Read Matthew 13.1-9. Pray.
Introduction
A Greek philosopher wanted to illustrate to his students that they must not only have knowledge but also a life changed by the truths he gave them. He said, “Sheep do not vomit up the grass to show the shepherds how much they have eaten; but, inwardly digest their food and outwardly produce wool and milk. Likewise, do not show theorems to the unlearned, but rather the actions produced by the theorems after they have been digested.”
You may have heard the phrase, “The proof is in the pudding,” which (when you think about it) does not seem to make much sense. In an article in the New York Times last year, William Safire explained that the actual saying is not “the proof is in the pudding,” but “the proof of the pudding is in the eating.” Pudding, apparently, was an old name for haggis and the test of whether it was safe or good was in the eating of it (or maybe letting the dog eat some).
“Seeing is believing” means basically the same thing. It is not what we say we know, but what we do with it that shows whether we know what we “know.”
We began the parables of Jesus last week by noting that the kingdom of God advances by hearing, unlike the world’s kingdoms, which advance by force. Jesus’ kingdom is not from this world. If it were, his servants would be fighting. Instead, he insists that we take care how we hear. God’s work – conversion, sanctification, evangelism – God’s kingdom moves forward by hearing.
But many, it seems, who hear do not hear. And that problem prompted Jesus to speak the parable of the sower. Both the crowds who followed and the religious leaders who persecuted, heard him speak, but they did not “hear.” They ate the grass, but did not inwardly digest the truth so as to outwardly produce the wool and milk of the sheep of the Lord’s pasture. So Jesus tells them a parable.
Before we consider the teaching itself, let me remind us of something we know, but it is good to remember. Notice what Jesus says in Matthew 13.19 as he begins to interpret for his disciples: “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart….”
This parable is about how we hear; but note well, please, that Jesus assumes that what we hear is the word of the kingdom. The sower may spread much seed and yet grow no crop if the seed is bad. The preacher may say much, and say nothing, if he does not spread God’s word. We can work hard at witnessing, but harvest nothing if we do not proclaim Christ. Not the traditions of the church or the doctrines of men, but the word of the kingdom.
Sowing the seeds of the gospel is hard work; diligence and determination are required. And we must not focus overly much on the reception our work receives, for, “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap” (Ecclesiastes 11.4). In other words, ample deterrents press the farmer to stay indoors and squirrel away his seed.
Last week, Helen and Rebekah planted the first seeds of the new year. It takes a certain faith to find a break in the cold weather and heavy rains to put tiny, dry seeds in dark, cold dirt. It takes even greater faith when the next day a light snow rests on the row cover we put over the seeds. But we know our seeds, and peas and lettuce and spinach and radishes need as early start in March start as we can secure. The nature of our seeds demand we sow.
Do we know the power of the seeds we have in the word of the kingdom? Do we not have great seeds and greater reasons to sow the gospel? Can we not plant in faith and trust God to give the growth?
With that in mind, let’s look at what happens when the word of the kingdom is sown. The sower sows in faith; the seeds fall on four different soils. Each of the four soils is a test and warning for our souls. How are we listening to God? How careful are we hearing?
1. Beware of Listening with a Hard Heart (Matthew 13.3b-4)
I grew up farming. We planted thousands of acres and I drove our giant four-wheel drive Massey Ferguson tractor for thousands of hours, plowing, prepping, and planting fields. And every field had a tractor path around it. The same is true in our small garden in our backyard. In order to plant seeds, you must walk and stand somewhere, and wherever that is, the ground packs hard and becomes impenetrable. Like the dirt under a swing set, thousands of small impacts beat it hard.
When we plant our garden, we place our seeds directly into the best soil. But when a farmer sows, some of the scattered seeds fall on the footpaths (or tractor paths). Those are never covered with soil because the hard ground will not open to let the seed in. If it rains, the water runs off as quickly as it comes. The seeds end up feeding the birds.
So with some who hear the word of the kingdom. Their contact with the truth does not take root. They may desire to be known as the kind of people who attend church, or to have their family think they are Christians, or even escape Hell, but they will not be changed by truth.
To be sure, Jesus is speaking about people who hear the Word. The hard heart does not belong to the person in China who has never heard the gospel. Jesus told this parable to the crowd who listened. Therefore, the warning is for us, for those who have much contact with truth, but are not affected much by it. In fact, maybe we should go so far as to say that we, especially, need this warning, we who pride ourselves on our Scripture knowledge and our commitment to Biblical doctrines.
