Four Kinds of Soil

From the preceding parable we see that all who are privileged to hear the Word of God are divided into four groups. This being true, we, as individuals must face the question, "Which group am I in?" or"What kind of soil am I?" First, let us look at:

From among the millions in this group has often come the question, "Is it our fault that we do not understand? Are we to be blamed for this?" Jesus gave the answer when He said: "For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are, dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their hearts, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Matt. 13:15).

We might say, people do not understand the Word of God because they do not desire to. They prefer sin and worldly pleasure instead. Anyone who wishes may easily understand enough of God's Word to repent and receive the holy Ghost. Now, shall we move on to:

Here we find the person who really hears the Word and, may we say, bubbles over with joy as he receives it. His experience in the Lord is genuine and wonderful. It leaves him shouting the victory and rejoicing whenever he hears the Word; yet, he does not allow the real message of faith to penetrate very deeply into his life. And, as a result, he fails to put into practice what he knows to be Truth. His inner, real life is never quickened by the Spirit of God to any degree of establishment. The first real test, and this believer surrenders. He proves that he was only seeking blessings and feelings rather than becoming established in Christ. What a fatal mistake! It is quite normal and proper for every Child of God to desire blessings, but these mountain-top feelings can not take the place of the valley of everyday living in the believer's experiences. Next, we shall notice:

The striking difference between this group of believers and that of those in group two is the time element. Those in group two lasted only for a short duration. Here in group three, we think of the believer as one who is well planted, and for quite a while runs well; but, as time passes by, he grows weaker. This, of course, is due to the fact he allowed the thorns to remain; and, naturally, they sprang up and choked out the seed of God. The thorns, as we have seen, represent "the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches." It is the combination of these two evils that is producing so much unfruitfulness in the church today.

Yes, reader, this third group goes much further than our friends in group two, who, as we are told, "dureth for a while." The truth is, this Thorny Soil aggregation does not give up at all. Every one in it holds on, even though "he becometh unfruitful."

As one looks about him today and sees how many believers are worrying continually about so many things of this world; and, at the same time, trying to get rich in material things, he is forced to think that this Thorny Soil group equals in number the Good Soil group. Indeed it does, for this is the group out of which comes the foolish virgins. It is true, they had the oil (Spirit) but not enough. It gave out. They were lost. God grant to us, my reader, that we may not be found in this petrified unit! Last, we see:

Thank God for this holy and undefiled cluster of believers, who, not only received the Word of God, but also kept and obeyed it to the end. They had oil enough to take them all the way to the great Marriage Supper. They produced the right amount of fruit according to their ability, "some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

Now, in conclusion, may I ask you again, my reader, which group are you in, one? two? three? or four? This question should not be difficult for you to answer by this time. There is, of course, the possibility of your being unwilling to acknowledge your group. If such be the case, I fear you have received little help from this message. It is not hard to place ourselves when once we are inevitably awakened to the fact that not only the Lord sees where we are, but every true saint of God knows our standing.

In high moments of ecstasy, one may receive the incentive to speak against evil or to praise the Lord to the extent that he indicates quite definitely he is in a higher group than he actually is. Such testimonies cannot be completely understood by those unfamiliar with the Spirit and Word of God. They reflect the Biblical picture that is drawn in Matt. 15:8: "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me."

This group, apparently, devotes themselves to an extreme type of emotional life. Eventually they are infested with moral laxity and lose sight of the value of true spiritual worship. Hence, their lives bear little resemblance to anything found in the Apostles' Creed. How pitifully ignorant one can become of what God expects of His people! The magnitude of this disaster is often recognized only after it is too late. Reader, stay in "The Good Soil," for the time is short "when He shall come to be glorified in His saints." Amen! No more tremendous words were ever uttered than those in I John 3:3, "And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as He is pure."

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