What does Mark 4:26-29 mean?
Mark 4:26-29 reads, “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. But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.” This parable is not recorded in any of the other gospels. We believe it is found in Mark’s gospel because this gospel presents Christ as the perfect “Servant” and this parable was given to encourage “servants” who are giving out the word of God. The Lord Jesus had told and explained the wonderful parable of “the Sower” in verses 3-20 where the emphasis was on the responsibility of those who hear the Word. In this parable the emphasis is on God’s sovereign work in the hearts of those who hear the Word. This parable has been interpreted in three ways: it is a “picture of evangelism”; it is a “picture of spiritual growth in a believer”; or it is a “picture of the growth of the kingdom of God between Christ’s First Coming and His Second Advent.” All three views have merit, but we will be looking only at the first view. In evangelism there are THREE PHASES set forth in this unique parable.
- We read in verse 26, “if a man should cast seed into the ground.” This the FIRST PHASE in evangelism; we must plant the Word of God in the hearts of sinners! Souls will never be saved unless we present the gospel to them. In 1 Corinthians 1:21 we learn that “It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe” and this is emphasized in Romans 10:14, “How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” Dear brothers and sisters, it is our PRIVILEGE and RESPONSIBILITY as servants of Christ to spread the gospel of His grace, and every time we preach the gospel to a lost sinner we are indeed “planting the good seed of God’s Word” in their heart.
- We saw in verses 27-28 that “the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how, for the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself.” Here we have the SECOND PHASE in evangelism, where the Word that we have planted bears precious fruit. In other words, SOULS ARE SAVED! But we see in this passage that the one who has planted the Word “knoweth not how, for the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself.” We learn a most valuable lesson here; our job is to simply “sow the seed” of God’s Word, but God will bring it to fruition. We are like a farmer who plants seed in the ground and then he waits patiently for God to do His miracle of producing fruit. The apostle Paul spoke of this process in 1 Corinthians 3:6-7, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. So then neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.” As we said at the outset, this parable emphasizes God’s sovereign work in the hearts of those who hear the Word. Do we believe this, or are we trying to produce fruit ourselves by using methods to force a sinner to believe after we’ve presented the gospel to them? It is a blessed thing to learn what this parable is teaching us; the work of bringing the sinner to faith in Christ is A DIVINE WORK! And God uses the Word itself to produce faith in Christ, as we see in Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”
- Verse 29 speaks of the THIRD PHASE with these words, “When the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.” This teaches that AFTER we sow the gospel in men’s hearts and God brings that word to fruition, WE WILL REAP WHAT WE HAVE SOWN WHEN THE HARVEST COMES! Psalm 126:5-6 expresses this wonderful truth, “They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.” Praise God for the encouragement we have in these verses! (192.5) (DO)