Luke 8:4-15 (Matt 13:1-23; Mk 4:1-20)
Birds, rocks, thorns
INTRODUCTION
ILL -- It depends what you are listening to
Chuck Swindoll told this story: An Red Indian was walking in downtown New York City alongside a friend who was a resident of the city. Right in the center of Manhattan, the Indian seized his friend’s arm and whispered, "Wait! I hear a cricket." His friend said, "Come on! A cricket? Man, this is downtown New York. He persisted, "No, seriously, I really do."
"It’s impossible!" was the response. "You can’t hear a cricket! Taxis going by. Horns honkin’. People screamin’ at each other. Brakes screeching. Both sides of the street filled with people. Cash registers clanging away. Subways roaring beneath us. You can’t possibly hear a cricket!"
The Red Indian insisted, "Wait a minute!" He led his friend along, slowly. They stopped, and the Red Indian walked down to the end of the block, went across the street, looked around, cocked his head to one side, but couldn’t find it. He went across another street, and there in a large cement planter where a tree was growing, he dug into the mud and found the cricket. "See!" he yelled, as he held the insect high above his head. His friend walked across the street, marveling, "How in the world could it be that you heard a cricket in the middle of downtown busy Manhattan?"
The Red Indian said, "Well, my ears are different from yours. It simply depends on what you’re listening to. Here, let me show you." And he reached in his pocket and pulled out a handful of change--a couple of quarters, three or four nickels, and some dimes and pennies. Then he said, "Now watch." He held the coins waist high and dropped them to the sidewalk. Every head within a block turned around and looked in the direction of the Indian.
It depends on what you are listening to.
Today’s passage may be a familiar one to most of us, the parable of the Sower and the Seeds. For most of us, when we read this passage, we think it’s talking about spreading the Gospel and the different responses people have when we reach out to them. But just as Jesus warns, he who ears to hear, let him hear (v.8).
You see, Jesus tells this parable to the crowds that gather round him (v.4). So yes, it appears that His message is to non-believers. But note that His explanation (v.9) was only to His disciples. Also, this passage lies after Jesus sends out the 12 disciples, and Himself has been travelling to towns and villages, proclaiming the good news (v.1). Also, straight after this passage, Jesus reminds His disciples that no one lights a lamp and hides it in a jar or under a bed (v.16).
So, I’d like to invite you to be open to what God might be speaking to you today through this passage, because I believe that there is something in this passage that is relevant to all of us, as His disciples, and that all of us can apply in our lives.
Let us stand and read Luke, chapter 8, verses 4 to 15 together.
Let’s pray. Dear Lord, thank You for Your Word, help us to hear You speaking to our hearts today as we look into Your Word, and I pray that You would help us to understand and apply it into our lives. In Jesus’ name, amen.
BODY
Birds, rocks and thorns. That’s the title of the message today. We will go through the different types of soil briefly and look at how this applies to our lives today.
The one underlying thing we need to keep in the back of our minds throughout this message is in v.11, that the seed is the Word of God. So just keep that in the back of your head as we go through this passage together.
Birds, rocks and thorns. Firstly, birds.
1. Birds (v. 5,12)
The farmer sows his seed. Some fell along the path. The birds came, ate it up, it got trampled on. And Jesus explains to his disciples, that this represent the devil coming and taking way the word from man’s hearts, so that they will not believe (v.12). Now this seems to be the most clear-cut, that it is talking about non-believers. Right? Yes, to a large extent. But I believe that it also talks about the hardness of our hearts to believe God’s Word.
How many of us have ever heard God’s word preached and you know that God is speaking to you, but we chose not to believe it, we ignore, we deny, we choose not to listen. That is like the seed that falls along the hardened path. It is easily snatched away, and easily trampled on.
Birds, then rocks.
2. Rocks (v. 7, 13)
Next, we look at the rocks. Some seed fell on rock, the plants grew, but quickly withered. Jesus explained that these are those that receive God’s word with joy, but because they have no root, they believe for a while, but in time of testing they fall away. Now some versions describe it as when temptations come. This passage also occurs in Matthew 13 and Mark 4, which describes it as trouble and persecution because of the Word.
Be it temptations, or troubles or trials, how many of us have seen friends who quickly become Christians, but when the going gets tough, many fall away. Perhaps it is not just your friends, but even yourselves. When times get difficult, when we encounter difficulties, struggles, pressures to follow our friends, when we are under stress from studies, parents, school, we begin to neglect our QT, neglect reading God’s word, neglect coming for CG, Bible study, or even weekend service. Or we might see coming to study and listen to God’s Word might not be as important a priority as other more important things in our lives. Of those youths that I work with, of those that are struggling with sin, or problems, or stress or just not doing well in their lives, one of the first questions I would ask them is, "Have you been reading the Bible?" Almost 9 or 10 out of 10 will answer, "No." Jesus says here, that these are like those who have no root, because of the rocks, they believe for a while, but easily fall away.
Bird, rocks and then thorns.
