Matthew 13:1-23 The Parable of the Sower
“On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.
Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
The Parable of the Sower Explained
Matthew 13:18-23 “Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 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. This is he who received seed by the wayside. But he who received the seed 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. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.”
Jesus is telling stories, and there are so many people that he sits in a boat moored just off shore so that the crowd won’t crush him. Now Jesus is describing a scene common to everyone who lives in a rural area with little arable land. In the area where Jesus is speaking, the fields are small with good soil mixed in with lots of rocks. All that farmers can do is to scatter seed throughout the fields and then wait to see what grows up.
There are paths through the fields, so some seed naturally falls on the paths, where the birds eagerly gobble it up. Some seed falls on rocks resulting in plants that spring up but that shrivel in the sun. Some seed falls among the thorns that are impossible to eradicate, and the thorns grow faster than the plants, choking the plants. If a farmer is lucky, most of the seed will fall on good soil, rewarding the farmer for his hard work.
When the disciples demand an explanation for this parable, Jesus explains that he is describing the manner in which various groups of people will respond to the Gospel, the word of the kingdom. What the disciples fail to realize at this point is that Jesus is advising them on the manner in which people will respond to news of his death and resurrection.
As modern disciples, we have the advantage of viewing the parable from the experiences of two millenia. There’s a warning label that is common on some products: “Results may vary.” Here Jesus is warning his disciples, present and future, about the variability of people’s responses to the Gospel.
Why should we as disciples study this parable closely? First notice that the sower goes out and spreads the seed throughout the entire field, regardless of beaten paths, rocks, thorns, or poor soil. The sower works hopefully, for who knows which seed might germinate and produce? Sometimes seed sown in poor soil or among rocks or thorns proceeds to yield anyway.
Nicky Cruz came from a family in Puerto Rico that practiced spiritualism. Cruz’s mother used to call him “son of Satan.” The family sent Cruz to live in New York City with his brother when he was 15; however, Cruz soon began living on the streets and became a gang leader. When David Wilkerson, a gangling young pastor from a small town in Pennsylvania, suddenly turned up and began spreading the Gospel, Cruz told him, “You come near me and I’ll kill you!” David Wilkerson replied, “Yeah, you could do that. You could cut me up into a thousand pieces and lay them in the street, and every piece will still love you.” Despite everything, Cruz not only got saved himself, but led many other gang members to accept Jesus. Cruz went on to become a world-famous evangelist. Cruz has been described as “the Billy Graham of the streets.”
On the face of it, Cruz’s background was as stony and as thorny as possible; yet, God reached down and saved him. Stories such as this should cause disciples to remember that sometimes the most hopeless cases can turn into the biggest miracles.
One of our late pastor friends used to say that “We’re only in advertising while God’s in management.” Our business as disciples is to advertise Jesus whenever and wherever we go, regardless of the circumstances. We have no idea when a simple prayer or a loving touch will result in someone coming to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
Simon Peter summed it up well when he said that “There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) Nothing we can do will earn our way into heaven because each one of us has a sin problem that we cannot overcome by ourselves. But Jesus Christ has died on a cross, shedding his blood for our sins so that those of us who believe in him can have eternal life.
No matter what the condition of your life is, you can become a disciple, a follower of Jesus, and the possessor of eternal life. Let’s pray.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for login us and for caring for us. Lord, we confess that we are sinners and that nothing we do is good enough to make up for those sins. We beg you to forgive us. Thank you for sending Jesus Christ to die as a blood sacrifice in our place so that all of us who believe in him can have eternal life. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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