The Parable of the Sower and the Part We Play

My thoughts have been on the part we play in the Parable of the Sower. The Parable goes as follows:

Matthew 13:3-9, as told by Jesus:

3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

The seed fell four different ways:

1. By the wayside: "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart." (v.19)



2. On stony places: "...this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while." (vv. 20,21)



3. Some fell among thorns: "he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful." (v. 22)



4. Others fell on good ground: "he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." (v.23)

Christians are always ready to blame satan for seed snatching and rightly so. The point I ponder is how is he accomplishing this task? When we have new people coming into the church what part do we play in their spiritual garden? Do we even recognize that we play a part?

Do we realize that we are seated next to people who may not understand the word of God being presented to them from the pulpit or even in Sunday School? The next question is, "Do we care?" If not, how does our apathy contribute to the seeds sown by the wayside?

Acts 8:30-39 tells the story of Philip and a eunuch he encountered:

30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 The place in the Scripture which he read was this: “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth. 33 In His humiliation His justice was taken away,

And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.” 34 So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. 36 Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?”

37 Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” 38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39 Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing.

Are we willing to take the time to explain God's word to those without understanding? Are we willing to walk that path with them?

The second example is seed on stony ground. What would cause stony ground in a person's life? Perhaps a life of continuous difficulty or struggle leads to stony ground. Stones of bitterness, resentment, anger and fear may be some of the stoniness in their lives. Are we willing to remove the stones from another's life in order that their spiritual ground may be broken loose to allow for the seeds planted to grow roots? How can we remove those stones? Genuine love. Love without expectation. Love without condescension. Love that says, "I am genuinely here for you." Love that does no harm. Love that is not ruled by a time limit. Love given freely...as freely as Christ gave it to us.

Are we willing to love the stones away in a person's life?

Thirdly, seed that is choked out by thorns and the cares of this world. How do we contribute to that? Maybe we should check where our attentions lie. Do we lead by example? Do we serve Christ sincerely or in pretense? We say it's not about us but what do our actions say? View your life through the eyes of an unbeliever or someone searching for a church home. What do they see? What do your actions tell them about you? Is your own spiritual seed being choked by the same?

Matthew 9:35-38 says:

35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. 36 But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. 37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 38 Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

We may be praying for laborers but are we laboring while we are praying? We cannot manufacture the love and compassion needed for people that surround us. The supply we need can only come from Christ. It is His love that overcomes any obstacle. It is our understanding of His love for us that allows us to so freely love others, willingly and anxiously with great expectations.

This world is vicious and the amount of brokenness in people is overwhelming. We, as the Church, need to remove ourselves from the list of people and things that break others. Everyone has value. Everyone has worth. While we struggle to love those that can behave in despicable ways, God is not struggling. He already loves them.

Let us pick up our garden tools and begin to do the work we are called to do. Blaming satan for the struggles that others face is an easy out. Jesus already won when He went to the cross and then rose again. Shake off your apathy, put on your garden clothes and get busy.