Sunday 30 Jan 1994

Luke 8:4b-15

God is looking for a rich harvest before the final consummation of his Kingdom. That, I believe, is the climactic message of the Parable of the Sower (as it is known), probably better called the Parable of the Soils.
  Through the parable Jesus teaches that the harvest comes through the means of God’s Word; a means which will not be uniformly successful, but which is guaranteed of final fruitfulness. He teaches that various specific features of then human heart; of man’s nature will either help or hinder that work.

Jesus, with his message Repent, the Kingdom of heaven is near (Matt 4:17), began the work of the Kingdom by preaching and teaching; and indeed his work met with uneven response. We only have to go back to the immediate-preceding passage at the end of Luke 7 where we have the account to Simon the Pharisee and the ‘sinful woman’ to see that. Yet the work did not end with Jesus; it just began with him. To his disciples, and through them to all subsequent followers he said (John 15:16) You did not choose me, but I chose you, and appointed you to go and bear fruit.
  So, God looks to all who name the name of Jesus Christ to be fellow-workers in the Kingdom-work of spreading his word. It is through God’s Word that men and women are brought to new birth.
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God (1 Peter 1:23), and again: He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first-fruits. (Jas 1:18)

Jesus, in this parable, firstly shows why God’s Word is not uniformly effectual, and to do so he used something that would have been familiar to all his hearers, for he was speaking to an agricultural people. The sower of the seed would broadcast the seed liberally over the whole of his land, after which the land would be put to the plough. This was all done before the rains came, and then the seed would germinate. However, it wasn’t all that simple. For not everywhere would be conducive to good growth. In some places there would be only a very shallow layer of soil over a bed of rock just below the surface. In other places there would be roots of weeds in the soil, ready to sprout up and flourish too. In addition, the land was divided up, for ease of working into small fields with pathways between each, pathways which would be often trodden on so that the ground became hard and compacted so the seed, when sown, would lie on the surface. But the sower would sow the seed everywhere. So it was that there were four soil-types, which as Jesus explains the parable become four different conditions of the human heart.  

1. Some fell along the path and was trodden underfoot and the birds of the air devoured it (v5)…The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, that they might not believe and be saved. (v12)
  Many people may hear the words, but they never hear the Word; they never hear in any understanding way that would cause them to change. Sooner of later the Devil comes and takes the Word away. Paul, writing to the Corinthians said that the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers (2 Cor 4:4). It is a fact which the Christian has to face, that many people will never respond to God’s Word. The Word can never penetrate for the ground is hardened.
  But whom should we have in mind here? The age in which we live; the age and society in which we live has indeed turned its back on God- and it behoves us to pray for the nation. But because the majority of folk have turned their back on God they will never really allow themselves to get anywhere near where they have any contact with this word.  I think we should be aware of this, for the parable speaks of those who hear the word. Just recall the background against which it was spoken; of Jesus’ recent encounter with the Pharisee Simon. This man heard Jesus’ words, surely; as a Pharisee, well-trained in the things of God he should have understood.
  No: In today’s terms these words address those within the churches; those who have never allowed the word to penetrate hardened hearts; they are those who profess and call themselves ‘Christian’, yet have never been born again. The Scriptures are full of warning to such people. Hebrews 3:12 says See to it that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns from the living God. Such people are in the danger of the Children of Israel after the exodus from Egypt. They kept on putting God to the test; ‘Just one more proof and we’ll believe’- yet they never would. Psalm 95 says of them
I was angry with that generation and I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray and they have not known my ways. So I declared in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest’ (vv 10-11)

There’s a connection between belief and obedience: the first act of obedience is to trust God’s promises, and then to act in obedience. There is a very real warning of the danger of becoming hardened to the things of God, hardened to his Word, until we become incapable of response; incapable because eventually the Devil will come and take the Word from us. There are unbelievers within he fold of the church- and every church has them.
The other three cases in this parable- and here I part company with many commentators, are believers- though only some are fruitful as Christians.

2. Some fell on the rock; as it grew up it withered away, because it had to moisture (v6)....The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with great joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while and in times of temptation fall away (v13)
How sad it is when someone like that comes to belief.For a while all seems to be different and indeed there has been a Christ-given change in their lives. They have believed; the seed has germinated, there is new life, how else can we interpret this? But alas! Many believers fail to go on with God. Yet he has put his seal on their lives:
Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit, guaranteeing your inheritance (Eph 1:13)  
I came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ in 1957, yet for may years I fell away. Initially my work colleagues were saying, “What’s happened to you?”; yet the trial of standing out different from the crowd was too much; I had no Christian fellowship and soon fell away. Yet God had his hand on my life and a quarter of a century later he hauled me back in; Praise his Precious Name! For many others, they become totally unrecognisable as Christians. Such will at th end suffer much loss, but will be saved from an eternity without Christ; for these he knew.

3 Some fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it (v7)....As for those who fell among thorns, they are those who hear, but they go on their way and are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life,and their fruit does not mature (v14)

The other three cases in this parable- and here I part company with many commentators, are believers- though only some are fruitful as Christians.

2. Some fell on the rock; as it grew up it withered away, because it had to moisture (v6)....The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with great joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while and in times of temptation fall away (v13)
How sad it is when someone like that comes to belief.For a while all seems to be different and indeed there has been a Christ-given change in their lives. They have believed; the seed has germinated, there is new life, how else can we interpret this? But alas! Many believers fail to go on with God. Yet he has put his seal on their lives:
Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit, guaranteeing your inheritance (Eph 1:13)  
I came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ in 1957, yet for may years I fell away. Initially my work colleagues were saying, “What’s happened to you?”; yet the trial of standing out different from the crowd was too much; I had no Christian fellowship and soon fell away. Yet God had his hand on my life and a quarter of a century later he hauled me back in; Praise his Precious Name! For many others, they become totally unrecognisable as Christians. Such will at th end suffer much loss, but will be saved from an eternity without Christ; for these he knew.

3 Some fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it (v7)....As for those who fell among thorns, they are those who hear, but they go on their way and are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of this life,and their fruit does not mature (v14)

The other three cases in this parable- and here I part company with many commentators, are believers- though only some are fruitful as Christians.

2. Some fell on the rock; as it grew up it withered away, because it had to moisture (v6)....The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with great joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while and in times of temptation fall away (v13)
How sad it is when someone like that comes to belief.For a while all seems to be different and indeed there has been a Christ-given change in their lives. They have believed; the seed has germinated, there is new life, how else can we interpret this? But alas! Many believers fail to go on with God. Yet he has put his seal on their lives:
Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit, guaranteeing your inheritance (Eph 1:13)  
I came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ in 1957, yet for may years I fell