Let’s open our Bibles to Mark chapter 4. Today, we’re going to focus on a substantial section of Scripture, covering verses 21 to 34. While we could spend more time on these verses, we are moving through the Gospel of Mark, and it feels fitting to examine this passage as a single unit. So, stay with me as we move through this part quickly—Mark 4:21-34.

Before this passage, Jesus shared the parable of the soils. Remember that? He described two types of soil: one that yields no fruit, and the other that produces abundance. The unproductive soils—hard, rocky, and thorny—fail to bear fruit because they do not accept the truth of the Gospel. On the other hand, the good soil is receptive and fruitful, yielding 30, 60, and 100 times its original harvest.

The key difference between unproductive and productive soils is how they receive the truth. Hearing the truth isn’t just about listening; it means embracing and believing it. This is what sets believers apart from non-believers. Non-believers cannot truly understand God’s ways—they don’t listen with a heart of faith and submission, but those who belong to Christ do.

We can summarize this by saying the greatest gift we receive is salvation. However, we wouldn’t even know about this salvation without Scripture. In reality, the greatest gift is divine revelation—the Word of God. It is the source of truth necessary for salvation, sanctification, hope, and instruction in righteousness. This divine revelation is the most important gift we have.

True Christians are distinguished by their response to God’s Word. They listen, believe, love, and obey it. This responsiveness to divine truth sets them apart—not by a past act, a prayer, or church attendance, but by their engagement with God’s Word. True believers understand, absorb, and proclaim this truth.

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, “The natural man does not understand the things of God—they are foolishness to him.” But believers, those who are spiritual, understand and embrace divine truth because they have the mind of Christ.

An example of this is seen in John 10, where Jesus describes Himself as the Good Shepherd. What marks His relationship with His sheep? In John 10:3-4, Jesus says, “The sheep hear His voice.” They recognize His voice and follow Him. They won’t follow a stranger because they don’t know his voice.

True believers are never led astray by false teachers. They know the voice of their Shepherd. Jesus continues in verse 16, “I have other sheep that are not of this fold, and I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice.” In verse 26, He adds, “You do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and they follow Me.”

The defining characteristic of a true believer is their receptivity to God’s voice, which is revealed through Scripture. This concept is central to the parable of the soils. The three unproductive soils don’t truly hear the Word—they may respond emotionally or superficially, but they don’t become fruitful. However, the good soil represents those who hear the Word, embrace it, and bear fruit—30, 60, 100 times over. This fruitfulness is evangelistic in nature, expanding God’s Kingdom. As believers, according to Ephesians 2:10, we are created for good works. At the forefront of those works is spreading the Gospel.