"God's Seed, Good Soil, Great Harvest"
Sept.1/02 Mt.13:1-9,18-23
"I'm Afraid They'll Sit Up"
God has done a wonderful thing for us -- at least two, in fact. For starters, our heavenly Father sent Jesus to die for our sins and save us from eternal punishment through trusting in Him. Not only that: God has entrusted this life-changing message to us, making us ambassadors privileged to sow the seed of the gospel amongst those who haven't heard it. What a joy it is when we see the message take root in a person's life and make an eternal difference for them!
Opportunities for sowing seed can arise in all kinds of situations. Pastor Wallace Hostetter of Rochester, Michigan went for a haircut one day. His barber was a young Muslim woman. In the course of their conversation, he told her he was a pastor, that he believed in Jesus, and that later in the day he was going to do a funeral. She replied, "Once I was supposed to cut a dead man's hair.They were going to pay me $150, but I wouldn't do it." "Why not?" "I don't like to touch the dead.I'm afraid they'll sit up."
The pastor said, "I know one who did." "Ugh! You're kidding." He replied, "No, I'm not." Then he told her about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. When his haircut was done, she asked, "Are you going to keep coming here?" "Yeah, I'll come back." She said, "I'd like to know more."
Sowing Seed: the Hardness of the Path
At the height of Jesus' ministry when large crowds were gathering around to hear his teaching, He told a parable or story-illustration about the various ways people respond to the message of His Kingdom. The story is so vivid that the Canadian Bible Society uses it for its logo. In Matthew 13:3-4 Jesus describes a farmer sowing seed, some of which fell along the path; the birds came and gobbled up the uncovered seed. Throughout the story, the condition of the various types of soil parallels people's receptivity (or lack thereof) to the message about Jesus' salvation. In verse 19 Jesus interpreted the seed sown along the path this way: "When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart." We might call this the HARD soil. When we witness to others, there will always be those who just plain aren't interested. They treat the news lightly, they may be flippant or indifferent. It makes no impression; there's no penetration, their heart is beaten flat and packed hard, like trying to sow seed on cement or scratch a furrow in the pavement. Even in Jesus' own ministry, there was division in the response: many thought he had a demon, while some acknowledged only God's messenger could open the eyes of the blind (Jn.10:20f).
People's hearts can be hardened for many reasons. Some have been abused or suffered so many hard knocks in life that they have a hardened, cynical attitude. They find it hard to imagine that God could actually love them; the Good News sounds to them like a fairy tale. Our witness to such people need to include lots of TLC, they need to see and experience God's love in order to believe it; words mean nothing. Other people's hearts are hard because they're successful at pursuing what the world offers. They're caught up in the best cars, the fanciest clothes, the latest toys, getting ahead as the advertisers understand it. They've got the world by the tail; who needs a Saviour? or so they think. When you're confronted in witnessing by this kind of hard heart, about all you can do is pray for them and wait until for some reason the pain level increases in their life. Be ready to be a friend should everything turn sour. Until then the world's spell has them enchanted, God's "spell" doesn't seem to offer them much.
As we go through the various types of soil in Matthew 13, Paul offers some parallel descriptions in Philippians 3-4. Both Jesus and Paul are using different terms to describe people's varying spiritual conditions. Paul says in Php.3:18f, "many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things." How do you reach someone like that? They're not going to pay attention until the hurting starts. Paul adds in 4:5, "Let your gentleness be evident to all." Patiently wait your opportunity, let your gentleness and kindness witness when the crunch comes. Hard hearts will be affected only by the hammer of God's judgment or long soaking in God's grace, through the Holy Spirit's conviction.
The Shallow Soil: No Root
Next Jesus describes (v.5) the seed that "fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil.It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root." Down in verse 20 Jesus interprets this as the person "who hears the word and at once receives it with joy.But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time.When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away."
Here the problem is not hardness or resistance, but shallowness, a lack of depth. The person hasn't bothered to develop "roots". They're the "fair-weather faithful": they'll believe as long as everything's going well for them. But when things start to go wrong, temptation comes, or opposition from family members or others who ridicule or put down Christian things, the person starts to waver in their faith. Peer pressure has more impact with them than God's opinion. Or they believed a "name it and claim it" prosperity gospel that has no explanation for catastrophe in the Christian life - even though Jesus ended his earthly life abandoned on a cross. The soil of their heart, their Christian character, lacked depth.
