Soil Work
Deeply Rooted • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.
2 Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore.
3 Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed.
4 As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.
5 Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.
6 But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.
7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.
8 Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
9 Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
As a teen I tried to grow a garden several times to no success.
One year I took my spade and made my rows, planted my seeds and covered them up. What the birds didn’t eat, did grow, but it was shallow and like the Word said it withered up.
Another year I got it planted right but didn’t keep the grass out of it so when my grandfather came by as a surprise to cut the grass due to my lawn mower being dead, he cut it all down and it died again.
The third year I had a good crop growing and I was so proud… until the deer arrived.
There is something in common with all three of these attempts.
A lack of properly cultivating the soil.
I could try to explain away this parable all day long but it would be wiser for all of us if Jesus did it…
Lets hear what Jesus Himself said about the meaning of this parable
18 “Listen then to what the parable of the sower means:
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 their heart. This is the seed sown along the path.
20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.
21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.
23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
Just like with my experience there are three models here of a lack of cultivating the soil.
The first one never really took root, the birds swooped down and ate the seed.
We see this all the time, it looks like that lost person that you keep telling the gospel to and they just don’t seem to see it.
We have to keep sowing seeds and maybe even take a little time to keep prepping the soils there.
It might need some good ole high quality Daddy Peet’s soil.
We had a dog named Daisy who got sick….
The vet asked if we had cows because the bacteria she had was only found in cow dung…
It downed on us that our high quality potting soil had real good cow dung from Stoney Point Smith Farms.
That may be a funny story and I am not advocating telling folks a bunch of mess.
But as we are planting seeds, what are we doing to nurture the soil of the ones around us?
20 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.
21 But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
Sadly this is the state of many professing Christians in America today.
Many will witness a mockery of the Word of God and say nothing,
They will stand by as good is called evil and evil is called good.
Afraid to stand up out of fear of being labeled as hateful, a bigot, crazy, Left wing Right wing radical nut…
38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
Folks we cannot be ashamed to proclaim the Word of God to the world around us. Though we do need to do it in Love and in a proper manner, we cannot shy away from it.
It goes back to my illustration that I like to use of telling others that the building is on fire, if we love them we will warn them.
Some will be unmoved and tell you to go away
and some will be saved from the burning building.
22 The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.
Between 2014 and 2024, American home entertainment spending grew from $123 billion to $149 billion
We like to spend a lot of time be distracted.
Our distractions are like the weeds that my garden had, it chokes out the garden and hides what fruit did grow in such a away others cannot see it, and it is easily mowed away.
Had I weeded my garden, or placed some flags, or a fence or any other sign of a garden, my granddaddy would have never mowed it away.
It got mowed because I did not tend it like I should have and thus it showed no signs of healthy life.
Listen closely.
If we do not tend to our garden, it will show no signs of life and bare no fruit.
A part of tending to our garden is more than just reading the Bible every day and praying all the time.
It is building stronger relationships with our household, (our spouse and kids)
Resting
Guarding our hearts from influencers that draw us away from the Lord.
Self-evaluation and even more asking the Lord to search your heart.
David many times in the Psalms asked God to search him and make him clean, we need to do the same.
This is an active faith not a passive faith.
This is how we find ourselves as described in verse 23…
23 But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
When we take the time and the effort to cultivate our soil and the soil around us, we grow deeper roots, and was help others grow deep roots.
It sounds a lot like making disciples, we cannot make disciples if we are not first rooted well ourselves.
But if we invest in our soil and each other’s soil, we bound a beautiful harvest for the Lord. One that keeps growing.
Who has seen a plant that just keeps coming back each year?
a few years ago I tossed a pumpkin out into the yard for the chickens to eat. I forgot about it until the following year we had a random pumpkin patch grow. It was a thick one too.
Thats what happens when we make good soil, things grow and they grow healthy.
Here is another picture of good soil
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
you cannot be in tune with the Holy Spirit without letting Him be the one to tend your garden from the soil to the fruit. All you have to do is ask Him.
Take Home Question
What are you doing to cultivate your soil?
is the Holy Spirit involved?
