Parable playing itself out

It is fun to realize that the parable Jesus was telling by the sea was being acted out even as He spoke. What sublime, multi-dimensional reality!

There was a crowd around him and He was weaving a farming yarn for His agrarian hearers: "A farmer went out to sow seed. …" When He was done, a few people said, "So what?" and walked away. An undetermined number said, "I've finally found the meaning of life!" and went off telling everybody in town, but after a week they were on to another religion. A third group signed up, but when they got home they realized they might have to give up something to follow Jesus, so they shrugged their shoulders and took the blue pill.

A fourth segment of the audience stayed after class:

"And when he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables" (Mark 4:10).

And lo and behold, because they stuck around to ask, He told them!

They didn't even know they were the seed sown on good soil in Jesus' story. They didn't even know they were doing something special or commendable. They just thought they were curious and wanted to understand Jesus better. But Jesus knew that was a special quality, and by no means universal. So when He proceeded with the following declaration, He was actually talking about them:

"For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away" (Mark 4:25).

There is a spiritual principle, then, from the mouth of Jesus himself-that if you want more and more of God and His mind, it is available to you. And the way you get more is by believing and living the part you have already. Jesus offers it but will not force it on you. You can always walk away and say "So what?"

"You take the blue pill-the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill-you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes" (The Matrix).

I'm for seeing how deep the rabbit hole goes. You?