Hi, friends. I'm Annie F. Downs. Let's read the Gospels. The Gospels are the first four books of the New Testament in the Bible, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

These are the stories of Jesus Christ's life on earth, the friendships, the parables, the sacrifices, the meals, the miracles.

Each month we read all four books. We have worked our way through Luke, and John, and Mark, and we are finishing on Matthew. Make sure you're subscribed because we will do it all over again in May.

Speaking of May, if you have purchased the Let's Read the Gospels guidebook, you should receive the pages for May in your inbox today.

As a reminder, if you like the reading plan and some thoughts about what I've been processing through as we've been reading for May and recording for May,

some journal prompts and questions that help you go deeper. That is what is in the guidebook.

And when you buy the guidebook for May, you actually get the pages from all the previous months, and of course you receive the rest of the year as it releases as well.

So you'll get the entire years worth of reading plans and resources for that one time purchase. You can grab that at AnnieFdowns.com slash Gospels.

So we always look forward to the 25th of the month, because that is when the next month's guidebook and reading plan are available for you at AnnieFdowns.com slash Gospels.

Here is how today is going to work. I'm going to read three chapters to you, and you can listen or read along in your own Bible or online, and then I'll pray.

And that is it. So today is April 25, 25 of this month. I'll be reading Matthew, chapters 13 through 15, and this month I am reading from the message.

Matthew 13. And about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach, and no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline forcing him to get into a boat using the boat as a pulpit.

He addressed his congregation telling stories. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel.

It sprouted quickly, but didn't put down roots. So when the sun came up, it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds. As it came up, it was strangled by the weeds. Some fell on good earth and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.

Are you listening to this really listening? The disciples came up and asked, why do you tell stories? He replied, you've been given insight into God's kingdom. You know how it works.

Not everybody has this gift, this insight. It hasn't been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely.

But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That's why I tell stories to create readiness to nudge the people toward a welcome awakening.

In their present state, they can stare till doomsday and not see it. Listen till they're blue in the face and not get it. I don't want Isaiah's forecast repeated all over again. Your ears are open, but you don't hear a thing. Your eyes are awake, but you don't see a thing. The people are stupid. They stick their fingers in their ears so they won't have to listen. They screw their eyes shut so they won't have to look so they won't have to deal with me face to face and let me heal them.

But you have God blessed eyes eyes that see and God blessed ears ears that hear a lot of people profits and humble believers among them would have given anything to see what you're seeing to hear what you are hearing but never had the chance.

Study the story of the farmer planting seed when anyone hears news of the kingdom and doesn't take it in it just remains on the surface and so the evil one comes along and plucks it right out of that person's heart.

This is the seed the farmer scatters on the road. The seed cast in the gravel. This is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm, but there is no soil of character and so when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there's nothing to show for it.

The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the kingdom news but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun, strangle what was heard and nothing comes of it.

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