What Kind of Receiver are You?
Matthew 13:1-9; 18-23
Even though we’re not quite there yet, fall is, without a doubt, my favorite time of year…Mainly because of football season! So in honor of this special time of year, I want to use some football imagery over the next couple of weeks to help me explain the importance of trusting God wholeheartedly.
As I was preparing today’s message, I got to thinking that there’s a lot of really good books out there that teach pastor’s how to deliver a good sermon. But I’ve never seen any books that teach listener's how to receive a sermon. The sad reality is that most people just show up on Sunday morning because it’s what they’re supposed to do. They open their Bibles (if they brought it), take a few notes and fill out the outline provided in the bulletins (if they can stay awake long enough), and say amen every once in while (just to prove that they’re not sleeping). If a person comes to church and they accomplish all these things, they think to themselves, “Hey, I’ve done something good here today!” But there’s so much more involved when it comes to properly receiving the Word of God.
It’s one thing to hear the Word of God, but listeners must receive the Word of God and let it take root in their life. So this morning, I want to focus on one of the most well-known parables in all of Scripture titled “The Parable of the Sower”. In this parable, Jesus describes four different types of “receivers.”
Read Matthew 13:1-9
This is actually the first parable of Jesus recorded in Scripture and it kicks off a whole series of parables throughout the rest of Matthew’s gospel. (This is proof that preaching series is a good idea!) The word parable means “to lay beside” and so it carries this idea of laying two things beside each other in order to teach a spiritual truth. So then, parables are stories that reveal truth. These stories were designed to not only be unforgettable, but also bring meaning to those who were serious about listening to the Lord. But for those who refused to listen, they were sometimes difficult to understand.
Notice verse 9: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” Fortunately for us, we don’t have to guess about the meaning of this parable because Jesus explains it beginning in verse 19.
But before we begin, let’s put this passage in its cultural context. While Jesus is teaching, it’s quite possible that there were some farmers nearby out in their fields doing some planting. So Jesus lays the foundation of this parable with something that they all understand, but then He moves into something that they don’t in order to reveal truth. Everyone back then understood how seed sowing worked. A farmer would have a leather pouch over his shoulders filled with seed and would walk down paths in his field slinging the seed out, much like we do when planting grass seed. This seed would end up in all sorts of soil, some good, and some not-so-good.
Alright, so we’ve already read what happened when the farmer sowed the seed. Now I want to move over to verses 19-23 to see how Jesus ties each type of soul to a type of receiver. These four soils represent four different responses to the Word of God.
The Intercepted (v. 19)
Fields in Palenstine were very small and they were usually separated by a narrow path used by the farmers and animals. The seed that fell onto this hardened ground couldn’t penetrate the soil so it just lay there, out in the open, until the birds would come by and intercept them. In our culture, it wouldn’t be any different if you were to throw seed on the road.
This is like the quarterback throwing the ball to the receiver, but because the receiver is casual in his approach, the ball gets intercepted. It represents those who are able to hear the Word of God, but it has no impact on their life. It may be that they’re stuck so deep in their sin that they refuse to believe. It may be that they are calloused and cold toward the things of God and they refuse to hear. They don’t understand the Word of God. They don’t understand the connection between it’s claims and their own personal life. This is one of Satan’s most powerful weapons. He loves to create confusion in the minds of unbelievers so that they won’t respond to the word of God.
Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved (Lk. 8:12).
Another thing I find interesting is the fact that this soil had become hard as a result of it being well-traveled. Some people get so used to doing things a certain way because it’s what they’ve always done. Never mind how ineffective it is, this is the way we have to do it because my grandparents did it this way, my parents did it this way, so I’m going to do it this way. Well, guess what, those days are over! We live in a different generation and if we’re going to reach the next generation then we may have to do some things differently, as long as we don’t compromise then Word of God. But the problem is, the majority of what we do is based off man’s opinion…not the Word of God. So for some, they’ve traveled down the road of going through the motions so long that their hearts have become hardened and they don’t receive the Word of God.
When this happens, Satan and his demons are quick to swoop in and intercept whatever seed that may have been sown in this persons life causing them to only harden their hearts even more.
The Butter-Finger (Vv. 20-21)
This type soil was, and still is to this day, very common in Palenstine. At first glance, it appears to be good and productive. But further examination will reveal that this soil is just an extremely shallow layer covering up a bunch of rocks; there’s no depth. As soon as the sun beats down on the plants that have taken root, they end up dying without producing any fruit.
