Teachings of Jesus: The Soils

Intro

Prayer | Greeting

If you have your Bible’s, please make your way to Matthew 13.

This morning I’d like to spend a few minutes sharing about a parable Jesus shared concerning the types of hearts of humanity.

One thing to take not of as we look at the text is that the sower is not concerned about where the seed is sown, just that it is sown!

READ

Matthew 13:1–9 ESV

1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.”

Transition to the answer of Jesus.

Matthew 13:18–23 ESV

18 “Hear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

1. Those who reject the gospel immediately.

Matthew 13:4 ESV

4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them.

Matthew 13:19 ESV

19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path.

a. The sower sows as he goes.

Notice that the text tells us that And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path.

The sower was not necessarily targeting only those who he thought would receive the seed but to all that the seed could land.

When we are attempting to make a garden thrive. We tend the field. We clear it of debris, we remove any rocks we find, will till the ground to soften, with a plow we make rows then we carefully put the seeds in the ground just deep enough to protect it from the birds. We use great care and we try not to “waste” a single seed. Yet, Jesus seems to imply that he is casting seed and not caring where it lands. Yet, some of the seed finds its way to the path, which is to hard for the seed to take root.

b. The soil is too hard for the seed to penetrate the earth.

hopefully we can all recognize that a path that is well traveled is not ideal for planting seeds.

Growing up, we lived out in the country and had woods that backed up onto our property. One of our neighbors was a family with two boys that were the same age as two of my younger brothers. We road four wheelers and picks from house to house through the woods. In fact, we road through those wooded paths so much that we had compacted the ground and made clear paths from one house to the other. Nothing would grow on those paths because the dirt was so compacted.

The path that is referenced is hard and does not allow for the seed to hide from the birds that come. It is a hard and well worn path.

Jesus tells us that the path soil represents anyone who “hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it.”

In the gospels the Pharisees are a prime example of the type of person who falls into this kind of soil.

The Pharisees were among the crowds.

They heard the good news.

They saw miracles.

Yet, they reject Jesus as the Messiah.

Their hearts were so set on their own ideas and philosophies that they could not see the promised Messiah that stood before them. They could not comprehend the truth. They simply were incapable of understanding the teachings of Jesus because their heart was so hard!

c. The enemy destroys the seed.

As a result of the lack of understanding, Satan is able to come in and destroy the seed. The birds, Jesus explains is the evil one who comes and snatches away what has been sown in the heart of the hearer.

Returning to the Pharisees,

They were able to hear the good news, yet they didn’t understand it as being Jesus.

When Jesus goes against their man made ideas of the Sabbath and Jesus heals the man on the Sabbath, they turn on Jesus completely. They only want to destroy Jesus.

Their hearts were so hard, Satan was able to take away any truth they might have heard.

What about today?

There are people who hearts are so hard, so cold to Jesus and truth, they are simply incapable of truly hearing the Gospel. They are so rooted into their ideals, religious system, or in some cases rejecting of all religion that they simply will not even entertain the idea of the gospel. We can share the gospel, and we should repeatedly do so, but it won’t penetrate the heart, because the heart is hardened against Jesus and Satan will snatch up the truth.

The truth of the matter is that those who outright reject the gospel have responsibility because they have hardened their heart to God and do not understand the gospel out of willful ignorance and Satan works hard to make sure that seed doesn’t have a chance to penetrate that hardened soil.

We do not lose heart though. We are called to share the gospel, the word of the kingdom to the world even to those who have hardened hearts.

Transition: The first of the soils in the soil that rejects God from a hardened heart. the second soil is:

2. Those who leave the gospel amidst difficulty.

Matthew 13:5–6 ESV

5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil, 6 but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away.

Matthew 13:20–21 ESV

20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away.

Keep in mind, the sower is casting the seed out and as the sower does so, unlike the seed that fell on the path, this seed falls on rocky ground.

The seed that fell on the rocky ground immediately springs up, yet, because the roots were shallow and had no depth, the sun kills them.

a. The seed is received with joy.

Unlike the person who rejects the gospel immediately, this person seems to be one that is excited about the message they hear and receive it with joy and urgency.

