In Mark 4:11 Jesus talks about the secret of the kingdom of God. Not everyone can see the kingdom of God; it is hidden in some sense. Nevertheless, Jesus has a kingdom and as surely as a farmer will get a harvest from his crop (Mark 4:8, Mark 4:20), so surely will Jesus get a kingdom.
The future harvest of the farmer is guaranteed in the parable. Though his seed lands on lots of different soils, there will be good soil and there will be a harvest. In the same way, the kingdom of Jesus is guaranteed. His Word will also land on lots of different soil, but there will be good soil, and there will be a harvest.
The certainty of the future glory of Jesus’ kingdom was probably a big boast for Jesus to make at the time, especially since the Jewish leaders wanted to kill him (Mark 3:6; Mark 11:18; Mark 14:1). Yet his words have proved to be a reality. Today there are many who belong to Jesus Christ.
The glorious reality of Jesus’ future kingdom (a truth also taught in the other parables found in Mark 4:21–34) should encourage us to want to be part of that kingdom. It should encourage us to make sure we not only know what Jesus says to us in his Word, but that we try our best to think carefully about what he says so that we can grow in our understanding. Practically, this will mean making time for personal reflection on the truths of the Bible, being awake when we listen to the sermon, etc.
1 Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea, and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land.