Luke 8:4-15; Parable of the Sower and Field I. The Hard Ground II. The Choked Ground III. The Good Ground 1 Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, this morning as we return to Luke we find a very wellknown parable. But this parable is unique because Jesus clearly explains the meaning immediately afterwards. Now we all know that there is a difference between hearing and listening. A difference as stark as life and death. As we saw last week- many who listened to Jesus did so out of curiosity- or hostility while other truly heard and believed. The context of this today is that great crowds are gathering (4). And as these many people come- it becomes clear that some have come for evil purposes. Some have only come to test Jesus- some simply enjoyed having their ears tickled while no greater insight was gained. This Parable includes all men- we are all found in one of these categories. As the Word of God, Jesus is telling others about His coming kingdom. The way to be saved is being made clear- but this good news is not received by all. The emphasis is placed upon hearing. There is a kind of external hearing- like when you are trying to do two things at once. Perhaps you have been caught tuning out someone whom you should have been listening to. The purpose of this parable makes it clear that not everyone who hears really listens. The key difference between these 4 different kinds of soil- 4 different kinds of people- is that there are different ways of hearing. Today we will see that our Lord reveals the need to really hear and believe when God s Word is spoken. There are certain aspects that remain the same in this parable- there is but one kind of seek and one sower. The difference is all in the ground. The seed is the Word of God- the gospel proclaimed and distributed by Jesus while the soil represents the various kinds of hearts. I. The Hard Ground In a rural, agrarian society, most of the parables told have to do with plants or animals. So the sower goes out and seeds his field. This would be done by broadcast sowing- taking handfuls of grain and tossing them in the wind. This would cover much ground, but it also meant that some of the seed went on unproductive soil. And in the Middle East, the ground was not only prepared- but it would
also be tilled after the seed was sown so that the seed would be covered with ground. The parable 2 outlines 4 different kinds of soil- which is applied to 4 different kinds of hearts and their response to the Word of God. But right away we see that the difference is on the hearing- as v. 8 says- our ears need to be open to hear this truth. This parable is explaining is what takes place every Sunday- every time the Word of God is proclaimed it is met by a response. Even today- these responses are found in this church! And the first response that we see is the hard ground. The first soil is the one that is not tilled- only walked upon and packed down. The hard ground describes the packed ground which also served as the road between two fields. It was a path that was traveled upon- and as the seed falls on this path it sits and remains on top. Because the soil is hard- there is no penetration. Applied in v. 12 we find that this illustrates those who have a hard heart! Because of sin, the unregenerate man remains unmoved! Even though they hear- they may sit under preaching- there is no change. No rejoicing- and as this person leaves church the Evil One comes and snatches the Word from his heart. The sermon and the reading of the Word are quickly forgotten. During the sermon- they sit back and relax- there is no concentration. And hearing they do not hear! Let this be a warning- the Devil is particularly interested in those who attend church. It is his desire to steal the word from you so that you forget it- and your heart remains unmoved! That the Word spoken would be quickly forgotten- that is the Devil s desire! Like grass seed that falls on the driveway- it is useless and quickly washed away or eaten by rodents. The fact ismany who go to church return home unmoved and unchanged. Particularly in the North Americawho could say that they have never about Jesus Christ? Almost all have- but there are so many hard hearts! Closed ears- and stubborn necks. The seed falls on them and the devil snatches it. It takes concentration to take the word in and benefit from it. We can all come up with excuses- reasons why we forget or ignore the word- as our minds wander and our thoughts are filled with other things. What can we do to keep the word in our hearts? To hide his word in our hearts as Psalm 119 says? Wellgodly discussion after church- parents asking their children about the sermon- thinking about the
3 sermon later in the week or re-reading the passage. These can help us keep the word- holding it fast as v. 15 says. If you eat a solid meal- and then throw the food back up- does that food do you good? Yet that is the very thing that many do- hearing the word and then forgetting it- that word doing no good. II. The Choked Ground The second class of unfruitful ground is labeled as the rocky soil and the weed filled soil. This soil is shallow soil- in Palestine there are many places that a few inches of ground covers a solid bedrock. Here the seed penetrates to an extent. Since the ground is shallow- it warms very quickly. The seed put forth root and leaf. But there is no room for the tap root- the main root cannot penetrate the rock- and the plant remains superficial. This is applied in v. 13 to a shallow heart. It appears for a time that this person has believed. They may appear joyful- full of emotion- but when the sun rises- when hard times come- then the plant withers away. So also the person who may even join the church- called a new convert- when trials come they begin to show their true colors. They have not really embraced the word- there is a lack of substance- no depth of belief! A true Christian is one that is steadfast- and yearns to grow deep and become mature. One that takes up their cross- one that presses towards the goal. And when trials come- they turn not away! True faith preservers! Remember what happened in John 6- after Jesus taught about His body being the bread of life- many of his disciples ceased to follow Him. The hard teaching- the difficult truths were more than most wanted. So, seed on rocky soil delights in the surface truth- but recoils at the deep truths of God word. Everyone loves to hear about a loving God- but a God who angry with sin- a just God who condemns many to hell- that is not a God many want to have! The second kind of choked soil is the soil filled with thorns. As the seed falls among the thorns, the good seed and the thorns grow up together. But because thorns and thistles are very hearty and stubborn plants, after a while the good plant is choked out. Jesus applies this in v. 14 to the heart that is choked by the cares and concerns of this life. These kinds of people may rejoice for a time when they hear the Word of God. But they are fickle in nature. It may take a while- but before long
