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Recently, I have been looking very closely at Mark chapter four. In my studies, the Lord has revealed some areas to me that have profoundly affected the way I operate as a Christian.

Having said that, I would also state that over the past ten years, the teaching of seedtime and harvest has probably been one of the most significant teachings that I can attribute to my growth and ability to apprehend the promises of God.

In faith circles, we have learned to watch the words that come out of our mouth. We have learned to speak faith-filled words instead of words of doubt and unbelief.

From this revelation of seedtime and harvest, many of us have disciplined ourselves to guard our words. We pay attention to what we say because we want to live a life of faith and see a life of abundance in everything we do.

My message in this article is mainly directed to those of you who have unsaved loved ones that you are witnessing to and praying for. However, before I address that issue, which is my main point, I would like to lay a foundation.

The Word of God states in Luke 6:45 (and Matt 12:34) that:
A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.
(Luke 6:45)
I want you to pay close attention to the phrase "for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh." We cannot effectively guard our words without first dealing with the heart. You may have learned the importance of keeping your words faith-filled and therefore, try to watch what you say.

However, if you have not first dealt with the heart, at some point your mouth will speak forth those areas you have not dealt with or brought in line with the Word of God.

This is important to understand, because in order to have the Word of God produce as promised, the Word must be planted in good soil. According to the Word of God, soil is the heart of man.

As you study about the sower in Mark chapter four, you will find that after verse fourteen where we read "the sower soweth the word," there is no more focus on the sower, but instead on the Word (seed being sown) and on the ground (the heart upon which the seed is planted).

When it comes to you and I who are Spirit-filled, faith speaking Christians, we know that our mouth can only speak forth from the abundance in our heart. Another way to translate that is that we can only sow (speak forth) the Word of God when the condition of our soil (heart) is good.

The process of this is that the Word is sown into our lives. This will come through ministry in our local church, reading the Word, hearing the Lord speak to us, fellowship with other believers who speak into our lives, and listening to or reading the Word from other sources.

However it may come, when that Word hits our hearts and we receive it and act upon that Word, it will bring forth that which it was designed to bring forth. Remember the Words of the prophet Isaiah who told us,
So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
(Isa 55:11 KJV)
The Word of God, according to 1 Peter 1:23, states that the Word of God is incorruptible seed. It will always produce - it can never fail!

However, let's remember that Mark chapter four tells us about different ways that keep the Word from producing. In other words, this incorruptible seed can find itself in a circumstance where it is unable to produce even though the seed itself can never fail. When the Word of God is sown into ground that is not good, it is either stolen, choked out, or dries up because of not having any depth.

We all understand how important it is to keep our lives in line with the Word and to keep our words in line with the Word of God, because we all want to see the Word produce its promises in our lives. But what happens when you start dealing with an unsaved loved one?

So many of us have loved ones that are unsaved and we do a good job speaking the Word of God into their lives (sowing), but consider for a moment the condition of the ground that you are sowing into? Is it good ground?

Obviously the answer is no. By virtue of the fact that they need to be saved, we know that the present condition of their heart is not good. Therefore, sowing in itself is not the answer.

The Condition of the Soil
If you were a farmer and you had a plot of land that was full of stones, the answer to having a good crop is not to sow more seed, but to change the condition of the soil. This is the principle the Word of God uses in explaining to us how God's Word brings forth abundance.

I want to encourage you at this point to go in and study Mark chapter four because the Word tells us what happens to our seed as we sow into bad ground. In other words, you can be assured that every time you try to speak into an unsaved loved ones heart, the enemy is going to immediately try to steal that word.

Every time you speak into a loved one's life, the cares of the world are going to start choking it out. The Word of God is warning us that every time the Word hits a heart that is not good, this is how the enemy is going to try to make that incorruptible seed ineffective.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 2:11 that we are not ignorant of the devil's methods of operation. Here in Mark four, we are clearly shown how the enemy is going to try to make the seed that we have sown become ineffective.

We have all set our hearts to keep the conditions of our heart good. We are watching over the words that we speak, and therefore the enemy has no power over us, but once you release that seed and it is sown into ground that the enemy has had dominion over, the ground he has been given access to, he can cause the Word to not produce.

So what is the answer? First of all, I want you to set your faith on Psalm 107:20 which states, "He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions."

From this, we know that the Word has power to deliver people from their destructions. So we know and can have faith that it is possible for the Word to enter into destructive circumstances, like the ones our unsaved loved ones find themselves in, and the Word can deliver them out of those conditions.

Copyright © Fellowship of Hope
All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Author Biography

David Shipman
Web site: Covenant of Peace International
 
Pastor David Shipman is one of the founding pastors of Fellowship of Hope and presently serves as the Senior Pastor. He employs a very aggressive and responsive attitude toward the Word of God. Believing whole heartedly Jesus’ Words found in Mark 9:23, “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.”
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