How strongly are we committed to the truth and God’s way of life? We may sometimes have that feeling of quitting, having doubt or a lack of faith, and that kind of thinking could even bring us to the point of giving up. We have to be careful that we don’t think that way.
In the 13th chapter of Matthew, Christ talks about the parable of the sower. In verse 19 He states, “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.”
We must be diligent in understanding the truth, and we do that by studying God’s Word and asking God for His wisdom and understanding. Satan the devil is very eager to draw us away from God’s truth, and He loves it when we stumble.
Instead, we are to be joyful when we hear God’s Word (verse 20). The key is that we remain joyful and enthusiastic about God’s way of life, lest we drift away, due to various trials in our lives. Verse 21 states, “… yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.”
Christ also describes a category of people who do know the truth but are still attached to the world in some way: “Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful” (verse 22). We cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24). Being caught up in the world is a huge distraction from God’s way of life, and therefore, it is impossible to bear fruit. In verse 23 Christ states: “But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
We must also come to the realization that we, as converted Christians, were predestined to be called, and we were chosen for this life, to know God’s truth and His law. God has called us out of this world to a potential better life that is to come in the near future. With this understanding that we have, we must act on it, and we will be blessed far more than we can ever imagine.
