Matthew 13:1 The Parable of the Sower. In the parable of the sower there is nothing at all novel. Our Saviour did not affect novelty in His illustrations of what He had to say to men about Divine truth; and however new and however strange might be some of the doctrines which He preached, His illus... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:3 I. The beaten path. Let us think about that type of character which is here set forth under the image of the wayside. It is a heart trodden down by the feet that have gone across it; and because trodden down, a heart incapable of receiving the seed sown. The seed falls _upon_it, not _in... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:3 The Parables of the Kingdom. I. Taking these seven parables all together, notice, first, the fact that our Lord, in describing the kingdom of heaven, did deliberately use many parables, and those strikingly different from one another. The kingdom of heaven is a many-sided thing, and t... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:10 The Parables of Christ. I. "Whosoever hath, to him shall be given," etc, Here a universal law is announced as the explanation of the gift to the disciples of understanding mysteries, and of the difference between them and others. _Whosoever_hath, _whosoever_hath not. Is it not assume... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:12 To Him that hath shall be given a law of the Christian Sabbath. Let us illustrate this doctrine by a reference: I. To nations. If there were any land in which the higher uses of the Sabbath were universally understood and enjoyed, we should be able to show there, in their full measu... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:13 Christ here touches upon a common fact of our human nature spiritual insensibility; that state in which spiritual things pass before a man, and instead of being beautiful and blessed realities they are meaningless to him. Nor is there anything strange or fanciful in this representatio... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:17 I. The words of the text have often struck the ears of us all, and few of us, perhaps, have stopped to ask ourselves how far we really could agree with them. Many prophets and righteous men have desired to see the things which Christ's disciples saw and have not seen them. It seems al... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:1 , MATTHEW 13:18 The Parable of the Sower. Notice the various obstacles which successively meet the seed and mar its fruitfulness. I. The wayside. There is a condition of heart which corresponds to the smoothness, hardness, and wholeness of a frequented footpath that skirts or crosses... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:24 I. It was "while men slept" that the enemy sowed his tares among the wheat. The phrase is equivalent to "at night," and must not be further urged. This enemy seized his opportunity when all eyes were closed in sleep, and wrought the secret mischief upon which he was intent, and, havin... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:25 In the text, three things are hinted at by Christ with respect to the presence of evil among the good. I. Here, first, is the secrecy, the undiscernibleness of its beginnings "while men slept;" words which could hardly have been meant to indicate negligence or inattention on the part... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:28 Observe: I. what is the cause of all the evil which we see in the world and the Church. "An enemy hath done this." In so far as we are striving against that enemy, we gain courage to do the work of One who is greater than he. As there are times when man must sleep and leave an opportu... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:29 The comparison here and elsewhere set forth between the great mixed community of man and the vegetable kingdom presents many points of striking and obvious parallel. Sowing the seed growing until the harvest the unsparing universality of the reaping the final separation. I. This prese... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:31 The Grain of Mustard Seed. There are very few of our Lord's parables that can be illustrated so fully, few that get so clear a confirmation from all experience, as this. And yet to accept the principle and really live by it requires the very faith of which the parable speaks. I. Loo... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:31 The Kingdom of God. I. Look first at the external progress of the kingdom as illustrated by the growth of the mustard seed. It is ever important to remember that Christianity, at first like a small grain of seed, spread throughout the world, until the nations of the earth came to floc... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:33 In the mustard seed we saw the kingdom growing great by its inherent vitality; in the leaven we see it growing great by a contagious influence. There the increase was obtained by development from within; here, by acquisitions from without. The kingdom grows great by permeating in secr... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:43 The Glory of the Righteous. I. Its present concealment. (1) We find the first reason for this concealment in the nature of the only true righteousness in man. Our faith is as yet only the germ of a new creation, and often it is cradled in tears and made strong by storms. Slowly, very... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:44 The Treasure Twice Hidden. I. How tender, how intelligent, how considerate, is Jesus Christ! How mercifully He recognizes what some, speaking in His name, make so light of the difficulty of believing! He says the treasure of treasures is a hid treasure. It has been for ages buried in... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:44 It appears to me that there are four great tests of value. I. The first test of value is rarity. A thing is valuable according to its scarceness. Apply this test to religion. It is holiness and happiness rare things in this world, look for them where you will. The most unique and pre... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:45 The true lessons of this parable are briefly these: I. It represents the experience, not of a careless or a profane man, who stumbles suddenly upon the Gospel when he was in in search of other things, but of one who is awakened, and has begun to seek the true religion, endeavouring t... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:51 I. The comparison is between the householder and the disciples. If they understood these few and seemingly simple analogies which He had unfolded to them, they were instructed unto the kingdom of heaven. Reflect first on the importance to us of this declaration. Jesus had given these m... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 13:58 The heathen conception of God is that of an irresistible force, directed by an irresponsible will. And if we examine our own feelings regarding God and the spirit which pervades our prayers, we shall perhaps find that some such thoughts of God's nature linger dimly and undefined in our... [ Continue Reading ]