Luke 8:7 And other seed fell in the midst of the thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it off. 14 And that which fell into the thorns, these are those who heard and, going away, are utterly choked by anxieties and riches and pleasures of this life, and do not bring any fruit to maturity.
[Part 3 of 3] Here we see clearly that the "thorns" signify anxieties riches (in particular, the deceitfulness of riches--Matt. 13:22), and the pleasures of life. These things choke the word and prevent it from growing in the heart and becoming fruitful. If our hearts are filled with anxieties, how can Christ grow in us? In order for Him to grow within us, our hearts need to be free from anxiety, the deceitfulness of riches, and the pleasures of life. In today's world we face many perils--perils of immorality, perils of anxiety, and perils of pleasure. The more you desire to have pleasure, the more anxiety you will have, and the more you will suffer. But if you are willing to have a simple life, you will not have as many pleasures nor as many anxieties. We should not follow the trend of today's world. This trend includes worldly traffic, pleasure, and anxiety. As the result of following the trend of the world, many are exhausted. They are busy with the worldly traffic and with earning money to have more pleasures. The result is more anxiety, more disease, and more death. We Christians should be delivered from the trend of this age and take another way. If we do not take the way of the world with its traffic. pleasures, and anxiety, our hearts will be released and available for Christ. Then our hearts will be occupied by Christ.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Luke, pp. 155. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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