The seed and the soil: A true lesson in faith and commitment

The message discusses two lessons in faith and commitment taught by Jesus. It emphasizes that spiritual growth requires collaboration between God and man. It cites examples of individuals who demonstrated faith and took action to receive healing and produce spiritual fruit. The message concludes by highlighting the importance of human collaboration in the process of spiritual growth. 🎼🎼🎼 Welcome to our weekly exhortation. Thank you for joining me. Thank you for your precious time. My name is Gila Miura, servant of God, servant of Jesus Christ. In today's message, we'll talk about how our Lord Jesus introduces us to two lessons in faith and commitment. 🎼🎼🎼 Praise the Lord. In many of his teachings, the Lord Jesus showed his disciples that their spiritual growth is not automatic and that man's path is necessary for the advancement of the kingdom of God. In other words, contrary to popular opinion, God has always put man to work for the advancement of his kingdom. In this message, we'll consider some cases. 🎼🎼🎼 As we mentioned it earlier, God has always called upon men in whom he is well-pleased, that is, those who he justifies and who believe in his Lordship. He collaborates with them. We all know the passage, Paul planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 1 Corinthians 3, 36-9 These verses describe well how the disciple is called to work with Christ. 5. We must not think that the privilege of being a son of God without demonstrating it will attract Jesus' attention. 4. The Lord Jesus said in Mark 16 and John 14 this, And these signs shall follow them that believe. 5. In my name shall they do the works that I do, and greater works than this shall he do. What Jesus means in this passage is that those who walk by faith, signs or miracles will follow them, not that they will follow signs. We know that Jesus healed many sick people, but there is a passage in the Gospel of John where Jesus, to heal the sick, took his faith to the death. Please let's look at it. One day, as Jesus was passing by with his disciples also, he saw a man blind from his birth. To the question of his disciples as to know who did sin, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind. Jesus answered, Neither have this man sinned, nor his parents, but that the voice of God should be made manifest in him. Praise the Lord. Do you remember that passage? We find it in John 9 1-7. So after seeing this, Jesus passed on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed his eyes with the clay. At this stage, was the man healed or not? Of course, he was healed. But look at this. Before this man recovered his sight, before his recovery was evident, he had to make an act of faith following what Jesus taught him to do. And Jesus said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of serum. The question we should ask here is this, why didn't Jesus just open his eyes without washing his eyes? Jesus could have healed him on the spot. He could have recovered his sight right away. But Jesus didn't want to do that. Why? Well, Jesus wanted to put his faith to the test. And the man also did not hesitate. He believed what Jesus asked him to do and signed follow him. He went his way therefore and washed and came seeing. He says, I went and washed and I received sight. Hallelujah. Notice this. Going to the pool and washing his eyes was his responsibility. He put it to his own credit. He says, I went and I washed. I, I, I, I. He put that responsibility to his own credit. It is the same faith that Bartimaeus showed and of which attracted Jesus' attention who said to him, Go, your faith has healed you. Friend, you have to put your faith to action. We have another example which we find in Mark chapter 4 which is called the parable of the growing seed. In Mark chapter 4 verse 27 to 28 it is written, And he said, So is the kingdom of God. As if a man should cast seed into the ground and should sleep and rise night and day and the seed should spring and grow up. He knoweth not how for the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself. First the blade, then the ear. After that the full corn in the ear. What is this passage talking about? This passage is talking about the affinity that we can find between the word of God and the heart of man. In verse 27 of Mark chapter 4 it is said, And the seed should spring and grow up. If the seed should spring and grow up this means that life is contained in the seed. Right? Then in verse 28 it is said, So the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself. First the blade, then the ear. After that the full corn in the ear. In a word, this passage is telling us that the seed contains life but it is the earth that produces the fruit. The seed does not produce fruit. In this passage, the seed and the sword represent respectively the word of God and the human heart. It is in the heart of man that the seed is planted. Now, let's think about this situation. Life is contained in the seed and the seed is just waiting for the right moment to grow. But can the seed develop without being mixed with the ground? If you put a seed on a table, will it be able to germinate and grow? No. There will be no growth. The seed must necessarily be put in the ground first. Then growth is possible. Right? This field then becomes a place where the germinating power of the seed is activated and whose manifestation takes place before our eyes. From the first appearance of the blade of grass to the ear of wheat. Isn't it? Even if the seed has in it a power of life, it will only be able to produce fruit if it is united with the earth. Right? Like I said it earlier, this affinity between the seed and the soil is also found between the divine world and the heart of man. God has established between the world and the human heart an intimate, even mysterious relationship which has the power to produce spiritual fruits. Praise the Lord. Through this passage, Jesus therefore teaches us that the work of regeneration and sanctification is accomplished under the harmonious action of divine grace and human will. To conclude this message, I would like to say that divine grace is the free gift of eternal life to man. It is in us as much a life as a power capable of transforming radically our heart and to make us grow spiritually. Growth is gradual and certain, but spiritual growth does not happen by force nor automatically. In this regard, one condition is indispensable. It requires human collaboration. This is the end of today's message. I hope you have taken your part from it. God willing, we hope to see you next week for another topic. Shalom. This is the end of today's message. God willing, we hope to see you next week for another topic. Shalom. This is the end of today's message. Shalom.