Scripture: Matthew 13:1-9,18-23..
Good Soil
Do you remember when you were young hearing
stories or fables and
they ended with…
“…the
moral of the story is…”
There was always a lesson to be learned:
from
Aesop’s Fables,
you
and I learned not to ‘cry wolf’;
from
the Brothers Grimm
you
and I learned there were
things
in the world to fear.
We listen, we learn.
Jesus is speaking in parables;
they
will not end in a clear
“…the
moral of the story is…”
but
there is a lesson to be learned.
He is teaching the disciples.
So why use parables?
Jesus spoke
in parables in order to ensure
the mystery of the kingdom of God
would only be understood by his disciples
Part of Matthew 13 we did not hear explains
“To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven,
but to them it has not been given.
The reason I speak to them in
parables is that ‘seeing they do not perceive, and hearing they do not listen,
nor do they understand.”
Jesus speaks in parables for the
disciples;
others listen but do not comprehend,
others look but do not understand.
Parables
contain common wisdom
with underlying religious meaning;
They have a
deeper significance than
just a story being told that is
suitable
to a particular context.
So our
parable today is the parable of the sower.
Sowing
seeds.
The farmer
scatters seeds knowing not all
will reach full growth yet confident in a good harvest;
the sower
sows his seeds in hope.
The seeds’
growth depend on where the seeds land…
the path
rocky ground
among thorns or
in good soil.
It is all
how the message of the kingdom is heard,
how the listener responds,
the reception of the seed/ the
message.
The
path….where the birds eat them…
the familiar path…
what has been sown in the heart is
taken away.
Rocky
ground…no soil and no roots can develop…
heard with joy, but when faced with
trouble, falls away.
Thorns…choked
before growth can even begin,
other concerns take priority,
the lure of wealth, material things,
chokes the word.
Good soil…
brought forth grain, a plentiful
harvest,
a harvest better than imagined…
hearing the word and understanding it:
It alone
bears fruit.
When I
started studying this scripture and writing this sermon
I found myself going in an unexpected
direction…
evangelism.
Evangelism is one of those words that seems to be
scary,
but it really is not.
It is an expression of mission and discipleship,
reaching out to others by
sharing God’s love;
how others hear God’s
message.
Let us look
at the parable thinking about the church today…
Our discipleship today…
Where is the
church today sowing seeds?
What will the harvest be?
Seeds sown
on the path…
the journey that has always been taken…
the way things have always been done…
There can be
good that comes from it,
the birds are being fed,
yet there is no growth, no harvest.
Seeds
landing on rocky ground…
spring up quickly but wither away
because of no root,
nothing to sustain it…
a quick fix…
A good idea
that goes away as quickly as it began.
Seeds among
the thorns…
never really have a chance of growth
because the priority is not where it
should be…
what are the true motivations of what you
and I do?
Are we
centered on church growth or kingdom growth?
But then
there is the good soil.
The soil
that is ready to receive the seed/the message;
where growth can happen.
Growth as
disciples,
ready to take in the word of God,
ready to listen,
ready to learn,
ready to begin to understand…
What kind of
soil are you and I as individuals?
You
and I do our best
to live as disciples,
to follow where Jesus leads,
living the message of God’s love.
Where do you
and I sow seeds on a daily basis?
It can be
the little things,
a kindness,
a word of prayer,
when you and I reach out to
help another,
when we give support to each other.
It can be the
reaching out beyond the church walls
to the community in which we live.
It can be working
together as the church in the world,
finding new ways to spread God’s love,
to bring unity and reconciliation,
to those hurting, in pain, and in
distress.
It is a lot
to hope for,
but you and I do not do
this alone.
We can sow,
yet the harvest is not our responsibility.
We can be
fishers of men, but we do not real them in.
Jesus speaks
in parables….parables of the kingdom.
We live in
the ordinary world….
The biblical world is a world of hope and promise.
Jesus gives hope…hope
of the kingdom of God.
The seed is
sown by the Son of Man…
the harvest is God’s doing.
You
and I can spread seeds, God harvests.
Our seeds
are planted…
where we plant them matters…
we sow in hope…
hope of the harvest.
Grow in
hope;
Grow in grace;
Kingdom
growth.
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