³⁵ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.^(A)

¹⁷ So faith^[a] comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.^[b]

⁶³ It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

The Parable of the Sower Explained

¹¹ “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.^{(A) 12} The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. ¹³ The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. ¹⁴ As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. ¹⁵ But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart and bear fruit with endurance.

A Lamp under a Jar

¹⁶ “No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar or puts it under a bed; rather, one puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.^(B)

Christ the Power and Wisdom of God

¹⁸ For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.^(A)

¹³ We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is also at work in you believers.^(A)

²³ You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.^[a](A)