Paul warned the church of Corinth that while knowledge puffs up, love builds up. Knowledge of the truth is, of course, a good thing. But the more doctrines we know, the greater the danger that we stamp the ground of our heart hard and unyielding to the seed.
If someone asked me, “What criticism have you most commonly heard of Reformed churches during your 20 years of pastoral word?”, I think it would be pride. Then I am frightened when I remember that though Jesus was criticized for many things; pride was never on the list. Let us beware of listening with a hard heart, one that hears the word without allowing it to effect change.
2. Beware of Listening with a Shallow Heart (Matthew 13.5-6)
Every field has some pools of standing water covering stony ground. When seeds land in this water, warmed by the direct sun, they sprout quickly. They seem to be ahead of every other seed in the field, but the roots cannot penetrate the rocky soil, and with no sustenance, the plant withers and dies.
So some people hear Bible truths and receive them with joy, at least initially. They endure for a while, but when testing comes, they turn away. They profess to want to know what God says, but they do not persevere when he says what they do not want to hear. They are like a piece of tissue paper which, when set to the match, burns brightly for a moment, then quickly fades. They are sufferers in need of a solution, rather than sinners in need of a savior. As long as Jesus promises to heal their hurts, they are interested in him. But when he begins to cut away at pride and selfishness and envy and greed – then other solutions to suffering provide more comfort and peace. Shallow hearts leap for joy for many religious reasons; those truly advancing in the kingdom leap for joy when the flesh is put to death and the word changes them.
3. Beware of Listening with a Divided Heart (Matthew 13.7)
Though it surprises us, prosperity turns away pretenders as surely as persecution does. There are two worldly pressures which many people find too attractive for sacrifice for the Kingdom of Christ.
First, our hearts may be divided by the cares of this world. These are not necessarily bad things, simply busy things. Not devastating sins, but distracting concerns. We all have many duties that demand our attention, and simply living can consume all our thoughts and affections. Cares keep us from Christ’s interests.
Our hearts may also be divided by the deceitfulness of riches. It is not wealth itself which chokes out the power of truth, but the deceitfulness of wealth: the lie which it tells so well. Money is a tool that we must use. But money also serenades our hearts. It sings the song of salvation and satisfaction; it promises to protect and provide. That is its deceit; only God can meet our needs.
These three soils reveal the great and grave danger to our souls. J. C. Ryle: “These are points that we ought to weigh well. We should never forget that there are more ways than one of hearing the Word without profit. It is not enough that we come to hear: we may come, and be careless. It is not enough that we are not careless hearers: our impressions may be only temporary, and ready to perish. It is not enough that our impressions are not merely temporary; but they may be continually yielding no result, in consequence of our obstinate cleaving to the world. Truly the heart is ‘deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?’ (Jeremiah 17.9).”
4. Conclusion
Two years ago I wanted to pull part of my yard into our garden. The ground was not in great shape and it was covered with a dense mat of grass, so I bought some mulch from a horse farm and covered the ground with it. I thought that the mixture of manure and wood shavings, covering the ground for an entire year, would kill the grass and begin to rot and create good soil. The next spring I tilled in the mulch and planted crops there.
But as spring turned to summer, the plants fared poorly. Then the summer heat and sun did them in entirely. It turns out that the mulch was so thick that even after tilling it, I did not have a good mix. When I planted seeds, they sprouted quickly in the soft, light mulch. But the roots could not reach the soil that held nutrients and water. The plants grew slowly without fertilizer and the mulch could not hold water in the heat of summer. Eventually the plants withered and died.
The soil was bad. But note this: the soil could not repair itself. Its only hope is to appeal to the gardener. I had to spread the mulch, till the ground deeper, and improve the soil. The job of the soil is to receive the seed; the job of the gardener is to care for the soil.
Jesus is the gardener of the soul. Whichever condition you find your heart, make your appeal to him for healing and wholeness.
Only those who bear fruit in the Kingdom can be said to have received the word. Faith, hope, and love; humility, graciousness, putting others needs above our own; patience, peace, faithfulness, self-control – these are the only proofs that God’s word is working its roots into the soil of our souls. The true Christian refuses to be satisfied with barren orthodoxy or cold and correct theological views. He or she wants the Word producing fruit – 30, 60, even one hundred-fold.
Are we taking care how we hear?
