The interpretation of this parable is this: the field is the world, the man buying the treasure is God, the treasure is the true believers in Christ. The price that was paid was the very life of Jesus on the cross. Jesus saw, through His foreknowledge, a remnant of people who would receive Him as Lord, and “for the joy that was set before him,” He endured the cross (Heb. 12:2) and purchased us unto Himself with His own blood (Acts 20:28). He purchased the whole world, but not everyone will receive what He did. Therefore, the Church is hidden (scattered among the world) today.

Father God had the plan of salvation worked out before He even created the world. Most of us would not have created the world and mankind if we had known the heartache and terrible sacrifice this act would cost. But God is not man. In His judgment (which is the correct judgment) the prize was worth the cost.

God knows in advance those who will accept His offer of salvation. The Scriptures teach that we (believers) were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). That’s how infinite God’s ability is. We were chosen in Christ before the world began. We are holy and without blame because God sees us through Christ. It was predetermined that we would be God’s children. We have been accepted by God. The Father would no more reject us than He would reject Jesus, because we are accepted by the Father through Christ. We are redeemed and forgiven. We are truly blessed!

The word “kingdom” means “the realm over which a king rules.” When applied to God, it could refer to all creation, since “his kingdom ruleth over all” (Ps. 103:19), but the kingdom more often applies to His rule in and through those who are submitted to Him. “The Kingdom of God” more specifically refers to Christ living and ruling in our hearts. So praying “thy kingdom come” is praying for the expansion and influence of God’s rule in the hearts of men everywhere and, ultimately, the establishment of His physical Kingdom here on earth at His second coming (Rev. 11:15; 20:4).

Throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry, the Jews kept looking for Jesus to establish a physical kingdom here on the earth and deliver them from the oppression of the Romans. Although, during the Millenium, the Kingdom of God will physically rule over the nations of the earth, Jesus’ Kingdom is spiritually established by His Word and not by carnal weapons (2 Cor. 10:3-5). Jesus said, “The Kingdom of God cometh not with observation . . .behold, the kingdom of God is within you.” (Lk. 17:20-21) Paul says we are already in the Kingdom of God (Col. 1:13). The Kingdom of God is therefore Christ’s “invisible Church,” His body. The Kingdom began during His earthly ministry and is still ruling the hearts of men today.

The new birth ushers us into the Kingdom of God which is infinitely greater in wonder and benefits than our finite minds can comprehend. To the degree that we do begin to understand how God’s Kingdom works and apply our lives to it, we can experience heaven here on earth. Pray for a release into the physical of what is already present in your spiritual being.

Satan has secretly infiltrated the Church with some of his followers for the purpose of hindering the influence of the Church. This has been a more effective strategy than direct opposition.

These tares that are spoken of refer to the Old World variety of darnel, which is poisonous. Virtually all grains are almost indistinguishable from tares when they send up the first blade from the ground. By the time the tares become distinguishable, they are so well rooted that, if growing in close proximity to a productive grain, uprooting the tares would also mean uprooting the productive grain. Therefore, verse 30 admonishes us to let both grow together until the harvest. The grains of the tares are long and black in contrast to the wheat, and are easily recognizable at harvest time. Many will profess Christianity, but “by their fruits ye shall know them.”

There will be those who are deceived and unaware that they are not born again, who will remain among the Church. Jesus warns us against trying to root them out especially since it is not always possible to discern other people’s hearts. In an effort to destroy these tares, we might offend one of Christ’s “little ones” and cause his or her profession of faith to waver.

It is important, though, for our own personal benefit that we be aware that the children of the Wicked One are placed among the true believers. Our best defense is to preach the Word of God without watering it down. False brethren will not endure sound doctrine. They leave when the Word, which is sharper than any two-edged sword, begins to expose the thoughts and intents of the heart. Stick to the Word!

Just as a candle or lamp is not to be hid, but rather displayed so that everyone can benefit from its light, so a Christian must let his light so shine before men that they might see his good works and glorify his Father which is in heaven. God has ordained us to go and bring forth fruit (Jn. 15:16). The great commission of the Church is to reach the world.

The early Christians experienced the love of Christ in an intimate and life-transforming way. This motivated them to reach their known world with the Gospel of Christ more than any other generation of Christians has since. They didn’t have the benefits of our modern technology, but they did have the benefit of being full of the love of Christ. Experiencing the love of Christ causes us to be filled with the fullness of God (Eph. 3:19) and makes us a witness that the world cannot resist (Jn. 13:35).

