Sowing Seeds in a Screen-Filled World: Understanding the Parable of the Soils

Reading of the Word

Mark 4:1–20 NASB 2020

Again He began to teach by the sea. And such a very large crowd gathered to Him that He got into a boat on the sea and sat down; and the whole crowd was by the sea on the land. And He was teaching them many things in parables, and was saying to them in His teaching, “Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow; as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on the rocky ground where it did not have much soil; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of soil. And when the sun had risen, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. Other seed fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much.” And He was saying, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” As soon as He was alone, His followers, along with the twelve disciples, began asking Him about the parables. And He was saying to them, “To you has been given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but for those who are outside, everything comes in parables, so that while seeing they may see, and not perceive, and while hearing, they may hear, and not understand, otherwise they might return and it would be forgiven them.” And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them. And in a similar way these are the ones sown with seed on the rocky places, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; and yet they have no firm root in themselves, but are only temporary; then, when affliction or persecution occurs because of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown with seed among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word, but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things enter and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And those are the ones sown with seed on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundred times as much.”

Prayer of Illumination

Gracious God,

As we prepare to hear Your Word, open our hearts and minds. Clear away the distractions of our screens and daily lives. Let Your truth fall on fertile soil within us.

Illuminate the Scriptures, granting us wisdom and understanding. May Your Word transform us and bear fruit in our lives.

Speak to us, Lord. We are ready to listen.

In Jesus' name, we pray,

Amen.

Introduction

Video

“Imagine a sower going out to plant seeds. He scatters them generously, knowing that not every seed will fall on fertile ground. Some seeds fall on rocky paths, others on thorny soil, and some land on rich, prepared earth. This timeless parable helps us understand how people respond to spiritual truths. But in our modern world, there’s another layer to consider: screens. Just as the sower faced different kinds of soil, we face different kinds of distractions that affect how we receive and nurture spiritual seeds.

In a world where screens capture our attention with endless content and notifications, how do we ensure that our hearts remain fertile ground for the message of Jesus? Today, let's explore how the digital landscape impacts our spiritual receptivity and what we can do to cultivate an environment where the seeds of faith can truly flourish.”

Everybody Loves a Good Story

The world loves a good story.

Jesus chose to use parables as a teaching method because they made the profound truths of the Gospel relatable through everyday experiences.

By using simple, familiar events, he helped people grasp deep spiritual concepts in a way that was easy to understand and apply to their own lives.

Stories bring a reality to life, whether good or bad.

Scripture gives us stories of both ends of the spectrum.

Good stories

Bad stories

Good stories

Stories that inspire, bring us joy and peace, strength and wisdom.

Stories that give us a testimony.

Your story is only yours.

It will never be repeated.

This shows that God works uniquely and differently in each person's life.

Your story, with the Holy Spirit giving it power, can witness and bring others to Jesus.

Parables (stories) put into perspective the reality that it is not easy work to share the Gospel. It allows us to encounter Jesus in new and challenging ways. "We need to become better storytellers! Stories create space. We can dwell in a story, walk around, find our own place. A story confronts but does not oppress; a story inspires but does not manipulate. A story invites us to an encounter, a dialog, a mutual sharing. A story offers us space in which to search and boundaries to help us find what we seek." -Henri Nouwen

The story for Christians ends up at the same destination.

At Calvary.

He gives us the free gift of salvation.

He then meshes these stories together in a beautiful way only God can do and creates the church.

God does not shield us from the bad.

He does not place us in a protective bubble that shields us from the world and its darkness.

It gives us a clear view of the reality of the world we live in. God allows good and bad stories to show us that good does overcome evil in the end.

Sin, Suffering, Heartbreak, Loss. We experience and encounter these situations as we live life and encounter others.

The Soil Makes the Difference

To understand what Jesus is telling us in this parable, we have to look at the soils.

The soils represent the heart.

The soul is the true us. It is what will live on forever. It is what makes our body act upon what decisions it makes.

The Different Soils:

Everything depends on the state of the ground.

