to what Ruach HaKodesh says about it. To TEST IT to see if it is truth or an opinion (1 Thessalonians 5:21). He WROTE the Word. He is the BEST COMMENTATOR on it. And He NEVER contradicts it.

Every time you hear the Word, really HEAR it (Matthew 11:15, Mark 4:23, Revelation 2:7). Get it into your hand and examine it until you have sunk it into your heart. Reaching out with the intent to wrestle with it until you understand it will keep the ‘birds’ from being able to snatch it away. Get the Word into your heart and you’ll never be stolen from. They won’t be able to touch it.

Daily Affirmation of the Goodness of Elohim: Psalm 119:11

“In my heart I have hidden your word, so that I may not sin against you.”  When we abide in Jesus and rest in Him, we do not sin (1 John 3:9). The only way we can truly rest in Jesus is by keeping our minds on Him. But our minds are re-set by that which is in our hearts. That means we need to keep in our hearts what we want to be able to draw on (Matthew 15:18). Adonai has NOT left us to find it on our own. He sent His WORD to us so that we would have all that we need in our hearts to let His work produce. He didn’t hold back, but made it available to ALL of us. Ruach HaKodesh wrote it down using various scribes and then came to live in our hearts so that He could teach it to us as we expose ourselves to it. How great is that? Our teacher, writer of the work, right here inside and beside us to coach us in its meaning and intent. All so that we can plant the Word in our heart and let it grow the Fruit we need. So that we will speak, act, and think based on the Word. So that we won’t even DESIRE to sin, much less seek to sin, because we’re too satisfied and full of the goodness Adonai has helped us plant in our hearts. What a GOOD God He is!

Your Daily Confession of Elohim’s Goodness:

I taste and see that Yahweh is good; I am blessed because I take refuge in Him.

Psalm 34:8