Revealing the whole truth of the gospel

Written by Richelle Hecker.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link. 

This picture was taken, in the parking lot, at my son’s baseball practice. The rocky ground is not a place where flowers ought to grow, especially knowing that cars drive over these pebbles, yet here is a pretty little flower anyway. There is no way of knowing what adversities this sweet flower will face. Perhaps it will survive spring frosts, lack of water, and traffic. Unfortunately, it is more likely to have a shorter life under these conditions.

This fragile flower reminds me of the second set of seeds in Jesus’ parable of the sower, 

^“Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root”
Matthew 13: 5-6 New International Version

Jesus explained to His disciples what He meant by this part of His story,

“The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.”
Matthew 13: 20-21 New International Version

It is sad to ponder flowers and faith quickly expiring. It makes me angry when I hear people say that if you believe then life will be easy. Jesus told us that we would experience trials and tribulation. Christians do not have an easy pass through life, on the contrary we often suffer very difficult circumstances. God does not protect us from hardship, but He gives us what we need to press through so that we learn, grow, and become more like Him. When we fail to share this truth as part of the gospel we put the faith of a new believer at risk.

Share the whole truth of the gospel and prepare new believers for difficulty. Teach that though we do have trials, God is sovereign and loving. He will allow us to experience more than we can handle, but it is okay because He never leaves us alone and there is nothing He cannot handle.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado