Parable Of The Sower (sermon)

Parable of the Sower Today I want to go over one of Jesus’ most famous teachings. The parable of the soweris included in three of the four gospel books. Jesus told this parable to make people consider how they respond to God’s message. He didn’t just to teach morals or perform miracles … No, He wanted to show them the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE! He was telling them that whether or not the message had effect depended on how it was received. First, it will help us to understand the parable if we know the context. Jesus was coming into conflict with the Jewish religious leaders, but also was becoming extremely popular because of miraculous healings He performed. In Matthew 13, we can read about this particular day. Jesus was healing the demon-possessed and the sick while the Pharisees and teachers of the law sat around looking for reasons to criticize Him. He was so busy that day that his own family could not get into the house where He was to meet Him. Eventually, Jesus went out to the nearby lake, sat in a boat just offshore, and told the parable of the sower: Matthew 13:1-23 What is going on here? Jesus told a parable to get the crowd to consider their own hearts. He didn’t want them to just come and observe what He was doing or to only seek miraculous signs, but to really consider the implications of what He said and did. Jesus accurately described the hearts of people in the crowd. He knew most of their hearts were calloused and insensitive, so that even as they saw miracles and heard the good news, they did not benefit. Matthew 13:14-15 Jesus told the disciples either you “got it” or you didn’t. To those who received Jesus’ words, God would cause the word to bear much fruit in their lives. But to those who did not seriously consider and accept the word of God, they would receive nothing. Matthew 13:11-12 So how does this parable apply to us? Let’s consider each type of soil and see if it describes us.

Seed on the path v. 19 “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path.” Jesus describes ground that has not been plowed up and is hard. When the seed falls on it, it cannot penetrate the surface. Jesus said that, in order for God’s word to have effect, we have to let it “sink in.” We have to carefully consider the message. I was thinking how to explain this and came up with an interesting analogy: God’s word is like the red pill in The Matrix. In The Matrix, Morpheus said Neo could either

take the blue pill and he would wake up in his bed and everything would be the same. But if Neo took the red pill, he would “see how deep the rabbit-hole goes.” In the same way, we have to decide to accept God’s word and see how it will change our lives—like Neo, we may be in for a big surprise! But first, we have to make a conscious decision to accept God’s word in order for it to have any effect. If we decide to leave God’s word on the table for later, Satan will snatch it away. So what makes people’s hearts hard toward the gospel? Why are some people’s hearts likethe path so that they don’t even consider the message? Some people may have prejudices that have trampled down the soil so that it is hard. They may accept what others say about Christianity instead of considering God’s word itself. Maybe all they know about Christianity is from Hollywood and The DaVinci Code. Or maybe they knew some hypocritical Christians before and don’t want to be like them. There could be millions of excuses for us to not truly consider the message of the kingdom. Maybe we feel we are too young, or too old, too busy, or not the right ethnicity. Whatever your excuse—Jesus wants you to hear today. “Hewho has ears, let him hear.” Make sure your heart is plowed and ready for the message.

Seed on rocky soil v. 20-21 “The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away.” This second type of soil is shallow so that the word is received joyfully, but does not mature within us. When trouble comes because of that person’s faith, they will fall away because they do not have the roots to draw spiritual sustenance from God. One thing I noticed was that in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, this trouble refers to persecution because of that person’s faith. Sometimes I think we might have stronger faith if we experienced more persecution. In American society, it’s difficult to think we are being persecuted in the same way that early Christians were persecuted. Our situation is not like Abdul Rahman, the Afghan Christian who is currently facing execution for converting from Islam to Christianity. His roots must be deep, because his faith has not wilted under persecution. How many of us would be able to withstand such persecution? So how do we grow roots? We have to train ourselves by living out God’s word. Don’t just accept the message joyfully, but carry it out to its logical conclusion in your life. How do you build physical muscles? By exercising them. In the same way, we need to exercise our spiritual muscles by obeying the Spirit of God who lives inside us. The person who does this will be a mature Christian. Philippians 2:12-13 12Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Sometimes we have a misunderstanding about what it means to be a mature Christian. We think that if we can quote the Bible and teach doctrine, then we are mature. But maturity is not measured by head knowledge, but by the degree that God’s word is

actually working in your life. Even if you only focus on Jesus’ sermon on the mount in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7 and obey that completely, you will be a perfect Christian.

Seed on thorny soil v.22 “The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.” The third type of soil has thorns planted alongside the good seed. Those thorns grow larger until they eventually choke the good plant. Jesus says these thorns are worldly concerns and pleasures. See how Jesus includes what we consider good things! Worldly pleasures are deceiving, and we need to be careful about being tricked. We should live our lives with eternity in mind, not just this world. • • • • •

Love your husband or wife, but remember the one who joined you together for this life and who will welcome you both back into heaven. Pay attention to your children and teach them with your life example, but remember they are entrusted to you by God, who is their eternal Father. Yes, you can enjoy a new car every five years, but remember that is a temporary pleasure and the treasures you store up in heaven are eternal. Please enjoy your job and do your best, because God made us to work and be productive, but remember your boss is God and your real job is being a fisher of men. It’s fine to enjoy and use the things of this world, but don’t be engrossed in them because the time is short, and this world is passing away.

Luke 9:61-62 61Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good bye to my family." 62Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” Once we make a decision to follow Jesus, we have to be careful not to let worldly attachments distract us. When someone is guiding a plow, they need to keep their eyes on where they are going in order to plow a straight furrow. In the same way, once we make a decision to follow Jesus, we cannot allow other things to distract us. The point here is not to reject all our family and worldly responsibilities, but to realize that this world is only a temporary home. Jesus said this world is deceitful. Sometimes we are tricked into thinking this world is all there is, and so we live that way. I remember being in junior high school—it seemed my problems at that time were so huge. Now, looking back, I understand there is so much more to life than junior high and high school. In the same way, sometimes we get so focused on this world that we forget about eternity. So how can we clear thorns out of our heart? First, get rid of things in your life that make you unfruitful. Is some worldly concern or pleasure choking your spiritual life? Maybe you ought to consider leaving that thing aside in order to become fruitful in God’s kingdom.

Tithing and giving is alsoa great way to put things in perspective. When we pledge our “first fruits” to God, we affirm our trust in Him. He is able to take care of us. Therefore, I don’t worry too much because I know God will provide. But if you don’t tithe, it’s unlikely that you can have that mindset. There is good advice on the one dollar bill: “In God we trust.”

Seed on good soil v. 23 “But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.” This person considers the message, thenputs their hand to the plow without looking back. They overcome each of the obstacles that made others stumble: 1) They considered the message carefully, understood it, and said “Yes.” 2) They grew deep roots by practicing the word and carrying it to its logical conclusion in their life. 3) They were not deceived by worldly pleasures, nor did they become so caught up with other concerns that they were unfruitful. Luke writes in his gospel this: “But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.” Brothers and sisters, I hope you are not thinking of reasons why you cannot be this last type of soil. You can be good soil! First, you need to consider God’s message squarely; don’t put it on the shelf, because the devil will steal it away. Realize what the consequences will be. Then make a decision to accept it. Work it out in your every day life. Make sure to grow deep spiritual roots so you can be mature. Watch out for thorns that grow up to choke your spiritual life. Clear your heart of thorns.