At about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach. In no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get into a boat. Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation, telling stories. “What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds. Some fell on good earth, and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams. “Are you listening to this? Really listening?” The disciples came up and asked, “Why do you tell stories?” He replied, “You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn’t been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That’s why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward a welcome awakening. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they’re blue in the face and not get it. I don’t want Isaiah’s forecast repeated all over again
Read Matthew 13
Listen to Matthew 13
Share
Compare All Versions: Matthew 13:1-15
3 Days
Raising responsible kids who are self-motivated and hard workers can be difficult when all they want to do is sit in front of a TV or play videogames. So how do you raise a teen to be responsible and make good decisions? Rebecca Gregoire Lindenbach, author of the book Why I Didn’t Rebel, interviewed dozens of young people and, together with psychology research, found some common themes among families with kids who didn’t rebel, and families with kids who did. This 3-day action plan will give you the run-down on raising responsible teens. To find out more or purchase the book, visit http://amzn.to/2wipiOj
3 days
God has truly given us everything. He yearns for us to recognize the depths of his grace and provision, approaching Him with open hands and hearts, ready to receive all He gives. But that’s not all. God wants us to be dispensers of His love to others, giving away all He has given us. With this three-day plan from Rush via Gather Ministries, learn to give from God’s own heart.
Infinitum is a way of life centered on following Jesus by loving God and loving others through an emphasis on the habits and disciplines of surrender, generosity, and mission. We aim to see the Bible and also the world through these Jesus-colored lenses. This short reading plan considers Generous Evangelism.
Why did Jesus preach in parables? Why did He only explain what the parables meant to His disciples, in private, and not to everyone? In this three-day devotional, you will learn why Jesus used parables to teach, whether we should use them, and why they are helpful to us.
Save verses, read offline, watch teaching clips, and more!
Home
Bible
Plans
Videos
Bible App
Bible App for Kids
