Sermon Tone Analysis

Seeds ...

Every day there are seeds are sown into our lives.

Some of the seeds are good, and some are bad.

The good seeds will produce good fruit, That fruit being actions, behaviours, words, and deeds (you might call them works) that will lift up Jesus and bring glory to God.The bad seeds, what do they produce?

Well, sin for one and along with sin, death.

They also can bring shame to the gospel of Christ.

They can discredit it in the minds of the hearer or observer.

They can destroy yours, the churches, and even Jesus’ reputation.

This can lead to turning people off to the gospel, make them turn a deaf ear to whatever you may have to say as well as anyone who follows after you and tries to share Jesus with them.

That can cause them to miss out on their repenting spending eternity with God.

Instead and in turn So what do bad seeds produce?

They will produce bad fruit.That is the way of things.

The trick, if you will, is to seek out the good and do our best to avoid the bad.Go to those places, watch , read and listen to those things, and hang around those people  which will sow good into our lives.

Conversely we need to shun those people, places and things which will sow bad seeds into our lives.Parable of the sower.​

NIV

​ NIV3 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.”

NIV

​ NIV18 “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.”

The parable is also found in Mark chapter 4, verses 3 through 20 and Luke chapter 8, verses 5 through 15.-

In every case here the seed is GOOD.

There is nothing wrong with it.

The proof is that in good prepared soil it produces a good crop.-

In at least one case though the good seed tries to produce a crop but it is prevented from doing so by the weeds or thorns.Where did those weeds come from?

From BAD SEED that had also been planted there.The good seed (the word) did start to grow but other things (bad seeds)  took over and had an adverse effect.Who plants these bad seeds?I can’t say that it is like this every time but a lot of the time it is the enemy of our souls that causes bad seed to be planted in our.Right after giving the parable of the sower Jesus tells another about a man who sowed good seed in his field.

Jesus told them another parable: ​ NIV

​ NIV24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.

25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.

26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field?

Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

“The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them.

30 Let both grow together until the harvest.

At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’

”

Now the disciples still don’t really understand yet so they ask Jesus what this new story means.​

NIV

​ NIV36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house.

His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”

37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man.

38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom.

The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil.

The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age.

41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.

42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.

Whoever has ears, let them hear.

Here is the interesting thing about the weeds (or tares as they are called in the KJV)...Darnel Grass (Lolium temulentum).

It is generally agreed that the “tares” of the kjv () are the annual or bearded darnel grass, Lolium temulentum.

Darnel grass is a strong grass closely resembling wheat or rye in appearance.

The seeds are much smaller than those of wheat or rye but it is extremely difficult to distinguish it from wheat or rye in its early stages.

If it is not eradicated early but is left until the time of harvest, it is cut down with the wheat and subsequently very difficult to separate.

The seeds are poisonous, either due to some chemicals naturally present or because of a fungus that grows within the seeds.

Theophrastus and other early Greek writers were well acquainted with the poisonous effects of the darnel, and the plant is sometimes referred to as the drunken darnel.

It is also said to cause blindness.Here I see a parallel with what Paul wrote in 1st Corinthians chapter 3.So the deal is, you can not tell until the plant produces fruit that it is bad.

Death causing bad.Some seeds that get sown in our lives can, if allowed to actually produce fruit, can kill us.

We need to be very mindful of what types of fruit we are producing.John G. Butler appears to have a decent series of books called Studies of the Savior.Chapter 39 goes into detail on the parable of the Wheat.

NIV

​ NIV10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it.

But each one should build with care.

11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

12 If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light.

It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work.

14 If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.

15 If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.

If we let the weeds represent our actions, the fruits of seeds that had been planted in  our lives, then at the judgement, when our works are tried by fire, the worthless things we did will be burnt up and we will suffer loss.​Getting

back to who planted the bad seed...I’ve already said that a lot of the times it is our enemy that wants to do us in.

​ NIV8 Be alert and of sober mind.

Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.

Sometimes however the enemy that is planting bad seeds in our lives is us, we are the ones who plant them ourselves.

We can be our own worst enemies.How do we do that?We go to places where we shouldn’t.

Places that we know or at least should know from the get-go are not spiritually healthy for us.

Places that will entice us.

Tempt us and attempt to draw us away.

We look at things or read things (or listening to people) that we we shouldn’t.

Things that will cause us to start doubting what we have been taught.Watch things or listen to things that we shouldn’t.

NIV

​ NIV13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.”

For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed.

15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Remember Paul’s letter to the Galatians (chapter 1:6-9)?

He tells them…

​ NIV6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all.

Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ.

8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!

The Christians in Galatia were listening to the wrong people who were planting bad, destructive teachings (that is seeds) in their minds.