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Thursday, March 4, 2010

Matthew 13:23
But what was sown on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

There are two elements here; hearing and understanding. Here we see that when a word is sown, it is up to the receiver on how he/she wants to receive it that determines the outcome of the seed.

Notice also, there are different amount produced in each harvest. Thirty, sixty and hundredfold. Of which, a hundredfold is more than both thirty and sixtyfold added together.

Luke 8:15
But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by preserving produce a crop.

This is the same parable in another reference. The two elements here are; the kind of heart and the action that you take after hearing it.

The kind of heart is described as "noble" and "good". "Good" can also be translated into "honest". The first requirement is honesty, openness or sincerity which is covering nothing up, or not having double-dealing or having double standards.

The actions that are taken after hearing it contains three steps; hearing, retaining and persevering. The course of our lives ultimately depend on the choices we make, and not on our feelings.

Are you going to aim for a hundredfold, or are you going to be content with sixty or thirtyfold? What you achieve will depend on the response of your heart.

There are two sides to our relationship with God; what God makes available to us, and how we respond to what God makes available. What will be decisive in your life is how you respond.

Will you choose God's best for you life?