Jesus related the following parable to His disciples:
A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up.
In my last post, I noted that Christians are to be sowing the seeds of God’s principles. As we sow, people respond differently to the truths we are sharing. Some people are so closed off against the truth, the principles/seeds bounce off the hard ground of their hearts and disappear.
He continued:
Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture.
This is one degree better, but still unproductive. The principles might get an initial hearing, and the hearers may even receive them with joy, but, as Jesus later explains, the truths never take root. The hearers may believe for a while, then fall away.Â
As the sower continued sowing, he came to another type of soil:
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants.
Jesus describes these people as those who do genuinely hear the principles and want to accept them, but they allow life’s worries, riches, and pleasures to crowd them out. They do not mature, He says. I think that lack of maturity applies both to the principles and to the people themselves.
Finally, though, there is success:
Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.
Those are the people, Jesus notes, who have what He calls “good and noble” hearts, people “who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.”
The world is filled with all four types of soils, or hearts. I see each type in class on a daily basis. Some students, no matter how hard you try, are not open at all to what you are saying. Others find it interesting and they perk up when they hear, but it never takes root. Still others understand, but they allow the cares of life to keep them from becoming productive for God.
Yet there are the good, noble, and open hearts who recognize God’s truth when they hear it, they rejoice in what they hear, and they flourish as they take His principles and apply them to their lives. The “crop” they will produce in the future will make all the effort of sowing worthwhile.
Being a sower/teacher is not always immediately rewarding, but the Lord provides encouragement along the way. As I said in the last post, the promise of Galatians 6:7-9 is that we shall reap if we do not grow weary. Continue on—the Lord will show you that the promise is real.