What I love about how Paul says this is that it opens up a fresh way of thinking about the situation we find ourselves in and it paints a beautiful picture of what I believe the Spirit makes possible in our daily life as we are surrounded by the rigid world of necessity. Spiritually we are new creatures and have been set free but physically we still live in a world that will keep us imprisoned unless we learn to live in a way that is consistent with the freedom we have in Jesus. This speaks to how the Spirit helps us break free from the external pressures this world exerts on us that so easily robs us of the life of freedom in Christ here in the physical world.
New American Standard:
but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
The Message:
The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it.
The world is the realm of necessity and we feel it's pressures everyday....that is, to the degree we allow it to be what governs our existence...this is where the tugging and pulling created by the invisible wind comes in.
3 comments:
Kent,
Beautiful. I do love The Message translation (although I also use NIV and NLT a lot too).
Anyways, a beautiful expression you have here of Mark 4:19 and the excerpt from The Shack.
Blessings,
~Amy :)
http://amyiswalkinginthespirit.blogspot.com
Amy, that quote is taken from his blog. I just wanted to make that clear so no one spent any time flipping through The Shack trying to find it.
Kent, I love hearing you share how Paul's writings have impacted your life. You have a wonderful way of taking what Paul says and clearing up my confusion so that I can enjoy the beauty in what he has shared.
Thanks for the explanation.
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