In the para\u00adble of the sower, Jesus descri\u00adbes a meta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis of the heart. The Word of God wants to chan\u00adge our hearts so that we grow and bear much fruit. God wants to send us out into this world as his ambassa\u00addors, so that ever\u00adyo\u00adne can alre\u00ada\u00addy expe\u00adri\u00adence the Good News today.<\/p>\n
Meta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis is the the\u00adme of the year for see\u00adtal chi\u00adle and is also in the title of today\u2019s sermon. \tHow many soils\/hearts are the\u00adre in the para\u00adble of the sower? In the para\u00adble of the sower, Jesus descri\u00adbes a meta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis of the heart. The Word of God wants to chan\u00adge our hearts so that we grow and bear much fruit. God wants to send us out into this world as his ambassa\u00addors so that ever\u00adyo\u00adne can expe\u00adri\u00adence the Good News today. Meta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis is the annu\u00adal the\u00adme of see\u00adtal chi\u00adle and also comes\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[73],"wpfc_sermon_series":[72],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":["wpfc_preacher-daniel-bieri","wpfc_sermon_series-metamorphose","wpfc-sermon-single","post-3430","wpfc_sermon","type-wpfc_sermon","status-publish","hentry","wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"],"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\nMeta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis, the Greek word for trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon. Natu\u00adre shows this trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon pro\u00adcess in the impres\u00adsi\u00adve exam\u00adp\u00adle of the incon\u00adspi\u00adcuous cater\u00adpil\u00adlar. Born as a craw\u00adling crea\u00adtu\u00adre, it trans\u00adforms into a beau\u00adtiful but\u00adter\u00adfly that flies graceful\u00adly from flower to flower. It no lon\u00adger has to labo\u00adrious\u00adly chew its food, but sim\u00adply sips sweet flower nec\u00adtar. What a won\u00adderful transformation!
\nWould\u00adn\u2019t it be nice if we as humans could also expe\u00adri\u00adence such a won\u00adderful trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon? This is exact\u00adly what the fol\u00adlo\u00adwing sto\u00adry is about.
\nJesus went to the shore of the Sea of Gali\u00adlee. When he saw the lar\u00adge crowd, he sat down in a boat from whe\u00adre it was pos\u00adsi\u00adble for him to speak to the many peo\u00adp\u00adle. Jesus said: Once upon a time a far\u00admer went out into the field to sow. Some of the seed fell on the path and the birds picked it up. Ano\u00adther part fell on rocky ground. This seed sprou\u00adted quick\u00adly, but when the mid\u00adday sun bur\u00adned, the plants withe\u00adred. Ano\u00adther part fell into thor\u00adny bus\u00adhes and the seed suf\u00adfo\u00adca\u00adted. Some seeds, howe\u00adver, fell on good soil and pro\u00addu\u00adced up to 100 times more fruit.
\nWhen Jesus had finis\u00adhed tea\u00adching, the disci\u00adples asked them\u00adsel\u00adves, what does this sto\u00adry mean? We know what a sower does, but why is He tel\u00adling us this? They asked Jesus and he answered:
\n\u00abI will now explain to you the para\u00adble of the far\u00admer who sows the seed\u00bb (Matthew 13:18 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nPara\u00adbles are pic\u00adto\u00adri\u00adal sto\u00adries that Jesus used to give peo\u00adp\u00adle a new per\u00adspec\u00adti\u00adve on ever\u00ady\u00adday life and to explain his message.
\n\u00abIf anyo\u00adne hears the mes\u00adsa\u00adge of the king\u00addom of hea\u00adven and does not under\u00adstand it, it is like the seed that falls on the path. The evil one comes and robs what has been sown in that person\u2019s heart\u00bb (Matthew 13:19 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nJesus tried to explain this divi\u00adne wis\u00addom in a simp\u00adle way. We humans, with our limi\u00adt\u00aded thin\u00adking, tend not to under\u00adstand the essence. It is a mes\u00adsa\u00adge that descri\u00adbes ano\u00adther world, a mes\u00adsa\u00adge of the King\u00addom of God. For us it seems to be an upsi\u00adde down world whe\u00adre many things are valued dif\u00adfer\u00adent\u00adly than we are used to. A small exam\u00adp\u00adle: After his twel\u00adve disci\u00adples had argued about who was the grea\u00adtest among them, Jesus said: \u00abThe grea\u00adtest among you shall be the ser\u00advant of you all\u00bb (Matthew 23:11 NG\u00dc<\/span>). In the new king\u00addom, the grea\u00adtest is not the one who has the hig\u00adhest title and com\u00admands all, but the one who helps his fel\u00adlow men.