What's missing in the case of a person like that? What produces depth in the Christian life? What causes believers to remain as babies who fall away or backslide when things start to go wrong? Weekly church attendance, beneficial as it is, won't produce depth. If you want to remain half an inch deep even though you talk like you're a mile wide, limit your faith development to going to church once a week. No, to develop roots, you've got to plunge deeper. Meet with the Lord each day in a regular Quiet Time. Get involved in meeting weekly in a discussion setting with other believers, some kind of Growth Group. As each person shares their struggles and victories (by God's help) with others, you'll all benefit and learn to grow deeper. But how's the young Christian going to know about these unless there's follow-up and mentoring? Discipling develops roots, as a more experienced Christian guides a young'un into the discipline of helpful habits. Every Paul needs a Barnabas and a Timothy: if you've been a Christian a while, link up with someone who can benefit from what the Lord's taught you. The shallow believer needs to discover Christ as Master, Teacher, one's "guru" or Yoda. Often through the influence of a more experienced brother or sister Christian.
Paul wrote in Php.3:17, "Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you." Older believers offer an example to follow, a pattern to walk in. Paul adds in 4:9, "Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me--put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."
We Protestants venerate Martin Luther, founder of the Reformation back in the 1500s. But at one point Luther was a struggling young Augustinian monk, bound by fears and superstitions, locked in the legalistic Catholicism of the Middle Ages. Johann Von Staupitz, professor of Bible at the University in Wittenburg, took young Martin under his wing and became his spiritual director and counselor. Staupitz taught Luther about grace and directed him into the study of theology, where he found liberating truth in the book of Romans. Later, Luther said, "If it had not been for Dr.Staupitz, I should have sunk in hell." What are you more in need of today - finding a Staupitz, or a Luther? How is God seeking to develop depth in your life through involvement with another Christian? Without roots, you'll get fried when the heat's on!
The Weedy Soil: Conflicting Concerns
Jesus describes a third type of unproductive soil in verse 7: "Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants." He interprets this (22) as "the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful." In this case the soil is good, but it's not pure: it's adulterated, polluted with weed seeds which compete with the crop plant and rob it of light, moisture, and nutrients.
If we want to see God's Reign in our lives increase, we need to give the Holy Spirit room to work, and eliminate competing influences. Weeds are the distractions, the harmful habits, which divert our attention from the Lord. These thorns sprout from the seedbed of wrong priorities in our lives. On the one hand, Jesus mentions there are "the worries of this life". Some people get stressed out over matters of security and control: they fret about everything from who Johnny's dating to whether there's going to be enough in the account to pay the fuel bill. True, these aren't trivial concerns, but worry seldom helps a situation. This person would be more fruitful for the Lord if they can acknowledge His Sovereignty and their own dependence, and learn to trust in Him in uncertain times. Give it back to God - all of it, but especially those matters we can't do a thing about. Prayer is what's needed here: by praying we come to realize more who we are as God's sons and daughters through faith in Christ. He cares for us even more than the sparrows He also keeps track of! (Mt.10:29) The growth area for the worry-wart is getting to know Christ better as Saviour, One to whom we can entrust our security.
Jesus describes another brand of choking weed as "the deceitfulness of wealth". Believe all the ads you hear and you'll be poor in no time; Madison Ave is just "mad" without the "Son"! Yet we get hoodwinked by the sales pitches, suckered into chasing after toys, amusements, or just the climb for power in our little world of contacts. No Christian is immune to Satan's whisper tempting us to gain bread unrighteously or worship him to obtain worldly riches. Some of the "enemies of the cross" Paul warned against in Php.3(18f) were false teachers in the church itself; "Their mind is on earthly things.But [he added] our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there" - the Lord Jesus who has real power to control and transform (20f). The worry-wart needs to come to trust Jesus as Saviour through Prayer; the wealth-seeker needs to relate to Him as Lord through changed Priorities, laying one's ambitions and bank accounts at the cross. Else the spiritual life will get choked right out of us, and we'll be stunted plants as far as God's enterprise is concerned, sickly yellow and barren.
As an antidote to worry, Paul told the Philippians in 4:6-7, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." In the veggie patch of your life, why settle for weeds when you can have God's "peas"?!