Matthew—All Authority in Heaven and on Earth Three Ways of Disaster

Martyn Lloyd-Jones, one of the great preachers of the last century. One day after Lloyd-Jones preached a powerful sermon, an unbeliever came up to him and said, “Dr. Lloyd-Jones, I must tell you that if you would have given an altar call at the end of your message I certainly would have come forward. I would have believed.” Lloyd-Jones replied, “If you don’t want Jesus five minutes after the service is over, then I assure you that you didn’t truly want him at any point during my sermon.”

While we might look at that statement and say goodness, Pastor Martyn, you missed an opportunity or even say that is entirely to strong a message Pastor; yet, does not the man’s unwilling heart to repent and turn to Jesus even a day later show that he was emotionally moved at the words but had not truly heard the gospel with a heart that was being transformed by Jesus’ gospel?

As you know, I am all for a time of invitation, after all that is what preaching is after all, an invitation to follow Jesus. Yet, true discipleship, the proof of salvation is not the moment of emotional response to the gospel message but it is the time that comes well after salvation, the months, years, the rest of the life of the disciple of Jesus. The proof of saving faith for professing Christians is whether or not they pick up their cross and follow Jesus until they are called to their heavenly home.

Christians shouldn’t be like this vase of flowers. Sure they are pretty today, but in time, they will wither and no longer retain their beauty. They will be dead.

We are to be a healthy, fruit producing tree that is faithful until the Lord removes us from the field of labor to be in his presence forever!

b. Although received with joy, it burns up under pressure.

Jesus explains that the issue with those who have a shallow faith is that when trials come or persecution comes they fall away. In other words, their faith was never genuine and they are truly lost.

The sad fact is we all probably know someone, or many who have left the faith over the years.

I can go back to high school and college and recall one student after another that after our senior year have left the faith.

In some cases, it is because they watched their family suffer, in others, it was because they simply had no roots and when the professors of their secular schools pushed against their faith, it died. They left it and walked away because it was not a true salvation they experienced, it was an emotional, joy filled response but it did not have lasting roots.

Yet, this is nothing compared to the persecution that other Christian’s face in closed countries like China, India, North Korea, Yemen, and Sudan to name just a few. In fact Blomberg notes,

“In the twentieth century there were more martyrs for the Christian faith worldwide than in all nineteen previous centuries of church history combined.”

So why then in America, where persecution and trials are far less life and death, do we see so many fall away? Sure some are a result of trials and persecution but the majority, I believe is because of our third soil.

Transition: Not only do we see the soil of the path, and the rocky soil. we see a third soil.

3. Those who leave the gospel for prosperity.

Matthew 13:7 ESV

7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.

Matthew 13:22 ESV

22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

As the sower continues to share the gospel, the seed falls on a third type of soil. It is one that poses a great threat to the seed, it is amongst the thorns.

Jesus says this person is the one who cares more about the world and it’s riches, pleasures, and life than that of God.

If we look deeply at the two “types of thorns,” that is the cares of the world and the love of riches. We can actually see they are tied together.

They both require the pursuit of financial prosperity. You cannot enjoy all the world has to offer without great wealth; yet, as you pursue great wealth it becomes clear it is never enough. So you become obsessed with deepening your pockets. You try and gain every dollar possible to live that little bit better life style. You want to get ahead of the Jones’. Your spiritual life no longer matters because what is most important is not your faithfulness to Jesus but making sure you can afford the life you desire.

We are actually guilty of teaching our children this principle. Look, I was a high school athlete and played travel ball from middle school up until I tore my rotator cuff my senior season. I played weekend ball basically all year long with a short winter break. I played on many Sundays. The hope was that I would get a scholarship to play baseball. Yet, here is the problem, every time I chose baseball over faithful obedience to gather with the church. I was being taught that it is okay to put Jesus on the back burner of my life if it means I can have a chance to further more career. My financial stability.

Don’t miss this: we teach our children that faithfulness to Lord is not as important as pursuing our worldly passions, dreams, careers, and financial pursuits.

After I was saved, I was convicted of how Baseball was more important that God. The summer after I was saved, I was 17, I was faced with a situation with my 18u travel team. We had a game that was scheduled to start before church was going to be out. Most games on Sunday were either out of town games, or they started after church was over, not this Sunday game.

I told the coach the night before that I wouldn’t be able to be there before the game started but should be there by the first inning because I needed to go to worship. He was a lost man. I still don’t think he understood but he said okay. Do what you need to do.