Side of Road: This would have been hard ground that was frequently traveled. They hear but Satan snatches from it…they reject the Gospel.

This is the hardened heart. This is the heart that is like a stone and when the seed is thrown upon it, it sits there and eventually becomes bird food.

Rocky: They receive it with joy but when distractions come along, it fades away because the Gospel had nowhere to have its roots to get a firm foundation.

They receive the message but it does not penetrate the heart.

It has no impact on their soul and they still remain in the condition that they were before.

They live like they never even heard the Gospel message. The seed was planted but no harvest came forth.

Thorns: all the worries and distractions choke them. Wealth and desire for other material things doesn’t allow it to bear any fruit.

The Gospel is rejected because they want the things of the world. They don’t want change and they want to live according to their own plans and ways.

5. The good soil: It built a system of roots and produced good fruit.

This is the soul that opens the door of their heart to Jesus and lets him in.

He saves them, transforms them, and one day will glorify them.

This ground produces a harvest that is plentiful and shows its beauty in the fields, waiting for the harvesters.

The soul with Jesus at its core is a beautiful treasure that the world needs to see.

"The Christian soul is a masterpiece of God's creation, radiating His love and grace to all who encounter it." - Unknown

These souls tell many things but I only want to highlight a few.

The receptivity of the ground determines the harvest

Not everyone we witness to will accept Christ.

This is a sad reality. It hurts our hearts to even think about it. But we will witness to some different types of souls that are like the first 3 soils we spoke about.

They identify the source of the problem—human hardness, shallowness and self-indulgence

We aren’t responsible for the salvation of others.

They must make a choice.

We never control the gospel or its effects. Even Jesus is here reflecting on the unpredictability of the response when the message is made plain.

We are only responsible for sowing the seed of the Gospel to give them the opportunity to allow it to bring forth a harvest.

Some will allow that seed to bear a harvest in their heart. When it does, we rejoice and come beside them.

To support them to make sure the world doesn’t choke the Gospel in their heart.

To disciple them and teach them the things of God.

To encourage them to fellowship within the family of God.

The Harvest of the 21st Century

This harvest is very unique.

It exists in 2 different realms:

In-Person

Online

We have to learn to be able to reach both groups.

This is why I am putting some time into a good website and social media platforms.

This group won’t search for us in a phone book or just come visit us first. They will run to a screen to find out everything they can about us.

There is a harvest 2 blocks from us that we will have the opportunity to reach behind a screen as well as in-person.

There is a harvest that has came to this church and is no longer attending for different reasons. Back to Church Sunday is the event created that I pray will bring them back. Start giving me the names of those who you will contact. I will follow-up with them, but they MUST hear from you first. This is critical for that Sunday to be a success.

Application

Associate, don’t Isolate

The church needs to be active in the world in spreading the seed of the Gospel, online and offline.

We can reach others and bless them without participating in the world that they currently live in.

Engaging a culture cannot happen if we isolate ourselves from the world around us. A more profitable use of our time would be to educate ourselves on the culture, as a missionary would when travelling overseas, and to create content that impacts the culture in a meaningful way. We want to live faithful to Christ while participating in our society in a way that helps others see and recognize God and their need for him. Andy Crouch writes, “I wonder what we Christians are known for in the world outside our churches. Are we known as critics, consumers, copiers, condemners of culture? I’m afraid so. Why aren’t we known as cultivators—people who tend and nourish what is best in human culture, who do the hard and painstaking work to preserve the best of what people before us have done? Why aren’t we known as creators—people who dare to think and do something that has never been thought or done before, something that makes the world more welcoming and thrilling and beautiful?” (Andy Crouch, Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling [Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2013], 97–98).

Remember our identity in Christ in all that we do but use what we do in the world to share our identity with others.

The world wants to give everyone an identity. They don’t give you or me our identity though. They would rather take that away from us because it is given to us by God alone. Shine who you are brightly to the world. Do not life in fear and hide who you are in Jesus.

Use our daily life activities/burdens/blessings/etc. to spread the seed of the Gospel to others.

