PARABLES OF THE KINGDOM – THE FIRST - THE SOWER OR RATHER THE SOIL – Part 5 of 7
So far we have covered the first three soils in the Parable of the Sower and in this message we come to the last one. The outcome here is what everyone wants to happen in preaching the gospel, but experience and the bible tells us it is not the common outcome. It would be wonderful if salvation was the common result of preaching, but balance that with this verse – {{Matthew 7:13-14 “Enter by the narrow gate for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction and many are those who enter by it, for the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life and FEW ARE THOSE WHO FIND IT.”}}
The fourth soil is too long for one study, being over 4 000 words, so I am going to have to split it. I don’t like doing that. I just wanted to let you know. That length would be alright at a Seminar but these are not a seminar.
THE FOURTH RESULT – THE GOOD FERTILE SOIL PROVED BY FRUITFULNESS
The grace of God is so lovely, and the grace extended to us in salvation, is a precious gift. Let us praise and thank God for the grace that extended to us, awful sinners, unclean in the Lord’s eyes. Such is the tremendous working power of the cross. He allowed the seed to fall on the good and prepared ground.
{{Matthew 13:8 “and others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, SOME A HUNDREDFOLD, SOME SIXTY, AND SOME THIRTY.”}}
{{Matthew 13:23 “and the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and UNDERSTANDS IT, who INDEED BEARS FRUIT and brings forth, some A HUNDREDFOLD, SOME SIXTY, AND SOME THIRTY.”}}
{{Mark 4:8 “and other seeds fell into the good soil and as they grew up AND INCREASED, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”}}
{{Mark 4:20 “Those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil and they hear the word and accept it, and bear fruit, THIRTY, SIXTY, AND A HUNDREDFOLD.”}}
{{Luke 8:8 Other seed fell into the good soil and grew up, and produced a crop A HUNDRED TIMES AS GREAT.” As He said these things, He would call out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”}}
{{Luke 8:15 “and the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an HONEST AND GOOD HEART, AND HOLD IT FAST, and BEAR FRUIT WITH PERSEVERANCE.”}}
The last of these groups represents the proper fruitfulness which is the sower’s expectation. The ground was fertile, the heart receptive, and a genuine work has been done as the application of the word through the Holy Spirit brought about true conviction resulting in salvation.
Luke is the only one who qualifies the receptive person. All speak about the multiplication, which we do later on in the study. Luke uses these expressions, “honest and good heart” and “hold it fast” and “fruit with perseverance” as the NASB reads. Matthew states simply the good soil is the man who hears, understands and is fruitful.
There are those who would like to read into this passage an endurance for salvation that is not implied in this parable. Luke’s “hold it fast” equals perseverance under trial and steadfastness in the face of the factors that caused failure from the thorns of the third category. This perseverance or “bearing up” ought to be a characteristic of Christians. These people here, the good seed, are the wheat in the next parable of Matthew in contradistinction to the tares.
The quality of the crop is the ultimate success of the seed. The seed is of excellent quality. The crop ought to be of an excellent standard. There may be a constant striving for the truth and to live genuinely for the Lord; there may be failures and certain inconsistencies but the genuineness of the conversion is not in question.
Those grouped in this section have faced up to the opponents and battled their way right around the field with honour and commendation. They have made it right the way home.
LOOKING DEEPER INTO THIS PARABLE
In these Kingdom parables the words “good seed” is used only in the second parable to distinguish the good seed from the bad seed, that of false wheat, darnel, or tares. In the Sower, all the seed was good. The problem was not the seed. It was the ground on which the seed fell. That is why I like to refer to this parable as “The Parable of the Four Soils” (or the Four Grounds). “The Parable of the Sower” is not really what the parable is about. Now we want to look at two issues –
*** THE SOWER
*** THE SEED
[A]. THE OBLIGATION OF SOWERS
The sower is much more than one who broadcasts seed. We dismiss today’s practices of mechanised farming and place this in the context of the farmer 2 000 years ago. The sower was responsible for the quality of the seed and the care of the seed.
Now we must necessarily scrutinise the sower who must maintain the highest quality control over the seed for there are factors that reduce the quality of the harvest. In the first of these we shall now consider:
THE CARE OF THE SEED
There is an obligation on the sower to maintain his seed in top condition. This applies to the care of the seed from the harvest until the next sowing. There is a special relationship existing between the sower (who is usually the farmer) and that which represents his livelihood. It is therefore necessary he:
[a]. • • • KEEPS HIS SEED DRY from the insidious damp and rain. Dampness causes mould and mildew and the seed is ruined. It is a great loss because it means no harvest for the next year.
[b]. • • • KEEPS HIS SEED FREE from contamination. Pests and chemical spillage or exposure to harmful substances must be avoided. I remember a practice the farmer did on a dairy farm when I used to spent time there each year. When the corn was harvested (to be fed to the cows) it was stored in something like rain tanks. That kept it free from mice and rats. Then the farmer placed inside, on a plate, a candle and lit it. The tank was sealed and the candle used up all the oxygen in the tank and that made it impossible for vermin such as beetles in there to live.
