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

We'll read three chapters a day and finish in 30 days, so each month we'll read all four books. Go ahead and subscribe today and join us as we read the Gospels together.

We're continuing to read through the book of Matthew, so today I'll read you three chapters. You can listen or read along in your own Bible, and then I'll pray, and that's it.

So today is January 20th, day 20, and I will be reading Matthew chapters 13 through 15, and the translation I'm reading from this month is NIV-84.

Chapter 13, The Parable of the Sower. That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it while all the people stood on the shore.

And then he told them many things in parables saying, a farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.

Some fell on rocky places where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly because the soil was shallow, but when the sun came up, the plants were scorched and they withered because they had no root.

Other seed fell among thorns which grew up and choked the plants. Still, other seed fell on good soil where it produced a crop 160 or 30 times what was so.

He who has ears let him hear. The disciples came to him and asked, why do you speak to the people in parables? He replied, the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.

Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance, whoever does not have even what he has will be taken from him.

This is why I speak to them in parables. Those seeing, they do not see, though hearing, they do not hear or understand.

And them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah. You will be ever hearing, but never understanding. You will be ever seeing, but never perceiving. For this people's heart has become calloused.

They hardly hear with their ears and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise, they might see with their eyes here with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn. And I would heal them.

But blessed are your eyes because they see and your ears because they hear. For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see, but did not see it.

And to hear what you hear, but did not hear it. Listen then to what the parable of the sower means.

When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.

This is the seed sown along the path.

The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and it once receives it with joy.

But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.

The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.

But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it.

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