Discernment is Recognizing the Difference

Recently I was reading through Matthew chapter 13. If you’re familiar with this particular chapter in the Bible, you’re probably aware that this is where Jesus shares a parable of the seed and the Sower. In the process of teaching, Jesus points out to the disciples how the Kingdom works. He illustrates that there is a connection between fruitfulness and the understanding of the revelation of the word. What is interesting is that the parable that Jesus shares can be multifaceted and therefore, it can reveal truths that don’t just apply in only one way.

For a moment, I was to share a few thoughts that apply in various ways. Whatever mountain of cultural influence you operate from, these may help you to discern strategies for bringing healing and transformation.

Thieves Profit from Your Ignorance (vs 4)

In verse four, Jesus’ first example of the sower shows where the seed falls by the “wayside” where birds come and eat it up. The explanation that Jesus shares are that when someone hears the word of the Kingdom and no understanding is gained, Satan or “the wicked one” comes and snatches what was sown in the heart. There’s a great deal of truth in this. What I want to demonstrate in this verse is that Thieves profit from your ignorance.

Whether you’re talking about business, government, religion, or any of the mountains, there are always some who are lying in wait to take advantage of your ignorance. We’re told that we are to study to show ourselves approved. However, there are times when we choose to hear information but not dig deeper for understanding or do due diligence. Our lack of study or research can position us to be taken advantage of and it can cost us.

Christians or disciples can be talked out of their faith when they are not solidly rooted in their faith. Something that I was told when I was much younger is that as Christians, we should never check our brains at the door. What I was being admonished to do was to be a student of scripture and not simply accept what came across the pulpit. It’s amazing how much comes across the pulpit that does not resemble the gospel and is designed not to foster our relationship with our Creator or engaged in the Great Commission, but to rob us of the fulness of the Kingdom.

Likewise, much of what is presented as education does little to prepare us for the world we desire to engage with. This is not all education, but some of the systems that are set in place are designed for profiting the system but does not build the student’s war chest with the resources to understand how the world works. When you are not positioned to understand, you’re robbed of your own effectiveness. This can be costly in time, money, options, and opportunities.

Not All Growth is Good (vs 5-6)

Verses five and six speak of seed that is sown in a stony place where there’s little dirt or soil; which results in quick sprouting because of a lack of depth, as well as a drying out or burning because there is no root system to feed it. Jesus explains here that there is initial enthusiasm in receiving the word but when trouble comes, there’s no endurance within to stand fast and the person becomes offended.

Allow me just a moment to postulate this in the area of building a business or a ministry. There are often times in which we can get excited by fast growth. We think we’ve accomplished something, or we believe that this proves our success. However, there is something to be said about steady growth. Fast growth often does not present us with the experience necessary to endure because we’ve not had the benefit of seeing enough things occur which build character or allow us to have encountered enough situations that enable us to troubleshoot effectively.

Quick growth looks nice, but in finance, fast money can equal a faster path to loss. In business, quick growth can be a setup for disaster if you don’t have the proper systems and structures in place to handle that growth. You’ve seen how traumatic supply chain issues can easily create hiccups for big businesses. Imagine the impact on the smaller mom-and-pop shops. In ministry. entertainment, or government, quick growth can be a dangerous place if someone is elevated without proper character development.

One quote I was told when I was young is that money doesn’t always change a person; it merely makes you more of what you already are. So, if you were a cheat when you had no money, once you have it, you become a bigger cheat. There’s another quote from my youth that says that a fool with money is just a rich fool. In other words, a fool and his money are soon parted. Just look at the number of lottery winners. Statistics show that many of these people are no better off in the long run because they did not have the tools or systems in place for managing it and they end up broke again within a few years.

Shiny Objects Distract from the Mission (vs 7)

The seventh verse says that some seed fall among the thorns which choke it out once it springs up. Jesus says this resembles the person who hears the word but becomes more concerned with the concerns and affairs of the world. He says the enticement of wealth simply lures him away and is therefore fruitless.

Essentially, this speaks to the shiny objects of life that can often take us off of the path that we know we’ve been called to fulfill. Whether it is an actual business, a ministry, or our family; whatever the shiny object is to us, we can lose our focus and miss out on the fruitfulness that life has to offer. Jesus said that no one who puts their hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the Kingdom (Luke 9:62). Sometimes the shiny object is something we think we’ve lost; an opportunity, a relationship, time, or something else. Shiny objects keep us from hitting the mark. Who misses out because we’re distracted by the shiny object?

Wisdom is Exponential in Value (vs 8)

In the eighth verse, Jesus shows the potential of a seed that falls into good ground. He says it can have synergistic growth potential. This is simple. The person who gains understanding can become very prosperous because they have the discernment to take advantage of everything that they understand.

Recognizing what you know and what you don’t can be beneficial because even knowing what you don’t know can signal to you that in that understanding your lack, you only need to seek until you find it. We’re told that God loves to conceal things, not because He wants to keep things from us; it is to demonstrate the difference between kings and those who are not kings. Kings will search out a matter (Proverbs 25:2). Dare to show forth your king nature and search out the richness of those things that will prosper you in life. Discernment is recognizing whether you have an understanding or lack of what is necessary for the circumstance you find yourself in. Find the value in that wisdom.