their true priorities are made evident. Like the rich young ruler in Luke 18- because he was rich he 4 turned away and did not follow after Christ. The Word may indeed reach their mind- but it fails to take precedence. Their priorities remain unchanged. Remember- you cannot serve both God and money! A person only has so much time- only so much memory space- only so much focus. They may have 30 minutes for Jesus on Sunday- but the other 10,050 minutes of the week are spent in worldly pursuits. This person may appear to be a good member of the church for a time- but as life gets busy- as the cares and concerns of this world begin to press upon them- they make their true devotion clear. Their spiritual life is choked out- crowded out. Now there is nothing wrong with money in itself- and God has given us many pleasures to enjoy. But it all comes down to priorities. For example- this kind of hearts will find that it is much to hard to keep Sunday as a day of rest- there is just too much to do! They can t make it to church when it is called together because they have their sports- or their work- or their family- or their cottage to go to. So their faith is crowded out and they fail to produce fruit. Or it could be that their entertainment- their pursuit of the enjoyment of this world fills their day to a point that they do not read God s Word- they no longer pray- and they die off! Most people have a 5-6-minute attention span today- without lights and bells to keep their attention their mind go to their first desire. What these three kinds of hearts share is that they all fail to produce fruit- they fail to remain and abide- they all fail to truly listen! So to summarize this group- there is a constant temptation from either the frown or the smiles of the world. Pleasing men- or avoiding paincause the seed to be pushed aside. III. The Good Soil and its Fruit Yet there is one more kind of soil- the good soil. Why is it good- Because God has made it good. God has placed the seed here- covered the seed and hid it in the heart- and the seed grows by God s grace! The good ground produces a crop- and by it the sower and the reapers rejoice to see mature fruit! As Jesus applies in v. 15- these are those hearts that hear- and really listen. The Word of God remains- the seed stays with them and grows up to maturity. Remaining means to hold fast- these
keep the word, possessing it so that it remains long- lingers- and permeates! Now how is the Word 5 supposed to remain in your heart? Well- when you leave here today- will you remember? Will the Word abide with you- or will it be snatched away? When you read the Bible- does the passage stay with you- or do you forget what you read as soon as you close the book? The good ground has a seed the remains- it holds fast! And the seed grows to maturity and produces fruit! These are the marks of true faith- there is perseverance! There is fruit produced! There is growth in the faith! Yes- this grow is often slow and gradual. Like the planting and growth of a seed! Children- have you ever watched a seed grow in the garden. You may see it placed in the ground and you expect to see something right away- but it takes days- sometimes longer before you see much. Then suddenly the head comes out of the ground. And there is slow- gradual growth until the flower is put forth- then the fruit appears and ripens over time! That is what our Christian life is to be like- there is to be growth, maturity and fruit! The seed is to remain in you- and produces a change. Every good tree produces good fruit- Mt. 7. Like the fruit of the Spirit- love, joy, peace, patience! When good fruit is seen, then you can know that God has made your heart good ground- and you can give thanks to God for planting the seed there and making it grow. The truth about this parable is something revealed to you by God! Although we may consider how we are called to be good listeners of the Word- we cannot forget that it is God who makes us good listeners- it is God who opens our ears and our hearts so that we might really hear and believe! The HS tills the soil- removes the rocks and causes the seed to grow! That is why prayer is such an important part of the churches life- because without this constant help and aid of the Spirit we would not be able to receive the seed. In conclusion, we have often asked what kind of ground are you? Although we may all saythe good ground- the question is- how is the good ground made evident? It may be that today there are some here who are not the good soil. Although hearing- some may not be really listening. And walking out that door- some may forget everything they have heard and go on unchanged and unmoved. Others may be tested and tried- and fall away. And still others may be distracted by the
6 world and their spiritual life may be choked out. But the good news is that those who truly belong to Christ will not be lost. Being good ground is something that God makes us- and by the Spirit we can and do truly hear and listen. True faith is made evident by our works! It is often hard work to produce good fruit- maturity takes time- but when you remain in the Word- and the Word remains in you- with patience and by the Spirit -fruit will be produced! As Jesus said in v. 18- take head how you hear! Really listen when you read God s word- hold fast to the Word proclaimed! Come to church expecting- praying- asking God to speak to you! Because to you has been given the secrets of the Kingdom of God! Our Lord reveals the need to really hear and believe when God s Word is spoken. So hear- listen- believe- embrace the Word! And by God s grace you will grown and mature!