The Responsibility of Having the Truth
Mark 4:21-25
When you think about Cracker Barrel, what do you think of?
Country-style food, the store, the rocking chairs?
One of the most iconic parts of going to Cracker Barrel is the famous ‘jump all but one game”
You have that little triangle of wood with colorful golf tees in it.
And it mocks you for not being able to solve it!
It calls you an “eg-no-ra-moos” if you leave four or more pegs.
It says you are pretty dumb if you leave there.
If you leave two, it concedes that you are “purty smart”.
But, if you can somehow get it to leave just one, you are finally acknowledged for the genius you are.
You think to yourself, “How hard can this be?”
20 attempts later you are still determined to show that little game who is boss.
Now, I had one of those as a kid, I think I got it for Christmas.
I played it for hours, tried many different ways to win, including moving the starting hole to other places.
I did get to where I could leave one about every time because I had a pattern I would follow.
We went down to see Billy at college and we were all eating breakfast at Cracker Barrel.
The boys got started playing that little game and picking at each other for not being able to solve it.
I said, “let me have a try.”
I hadn’t touched one in years.
Know what I did?
First try I got it.
They told me to do it again and I told them they need to figure it out first.
I didn’t want to try my luck twice!
Sometimes a puzzle or a problem will take hold of your mind, and you just can’t move on until you solve it.
That happens to me when I am studying the Bible.
Some verse, phrase, or detail catches my attention and I just have to get it straight in my mind what it means.
That happened to me going through Mark 4.
I have taught through the life of Christ a couple of times now, and I feel like I have some pretty decent outlines and notes to go off.
Doing the daily emails I have discovered some holes in those notes.
I had our text grouped into a larger section and did not go into any detail about it.
So, I had to dig in, break it down, and try to figure it out.
Christ is in the middle of giving what we call the Parables of the Kingdom.
Matthew chapter 13 has more than Mark or Luke, and each one is a fascinating study.
Then, in the middle of these, there is this statement about candles, bushels, and beds.
Most people list it as a parable, and I hesitantly do so.
Actually, it is more of an illustration.
It does not stand on its own – it is a continuation of a discussion before.
The first parable given is the Parable of Sower, which shows the results of spreading the Gospel.
We must be faithful to sow the seed, but not everyone receives it or runs with it.
Some reject it, some fall away quickly, some a dragged away with the cares of this world, but others become fruitful believers themselves.
You will note in vs. 10 that the disciples privately ask Christ to explain this parable.
It is a valuable discussion to understand the purpose and interpretation of parables.
Mrk 4:11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables:
Mrk 4:12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
A mystery in scripture is not something to be puzzled out: it is something hidden that will be revealed.
Christ uses parables to reveal truth, that mystery, to His followers.
They are lessons for His family, not a broad Gospel call to the lost.
There is a difference, more in style than in substance, in how I instruct my family and how I counsel or teach others.
I can be far more direct and open if I am talking to my boys than I can any other college kids.
That is only natural in our relationships.
Christ then in verses 13-20 gives the explanation of the Parable of the Sower.
What we have in vs. 21 is picking up where vs. 12 left off.
He was talking about truth hidden in parables, but here He is talking about truth revealed by parables.
If Christ did not want us to know these truths, He did not have to say them aloud.
But He does and He did.
The light of the truth from these parables is compared to lamp or candle.
It uses similar language as in the Sermon on the Mount:
Mat 5:15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
Mat 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
It is not exactly the same in application, but it is similar.
Here it is not necessarily the Christian witness, but the light of truth that must shine.
Look at vs. 22:
Mrk 4:22 For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad.
This is not talking about your secret diary or your browser history.
It is not talking about evil schemes or shameful secrets.
This is talking about the parables.
Parables give us light and understanding to the truth, a truth which God wants us to know and spread.
He even presses the importance of it:
Mrk 4:23 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
That does not leave deaf people off the hook.
It is the responsibility of the believer to seek, learn, and apply God’s truth.
There are two more verses before another parable begins and the subject shifts.
These describe the our relationship with the truth:
Mrk 4:24 And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given.
Mrk 4:25 For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.
Take heed what ye hear!
He is telling use we need to be diligent in hearing and learning the truth.
He then uses an idiom – what you give out is what you receive – that is applied a few different ways in the Gospel.
Matthew 7:2 and Luke 6:38 apply it to judging others, essentially making it the Golden Rule.
Matthew Poole reworded it this way: “you that hear, so as you attend, understand, believe, hearken, and obey, God will give further knowledge of Divine mysteries.”
The truth of God in our hearts and minds grows and expands upon itself through the work of His grace.
The truth of God fades from existence in the hearts of those that reject Him.
I hope that maybe clears up the meaning of the text and its connection to the previous conversation.
It is a further discussion of God’s truth communicated to us, received by us, and practiced by us.
Even if it is hidden behind the veil of a parable, it is still rock-solid truth.
You do realize God wants us to know the truth, right?
He spoke to the people of old through prophets.
He gave us His word.
Christ Himself came as The Way, The Truth, and the Life.
One of my pet peeves is the claim that God somehow let truth be lost or hidden away for centuries on end.
That is what the Charismatics say, that God did not preserve the true way of worship from David until now.
That is what the Mormons believe, that God forgot to tell us basically anything until Joseph came to straighten us out.
That is what most Reformed groups say, that God let the true church be corrupted until Luther and the Reformers reclaimed it.
It is ludicrous to me to think that God went to enough trouble of sending His only begotten Son to earth the die and rise again for the redemption of mankind and then see the Gospel spread throughout the Roman world to simply let it disappear until modern America.
Truth is eternal, and God goes to great lengths to communicate it to us.
He wants us to have the truth.
The question then is, what are we going to do with it?
Will we reject it and deny Christ?
Will we take it but bury it in our backyard so no one knows we have it?
Will we soak it in and share it with others?
Our text this morning is simply our responsibility with having the truth.
Quickly, I want to highlight a few things that may prevent us from receiving or sharing the truth as we ought to.
First, our duties.
Note in vs. 21 it is a bushel that covers the lamp.
It is a basket or pot – the word used is modius which is about 2 modern gallons.
We are talking about something either domestic or commercial.
Do not let your day-to-day life stop you from getting or sharing the truth.
In fact, take the light of truth into those place!
Let your home be a shining example of Christian love and your work of Christian character.
Second, our downtime.
Note the use of bed in vs. 21.
This is the rabbit whole I first went down.
Common people at this time slept on pallets on the floor, which seems odd to stick a flame under.
Middle- and upper-classes had bed frames similar to ours today, so that would work.
It could also mean something like a couch that you would recline on.
Either way, too often our desire for ease and comfort hinders our relationship with the truth.
We do not want to work at acquiring it, nor to declare it to others.
Third, our desires
Look at vs. 24-25.
You need to want to truth.
You need to give it out to get it back.
I think of the words from that wonderful song:
I love to tell the story,
for those who know it best
seem hungering and thirsting
to hear it like the rest.
Do you love to tell it?
Do you love to hear it?
Opening your Bible or going to church ought to be like going to an all-you-can-eat buffet.
You ought to leave wanting more.
You can only blame yourself if you eat other things before you come.
Conclusion
- Sometimes you have to work for the truth.
- We like easy answers, but sometimes God needs you to work through the process of understanding.
- Sometimes the journey to understanding is more satisfying than the truth it leads to.
- We have a duty to tell others the truth.
- Other believers – discipleship, training, etc.
- The lost – the Gospel.
- Never stop learning!
- Never stop telling!
- God wants you to have the truth.
- If you are not saved, embrace the truth.