[c]. • • • KEEPS IT STORED AWAY SECURELY, away from theft or loss of any kind. Thievery was everywhere so due vigilance was necessary. The protection of the seed was paramount. That included minimising the risk of fire in the sower’s barns.
[d]. • • • RESPECTS THE VALUE OF THE SEED. For the subsistence farmer – and that applied to the Middle East farmer of Jesus’ time - the seed is his most valuable possession apart from his working animal because it represents life or death for the next year. A farmer does not sell the best seed but keeps that for the next sowing. If you want to grow good tomatoes, do you get the seeds from a small, diseased tomato, or from a large, healthy one?
[B]. THE OBLIGATION OF THE CHRISTIAN WORKER TO THE GOSPEL (THE GOOD SEED)
There is an obligation on the preacher or Christian worker, AND ON THE CONGREGATION, to maintain a close relationship with the good seed - the word of God. The word is in close association with a Christian’s “livelihood”, his whole demeanour and output, his witness and his accountability to God. It is therefore necessary he:
[a]. • • • GUARDS AGAINST ANY DAMPNESS in his association with the word. The dampness of apathy, the wetness of neglect, and the sogginess of forgetfulness, all render the word of God useless if the sower is at fault in these things. Too many Christians have mould/mold growing on their witness and work. Too many modern churches have a mould/mold problem with the way they treat the bible and Christian ministry.
[b]. • • • GUARDS AGAINST ANY CONTAMINATION of the word. Error must be avoided. Contaminating agents - worldliness, secret life style, lusts of various sorts, dabbling in rock music, greed, false doctrine, holding to doubtful associations and living by unbiblical principles all must be separated from the pure word. The sower must be an unblocked channel. Additionally, great care must be given to fight liberalism and WOKEism and “modern approaches” that are insidious, and held by various church attendees.
[c]. • • • GUARDS AGAINST ANY LOSS of the word’s effectiveness. He must cherish it such that he is prepared to protect it at all costs. “At all costs” could mean you stand in your church against evil doctrines wanting to be introduced by the progressives. I remember in England when I was there, a faithful minority of sincere believers in Methodist churches who stood their ground against the national Assembly that was sanctioning homosexuality and allowing “gay ministers”. Most of those have left the church now for smaller non-denominational churches.
[d]. • • • GUARDS ITS VALUE by NOT handling the word deceitfully so its true value is fully realised. We take in our hands the precious, living word of God. There is such an under-appreciation of the bible in our day. Liberalism is taking great slices from God’s precious word. One major denomination in my nation claims the bible “to contain the word of God,” not to BE the word of God. No wonder much of that denomination is now grossly liberal and anti-God. The value of the seed and the Sower have been trashed.
[C]. OTHER OBLIGATIONS
Other obligations are demanded of the sower. He must not succumb to carelessness with a visionless and lazy sowing, by casting the seed anywhere, such as the seed in rocky places or out on barren soil-less places. He must pay great attention to the quality and readiness of the soil. He will plant at the correct time whether it be seasonal or dictated by other conditions.
Among Christian work too much dispersal of the seed is done before proper soil preparation and therefore too much wastage occurs on hard ground. The word is preached in season, out of season but always with proper attention being given to the preparation of the soil. A fellowship just can’t arrive on the scene and blast away with “mechanical seed dispersers” willy-nilly. Often roots in the community and genuine bone fide relationships need to be established first.
IN THE SOWING OF THE SEED (E.G. THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL OR THE DISSEMINATION OF THE WORD) A SOWER NEEDS THE FOLLOWING:
[a]. • • • THE CONTAINER AND SEED. This is the word of God in teaching and preaching. The correct seed must be selected – that means the correct biblical selections.
[a]. • • • THE EVEN DISTRIBUTION OF THE SEED. The skilled sower will be able to disperse the seed for an even coverage. The skillful preacher/teacher will be able to diversify his efforts so there is an even dispersal in the gospel outreach to ALL classes of people even though he, himself, might be a specialist in one area.
[a]. • • • THE PROPER PREPARATION. He must be prepared so his work is commendable to the Master. Attention to prayer, study and opposition to what might hinder his work are all necessary components. He must study the layout.
Throughout the ages the seed-planting methods for the gospel have changed though the underlying procedures have not. There is today the avenue of radio, television, computer exposure over the Internet and the centuries-old printed message or tracts. Meetings may be in Civic Centres, Progress halls, large tents, stadiums, in home groups, churches still, even though the unsaved and unchurched no longer will go to a church, and the list continues.
THIS IS WHERE I HAVE TO SPLIT THIS MESSAGE. The next part will continue on.