Sunday came, we worshipped, when I arrived, the game had just started. The coach looked at me, said get loose, I am putting you into the game. I still don’t know why he put me into the game.

The point being, for me, the way I viewed baseball changed once I saw Jesus as my everything. The world has many things that can distract and lead us astray. Money, the pursuit of many is definitely guilty of being high on that list.

There is no room for Jesus when money is our love. Wealth is a terrible god, but a wonderful servant.

Matthew—All Authority in Heaven and on Earth Three Ways of Disaster

At the end of the last century, historian Martin Marty called evangelicals “the most worldly people in America.” What a condemnation! But he’s right. Listen to this statistic. Each Sunday evangelicals around American sing songs like “I Surrender All,” but 80 percent of us give on average only between 2 and 3 percent of our income, and 20 percent don’t give anything at all.

There is an old saying that if you want to know what your God is, follow the money.

What story does your money tell? What story does your time tell? Is your faith centered on Jesus or is it in the pursuit of the things of this world?

Transition: We have seen three soils that all lead to destruction and that prevent people from true saving faith. Now lets see the soil of

4. Those who embrace the gospel for eternity.

Matthew 13:8 ESV

8 Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Matthew 13:23 ESV

23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

At last, the sower throws his seed and it lands on good soil for the seed. As a result the seed produces grain in abundance and leads to good fruit.

The first aspect of this group is that they hear the good news and understand it. This doesn’t mean they understand every theological argument and have all the answers from Genesis to Revelation. Goodness, even faithful theologians do not have all the answers across that spectrum, it is why there are various views on so many tertiary and even secondary issues. What it means is that they understand the basic saving message of the gospel. Repent of your sin, believe in Jesus, and confess him as the master of your life.

I think many of those, especially the second and third soils respond to the repentance and belief with excitement, the issue is they never make Jesus the Lord of their life. They try and remain the one in control and in time, the flesh reveals itself as never being killed at the feet of Jesus. Jesus never had permission to transform their lives because they didn’t truly surrender all to Him.

Yet, those who are the good soil, they truly surrender all. Their lives are transformed and Jesus saves them through his redemptive power and his redemptive purpose.

Those who experience this transformation cannot help but be fruit bearers. Not the amounts, he says some a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.

As one scholar notes, in this barren, desert region, it would but likely that seven or eight times the amount of seed sown would be considered a good harvest but Jesus here is saying that the harvest would be absolutely ridiculously high!

In other words,

Matthew—All Authority in Heaven and on Earth Three Grades of Glory

“All Christians will bear fruit, some a little and some a lot.” Rather he is saying, “All Christians will bear fruit, some a lot, some a lot more, and some a whole lot more.”

In all four soils, they here the gospel, they for a time can dwell, or even appear to accept it, yet it is only the good soil that bears fruit.

Please do not misunderstand, only believers who bear fruit are truly disciples of Christ!

We all have different talents, capabilities, and yet, we are expected to produce fruit. What is this fruit?

Galatians 5:22-23 tells us what it is,

Galatians 5:22–23 ESV

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Also, we produce a life of worship, evangelism, and humility! We are steadfast and committed to the will of the Lord!

If your life was on display, is this the story that it would tell? Would people see this fruit of faith in abundance in your life? Or would they see a man or woman who acts just like them?

Conclusion

This morning, we are faced with a question. What soil is my heart? Is it the rock hard soil that is resistant to God where Satan is able to snatch up the seed from my heart? Is my soil the one that is shallow, it lacks depth and if someone pressured you hard enough, you’d chose to reject Jesus to save yourself? Then there is the soil that is choked out by the things this world has to offer and money, do you see yourself choosing financial gain over faithful obedience to the Lord? Is the desires of this world choking out your faith? Or is your soil the good soil where Jesus’ saving work has taken root in the depths of your heart and his fruit is abounding and see God’s hand at work in your life?

As we enter the invitation time, this is the time to respond, Jesus came and died so you might live. Yet, your hearts response will shape whether you will experience saving faith. The reality is if there is no good fruit, Jesus parable teaches us there is no saving faith. Only those with good fruit that lasts until they are called are truly saved.

How will you respond to the gospel message?

With every head bowed…

Will you ask Jesus to take over your life, to be your Lord and savior. To till your heart and plant seeds that will grow deep roots in your heart?