Today, much of the emphasis of the Church is placed on techniques of evangelism or spiritual warfare. We motivate people to witness through feelings of guilt or punishment if they don’t. Much of our evangelism has become as dead and non-productive as the efforts of the cults whose people knock on doors and argue others into their way of thinking. The Church today needs a revival of our personal relationship with the Lord. When we can truly say with Paul that the love of Christ constrains us, then we will impact our world for the Lord, too. We can’t give away what we don’t possess. We need to personally know the love of Christ in an experiential way before we try to share it with others. Let Him love you, and let His love flow through you to others. The world is hungry for love, real love.

The second type of person Jesus describes is one who does receive the Word, even with great joy, but his commitment to the Word is shallow. Just as a plant must establish a strong root system to sustain its growth, so we must become rooted and grounded in God’s Word. Too much attention on visible growth will cause us to become impatient and not take the time to become firmly established in the truths of God’s Word. This will always result in fruitlessness.

A seed planted in shallow earth will germinate and grow faster than a seed planted in deep soil. The seed in deep soil will put all of its energy towards the roots first while the seed in shallow soil has no choice but to put its effort into the growth of the plant above the ground. The plant in shallow soil will look like it is far ahead of the other seed for a while, but that will not last. It soon withers and dies, while the seed with roots grows and brings forth fruit.

Notice that afflictions, persecutions, and tribulations are instruments of the devil and are used to stop God’s Word from bearing fruit in our lives. They are not good things that God brings our way to improve us. They are instruments of Satan. These things are designed to take our attention off of God’s Word, thereby stopping the Word from taking root in us. It’s like the runner who spends all of his time in the grandstands arguing with the hecklers over the way he’s running the race. He may win an argument, but he will lose the race. We must not let anything distract us from meditating on God’s Word day and night, for only then will we make our way prosperous and have good success (Josh. 1:8). By consistently putting God’s Word in first place in every area of your life, you will let that Word become so rooted in you that nothing can get it out.

The first type of person Jesus describes is someone who doesn’t understand God’s Word (Mt. 13:19). Before God’s Word can penetrate your heart, you have to understand (not comprehend) what it’s saying. If the Word isn’t understood, then it will be like seed scattered on top of hard-packed ground (the wayside). The birds will eat the seed and there will be no fruit.

Mark 4:15 and Luke 8:12, make it clear that these birds represent Satan, and Mark says the devil comes immediately to steal away the Word. Satan did not have direct access to the Word in any of the other heart-types which Jesus described. Satan cannot steal the Word from us if we will hide it in our hearts (Ps. 119:11). This first type of person simply heard the Word but didn’t receive it. He never applied it to his life, so he lost it.

Notice that Luke links belief and salvation with the Word being sown in our hearts in the same way as Romans 10:14-17. If there is no Word, there cannot be any belief or salvation (I Pet. 1:23). We must preach the Word – not just morality or social issues.

Luke’s use of the word “saved” could include, but is not necessarily limited to, forgiveness of sins. Salvation includes much more than forgiveness of sins. This verse could describe a person who didn’t receive the Word and, therefore, was eternally damned. It could also be describing a Christian who simply doesn’t receive the Word in a certain area of his life and therefore doesn’t experience the victory that Jesus provided for him. Are you experiencing His victory in your life?

This parable illustrates the importance of the Word of God. God’s Word contains total power, but it has to be planted in our hearts and allowed to germinate before it releases that power.

The seed is God’s Word, and the types of ground are the four major categories of men’s hearts. The Word was the same in each situation, but there were different results in each case because of the condition of men’s hearts – not because of the Word. The Word doesn’t work for everyone because not everyone will allow the Word to work. The variable in this parable is the condition of these hearts. God’s Word is always the same. It has the same potential in every heart.

Good ground doesn’t just happen; it must be cultivated. This is the reason why only one out of four persons in Jesus’ parable brought forth fruit. It takes a lot of time, effort, and diligence to be a fruitful Christian. The Christian life is not like a hundred-yard dash but rather a 26.2 mile marathon. It’s quicker and easier to raise weeds than it is to raise tomatoes or corn.