3. Thorns (v. 8, 14)
Now some seed fell on the path, some fell on the rocks, others fell among thorns. These seed grow, but the thorns also grow and choked the plants. Jesus describes the thorns as the worries, the riches and the pleasures of life. What are the worries and cares of our lives? Studies, our CCAs, our future, our major exams? The expectations of our parents, our teachers, the drive to excel, to do well? How about worrying what our friends think of us, how we look, how we dress, how we fit in? How about the riches and pleasures of life? What are the luxuries that we cannot give up, our comfortable homes, our comfortable cars, our allowance, our handphones, our Ipods, our PSPs?
Now don’t get me wrong, all these things are not wrong in and of themselves. But when we start to allow these thorns, these worries, these riches, these pleasures of life to grow and choke us, what happens? Jesus says, they do not mature. In other words, they never bear fruit, they are unfruitful. Now maybe you’ve been a Christian for a long time, but you struggle, you don’t seem to bearing any fruit in your Christian life. Now I’ll get to fruit in a moment. We need to take a step back and ask ourselves, am I allowing thorns to choke up my life?
Now before we look at the good soil, let me just explain briefly about what fruit means. When Jesus talks about us bearing fruit, or being fruitful, it can mean 1 of a few things.
1. Of course, the Bible talks about salvation, people coming to faith. That is one kind of fruit.
2. The Bible also talks about our character, the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5.22-23). Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
3. The Bible also talks about good works (Col 1.10), bearing fruit in every good work
4. And the Bible also talks about worship (Heb 13.15), the fruit of our lips
So, in the context of today’s passage, yes, it is talking about bearing fruit in terms of salvation, but I believe that God wants us to focus on our lives, our character, our deeds and actions, and our worship to our God.
4. Good soil (v. 9, 15)
The last type of soil, the seed was sown on good soil, and it came up and yielded a crop, 100 times more than was sown. Jesus describes this as those who retain the word, with a noble and good heart, and produced a crop by persevering. Now how should we cultivate good soil?
A. We need to check our hearts (honest, good, noble)
B. We need to understand God’s word (Matt 13.23)
C. We need to accept God’s word (Mk 4.20)
D. We need to retain (hold it fast) God’s word (v.15)
You want to know what is the key to bearing fruit, producing a crop? The key is PERSEVERANCE. Though this passage occurs in Matthew and Mark also, only Luke notes the need for perseverance.
To allow God to speak to us through His word, and to bear fruit as Christians, we need to:
- be teachable, rather than be hard-hearted, like the seed on the path
- press on, rather than fall away in times of temptation, trouble and trials, like the seed on the rock
- get rid of life’s thorns, rather than allow worries, riches, or pleasures choke us and cause us to be unfruitful;
Now just to note some observations before we close:
A. Notice that the seed was the same in all 4 cases (the only difference was the kind of soil), in other words, God’s word remains constant (story does not focus on sower), it just depends how we respond to it
ILL -- Playing safe
A Georgia farmer, ragged and barefooted, was standing on the steps of his tumbledown shack.
A stranger stopped for a drink of water and just to pass the time of day he asked: "How is your cotton coming along?" he asked.
"Ain’t got none," replied the farmer.
"Did you plant any?" asked the stranger.
"Nope," was the reply, "afraid of bollweevils."
"Well," continued the stranger, "how is your corn?"
"Didn’t plant none," came the answer, "’fraid there weren’t going to be no rain."
The visitor persevered: "Well, how are your potatoes?"
"Ain’t got none. Scairt - of potato bugs."
"Really, what did you plant?" pressed the stranger.
"Nothin’," was the calm reply, "I jest played safe."
Why didn’t that farmer plant his crops? He was afraid. He was afraid of failure. He was afraid of the unknown. And maybe he was even afraid that the work of planting would be too hard for him. SO, he just didn’t plant anything.
There are many Christians who won’t talk to anyone else about their faith (seed of Jesus). They’re afraid. They’re afraid of failure & rejection. They’re afraid of the unknown. And maybe they’re afraid the work is too hard for them to do. They’re unsure and afraid... AND SO they just don’t.
HOWEVER, from what Jesus tells us here in Luke 8, Christians really don’t need to be unsure and afraid. The task of casting the seed of the Gospel isn’t difficult.
B. Are we afraid to sow because we’re not sure what kind of soil?
CONCLUSION
I’d like to give some time for us to respond to God’s word today. I believe there are 3 groups here that God is speaking to, through His word.
1. Those who have not been bearing fruit in their lives, or struggling with birds, rocks and thorns.
teachable (path), press on (rocks), get rid of thorns (thorns), hear/understand/accept/retain God’s word, our hearts need to be right
2. Those who have been feeling discouraged or just playing safe with reaching out to others.
persevere, understand God’s word remains constant, we just need to allow His word to work in different soils/hearts
3. Those who have never believed or responded to God’s word.
birds, rocks, thorns; give our lives and hearts to Jesus
