“And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the Word and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the Word and accept it and bear fruit thirty-fold and sixty-fold and a hundred-fold.”
– Mark 4:18–20
There is so much we could pray for in light of this facet in our lives and others’ lives in the world around us in light of this parable, of the soils and the seed.
Mark 4:18–20 Paints a Picture of what Hinders the Word of God to take Root in Our Hearts
But I want to point out a couple of things in particular and lead us to pray accordingly. First, this picture of seeds sown among thorns representing people who hear the Word, but listen to what chokes out the Word, the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things.
Oh, there’s so much there. As we think about sharing the gospel with people around us and an adversary who wants to use the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things to keep the Word from taking root in people’s hearts. But not just in people’s hearts who we’re sharing the gospel with. Let’s beware of the adversaries attempts to use those same things to choke out the Word in our own hearts, in our own lives. The cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things.
When we are focused on these things, when these things are captivating, our minds and our hearts, maybe even in ways we don’t realize they are choking out God’s Word in us. So let’s examine our hearts and truly ask, “How am I letting the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches or the desires for other things, choke out God’s Word in my own mind and heart and life in ways that God’s Word is not bearing the fruit that it’s designed to bear.”
Mark 4:18–20 Encourages Us to Pray for Receptive Hearts
And then the contrast in verse 20, those that were sown on the good soul, the ones who hear the Word and accept it and bear fruit. There it is, three steps. Hear God’s Word. Accept it, believe it. Let it soak into your heart and life. We want it to get past the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches, the desires for other things. Let His Word saturate your heart and then bear fruit through you and bear fruit in others’ lives as we share the gospel.
Oh, let’s, let’s pray. Mark 4:18–20, God, we love your Word. We love this picture of the power of your Word to enter into hearts and bear fruit, that’s a hundred-fold. God, we want that in our lives. We want your Word to bear fruit in our lives, through our lives. God give us boldness, we pray to share the gospel today, to share your word with others in ways that bear fruit in others’ lives.
Lord, we pray that you would use us to lead people to Jesus through your Word. God, remove the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things in others’ lives. Help them hear the Word and accept it and bear fruit. And God, we pray for that in our own lives. Guard us today from being consumed with the cares of this world, being deceived by money and riches and things in this world.
God, keep us from desiring the things of this world in ways that choke out your Word. Lord, we want soft hearts when it comes to your Word. We want good soil in our hearts that hear your Word and accept it and bear fruit. God, may it be so in our lives and in the lives of people around us.
Praying for the Azerbaijani People
And God, we pray this over the Azerbaijani people of Azerbaijan who are spread out all around the world. We pray for the millions of them, show the power of your Word to bring many Azerbaijani to salvation. God, we pray for all those who are working among Azerbaijani, including the small number of Azerbaijani brothers and sisters.
Lord, we pray that you would empower them. Let there be great fruit born for your glory among Azerbaijani people around the world. God, we praise you for the fruit that comes from your Word and we pray for it in our lives. We pray for it in the lives of people around us. And God, we pray for it in the lives of Azerbaijani around the world. In Jesus name we pray according to Mark 4. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
