各位弟兄姊妹們平安，今天我們要分享的故事是有關種子生長和芥菜種的比喻，這段簡單的記錄在馬可福音四章26節到34節。
這個比喻相當有趣，因為它能夠描述許多人生中的情況。我們常常問自己，傳福音到底是我們的功勞還是上帝的功勞？如果是上帝的功勞，我們應該做些什麼？如果是我的功勞，我為什麼還需要每天禱告呢？用農夫的比喻來說明這件事情是非常貼切的。一個農夫有能力去耕種、澆水、施肥，最後去除雜草等等，但讓這一切成為作物的生長，難道是農夫的功勞嗎？不是，這是農夫和上帝合作的結果。如果農夫只靠自己種植，當然也能獨立完成，但如果農夫與上帝合作，他就能夠體會上帝的心意，見證從種子到作物的奇蹟過程。
因此，用農夫來比喻是非常合適的。我們有我們應該做的事情，但是種子的生長、天氣的變化、土壤的改變，以及結果能否長成作物，這些都不在我們的掌握之中。作為農夫，我們應該強調的是過程和忠心，而不是固執於結果。也許我們辛苦耕耘了半天，卻沒有看到成果；也許我們的辛勤付出被一場暴雨毀掉。
農夫們深知這一點，他們知道不能永遠指望作物一定會生長。就像我們在工作中一樣，我們不能期待每一次努力都一定會有結果。我們希望有結果，但在過程中，我們應該堅持忠心，持之以恆。
但我們看到上帝給我們應許是什麼呢？當我們撒種這個種也許比百種都小，但種上以後他長出來又可能比所有東西都更大。當我們去服事每一個人，服事每一件事情的時候，我們都要仔細地思考。
英國佈道家司布真曾經說過，他最看重的服事是主日學，因為你並不知道，這些坐在台下的小朋友們有沒有一天可能會成為傑出的政治家、思想家、科學家，改變人心的人。而在他們幼小的時候，你若把上帝的種子撒在他們心中，他們就能夠帶著真理、天國的福音，用他們的能力去改變這個世界。所以兒童主日學其實是一個非常關鍵的服事，也許你看不見在這個時候這些小朋友們有什麼改變，但是當你把眼光放長遠，五年、十年、二十年、五十年後，你可能就會看見兒童主日學的孩子們成長成參天大樹。
同樣地，當你去看教會歷史的時候，在每一段過程之中可能都會有一些迫害，有一些逼迫，就像是農作物經歷天災、經歷颱風、經歷各種各樣的災害。也許農作物暫時的看起來是被打倒了，暫時的荒蕪了，但是你會發現這些農作物不斷地在擴張上帝的國，不斷地再繼續的放大。上帝說莊稼已經熟了，莊稼多做工的人少。這是歷史上一直都在重複的，上帝的工，從來都不會被阻止，也不能被阻止，而我們應該成為那個收莊稼的人，將農夫一樣努力的工作與上帝同工。
種子生長就如我們人生一樣。做什麼事情我們都是從撒種開始，這件事情能不能夠成就，其實都不在我們的手中，有一句話說得很好，謀事在人、成事在天。當我們理解到了上帝的旨意的時候，我們就知道連謀事都是在上帝的手裡，聖靈給我們靈感，並且感動我們去行動，我們能夠與上帝同工，而上帝也邀請我們與他同工。在這個過程之中，我們就能夠見證上帝的作為，我們能夠做一個農夫，去看著撒種，並且看他成長，最後我們看到收成，而我們能夠明白這一切都是上帝的旨意在其後為我們運作的。
感謝各位的聆聽，我們明天來聽另外一個精彩的奇蹟故事，耶穌平靜風浪。
Dear brothers and sisters, Peace be with you. Today, we want to share a story about the parable of seed growth and the mustard seed, which can be found in Mark 4:26-34.
This parable is quite intriguing because it can describe many situations in life. We often ask ourselves, is spreading the gospel our effort or God's work? If it's God's work, what should we do? If it's my effort, then why do I still need to pray every day? Using the analogy of a farmer is very appropriate to explain this matter. A farmer has the ability to plow, water, fertilize, and finally remove weeds, but is it the farmer's effort that makes the crops grow? No, it's the result of collaboration between the farmer and God. If the farmer relies solely on himself for planting, he could certainly do it independently, but if the farmer cooperates with God, he can understand God's will and witness the miraculous process from seed to crop.
Therefore, using the analogy of a farmer is very fitting. We have our tasks to do, but the growth of the seed, changes in the weather, changes in the soil, and whether the result can grow into crops are all beyond our control. As farmers, we should emphasize the process and faithfulness, rather than being fixated on the outcome. Perhaps we toil all day and don't see results; perhaps our hard work is ruined by a sudden rainstorm.
Farmers understand this well; they know they can't always rely on crops to grow. Just like in our work, we can't expect every effort to yield results. We hope for results, but in the process, we should persevere in faithfulness and consistency.
But what promise do we see from God? When we sow this seed, perhaps it's smaller than all seeds, but when it grows, it may become larger than everything else. When we serve every person, every task, we must think carefully.
Charles Spurgeon once said that what he values most is Sunday school because you never know if these children sitting in front of you might one day become outstanding politicians, thinkers, scientists, or people who change hearts. And when they are young, if you sow the seed of God in their hearts, they can carry the truth, the gospel of the kingdom, and use their abilities to change the world. So, Sunday school is actually a very critical ministry. You may not see any changes in these children at this moment, but when you look ahead five, ten, twenty, or fifty years, you may see the children of Sunday school grow into towering trees.
Similarly, when you look at church history, in every period, there may be persecution, oppression, just like crops experiencing natural disasters, typhoons, and various disasters. Perhaps the crops temporarily look knocked down, temporarily barren, but you will find that these crops continue to expand God's kingdom, continue to magnify. God says the harvest is ripe, but the workers are few. This is the ongoing work of God throughout history, which can never be stopped, and cannot be stopped. And we should become the harvesters, work diligently like farmers, and collaborate with God.
The growth of seeds is like our lives. Everything we do starts from sowing seeds. Whether these things can be accomplished is actually not in our hands. There's a saying, "Man proposes, God disposes." When we understand God's will, we realize that even planning is in God's hands. The Holy Spirit gives us inspiration and moves us to action. We can work with God, and God invites us to work with Him. In this process, we can witness God's actions. We can be like farmers, watching the sowing, watching it grow, and finally seeing the harvest. And we can understand that all of this is God's will working behind the scenes for us.
Thank you all for listening. Tomorrow, we'll hear another exciting miracle story: Jesus calming the storm.
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