We can use things like film, art, and music and its power to meet us right where we are.

It is how we can relate with people the best. Use everyday things to meet them where they are.

We are so blessed to have so many resources at the click of a button. Many Christians still do not have anything, including Bibles.

1. Technology is a brilliant, praiseworthy expression of human creativity and cultivation of the world. But it is at best neutral in forming human beings who can create and cultivate as we were meant to. The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place Baker Publishing Group.

a. The Word without the Inspiration.

Resources without the Holy Spirit’s wisdom has the possibility of leading us down the wrong road.

Allow the Holy Spirit to give you discernment on whether a resource is good or if it is deception masked in Christianity.

This include articles, videos, etc. on the internet.

Don’t trust every preacher that you hear out there.

What sounds good on the surface can be anything but Christian deep down.

Don’t trust everything that you see on the internet.

Always test things according to our standard found in God’s Word.

Pray and allow the Holy Spirit to lead you. He will never lead you astray.

If you still have questions, ask me. I might not have the answers but I will work on getting you some that can help in guiding you down the correct path.

To Sum It Up: The role of story has always played an important part in God’s message, exposing sin and teaching truth.

The role of story has always played an important part in God’s message, exposing sin and teaching truth.

Conclusion

Why did I preach this series in the first place? I know some parts of it resonated with you, while other parts, like the emphasis on screens, may not apply as much to you personally. However, for the younger generations, including mine, screens are an integral part of their daily lives. They are everywhere and consume much of their time. The temptation to be addicted to screens is significant, and the things they can do with these screens can either bless or harm their lives.

I wanted to give you a glimpse into their world. This is a group I have been praying hard about how to reach. I will be working with Raye Lyn to make this happen, as her heart aligns with mine. When these young people become curious and engage with us, we will have a better understanding of their daily reality.

Pray for them. Encourage the people in this group to put down their screens and enjoy the life around them. For many of us, this will require stepping out of our comfort zones. It will challenge us as we pass the torch of faith to them. We trust not in their ability to carry it on, but in God's power to bring forth a harvest that will keep His presence alive in their hearts, even in a world dominated by screens.

Our focus must be on Jesus. May we never let the distractions of the world take us away from the best that He has for us.

Prayer Following Message

Heavenly Father,

We come before You with grateful hearts, thankful for the seeds of truth that have been sown in our lives today. We have heard Your Word through the parable of the soils, and we recognize the challenge to let Your teachings take deep root within us.

Lord, we confess that in our modern world, screens often distract us and take up the soil of our hearts. We spend countless hours on our phones, tablets, and computers, and too often, these become the rocky, thorny, and shallow grounds where Your Word struggles to grow. Help us to turn away from distractions that hinder our spiritual growth and to prioritize our relationship with You and with one another.

Father, cultivate in us a heart of good soil. Help us to embrace Your Word fully, to meditate on it, and to live it out daily. May Your truth grow within us, producing a bountiful harvest of faith, love, and obedience. Strengthen us to resist the temptations and distractions of the digital age, and guide us to use technology wisely and for Your glory.

We ask that Your Holy Spirit continue to work in us, transforming our hearts and minds. Let us be vigilant and intentional in nurturing our faith, spending time in prayer, studying Scripture, and engaging in meaningful community with fellow believers.

May we be doers of Your Word and not just hearers. Let our lives be a testament to the power of Your love and the truth of Your message. As we go forth from this place, help us to carry the seeds of Your Kingdom into the world, spreading Your light and love to all we encounter.

In Jesus' name, we pray,

Amen.

Benediction

May the Lord bless you and keep you.

May He make His face shine upon you and be gracious to you.

May He turn His face toward you and give you peace.

As you leave this place, may your hearts be as fertile soil, ready to receive and nurture the seeds of God's Word.

May you be mindful of the distractions that seek to choke your faith, especially those from the screens and devices in our modern world.

Go forth, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to live out the teachings of Christ, bearing fruit that glorifies God and brings His Kingdom to earth.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,

Amen.