\nI know no one who can explain the King\u00addom of Hea\u00adven bet\u00adter than Jesus, the King of this new King\u00addom. Today we cele\u00adbra\u00adte Palm Sun\u00adday. The feast com\u00adme\u00admo\u00adra\u00adting Jesus\u00bb tri\u00adum\u00adphal ent\u00adry into Jeru\u00adsa\u00adlem. His fol\u00adlo\u00adwers cele\u00adbra\u00adted him as the King of the new king\u00addom. The pro\u00admi\u00adsed saviour who would free the Jewish sta\u00adte from Roman oppres\u00adsi\u00adon. But they did not under\u00adstand what Jesus had taught them. At his hea\u00adring, Pila\u00adte could not under\u00adstand it eit\u00adher and asked him if he was the new king. Jesus ans\u00adwe\u00adred: \u00ab \u00abIf I were a world\u00adly ruler, my peo\u00adp\u00adle would have fought for me so that I would not fall into the hands of the Jews. But my king\u00addom is of a very dif\u00adfe\u00adrent kind.\u00bb Then Pila\u00adte asked him, \u00abThen you are a king after all?\u00bb Jesus repli\u00aded, \u00abYes, you are right. I am a king. And for this pur\u00adpo\u00adse I beca\u00adme man and came into this world to bear wit\u00adness to the truth. Whoe\u00adver lets hims\u00adelf be deter\u00admi\u00adned by the truth lis\u00adtens to me\u00bb \u00bb (John 18:36\u201337 HfA). Jesus declared that he was not a world\u00adly ruler and that his king\u00addom does not come through war. God cho\u00adse a dif\u00adfe\u00adrent way to bring his king\u00addom. I will go into more detail about which way later.
\n\u00abAno\u00adther part of the seed falls on rocky ground. This means: Someone hears the word and imme\u00addia\u00adte\u00adly recei\u00adves it with joy, but he is a fick\u00adle per\u00adson, a plant wit\u00adhout roots. As soon as he is distres\u00adsed or even per\u00adse\u00adcu\u00adted becau\u00adse of the word, he turns away from it again\u00bb (Matthew 13:20\u201321 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nThe mes\u00adsa\u00adge of new life with Jesus can sound very invi\u00adting. But chan\u00adge and growth is often dif\u00adfi\u00adcult for peo\u00adp\u00adle and it is very easy to fall back into the old life.
\n\u00abYet ano\u00adther part of the seed falls into the thor\u00adny bus\u00adhes. This means: Someone hears the word, but the cares of this world and the lure of wealth cho\u00adke it, and it remains wit\u00adhout fruit\u00bb (Matthew 13:22 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nI can iden\u00adti\u00adfy very well with this ground, or rather with this heart, and I think I\u2019m not the only one. Ever\u00ady\u00adday life can catch up with us very quick\u00adly, the\u00adre are so many ways to dis\u00adtract our\u00adsel\u00adves. It\u2019s very easy to worry about ever\u00ady\u00adthing pos\u00adsi\u00adble and impos\u00adsi\u00adble and over\u00adlook what\u2019s most important.
\n\u00abSome of the seed, howe\u00adver, falls on good soil. This means that someone hears the word and under\u00adstands it, and then also bears fruit \u2013 one a hundred\u00adfold, ano\u00adther six\u00adty, and yet ano\u00adther thir\u00adty\u00bb (Matthew 13:23 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nJesus decla\u00adres that his mes\u00adsa\u00adge of the King\u00addom of Hea\u00adven should take root in our hearts and grow until it bears abun\u00addant fruit. Chris\u00adti\u00adans do not have to fran\u00adti\u00adcal\u00adly try to bear fruit. The fruit grows by its\u00adelf when the seed forms strong roots. Roots are a sym\u00adbol of our con\u00adnec\u00adtion with Jesus Christ. He said: \u00abI am the vine and you are the bran\u00adches. If anyo\u00adne abides in me and I abide in him, he bears abun\u00addant fruit; wit\u00adhout me you can do not\u00adhing\u00bb (John 15:5 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nIt is God\u2019s plan that we car\u00adry His King\u00addom into this world through a trans\u00adfor\u00admed heart. God has a plan for our lives. Befo\u00adre I came to know Jesus, I felt in my heart that the\u00adre must be more to life than working \u2013 eating \u2013 slee\u00adping and having a good time and then dying at eigh\u00adty. And it\u2019s like this: God gives us a reason to live. He has included us in his plan. God in his great\u00adness has cho\u00adsen us imper\u00adfect peo\u00adp\u00adle to chan\u00adge this world for the bet\u00adter. Jesus came to bring this new king\u00addom to this earth. He did not enter Jeru\u00adsa\u00adlem with wea\u00adpons to impo\u00adse this new rule by force. No, he came with the won\u00adderful news of trans\u00adfor\u00admed hearts. The\u00adse can bring a bet\u00adter way of life to this world. When Jesus works in our hearts, the new king\u00addom is in our midst.