James Cash Penney (what a name), coming from a long line of Baptist preachers, grew up with deep convictions. He was unwaveringly honest. He never smoked or drank, and he was a hard worker. But in 1929 when the Great depression hit, Penney found himself in crisis. He had made unwise commitments, and they turned sour. Penney began to worry about them, and soon he was unable to sleep. He developed a painful case of shingles and was hospitalized. His anxiety only increased in the hospital, and it seemed resistant to tranquilizers and drugs. His mental state deteriorated until, as he later said, "I was broken nervously and physically, filled with despair, unable to see even a ray of hope. I had nothing to live for. I felt I hadn't a friend left in the world, that even my family turned against me."
One night he was do oppressed he didn't think his heart would hold out, and, expecting to die before morning, he sat down and wrote farewell letters to his wife and sons. But he did live through the night, and the next morning he heard singing coming from the little hospital chapel. The words of the song said, "Be not dismayed whate'er betide / God will take care of you." Entering the chapel, he listened to the song, to the Scripture reading, and to the prayer. He later wrote, "Suddenly-- something happened. I can't explain it. I can only call it a miracle. I felt as if I had been instantly lifted out of the darkness of a dungeon into warm, brilliant sunlight." All worry left him as he realized more fully than he had ever imagined just how much the Lord Jesus Christ cared for him. From that day JC Penney was never plagued with worry, and he later called those moments in the chapel "the most dramatic and glorious twenty minutes of my life".
The Good Soil, Yielding Many-fold
Last, Jesus mentions the good soil, which yields a hundred, 60, or 30 times what was sown. This bountiful reproduction is what makes all the sowing worthwhile. In verse 30 He interprets this as the person "who hears the word and understands it". The soil is good, in other words, it's not hard, or shallow, or weedy - but receptive to the message.
My farmer relatives have been experimenting with no-till soil management practices for some years now. No-till is supposed to avoid compaction, help retain organic matter which otherwise burns off with cultivation, and encourage earthworms to aerate and mix the soil. One of these relatives noted recently that now when it rained heavily he'd get stuck if he went onto a tilled field but he could take equipment onto the no-till field because it was "like a sponge" and soaked up the moisture. Jesus wants us to be like that - sponges absorbing His teaching, good soil nurturing His seed.
Paul's Kingdom-fruitful attitude is expressed when he says, "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.All of us who are mature should take such a view of things...Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." (Php.3:14f; 4:8) In other words, receive God's Word planted in you, soak up the Spirit's nourishment, mature and press on in God's call and harvest. Don't let yourself become hard, shallow, or weedy. Get growing in Christ! God wants to produce a hundred-fold through you!
Jerry White wrote, "As I reflected on the meaning of maturity, I realized that there is a central mark of maturity. In the human physical realm, maturity is gauged by when a person is able to bear or father children. A tree is mature when it bears fruit. A stalk of grain is mature when it can be harvested. In all creation, fruit-bearing is the preeminent mark of maturity. Certainly the spiritual real differs little. A mature believer bears fruit of two kinds. The first is that of character and holiness of life. The second is becoming a spiritual parent by leading others to Christ or by adopting a baby or growing Christian."
Crotchety Alice at the Cross
A principal means God the "farmer" uses to sow His seed is through believers. Crotchety old Alice was a terror to neighbourhood children, stray dogs, and delivery boys. Her face was sour and surly, and she waved her garden trowels and hedge-clippers like weapons in the faces of visitors. When James and Jean Mader moved next door, they mustered their courage to speak to Alice one day about the Lord, but she cut them off. "I've been a member of the church all my life," she snorted. "I don't need the Bible to tell me what to do." The Maders looked for ways of befriending Alice, and slowly the relationship thawed. Still, Alice wanted nothing to do with the Gospel.
During a community evangelistic campaign, the Maders became involved with a plan called "Operation Andrew", based on John 1:42, about Andrew's introducing his brother Simon to Christ. They listed ten people to pray for and to invite to the meetings. Alice's name was on the list, but she spurned their appeals. Still they prayed and looked for chances to share.
One summer returning from vacation, the Maders found Alice's house empty. She was in a nursing home, having suffered a stroke. They visited her regularly, bringing flowers and sharing news from the neighbourhood. Alice was unable to speak, but one day when Jim asked if he could read Psalm 23, she nodded.
Jim visited regularly, always sharing Scripture, and they noticed that Alice began fixing her gaze on him as he read instead of staring straight ahead as she had previously done. One day Jim asked, "Alice, do you want the Lord Jesus to forgive your sins and give you peace with God?" Alice indicated that she did, bowing her head and praying silently as Jim led her. When she raised her head, her eyes were wet with tears. It had taken over 12 years - but the seed lovingly planted through the Maders had produced a crop! Let's pray.