About This Video
Shawn teaches about Mark Chapter 4, emphasizing the parable of the sower where seeds represent the reception of the word, falling on different grounds symbolizing various responses, leading to either fruitfulness or barrenness. He further elaborates on the nature of YHWH's kingdom through additional parables, illustrating it as a process of growth and revelation, comparing it to a mustard seed that, though small, becomes a large plant supporting life.
Shawn emphasizes the importance of understanding the context and audience when interpreting Jesus' teachings, as some instructions were specific to His apostles or the Jewish people of that age, while others have broader applications related to today’s Christian faith. Through parables, particularly the parable of the sower, he illustrates how the reception of God's word varies among people and highlights the natural connection between true faith and the bearing of spiritual fruit.
The teachings emphasize that the message of the Kingdom of YHWH can grow from small beginnings into something substantial but also caution against allowing worldly distractions or negative influences to hinder personal spiritual growth. Jesus used parables to communicate these lessons, meaning that modern readers must thoughtfully interpret these teachings, understanding that they were initially directed at Jesus' Apostles with the aid of God's Spirit guiding individual application today.
Shawn's teaching highlights Yeshua's authority over the physical world, evidenced by calming storms, healing diseases, and conquering physical death, prompting his disciples to question the extraordinary nature of a man who commands nature. This reflection encourages individuals to ponder the true identity and significance of Yeshua, who, despite being a human, demonstrated exceptional power and purpose.
Mark Chapter Four
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So, let’s read Mark Chapter 4 together then we will work through it verse by verseTGNN’s Bible teaching series—book-by-book, through the lens of fulfillment and spiritual liberty.. It’s 41 verses long but we will get through them rather quickly.
Parables by the Seaside
And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered to him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. And he taught them many things by parables, and said to them in his doctrine, Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. And he said to them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
The Purpose of Parables
And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. And he said to them, To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of YHWH: but to them that are without, all things are done in parables: 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. And he said to them, Know you not this parable? and how then will you know all parables?
The sower soweth the word. And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.
Teachings and Parables
And he said to them another parable, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick? For there is nothing hid, which will not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And he said to them, Take heed what you hear: with what measure you mete, it will be measured to you: and to you that hear will more be given. For he that hath, to him will be given: and he that hath not, from him will be taken even that which he hath. And he said another parable, So is the kingdom of YHWH, 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. And he said another parable, Whereto will we liken the kingdom of YHWH? or with what comparison will we compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
The Teachings of Jesus at the Sea
Understanding Parables and their Significance
33And with many such parables spoke he the word to them, as they were able to hear ___. 34But without a parable spoke he not to them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples. 35And the same day, when the even was come, he said to them, Let us pass over to the other side. 36And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the boat. And there were also with him other little boats. 37And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38And he was in the hinder part of the boat, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say to him, Master, don’t you care that we perish? 39And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40And he said to them, Why are you so fearful? how is it that you have no faith? 41And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
Alright, let’s go back to verse 1.
And he began again to teach by the sea side: and there was gathered to him a great multitude, so that he entered into a ship, and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude was by the sea on the land. 2And he taught them many things by parables, and said to them in his doctrine, A number of things Jesus said were to His apostles only; other things were to the Jews of that age, relative to their Nation and them as the Promised Messiah. There is a great danger in people today simply reading His words (which are often in red) and thinking that they automatically apply to themselves. There is an equal danger in assuming that all of His words have no application to people today. Proper application requires time, proper context, and an understanding of “them/then” relative to the Kingdom today.
3Hearken; Behold, there went out a sower to sow: 4And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the fowls of the air came and devoured it up. “of the air” is missing from the better manuscripts. Additionally, we see that in this parable Jesus uses birds to represent Satan. Because of this there is some question on the standard interpretation of the Parable in Mark 4:32 which we will get to in a moment.
5And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: 6But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. 7And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. 8And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred. The concept of bearing fruit is inextricably tied to the concept of Christian faith and salvation – there is no one without the other – but fruit bearing will happen in the redeemed, not must – as naturally as fruit will be born on the mature branch of a good vine.
9And he said to them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. I am convinced that in this life people see and discover what they are looking for. Seekers have ears to hear the truth from above while the rest of us are looking for information to support our prejudices.
The Mystery of the Kingdom
10And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11And he said to them, To you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of YHWH: but to them that are without, all things are done in parables: 12That 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. 13And he said to them, Know you not this parable? and how then will you know all parables? 14The sower soweth the word.
The Effect of the Parable
15And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away.
Teachings on the Parables
The word that was sown in their hearts. 16And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. 18And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, 19And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful. 20And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.
(Commentary on here)
21And he said to them another parable, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick? 22For there is nothing hid, which will not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad. 23If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
Measures and Returns
24And he said to them, Take heed what you hear: with what measure you mete, it will be measured to you: and to you that hear will more be given. 25For he that hath, to him will be given: and he that hath not, from him will be taken even that which he hath.
26And he said another parable, So is the kingdom of YHWH, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; 27And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. 28For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. 29But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.
(Comment on EschatologyStudy of “last things”—TGNN teaches all biblical eschatology was fulfilled in 70 A.D. More here)
30And he said another parable, Whereto will we liken the kingdom of YHWH? or with what comparison will we compare it? 31It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 32But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
This parable can be seen in either a positive or negative light as fowls in scripture are at times seen as evil (see verse 15 above). In the negative light, Yeshua seems to be describing the Kingdom of YHWH as something that starts off really small (as a mustard seed) but gets really huge – bigger than all other herb plants – and so much so that it becomes a place where evil resting fowls hide and rest from the light within its branches.
33And with many such parables spoke he the word to them, as they were able to hear ___. 34But without a parable spoke he not to them:
Insights for Apostles
Relative to teaching the Apostles the things about the Kingdom of GodGod’s spiritual reign—fulfilled and present, not political or future.. He spoke many other things to them that were not in parables. CLA: (see The Trouble with Biblical Literalism)
and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
It must be seen that most of the synoptic Gospels contain Jesus teachings to His chosen Apostles – they were for them to hear and interpret and understand and were not directly to the other people of that day nor directly to readers of the Gospels thereafter. As a result modern readers must be cautious on how they assign the words Yeshua spoke to the Apostles as a means to train them to themselves. In this the Spirit of God works to bring application to the individual reader today.
35And the same day, when the even was come, he said to them, Let us pass over to the other side. 36And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the boat. And there were also with him other little boats. 37And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38And he was in the hinder part of the boat, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say to him, Master, don’t you care that we
Yeshua's Authority Over Nature
What would be in Yeshua that He would sleep while these seasoned fishermen worried for their very lives?
39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Throughout His mortal life Yeshua had domination over the material world – beginning with turning water into wine, He moved on and dominated disease, the weather, the sea, blindness, animals, and even physical deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God..
40 And he said to them, Why are you so fearful? how is it that you have no faith? 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?
The Question of Yeshua's Nature
This is the question all people must answer in their lives – What manner of man was Yeshua? We note that at least at this point, his apostles did not ask, “What manner of God is this?” To them, Yeshua was a man, born of a woman, a Galilean, a carpenter’s son. Obviously from being with him they could see from his habits and behaviors that Yeshua was an actual human being who faced all the things human beings face. But there were things showing themselves that increasingly caused them to now ask themselves, What manner of man was Yeshua of Nazareth?
The Climax of Curiosity
This curiosity would reach a climax when He rises from the grave after experiencing a gruesome death. CLA: (see, Yeshua/Why God had to become flesh)