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\nIn a ser\u00admon at the begin\u00adning of the year, Pas\u00adtor Mat\u00adthi\u00adas said: \u00abIf it is right with man, it is right with the world\u00bb. I would like to echo the\u00adse words and add. If it is right with the hearts, it is right with the world. And God wants to bring this new world to earth here and now.
\nThe sto\u00adry of the sower is a spe\u00adcial para\u00adble. Jesus tells us not only one truth of the new king\u00addom, but seve\u00adral aspects of it. More pre\u00adcis\u00ade\u00adly, he descri\u00adbes a pro\u00adcess of trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon. We could also say that he descri\u00adbes the pro\u00adcess of a meta\u00admor\u00adpho\u00adsis of the heart.
\nIt is the new heart we long for. Not a sel\u00adfi\u00adsh, self-aggran\u00addi\u00adsing heart that walks over corp\u00adses, brings des\u00adtruc\u00adtion and death. No, a loving heart that gives, for\u00adgi\u00adves and brings new life. Jesus turns an Old Tes\u00adta\u00adment pro\u00admi\u00adse into rea\u00adli\u00adty. \u00abI will give you a new heart and a new spi\u00adrit. Yes, I will take the petri\u00adfied heart out of your breast and give you a living heart\u00bb (Eze\u00adkiel 36:26 HfA).
\nHow do we put into prac\u00adti\u00adce what we have lear\u00adned from Jesus today? The para\u00adble of the sower is about an open heart to recei\u00adve the word of the king\u00addom of hea\u00adven. The word must be sown in our hearts befo\u00adre it can grow. I belie\u00adve that it takes seve\u00adral seeds in our heart for it to come to 100-fold fruit. It is also a recur\u00adring pro\u00adcess, a lifel\u00adong gro\u00adwing. That is why we have to scat\u00adter this seed throug\u00adhout our lives. Jesus said, \u00abMan does not live by bread alo\u00adne, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God\u00bb (Matthew 4:4 NG\u00dc<\/span>).
\nIn our lives it is important that we hold the divi\u00adne mes\u00adsa\u00adge (God\u2019s thoughts) in our hearts. I recent\u00adly lear\u00adned that we humans have bet\u00adween 50\u201380,000 thoughts every day. Unfort\u00adu\u00adna\u00adte\u00adly, we have nine times more nega\u00adti\u00adve thoughts than posi\u00adti\u00adve ones. It is the voice in our head, the per\u00adma\u00adnent self-talk that sounds like a radio in our ears all day long. We have to choo\u00adse the right sta\u00adti\u00adon, the right music to the dance of life, becau\u00adse that is the only way we real\u00adly live.
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\nPos\u00adsi\u00adble ques\u00adti\u00adons for the small groups
\nRead Bible text: Matthew 13:3\u20139; 18\u201323<\/p>\n
\n\tWhich soil\/heart can you iden\u00adti\u00adfy with?
\n\tWhat kind of fruit is expec\u00adted from a Christian?
\n\tIs my fruit authentic?
\n\tIs being a Chris\u00adti\u00adan a stress or a libe\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon for you?
\n\tHow can I hear the \u00abmes\u00adsa\u00adge of the king\u00addom of hea\u00adven\u00bb? Name at least three ways.
\n\tDo I need to chan\u00adge any\u00adthing so that I have regu\u00adlar oppor\u00adtu\u00adni\u00adties to hear from God?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"