With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given

 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."

Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."

And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples. 

- Mark 4:21-34

Yesterday we read that again Jesus began to teach by the sea due to the crowds who seek Him.  And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.  Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:  "Listen!  Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.  Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have 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 seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."  And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.  And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that 'Seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand; lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them.'"  And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?  The sower sows the word.  And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown.  When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.  These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it become unfruitful.  But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."   Again, as in yesterday's reading, above, Jesus repeats the call of Isaiah to those with "spiritual" ears to hear the message He brings.  Everything hidden will be revealed, but we must have the spiritual desire, the ears to hear with.

 Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  My study bible says this is a call to attentive listening and discriminating response.  We mustn't simply hear, but rather hear properly.  More will be given to those who respond to Christ's word with open hearts, a growth in understanding.  My study bible quotes Mark the Ascetic on this passage:  "Do the good you know, and what you do not know will be revealed to you."  It is similar to Christ's teaching that "with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you" (Matthew 7:2). 

And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."   This parable is given only in Mark.  My study bible says that the kingdom in this parable refers to the whole span of God's dispensation or plan of salvation.  The man is Christ, and the seed is the gospel.  The man's sleep indicates the death of Christ, from which He will rise.  That the man does not know how the seed grows teaches us Christ's lack of manipulation of our response to the gospel; each person is free not only to receive it but also to let it grow in his or her own heart.  The harvest is the Second Coming, when all will be judged on their reception of the gospel.

 Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."  The birds of the air suggest angels, who may dwell with us and even take refuge with one who practices the mercy of Christ in the world.

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples. We are reminded once again that Christ used parables to speak to the crowds, where both believers and unbelievers were mixed, as they were able to hear it.  But in private, He explained all things to His disciples.  Christ practices what He preached when He taught, "Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces" (Matthew 7:6).

Jesus puts emphasis on what we want.  That is, our decision that we desire the things of God, that we desire to care for our spiritual lives, and our souls.  At some point, our love of God -- just like our love of others -- is a personal choice for action.  That is, it is not merely a feeling that either comes to you or does not come to you.  For action, for the choice of responding to and desiring the word of God, there is an action that we take, a desire we may cultivate deep within ourselves, a "yes" that we reply to the prompting of the soul.  How is it that we come to an understanding of what we need for our soul?  It would seem that the depth at which we have a love of God is something that cannot be consciously understood.  And yet, Christ speaks to those who really and truly desire what He offers.  He forces no one to find the love of God, nor even to desire it for themselves.  His speaking in parables makes that statement quite clearly:  that this is for those who choose to pursue it, and to truly desire what is offered.  There is an action implied, a need to follow up, to cherish this word and to live it.  One must take it into the heart and nurture it, and make choices in life to uphold it, follow it.  All of this somehow hinges on those with "ears to hear" -- that is, those who have decided to cultivate the ability to know and love Creator, and to actively live life in that love.  In the context of that "hearing," Jesus advises:  "For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light."  Here in Mark's Gospel, and in this particular context, these words are promises to those who desire to seek that light, those secret or hidden things of God, and to find them.  Following upon this promise, Jesus gives a caution:  "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  Everything depends upon how we hear, what measure we use.  If we have made the effort, and so begin even with a little, more will be given.  If we have spent our lives without caring, without bothering to put in at least some effort to nurture this inner life, this spiritual need, and so do not have, then even what we have will be taken away.  Jesus speaks of a Kingdom, of the word of God, which we can pass our whole lives without knowing or understanding.  But even unseen, while a man should sleep by night and rise by day, things taken into good soil can grow, although he does not know how, and a fitting harvest may still be produced.  All it takes is the tiniest of seeds, and that can be nurtured and grown, so that it shelters angels even in this world.  The question is, what is that little bit, that tiny word one is willing to say "yes" to?  Do we make an effort to care?