That's kind of like the QB hitting his receiver right in the numbers…the throw is good…the receiver runs the correct route…but it slips right out of his hands. This kind of soil represents someone who makes an emotional response to the Word of God. Maybe it felt like the preacher was speaking directly to them that day. Maybe they came because a friend invited them. Whatever the reason, they made a profession of faith, but it was a shallow one at best because they didn’t count the cost of following Christ. They probably started out strong in their walk with the Lord, but as soon as the first hint of trouble came their way, their faith quickly slipped from their grip.
You say, well Bro. Chris…how can their faith slip away? Answer: They never had it to begin with. How do I know? There’s no fruit evident in their life. Anyone can make a profession of faith as the result of an emotional experience. But when that profession doesn’t produce a lasting change and they go right back to the ways of the world, they are not new creatures created in Christ Jesus.
Anyone can be spiritual on Sunday morning, that doesn’t take a whole lot of effort. But how are you living Monday through Saturday? How are you living at work? School? When the going gets tough, the fake will fall away. They will lose their grip. That’s why you can often tell who’s real and who’s fake by how they respond to difficulties.
3. The Fumbler (v. 22)
This soil is very similar to the previous one. It looks nice on the surface, but underneath the surface are thorns and thistles that rob the soil of water and nutrients causing the crops to fail. This is the receiver who makes the catch, but can’t hang on to it because he’s holding it too loosely or thinks too lightly of it.
There’s a football movie that came out in the early 90’s called “The Program”, I must have seen it a million times! There’s a scene in which the young running back has trouble holding on to the ball so the coach makes him carry a football everywhere goes on campus…to class, lunch, dorm, etc. And he challenges his team to try and knock the ball loose from the young running back’s hands. The point was to teach him to hang on to the ball…no matter what! Maybe we should do the same thing with God’s Word. Maybe we should carry it around with us everywhere we go. Because I can guarantee you that the world is going to challenge you, they are going to try to make you fumble God’s Word.
In Luke’s account of this parable, we read that these people “are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.” So these are the people who are so distracted with the things of this world that it can cause them to fumble the seed, which is God’s Word.
It’s kind of like the young woman who received a proposal from her boyfriend: “Baby, I want you to know that I love you more than anything else in the world. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I’m not rich. I don’t have a yacht or a Porsche like Johnny Brown, but I love you with all my heart.” She thought for a minute and then said, “I love you too, but tell me more about Johnny Brown.”
Have you ever known somebody who started out on fire for God but that fire was quickly put out by distractions? I know I have…more times than I can count. Paul did too, when a man he thought was a believer, revealed that he really wasn’t through his actions:
for Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world…(2 Tim. 4:10)
Are you distracted by the things of this world? You need to know that you can’t serve both the world and God, you have to make a choice. And if you don’t, then you’ve already made it.
4. The Dependable (v. 23)
I want you to notice the progression that takes place in each of these four scenarios. The first receiver doesn’t catch the seed at all, it gets intercepted. The second looks as though he might catch it, but the seed immediately slips out of his hands. The third receiver is able to make the catch and even takes a couple of steps, but only to be knocked away by the surrounding distractions of the world. But Jesus saves the best for last, this is the only soil that actually bears any fruit. This receiver not only catches the Word of God, he holds on to it. Luke 8:15 puts it this way:
But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.
According to Jesus, fruit-bearing is the mark of a disciple:
By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples (Jn. 15:8).
In Galatians 5:22-23, we see that believers are to be fruit-bearers:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Don’t be the receiver who lost focus, allowing the enemy to intercept God’s message for you. Don’t be the receiver in the right place and allow the seed to slip out of your hands. Don’t be the one who catches the seed but lets it get snatched from your hands because you held on too loosely. Hold tight to the Word of God and hug it for dear life!
What kind of receiver are you? I believe that God is speaking to us. He’s speaking to us through His word, through our circumstances, through other people. But are you receiving what He’s throwing? According to John, if you love God then you will hold on to His word. The word of God is the only thing that produces lasting growth.
I often refer to Matthew 7 where Jesus says that not everyone who says to Him, “Lord, Lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven.” Well, that’s another common theme that we find again here in our passage the morning. Don’t you find it interesting that only 1 out of the 4 different types of receivers actually caught and held on to the Word of God?
I hope this parable has caused you to focus on some tough questions:
What kind of receiver are you?
Has your heart become hardened to the things of God?
Are you just a fan of Jesus, or have you truly surrendered your life to Him?
Are you constantly distracted, burdened, and defeated by sin and cares of the world?
My goal is to not just have people accept Jesus into their hearts. I want to make disciples for Christ. I want for these disciples to make more disciples. Remember, our mission. Connect people to Christ. Help to Grow them spiritually. And challenge them to Serve God by serving others. Be honest with yourself here this morning, and be honest with God. If you need to respond, this time is for you.