In this whole parable, it was the Word that produced the fruit. The ground simply gave it a place to grow. If we will simply put God’s Word in our hearts, protect it, and give it priority in our lives, the Word will produce fruit of itself. Satan has deceived many people into thinking that they don’t have the talents or abilities to be fruitful Christians, but they are not the ones who bring forth fruit; it’s God’s Word. When we protect the Word sown in our hearts, it will do the rest.

It is through the reading of the Word and the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit that Christ in His fullness is known. What a privilege it is today to have God’s Word in our own language. Six hundred years ago there was no English translation of the whole Bible. Thanks to the efforts of John Wycliffe (1384) and William Tyndale (1523), today we are able to read and understand the writings of the apostles for ourselves. Men gave their lives to bring us God’s Word. We should take advantage of this wonderful privilege.

The piece of armor known as the “sword of the Spirit” is the only piece of armor that has the ability to cut, wound, and hurt our enemy, the devil. It’s not the Bible lying on your coffee table that makes the enemy flee, but it is the Word of God hidden in your heart, activated by the power of the Holy Spirit, and spoken in an appropriate situation. It’s similar to what is spoken when Jesus said in John 6:63, that “…the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” The Word by itself doesn’t make us free. It is the Word we know and speak that will deliver us (Jn. 8:32).

Why is the Word so effective? It’s because it is the WORD of God. It has authority, because it is indeed the WORD of God. God’s Word supersedes all authority of the church, of reason, of intellect, and even of Satan himself.

It is the Holy Spirit that wields this Word as it is spoken in faith. Speaking God’s Word in faith brings the Holy Spirit into action. In Luke 4, when Jesus was tempted of the devil for forty days, it was the Word of God, that Jesus used to defeat the enemy in the time of His temptation. Jesus constantly met His temptation by quoting from God’s Word as He repeatedly stated the phrase, “It is written.” Likewise, the Christian soldier must avail himself of God’s Word by placing it in his heart, so that the Holy Spirit may bring it forth at the appropriate time to accomplish a complete and total victory. It’s yours!

The word “waxed” means “to become gradually more intense or to increase” and shows that this condition of the heart is not something we are born with or that strikes us suddenly. It has to be nurtured over a prolonged period of time. This is why we should not violate our conscience, even in small things. Guarding our conscience will keep us sensitive to God and will stop our hearts from becoming hardened. If we will stay faithful to God, even in the small things, then we will be faithful in the more important things also.

Keeping the commandments doesn’t affect God’s willingness to love us, but it affects our awareness of how much He loves us. If we live in sin, our conscience becomes defiled and it condemns us. It’s not God condemning us, but our conscience. God still loves us. John was speaking of this same thing in 1 John 3:20, when he said, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” However, as far as this earthly life goes, our awareness of God’s love is everything. Therefore, we must keep Satan from blinding us to the love of God.

The most effective way of doing this is to give no place to the devil through sin. John went on to say in 1 John 3:21, “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.” Holiness is essential in keeping our hearts assured of the love of God (1 Jn. 3:19). It’s the nature of a Christian to walk in the light and not in darkness. When you are rightly informed of who you are and what you have in Christ, holiness just naturally flows out of you. That’s your nature.

The Greek word translated “mystery” here, means “something that could not be known by men except by divine revelation, but that, though once hidden, has now been revealed in Christ and is to be proclaimed so that all who have ears may hear it.”

God’s truths are hidden for His children, not from them. God has given an open invitation to everyone to receive the spiritual rebirth which entitles them to the revelation of these mysteries of the Kingdom. But as stated in 1 Corinthians 2:14, a natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit of God because they are spiritually discerned. Therefore, whoever rejects Jesus rejects the source of all wisdom and knowledge (Col. 2:3), thereby reserving the deep things of God for those who receive Jesus and draw on His wisdom through the Holy Spirit. This also safeguards the laws of God, upon which all the universe is founded, from being appropriated and misused by Satan’s kingdom.

In context, Jesus is speaking about those who have revelation knowledge of the mysteries of God. They will receive even more revelation and will walk in the abundant life that Jesus provided (Jn. 10:10; 2 Pet. 1:3). Those who do not receive God’s revelation will lose whatever truth they do have and will go farther and farther into deception. God reveals His truths to us in stages and not all at once (Isa. 28:9-10). Therefore, as we walk in the revelation of what the Lord has already shown us, He will reveal more of His truths to us.

The truths of God are mysterious only to those who do not soften their heart by seeking God with their whole heart. As Jeremiah 29:13 says, “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.”