Is Good Soil In You?

Illustration: Cup with half-filled water cup

What do you see on hand? Describe this water cup!

How we view the life is just like how we view this water cup. Some might say “It is half-empty.” The others might say, “It is half-filled.” The amount of water stays the same. The material or the size of this water cups stays the same. Some view it is empty, others view it is filled. What a different view! Totally opposite, isn’t it? Everyone sees differently about certain situation or an object they are same. We see things through our heart. So often time the language we use reflects our heart. Even various places in the Bible testifies that, too. Not only our language but our whole life style is reflected by our heart.

Have you hung out with people or dated a person who is so negative all the time. That kind of heart is never attractive, by the way. I used to be like that. Every summer, in my elementary school year, I was sent to the VBS in the prayer mountain. That was the time I was able to get away from home. That very thing excited me. Didn’t you? And also, I met a lot of people and made friends. I was the one who sang the song loudest, of course, I was so out of tune. I was the one who sneaked out at night even though I wasn’t supposed to. I was the one who laughed so much and talkative. At the end of the VBS, I always lost my voice. When I came back home, my mother always asked me, “How was it? Did you have fun?” With my almost gone husky voice, I tried my best to answer her question sincerely. I said, “I hated it. Food was terrible, the lodging was horrible, I didn’t like the teacher, etc.” Almost every other camp or VBS I went, My answer was somewhat similar – Negative!

One day, I guess my mother was so tired of my negative comments. She said, “Why do you keep going to the cam or the VBS if you don’t like it? You are the one who always lost the voice. You didn’t fight with your friends. You must have lost your voice because you were singing too hard or talking too much. Every circumstances indicate you had a fun. All you do is complaint. From now on, if you will be so negative about it, then don’t go!”

“Don’t go? Don’t go?” “I cannot sing? Or I cannot talk or run?” Well, I stopped complaining from that moment on.

Is anyone with me on this? Does this only happen to me? How about you? What kind of attitude do you have? What kind of heart do you have seeing the world through?

Today’s bible passage is about the heart. What kind of heart can bear fruits in one’s life and what kind of heart cannot bear anything and even dies.

In today’s bible passage is known as one of the parables of Jesus. What is a parables? It is simply short stories which has lesson embedded in it. Jesus used short story to illustrate the kingdom truth. He always used illustration, the short story to teach people, so people can understand the kingdom truth more easily. Jesus used stuff in the parables that ordinary people faces in daily living. Such as today’s bible passage, He used agricultural materials that people always dealing with in daily living.

The sower went out to sow. He scattered the seed. Some seed fell on the side of the road, some fell on the rocky soil, some fell on the ground where the thorns were, and some were on the good ground. As he mentioned about four different type of soils, he explained to his disciples.

1. The path (the side of the road)

Some fell on the side of the road and the bird came ate them up. Here the bird represent the satan. The seed is the word of God. The side of the road is people’s heart. Here, it says the bird comes and eats them up. It means more than eating. It means devouring, consuming it. Jesus always faced opponents who were religious leaders such as Pharisees or Sadducees. They were the people who closed their heart and were not willing to listen what Jesus Christ saying. They rejected the word of God. In Chapter 3: 22, Jesus was falsely accused that He was demon possessed. Some people hear the word of God, but their heart is too closed to accept the word of God. Even they falsely accuse the believers mocking them and even killing believers. It is happening everywhere. Our enemy satan doesn’t anyone to believe in Jesus. They do whatever they can to prevent people getting saved. Satan snatches the word of God from people. People are designed to eat the word of God. When the word of God snatched away people cannot function well. Just like our physical body needs food to function properly. Satan takes the word of God, the real spiritual food and leave us with junk food, envy, hatred, false desire, etc. Road side heart doesn’t do any good.