Let Your Roots Grow

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A- Parable of the Sower: Reflection on Jesus’s Ministry

This parable is a reflection on Christ’s Ministry

Jesus had recieved mixed reviews on his teachings and miracles

Many may have wondered: Why is this so-called Messiah not gathering a huge following with God’s people?

Mixed soil is to be expected: Just look at the prophets!

B- The Great Commandment: Imitating the Extravagant Sower

This parable not only reflects Christ’s ministry, but is a model for our own

The sower is, at first glance, not a great farmer

The sower throws seed indiscriminately: even in places that he should know it won’t grow

Though one might think this is a poor strategy, the sower seems to have great success. Why:

The word is powerful:

The New Revised Standard Version An Invitation to Abundant Life

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,

and do not return there until they have watered the earth,

making it bring forth and sprout,

giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,

11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;

it shall not return to me empty,

but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,

and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

This parable teaches us to imitate Christ, but first we must hear the word and ponder: what type of soil are we?

C-Four Types of Soils: Hearing the Parable

This parable teaches us to imitate Christ, but first we must hear the word and ponder: what type of soil are we?

The sower sows extravagantly, but it is up to those who hear the word to cultivate their own soil

We must be prepared to respond to the word, but there seems to be a great many things that can go wrong

D- Birdseed: The word and Spiritual Warfare

Spiritual warfare is real, and Jesus affirms this time and time again

Satan, the evil one, wants nothing more than to prevent people from hearing the word. But can he really control weather someone hears the word or not? No!

The sower throws the seed to everyone: it’s up to us to cultivate our soil

Jesus uses a play on words between those who don’t “grasp” the word and the Devil “snatching it away”. If we don’t grasp it, Satan will!

God’s word is meant to be studied, to be meditated on, to be breathed in and out, and to become a way of life.

This soil represents the kind of person who hears God’s word, and they don’t “grasp it”

They don’t hold on tightly to the word, they don’t meditate on scripture, or seek to understand it

Slow to learn, quick to lose

E- Rocky Soil: Rootless Christianity

The rocky soil makes it hard for roots to grow deeper. Seeds that take root there are easy to pull up, or wither quickly in the sunlight

This kind of person no doubt grasps the word a little tighter than those who have it “snatched” by birds, but not tight enough to keep it from being “snatched” by trials, persecutions, and hard times in life.

Perseverance of the Saints?

This is ultimately a person who does not see the word as something that should transform our lives. They hear the word, and may even understand it very well, but they don’t allow its roots to sink down deep into their life, transforming their hearts and minds.

Quick to learn, quick to lose

F- Thorns and Thistles: Jesus and Money

Thorns and thistles grow in certain soil, and this represents love for worldly things: luxuries and money.

Jesus spoke a great deal on money. The parables we’ve heard before still ring true hear: “You cannot serve God and Money.”

This is the person who, ultimately, does not see the word as a “pearl of great price”, worth selling all we have for

Slow to learn, slow to lose

G- The Good Soil: Cultivating a Christian Life

So what makes for good soil?

Unlike the first soil, these people “grasp” the word: they seek to understand it

They study scripture

They meditate on scripture

They seek out guidance for things they don’t understand

Their minds are transformed

Unlike the second soil, these people allow the roots of the word to sink down deep and transform their lives

They seek out encounters with God

They listen for the Holy Spirit

They seek for their heart to be as Christ’s heart

They exhibit mercy, love, and grace

Their hearts are transformed

Unlike the third soil, these people are careful to pull up weeds and thistles that threaten to choke out the word

They remove temptations from their life ‘cut off your right hand...”

They are able to discern things that are spiritually unhealthy

God’s word is central for them: nothing else is allowed to take away from it

Their lives are transformed

Many who listened to Christ’s teachings thought that they had “good soil”, but they apparently were mistaken

This serves as a warning for us: we must examine the state of our soil carefully, to make sure it is a healthy environment for the sower’s seed to grow

Mind->Heart->Life

How do I know if I’m cultivating “good soil”?

You bear fruit! Bearing fruit means:

A right heart: you

The fruits of the Spirit

Fruits also produce more seeds, i.e. Make disciples!

The fruits of the Spirit

The farmer seems unwise to throw seeds