Summary: Parts 5 and 6 go together but had to be split. Here we look at the results of harvest 100-60-30, contention in churches, and gospel preaching. The parable of the sower is a remarkable one and we are seeing this as we go. We look at how the parable of the talents are related.

PARABLES OF THE KINGDOM – THE FIRST - THE SOWER OR RATHER THE SOIL – Part 6 of 7

This next message continues from the previous one. We begin by looking at why some seed produced 100, some 60, some 30.

[[EXAMINING THE HARVEST RATES FROM THE SOWING]]

One very primary application of this parable is that THE LORD IS THE SOWER in the first instance, and He sows today with the word and all reaping at harvest will be to His glory for He went before in preparation, breaking up the fallow ground and provided salvation for a lost world. No matter how we got saved, Jesus sowed the seed to US individually.

In continuing the fourth soil of this parable account of the Sower, there is another interesting observation I wish to insert, prompted by a question once from a brother overseas. It was asked why Matthew lists the productivity as 100 fold, 60 then 30, while Mark’s gospel reverses that order. Luke just holds to the hundredfold only. I wish to venture a possible reason.

[A]. LOOKING AT MATTHEW FIRST

{{Matthew 13:8 “and others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, SOME A HUNDREDFOLD, SOME SIXTY, AND SOME THIRTY.”}}

Matthew is the gospel highlighting the JEWISH ASPECTS as we mentioned early in this parable, and God always expected total fruitfulness from His national people. Messiah came looking for the fruits of righteousness but there were none. The Fig tree was not ripe; the vine had mutant grapes. Both the fig and vine are types of Israel. From God's viewpoint there should have been 100 then 60 then 30 but the decline and barrenness of the nation was not God's fault. It was theirs and today the responsibility is still ours but the failure is ours also.

The quality of the crop depended on the fertility and reception of the soil, which soil was Israel then, and us today. God planted Israel as a fruitful vine and as such, Israel was expected to produce fruit to the maximum capacity. It is a given that Israel was to be a fruitful vine. Isaiah addressed women and warns of the destruction to come in the land – {{Isaiah 32:11-13 “Tremble, you women who are at ease. Be troubled, you complacent daughters. Strip, undress, and put sackcloth on your waist. Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, FOR THE FRUITFUL VINE, for the land of my people in which thorns and briars shall come up; yea, for all the joyful houses, and for the jubilant city.”}}

Israel failed but God expected a hundredfold from the people. The sad thing is that the results of the Sower’s preaching and teaching fell on deaf ears and barren paths, rocky ground and thorny ground.

Jesus cursed the fig tree because it was barren, probably as it was out of season, but the fig tree in type is Israel, and Israel for most of its history, has been “out of season” with God.

You remember in that touching account in John 21 where the Lord asked Peter if he loved Him, in verse 15, the Lord used "agape" - the deep God-like love when He asked Peter if he loved Him. Peter could only reply with "phileo" a less, more human/friendship type of love, something like a very warm affection. Again in verse 16, the same two words are used in the same way. Then in verse 17, the Lord reverted to Simon's lesser word and Peter again used it. It just seemed too hard for him to climb to the expectations that are God’s standard.

I wonder if that was the servant approach. We must not forget that we are never left stranded with our own resources but are fully equipped by God with His given power and enabling from on high. God ought to have these high expectations of us but I suppose like Peter we think we can't meet them.

[B]. LOOKING AT MARK NEXT

{{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's gospel is the gospel where the Servant (Christ is the Servant) is in view. When the servant role relates to us, we sometimes serve as careless servants and our fruitfulness is not that productive. We see only the achievement of gaining first base, of getting to 30 then maybe beyond that to 60 then 100. This is the frailty of our human vision, the limiting factor often evident in our work when subjected to honest scrutiny. The servant tries his best, but 30 may be all he is capable of. Servants are the workers, not considered to be the achievers.

[C]. LOOKING AT LUKE NEXT

{{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 on the other hand mentions only one hundred times as great and omits the others. This gospel portraying Jesus as Perfect Man shows man in perfection (or what ought to be), hence only 100 is the most appropriate. The Lord was the grain of wheat that fell into the good soil John 12:24), the wheat that was crushed by the imputed burden of sin. The Perfect man in perfection has brought forth one hundredfold and therefore why should Luke mention any other lesser figure?

We have been equipped with the completeness of God so we ought to bring forth one hundredfold as well but alas, don’t we usually fall far short? I still can't help thinking of the parable of the talents where there was a grading - ten, five and one but in two of those cases there was 100% fruitfulness.

ONE INTERESTING SIDELINE ABOUT PRODUCTION

Jesus told a parable about faithfulness. It began like this – {{Matthew 25:14-18 “for it is just like a man about to go on a journey who called his own slaves and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave FIVE TALENTS, to another, TWO, and to another, ONE, each according to his own ability, and he went on his journey. Immediately the one who had received the five talents went and traded with them and gained five more talents. In the same manner the one who had received the two talents gained two more, but he who received the one talent went away and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.”}}

The servants went their way and about their business. The one who was entrusted with five talents made five; and two made two. To those the master said, {{Matthew 25:21 “with a few things so I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.” AND {{Matthew 25:23 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things so I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’”}}

This parable is not about making money. It is all about faithfulness. The servants were faithful and were rewarded. Each stood equally. The amount they had was irrelevant for both were 100% efficient. The Lord requires accountability whether you have been entrusted with much gifting or little. It is what you do with what you have been given.

