Introduction

         During July we will look at the parables found in Matthew 13. I will be using a new book by Klyne Snodgrass on the parables as a guide for these messages.

         What is a parable? Klyne's definition is the title of his book: Parables are "Stories with Intent."

         Today we begin with the Parable of the Sower, a parable that comes with an explanation. It is a parable about different types of soil: the hard path, the shallow and rocky soil, the soil that is weedy and filled with thorns, and the good soil. Listen for the repeated words "hear" and "understand." These words guide us to the intent or meaning of the parable.

        

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When the disciples asked Jesus why he spoke to the people in parables, he answered by quoting from Isaiah 6, part of which reads, "For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."

 

         The parable of the sower is a story with intent. Jesus begins with three types of soil where the sowing of seed was not successful, and then the good soil which produced a crop. The parable helps us to understand the ministry of Jesus. Not everyone responded to Jesus with faith. Some opposed him from the beginning and, in their hardness, put him to death. Some followed for a time but then fell away. Crowds are like that. Some wanted to believe but could not keep their commitment because of other priorities in their lives. But those who believed, who heard his word and understood it, who put it into practice, found the Kingdom and its blessing, life everlasting.

         We are guided into the parable with the repeated words "hear" and "understand." The word "hear" is used 15 times in these verses, and the word "understand" is used 5 times.

         For Jesus, these words, "hear" and "understand," have a particular meaning. This comes out in verse 15. Quoting Isaiah 6: "Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them."

         So hearing is something that involves the ears, it is listening to the message. But understanding is done with the heart. You understand a message when it comes into your heart, when you receive it with faith, when it makes its way into your will, into your emotions. You understand when the message leads you into a faith relationship with Christ. When the truth is in your heart, it causes you to turn, to repent, to change your way of thinking and behaving. When you turn to God he will heal you.

         The first type of soil is that which lies along the hard path. Jesus says this type of soil is people who hear the message, but do not understand it. In the ministry of Jesus I think this refers to the religious leaders who could not hear his voice because he threatened their position and standing. Hardness of heart seems to be a disease associated with religious people. We grow up in the church; we learn certain ways, collect certain knowledge and gain particular positions of leadership or influence. So we tend to protect our position, to guard our turf, to hold on to our influence. We can become like the hard path. How can we renew our lives to be Good Soil?

         Here is an example. Last week Carl Ball was our preacher. He is the director of Love, INC. in Lake County. When he walked into our church, the first thing he saw was a display for the Sharefest backpack drive. Sharefest is part of Catalyst, a network of churches to meet needs in Jesus' name. Carl is the director of Love, INC., another network of churches to meet needs in Jesus name. Love, INC. was here first. When Catalyst came in, Carl was not sure what role Love, INC. might have, if any. He could have become hard. He could have defended his turf. He could have called his supporters to have nothing to do with Catalyst or Sharefest. But that is not what Carl did. Did you hear what he said in the very first part of his sermon? He encouraged us to fill the backpacks, to care for the children of Lake County who need help. Carl's response to a situation that could have felt threatening to him was to be Good Soil, and God has richly blessed the community and the relationship between Catalyst and Love, INC.

         If you are in the church for any time at all, you are going to experience things that come from the Lord that threaten your position, that question your knowledge, that feel real different from what you have known. The temptation for us is to become hard, to protect our own position, to resist change, even to stop listening to the Lord. When you find yourself in this position, humble yourself before the Lord, and become good soil. Through prayer and seeking God's will, let him lead you to a new day.

         The second type of soil is found in the rocky places. Jesus says these are those who receive the message with great joy, but when trouble or persecution comes, they wilt, because they have no root. In Jesus experience, that might well have referred to the disciples. When he prayed at Gethsemane, they slept. When he was arrested, they fled. When he was crucified, they were nowhere to be found. They had no root, and wilted under the pressure of persecution.

         So much of the popular preaching in the American church in recent years has been based on a prosperity model. It says, "Jesus will make your life better, more prosperous, easier." This message does not hold up well in troubled times. Sadly, many have left the church and left the faith because their circumstances became difficult and they thought they had been promised prosperity.

         At The Feast last month, I went to a workshop put on by Covenant missionaries Peter and Ruth Dutton. They began their service in Thailand during the 1980's, when Jim Gustafson was there developing fish ponds and rice and pig cooperatives and house churches. They then took this model to Laos, a very poor country under harsh communist rule. They were allowed in, but strictly watched so they would not be spreading their faith in Christ. First they did a 6-year agricultural project similar to the Thailand model. Then the government took it over and did not care for it well. So they decided to start a business, and for the last 8 years have developed "Friends of the Upland Farmer," which pays local farmers to grow corn and gives them a fair price for it, so they can get away from growing poppies for opium. A group from Pomeroy, Iowa, came over and built some silos for them, and after a few years they began to show a profit. As they expanded and saw the difference this business made in improving the lives of the people, their witness for Christ also bore fruit. People began to come to faith in Christ.

         Then, the government sent new officials into the area. This spring the Duttons' invitation to live in the country was not renewed. They had to leave and sell their business. Even worse, several of the believers in that area have disappeared or been imprisoned.

         So, what happens to your faith when your life work in the Lord is snatched away? I was deeply moved as they described that since leaving Laos they have purchased an agricultural trading business in Thailand. They are going to continue their vision of development and evangelism. Those are folks with deep roots. They are not defeated in the work of Christ, even through persecution.

         One needs to pay close attention to scripture and be attentive to prayer to develop such roots. Are your roots deep enough in Christ to truly live for him?

         The seed that fell among thorns grew up but was choked. Jesus says the thorns and weeds are the worries of life and the deceitfulness of wealth. Maybe he was thinking about the rich young ruler. Jesus invited him to become a disciple. The other disciples had left boats and nets and tax booths to follow him. So he asked this young man to sell his possessions and join them. But the young man went away sad, because the thorns had too strong a grip upon him.

         What are we to do, living in this country that produces such a magnificent crop of thorns, and pushes us to move faster and faster to keep our heads above them?

Another workshop I took at The Feast was taught by Ted Nordlund and was on his experience with Sabbath observance. A large room was packed full two days in a row to hear someone talk about Sabbath, to hear someone speak of a time for rest and renewal. People seem to be more attentive now. Perhaps we are willing to think about how much we try to squeeze into our lives. Perhaps we are counting the high cost of trying to do everything we can possibly think of doing. Maybe Sabbath rest will teach us a way out of the thorn field and into the good soil.

         Jesus says that the good soil is those who hear the word and understand it. So the journey to good soil in our lives begins by listening to Jesus, and learning to listen with the heart. It means practicing "turning," repentance. Then we begin to respond to God in faith and obedience. Surely it involves receiving grace from Christ to live in a new way, and opening our hearts to the presence of the Holy Spirit to find the power to make good soil living possible.

         Let us come to the table, and seek the renewing power of God's grace in our lives today.

         Amen.