A good soil grows, sows and shows!
Luke • Sermon • Submitted
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4 And when a great crowd was gathering and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable, 5 “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. 6 And some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it. 8 And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” 9 And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, 10 he said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God, but for others they are in parables, so that ‘seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.’ 11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. 14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
Christ has to explain the meaning of the parable to the disciples, even as he says, I speak in parables so that some may not understand, but you, are able to understand. He makes this statement, because He does not always give an explanation of what each parable means. Thankfully, in this case, he gives the meaning behind the illustrative word picture that he has painted in our minds eye.
One Seed-Four Soils
One Seed-Four Soils
11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
He is describing seed that is to be broadcast about a field. This is unlike we would typically plant fruit or vegetable seeds in our gardens. The picture here is of a grain seed, that is thrown about the area, without great concern for where each individual seed lands.
The Seed is the Word of God The Scriptures, the Bible.
Which according to the apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy, is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction and training in righteousness. The Scriptures is the primary tool, which the Holy Spirit uses to sanctify the children of God. Sanctify, means to set them apart, to do the work of making them holy. JC Ryle put it this way over a hundred years ago, in His book Holiness.
Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots II. Sanctification
He not only washes him from his sins in His own blood, but He also separates him from his natural love of sin and the world, puts a new principle in his heart, and makes him practically godly in life.
This process is accompanied by regeneration and justification. Making new, just as if we had never sinned.
In this parable, Jesus is giving a very picturesque explanation of how this process plays out in our lives. The process and the resulting evidence that takes place in one’s life if they are indeed a child of God, saved by faith in His Son.
One Seed-Four Soils
One Seed-Four Soils
Jesus Lists four different soils
Path- Where feet have trod, packing the soil down
Rocky soil- rock just below the surface
Thorn- brambly weeds, growing among the seed
Good Soil- Well tilled, able to receive the Word of God
Soil on the path hears the Word, but it never sinks in and the birds take it away. This is cause for us to be particularly concerned about believing anything (any lie) that does not align with the Word of God. That is Satan’s Modus Operandi, so we should guard ourselves and others from such deception, as much as it depends upon us.
8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
Soil that hits the rock is like a flash in a pan. It brightens up quickly but quickly burns out, once trials and temptations come into their lives.
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,
14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.
The seed that falls among the thorns, begins to grow, takes root, and does not die, but never grows to the point of maturity. It does not grow to it’s potential.
It becomes choked out by the cares, pleasures and riches of this world.
15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. 17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
So the first three soils are not the kind of soil we want to be. We don’t want to have a heart that is so hard, that it never accepts the Word of God at any level. We don’t want to be soil that has no depth to it, and so it cannot be nourished with any water, because the rock gives not room for the roots, to grow and receive nutrients.
Nor do we want to be a the soil that has thorns, which are competing for nutrients. That is a soil that is serving two masters. The soil that is growing thorns becomes distracted by the things of this world.
Good Soil- Receptive Heart
Good Soil- Receptive Heart
15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
Take in the Word and “hold it fast in an honest and good heart”
We know that God does the work of regeneration, and justification, yet He allows us to have a part in that process as He does the work in us.
In Galatians we are told that the Fruit of the Spirit is the result of the work of God in us. Love, Joy, Peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
One the flip side, we have a level of responsibility in what our response will be to the Word of God and the work of the Holy Spirit.
That’s why we are told to put away sinful things, and to put on good things. We are told to flee from sin (run from sexual immorality). We are told to be clothed in humility and love.
21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
Good Soil Grows-
Good Soil Grows-
It receives the word and grows.
8 And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Good Soil Sows-
Good Soil Sows-
Good soil, reproduces fruit, more seed, more fruit, more seed, more fruit . . . You get the idea. It bears fruit.
8 And some fell into good soil and grew and yielded a hundredfold.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
It bears fruit with patience- this doesn’t happen instantaneously, or immediately. The proof of good soil, in contrast to the other soils, is that it continues over time, to sustain life and reproduces mature fruit.
A seed has to go into the ground and die, in order for it to reproduce. Jesus hasn’t quite pointed that out yet, but He is headed in that direction. He’s headed there Himself, and He’s going to call His disciples to the same level of commitment.
Good Soil Shows-
Good Soil Shows-
16 “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. 17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. 18 Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”
21 And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? 22 For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light. 23 If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.” 24 And he said to them, “Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 25 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
Listen to Matthew’s account of this parable, and listen particularly for the references he makes to “hearing and seeing”, listen for the words: hears, sees, understands.
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.” 10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. 12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 14 Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: “ ‘ “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” 15 For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.’ 16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.
I believe Matthew makes a bigger deal out of this than does Luke. Why? It seems to me that it is because he is writing to a different crowd, a crowd that generally speaking has proven repeatedly, to be “deaf”, hard of hearing, hard of heart and so forth.
Jesus disciples questioned Jesus because they wanted to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of God.
In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke we have recorded for us the time when Jesus revealed to the disciples, the mysteries of the Kingdom of God and those mysteries are the spiritual truths that were hidden in the Old Testament, but have now been revealed in the New Testament.
Many people have chosen to harden their hearts to the knowledge of God’s Salvation, even as the Word of God has been sown or broadcast into their lives, and God in His perfectly just way will
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
Your mission should you choose to accept it (or if you are legitimately a child of God’s) is to be good soil, that has and maintains a heart that is receptive to the truths found in the Word of God, the truths which are the keys to the Kingdom of God. You are to be a soil that is sowing the seed of Christ’s sanctification, producing additional seeds, that will also grasp and take hold of the Word of God.
In other words, the soil becomes the under-sower, that is under God, in Christ.
This ought to be an encouragement to us. The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been revealed to us. Have you heard it and accepted it as a good soil accepts the implanted truths of Scripture?
What will the harvest show? What portion of the field does your life look like? What a wonderful opportunity to see our lives in such vivid pictures.
Praise the Lord for making His message so plain and understandable, if only we will receive its truth in faith.