Some of that good seed in the Sower parable may have been genetically better that others, but they all produced what they were capable of, whether that be 100 times, or 60 or 30. The Lord requires what He has sown in our lives, and we must be 100% efficient in the accountability to our Master.

CONTENTION IN THE CHURCHES

Which is the most prestigious position, that of a SOWER or that of a REAPER? Which one of those two is the more difficult and the most important? Which would you like to be in the church?

There are those who want to be sowers because they get noticed more, and it appeals to pride. There are those who like to be reapers because they can boast about the harvest. Those two positions in churches create conflict because two bad factors come into play, those of pride and ambition. Both attitudes are wrong and give rise to contention in churches.

People forget that it is the Lord who places His servants into positions – AT LEAST IT OUGHT TO BE! Too many place themselves into situations where they ought not to be and we could say it is the square peg in the round hole. Wrong people in wrong positions retards the church. So too does wrong people in right positions and right people in wrong positions.

We live in days when the leading of the Holy Spirit is waning and self-will and ambition rule people’s lives. That is not true of all churches but I can’t help but notice that in many. Humility is a great blessing and the humble one is recognised by his/her servant demeanour.

Getting back to the original questions in this section about the sower and the reaper I am going to say that the most important position is not the sower and not the reaper. They are in the limelight but not the most essential. What is then the most essential?

It has to be that of THE PREPARER OF THE SOIL! The man who ploughs; the one who rakes; the one who shovels; the one who weeds; the one who levels. They are the important ones.

We have been looking at the 4 responses to the sowing of the seed, but sowing is useless if the soil is useless. The work of the sower and the later work of the reaper is going to be worthless if the soil is worthless. That is why I often like to refer to this parable as THE PARABLE OF THE FOUR SOILS. That is where the emphasis is.

The positions of the plougher, the raker, the shoveller, the weeder, the leveller are not that prestigious in a lot of people’s eyes, but vitally essential.

Let’s look at that in regard to a church. So much groundwork must be done when we reference the gospel and the health of the church. Paul dealt with that same problem.

{{1 Corinthians 12:14-20 for the body is not one member, but many. If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. If the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be, but now there are many members, but one body.”}}

There were those who wanted to be the eye so they could sparkle to others and be seen. The ear was essential for the hearing and the smell receptors in the nose for deciding what to enjoy or reject. The foot is not that which would win a beauty contest, but it has a vital role and is often overlooked. That is how it is in some churches. We are all members in the body and pride and prestige and ambition must not play a part.

I always like this section of scripture – {{1 Kings 19:19 “He departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, while HE WAS PLOWING WITH TWELVE PAIRS OF OXEN BEFORE HIM, AND HE WITH THE TWELFTH, and Elijah passed over to him and threw his mantle on him.”}}

There were 12 pairs of oxen for the ground must have been very hard to break up. That is a lot of oxen. However Elisha stepped into the “void of necessity” because it was required, and took up the plough. That was practical humility. We need that in churches.

Just to close, please do not think you are important and must be a sower or a reaper. Humbly wait on the Lord to show you what part you have to play, even if you think it is a menial one.

ONE FINAL THOUGHT RELATING TO THE PARABLE

We have a scripture that says all things work together for good to those who love the Lord. Those of a good heart want it all to work, and know it won’t happen without God as Captain of the ship.

However there is a right way to make the gospel effective and work for salvation. It does not mean doing the same thing over and over hoping it will all work out. When I was in my teen years I belonged to a small assembly and each Sunday night there would be a Gospel Meeting. The people there were genuine and the men preached faithfully but the same people were always in attendance and no unsaved came. This happened every Sunday evening.

We are meant to go out to the fields to sow the seed, not hope the paddocks and fields would come through the church doors so we could sow the seed. We need the wisdom of God to do the right thing in the right way.

Isaiah wrote of this same principle I believe and concluded with the counsel and wisdom of the LORD that is wonderful and great. Let us be very wise as “farmers” to sow the seed successfully. Here is the passage -

{{Isaiah 28:23-29 “Give ear and hear my voice. Listen and hear my words. Does the farmer plough continually to plant seed? Does he continually turn and harrow the ground? Does he not level its surface and sow dill and scatter cumin and plant wheat in rows, barley in its place, and rye within its area? His God instructs and teaches him properly, for dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge nor is the cartwheel driven over cummin, but dill is beaten out with a rod and cummin with a club. Grain for bread is crushed - indeed, he does not continue to thresh it forever. Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it, He does not thresh it longer. This also comes from the LORD of hosts who has made His counsel wonderful and His wisdom great.”}}

This concludes the study of the Parable of the Sower but there remains one more section to do next time. It is only a small study but may be new to some people.