Luke 8:1 says, And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and shewing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him, After eating with the Pharisee Simon and forgiving the woman who washed His feet of her sins, Jesus continued to travel and preach the gospel, and the twelve disciples were with Him. Once we have done what God calls us to do in a particular situation, we must continue to move forward in doing what He would have us do next. Verse two adds, And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, Mary Magdalene, who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities by Jesus was with Him as well. Just like her, when Jesus heals us spiritually by the forgiving our sins, we should want to be with Him. Verse three continues, And Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance. Jesus was also followed by Joanna, the wife of a servant in Herod’s court. Matthew Henry says she was either a widow or her husband had accepted Jesus and was willing for her to to follow and help him. Then Susanna is mentioned, and well as many others who are unnamed. They were helping meet the daily needs of Jesus from what they had. When it comes to serving Christ, it shouldn't matter if our name is noted by others or not, because Jesus knows what we are doing for Him, and that is all that matters. Verse four states, And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable: When many people had gathered around Jesus, He began to teach them with a parable, which He often taught by. We need to always look for the deeper meaning to the teachings of the Bible. Verse five adds, A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. This is the parable of the sower, who had some seed fall by the wayside to be trodden down or devoured by birds. So far, this is just a story of everyday life, and for many people who read or hear it today, that is all it will ever be, because they have not put their faith in Jesus Christ. Verse six continues, And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. Jesus said some of the seed fell on the rocks, where it sprouted, but soon died,because it lacked moisture. Still, just an ordinary story and not a deep, theological discourse. The gospel is very easy to understand. We don't have to have great theological training to understand it, but need only to rely on the Holy Spirit to give us an understanding of what the Bible says. Verse seven continues, And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. Some of the seed fell among the thorns and was choked out and prevented from growing. People could easily understand this, but we know that soon Jesus would give the story a deeper meaning. Verse eight concludes, And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. The final seed fell on good ground and produced fruit a hundredfold. Then, Jesus told those who had ears to hear to hear. Now, since I am sure that most of the people there physically had ears, I believe Jesus was calling for those who had spiritual ears to hear. We are all capable of hearing the gospel, but until we accept it personally, we will never understand its meaning.
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