A Survey of the Soils

Open your Bible now to Mark chapter 4...Mark chapter 4. This morning we come to one of the extensive teaching sections in the gospel of Mark and there really are only two. This is an action-packed gospel, kind of the newspaper edition of the record of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, and Mark doesn’t spend a lot of time on the detailed teaching of our Lord, except here in chapter 4 and once again in chapter 13. There are other sections of teaching scattered throughout but not nearly to the degree of the other three gospels. So when we do land on a teaching section, we know that Mark has invested it with great significance, and certainly that is the case in this passage. In fact, the teaching of our Lord here extends all the way down to verse 34, as He gives several parables. Just one of those parables goes down to verse 20. It is the very familiar parable of the soils, sometimes called the parable of the sower, sometimes called the parable of the seed. But it really is the parable of the soils. . . .

http://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/41-17