Spiritual Growth and The Parable of The Sower.
Preparing for spiritual growth is a central theme in “The Parable of the Story.” Follow Stephen’s series drawn from a selection of parables Jesus told.
The Teachings of Jesus and Preparing For Spiritual Growth
In this series, we are looking at the teachings of Jesus, specifically those lessons that he taught using parables. This time, it’s the parable of the sower. Matthew, Mark and Luke all record this parable, and for this episode, I am going to read from the book of Matthew, chapter 13.
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them. 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, but when the sun rose they were scorched. And since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:1-9
The Context of Jesus’ Teaching
As with any conversation or teaching, the context is just as important as what is being said. Matthew 13 begins by telling us that great crowds gathered around Jesus. So, who was in these crowds? Why were they there? This passage does not specifically say, but when we read through the gospels, we can get an idea of who made up these crowds, and what they were looking for.
Religious Leaders
First, there were the religious rulers, the Pharisees, Sadducees and Priests. With only a few exceptions, when these guys came to Jesus, their purpose was mainly to trap him, or catch him saying something that they could use to accuse him.
Feeding 5,000 People
Others were there because they had experienced a blessing from Christ. In the next chapter of Matthew we find the story of him feeding five thousand people with a few loaves of bread and two small fish.
All four gospel writers record this, and in John 6 we read that some of those five thousand people went back to Jesus the next day. Jesus said to them “Truly I say to you, you are seeking me not because you saw the signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.” There were also those who had heard of the wonders this man Jesus had been doing, and they went to see what he would do next.
Individuals
Finally, we read in the gospels of another group of people, who came, often individually, because they had great need in their life, and they knew and had faith, that Jesus was the only one who could help them. We saw that in the last episode with the woman who was a sinner, and came to Jesus because she not only knew that He could forgive her, but she had faith that He would forgive her.
Crowd Categories and Spiritual Growth
So, if we can understand that Jesus is now surrounded by this great crowd of people, all of which will likely fall into one of these four categories, we wouldn’t be surprised that this parable about spreading seed, or sowing, makes reference to four different types of soil. Each soil type, pathway, rocky, thorny, or good, had distinct characteristics, and varying effects on the seed and subsequent plant that grew.
So, what was Jesus getting at? This parable is a little bit unique, as it is one of the few that Jesus also provides the explanation to, at least to the smaller group of his disciples. Here is how he explains it in Matthew 13:18
“Hear then the parable of the sower: 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 what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
Matthew 13:18-23
Explanation of the Parable
In the parable, Jesus is represented by the sower, and the seed is a picture of the gospel, or the word of God. The soils then, are pictures of the different groups of people hearing, or receiving the truth from Jesus, about who he was and why he had come.
The Seeds That Fell on the Path
The first group, the seeds that fell on the path, are said to be those that heard the word but did not understand it.
What Jesus was teaching about himself was not particularly difficult to comprehend. Sure, believing it may have been a challenging, just as it is for many people today. So really, the interpretation here is that this first group of people were those with an unwillingness to understand or accept what Jesus was saying about who he was.
The Religious Leaders
That’s why the groups of religious leaders fit so nicely into this category. They knew what Jesus was saying, they understood the claim of him being the Messiah, the Son of God who had come to save his people from their sin. It was an offense to them. They were unwilling to accept or believe what he taught. It’s interesting to note that this was the only soil type which produced absolutely no growth. True, the plants that sprung out of some of the other soils didn’t last, but there was still some reaction, some response. With the pathway, nothing. In fact the parable even says this seed was devoured by the birds. God’ salvation is offered to all, if it is continuously rejected by someone, there will come a time when it ill no longer be available.
The Rocky Ground
The next soil we have is the rocky ground, described as those who received the word with joy, but did not allow it to take root. This explanation was almost prophetic. As mentioned, the next chapter in Matthew tells us of the moment when Jesus fed the five thousand people. John then reveals that those who had been fed returned, because they had eaten the bread, and were expecting more. Jesus then went on to teach them more about what must happen to him, and what following him would involve.
As the teaching got harder, they started to fall away. These people were in love with the blessing, but didn’t grasp the significance of the blesser. This still happens today. A person may attach themselves to a local church and immediately enjoy the comfort, the friendship, the events, and all the good things that go along with being part of a church. But when those things slow down, and the work, and the challenges begin, which they will, when they no longer experience the blessing, they turn back, because they never had a true relationship with the one who gives the blessing.
