Secrets From The Parable Of The Sower

The parable of the Sower reveals the two secret keys to Christian maturity. Such a simple illustration uncovers two grand themes woven through the fabric of the Bible. What is the seed? Who represents the good soil? How do believers mature? What does it mean to fall away? Hidden in this parable are answers to these questions and more.In an easy narrative, the author lays out the ingredients, true seed and rich soil, clarifies what they represent, and explains how they impact lives and eternities.

This acclaimed post-apocalyptic novel of hope and terror from an award-winning author "pairs well with 1984 or The Handmaid's Tale" and includes a foreword by N. K. Jemisin (John Green, New York Times). When global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos in the early 2020s, California becomes full of dangers, from pervasive water shortage to masses of vagabonds who will do anything to live to see another day. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina lives inside a gated community with her preacher father, family, and neighbors, sheltered from the surrounding anarchy. In a society where any vulnerability is a risk, she suffers from hyperempathy, a debilitating sensitivity to others' emotions. Precocious and clear-eyed, Lauren must make her voice heard in order to protect her loved ones from the imminent disasters her small community stubbornly ignores. But what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: the birth of a new faith . . . and a startling vision of human destiny.

This parable should really be entitled "The Parable of the Soil", because the story, and the truths emphasized therein, do not focus on the one sowing seed. The focus of the story is about the soil. It's about dirt. In Matthew 13, Jesus taught how the hearts of people can differ regarding openness, or receptiveness, to God's Word. And who knows the hearts of mankind better than the Creator/Carpenter? He has the dirt on all of us!

The story of Jesus has often been referred to as, The Greatest Story Ever Told. Indeed it is! However, Jesus was also very skillful in the use of stories in His teaching. These were not run-of-the-mill stories. They were filled with ordinary things like seeds, dirt, rocks and thorns. Jesus referred to His stories as parables. It is a rare and amazing gift to accomplish what Jesus did with this technique. He could conceal or reveal great truth in just a few words. Every parable had a definite purpose. In some cases there was such revelation entwined in the story it has often been missed, even when reading His explanation. The parable comprising a large portion of Matthew chapter 13 is a great example. It is packed with great insight into the way Jesus looks at the world in which we live. Our job is to pay closer attention to the explanation of the parable than we do to the story itself. Only then do we receive the benefit Jesus intended. Expect your spiritual perspective to be challenged and enriched as you read what is written here. It is not only far from ordinary; it is rich with fresh revelation from the Holy Spirit.

The NIV is the world's best-selling modern translation, with over 150 million copies in print since its first full publication in 1978. This highly accurate and smooth-reading version of the Bible in modern English has the largest library of printed and electronic support material of any modern translation.

Neuromancer meets Star Trek in Gamechanger, a fantastic new book from award-winning author L. X. Beckett. First there was the Setback. Then came the Clawback. Now we thrive. Rubi Whiting is a member of the Bounceback Generation. The first to be raised free of the troubles of the late twenty-first century. Now she works as a public defender to help troubled individuals with anti-social behavior. That’s how she met Luciano Pox. Luce is a firebrand and has made a name for himself as a naysayer. But there’s more to him than being a lightning rod for controversy. Rubi has to find out why the governments of the world want to bring Luce into custody, and why Luce is hell bent on stopping the recovery of the planet. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Each chapter is summed up in its contents, each paragraph reduced to its proper heads, the sense given, and largely illustrated with practical remarks and observations.