The Seeds
Notes
Transcript
The Sower and The Seeds
04-03-2022
Matthew 13-2-8, 18-23
As we continue our look at the parables of Jesus
We understand the importance of Jesus’s teachings
This Parable is unique in that Jesus himself goes back and explains it to His followers
So there is not a lot of expounding of as far as what Jesus is meaning but where the rubber meets the road that is where this sermon may get tough
2 And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach. 3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; 4 and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. 5 “Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. 6 “But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7 “Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. 8 “And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.
Jesus begins to teach about a sower and seeds
Often times Jesus uses normal things found in society to get His point across
It makes perfect sense that He would use farming to get his point across
This would have been something the people understand
Farming and sowing seeds
Jesus gives 4 different things that happen to the same seeds
It’s not they are different seeds in each of the 4 different outcomes
It’s not the sower is different
Jesus is using the illustration of sower and seed because it would have been very understandable in that time period
The sower goes out to sow
A few things are going on
The sower has already prepared the field for seed
The sower has done nothing with the field
Or the sower is going to throw some seed down and then prepare the field for the growth of the seed
It doesn’t say and when I did my study it actually said that all 3 were possible
I think it doesn’t say because that is not the point here
The point is the 4 different outcomes of the seed
And we could go on and try to understand what Jesus is actually talking about
But instead of working harder lets work smarter and go to Jesus Himself to understand exactly what is being said here and what the Spiritual Truth He is sharing
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower.
IF you will recall last week we saw how we are to be hearing and then to be obedient to the Word of God
Our foundation on God is dependent on our obedience to God
Hearing is so important as we will see
Some people are not hearing the Gospel Message and its not for a lack of going, but rather it is a hardened heart that they are not hearing the Gospel Message
For us as believers it is so important for you and I to hear what God says
Because if we are not hearing then we don’t know how to be obedient and then we are being obedient
The way we become obedient is to first hear then act on what we have heard
Let me say it again
Hearing is so important
Now Jesus is going to do something very unique
He is going to explain to the disciples the meaning of the parable
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 the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. 20 “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 23 “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
This makes sense right
The seed is the Word of God
The seed is the Kingdom of Jesus
The different soils are you and I
It’s important to understand that the same seed was sown throughout the parable
The only thing that is different is the soil
And that is you and I
That is how you and I interact with the seed or with Jesus
I told you there wouldn’t be a whole lot of expounding on what Jesus meant as He would tell the disciples what He meant
And that’s great to know what Jesus meant but what do we do with it.
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 the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.
These are the people who have heard the Word of God but its like it went it one ear and out of the other ear
They may have physically heard it
They may have physically heard the words that were preached or physically heard the words that you shared with them
But their hearts did not hear it
Maybe their hearts are harden to the Word of God
For whatever reason they hear the word and do not understand it
Because they do not understand it they do not come to know Christ
But for us believers that doesn’t me we stop trying
We continue to share the Gospel with them
We continue to pray for them and we continue to explain what Jesus did on the cross and in the grave and how that has changed our own lives
20 “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.
These are the people who hear the Gospel and make an initial commitment
But then something happens, they are persecuted of some sort and they quickly fall away
There are no roots
Remember our foundation needs to be deep and wide
Without that deep and wide foundation they have nothing that gives them any sort of foundation
These are people maybe who made an emotional commitment
This person made a commitment and but has no staying power, no solid foundation
When the storms of life happen they are quickly swept away
Church for us as believers this is where we have fallen short
We need to get people involved in Bible Studies and Sunday School classes
We need to go to these people and dare I say it but disciple them
We continue to pray for them, and we seek the Lord as to possible discipleship
Discipleship won’t always be easy, it will be messy
22 “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
This person has also made a commitment to Jesus
But like the other person has allowed the world and the pressures and worries of this world to choke them out
This person has some sort of root system but has allowed the worries and or the fears of this world to choke them out
Both in this particular one and the previous one this doesn’t mean they are a true believer
Just because they made a commitment does not mean they are saved
I think if we are honest this is where some of the people in the church universal are today
They made a commitment but have no staying power, or are being choked out with the worries of this world
And church we can no longer let them continue like that
We need to go to them and encourage them in their growth in Christ
Maybe we ensure they are saved and have a personal relationship with Christ
Then wouldn’t you know we go to them and seek the Lord who is to disciple them
Get them involved in Bible Study and Sunday School
23 “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
Finally this person has heard the Gospel
This person has responded obediently to what they heard and has grown
This person to be honest is the one we want to be in this parable
This person has understood what they heard
This person has developed a root system so they are no swept away at first sign of trouble
This person encounters the worries and or the fires of the world and can and does withstand them
They are producing fruit
That is what we strive todo right
You are planted and begin to grow
Then you produce fruit and more fruit
As believers in Jesus Christ that is what we strive todo
This person if we ask them why or what is different they would most likely tell you its because they were discipled
Because they heard God
We grow in Christ and we attached ourselves to someone through what is called discipleship
And we help them grow in Christ and they turn around and do the same thing to someone else and again and again
That is what we are to be doing as believers in Jesus Christ
And I am sure as we have gone through the many different soils this morning you have thought of a person for each of them
I hope you are honest with yourself this morning and maybe you are one of those people
So let me encourage you this morning
To recap
If you are sharing the Gospel and that person does not respond, do not give up, continue to be bold and share the Gospel with them and explain it to them
If you see someone respond to Christ, pray for them, encourage them to involve themselves in Bible Study and if God has so called you Disciple them
If you know a fellow believer who is struggling with life, pray for them, hint hint wink wink nudge nudge maybe God is calling you to invite them to Bible Study, or darn I say it but attach yourself to them and help disciple them
Maybe you are one of those people, find someone who seems to be growing in Christ and ask to be discipled, come to Bible Study
So Church this is what we do this morning
Closing
As the band comes up
Maybe you are here this morning and you do not have a personal relationship with Jesus
You are lost
I would invite you to the front and someone can talk with you about how to begin a relationship with Jesus
It is when you repent of your sins to stop and run the other way, and to believe in Jesus to believe what he did on the cross and in the grave
Or maybe you just need to come to altar and pray
The altar is open