The Thorny Ground
The third soil was the thorny ground. These did grow, but the thorns were heartier, and consumed all the nutrients from the ground so that whatever growth happened was unfruitful, or as Mark put it in his account, it produced no grain.
Again, we can see this group represented n the crowd as those who were there for the show, the spectacle, but had no intention of leaving everything to follow Jesus.
Failure to Follow
In Luke 9, we see three people with an interest in following Christ. The first says to him “I will follow you wherever you go” Jesus responded Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests but the son of man has no place to lay his head,” so the man didn’t follow.
Jesus called to another to follow him, but the man said “Let me first go and bury my father,” which in the context meant that he would stay until his father died, then go with Jesus. The third said I will follow you, but first let me say farewell to those at my home, to which Jesus answered “no one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Hard Teachings
Now, these are hard teachings, but the essential thought in this is that Jesus wants all of us. If we are going to trust in him for all things, we need to trust in him for ALL things. That doesn’t mean we can’t have a career or a family or material goods and things like that, it just means that if God calls us away from any of those things, we need to be ready to let them go.
Sadly, many people have heard the truth, and might even be ready to believe, but ultimately walked away from salvation because there was something in their life that they weren’t ready to let go. Maybe it was a relationship, or a certain pleasure or activity, whatever it was, the cares of this world choked them, and there was no meaningful growth.
The Good Soil Contributes to Spiritual Growth
Finally, the good soil. Those ready to receive everything and everything Jesus has to offer, to nourish it, and make sure it grows and produces fruit for him. Some of those people had already come forth, many started from a position of having nothing to lose, but they recognized that he was the only one who could help, who could give them that they truly needed for life. Today, they are those who receive the grace of God by faith, by trusting in the work Jesus did at the cross to pay for our sin so that we can have a relationship with God, through Christ.
Those who recognize that even the best things in this life pale in comparison to the eternal life he offers. They are those who understand that one of the biggest blessings we have in Jesus, is knowing he is with us through the challenges and hard times, as he prepares us for his kingdom, for heaven.
What Type of Soil are You?
So as you listen today ask yourself, “What type of soil are you?” Are you outright rejecting the claims of who Jesus is and what he offers? I urge you to consider the consequence. The offer of salvation is limited to this life. The Bible says that anyone who does not believe in Jesus is condemned, destined for an eternity separated from God in a place we call hell, or the lake of fire. Perhaps you think the idea of Jesus is good, but the challenges that go with it are too much to bear.
Again, the Bible assures us we can go through anything if we trust in God’s promises. Maybe you’re faced with a choice between Christ, and the life you know and love. 1 John 2:17 tells us that this world along with its desires are passing away, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. Perhaps you are ready to accept Jesus now. That’s wonderful news. The Bible says if you believe in Jesus, that as the son of God he became man, died for our sins and rose again, you will be saved, and have everlasting life. You can do that right now, just believe it, and follow him.
And here is some more good news. Ground can be changed. Rocky soil can be turned and cultivated, thorny ground can be weeded and made good. Even the hard roadway can be broken down, cleared and made ready to receive seeds for growing. So it isn’t too late, but you have to be willing to hear what God is telling you through His Word. Can you do that? I pray that you will.
Do you think spiritual growth is important? We would love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Stephen March
Stephen March is the President of FBH International and HopeStreamRadio. He graduated from the Broadcasting Program at Niagara College in 2001, and has previously worked in television production and post-production.
Stephen lives in St. Catharines, Ontario, with his wife Corinne and their four children.
Read and hear more from Stephen March on his contributor’s page. Stephen currently has 5 Programs on HopeStreamRadio:
- Please Forgive Me
- Isolation Chronicles
- Faith By Hearing – The Twelve
- Bibles and Baseball
- Bible Tech Talk
More Podcasts Below:
More Blogs:
Palm Sunday, The Coming King, and the Last Week of Christ
Why Did Jesus Say “I Am the Bread of Life
Images courtesy of:
Hand With Seeds – Hans
Crowd – cegoh
Pharisees and Jesus – James Tissot
Good Soil – stevepb
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