1. HOLLOW SEED (VS 4;19)
• Highway Ground-Cornfields possess travel paths through the rows of corn, the seed in which fell upon this seed was not sown in ‘fallow ground’
• Fallow ground is:
a. Unplowed or
b. Uncultivated
• These who hear the word and understand it not are those who:
a. Do not heed it
b. Do not take hold of it
c. Do not come with a design to get good
i. This is a reference to those who don’t understand its truth
• Often, we can see this verse illustrated in a nut; sometimes we can crack open a nut that looks healthy on the outside, but inside is empty of its fruit
• Many people believe in:
a. A god of some kind, but not the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
b. A ‘supernatural’ existence
c. An energy greater than our own
• These people may have ‘heard’ the gospel but never allowed the seed of salvation to take hold
• Jesus said in part (b) of this verse that it is Satan that snatches this seed from our heart; just as the birds take from the unsown seed of the corn field
• People who fit this category could be seen as:
a. Mindless
b. Careless
c. Irresponsible
• These types classify as ‘easy’ prey for Satan
• Satan is a great murder of souls, the deceiver of deceivers and the father of all lies
a. John 8:44: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”
• In the first type of seed, there is NO EVIDENCE of any relationship with God or Jesus Christ
2. HELPLESS SEED (VS 5-6;21)
• This is a person that quite possibly attends church on a regular basis, holds positions w/in the church; these people appear to have root but in reality do not
• This could be interpreted as having a ‘good impression’ of the word, but the impression does not last
• This type of seed could be considered better than other types but still not as good as should be
• These people:
a. Are open to the word
b. Listen to its content
c. But never conform to its direction
• These people are ‘quick to hear’
• They spring up as if they know the time of beauty will be short lived
• This type of seed or people seemed to have taken root but when the winds and storm came, they were taken away
• Galatians 5:7-9: “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.”
• Paul was talking to the church at Galatia and criticizing there leaving sound doctrine
• Those who have no root:
a. Are often soon offended
b. Quarrel in defense of their profession
c. Quit in the middle of a storm
• The sun in this parable represents ‘persecution’
• The same sun that warms and nourishes that which is well rooted; withers and burns up that with little root
• This type of seed lightly comes and lightly goes
3. HURTING SEED (VS 7;22)
• This seed survived farther than the previous two, because it had some root
• This is a seed that grew, bloomed and was prosperous but because of its environment it was choked out
• What are the ‘choking thorns?’
• The cares of this world can cause us to lose focus upon what is truly important
• 1 Peter 2:1: “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;”
• “Thorns” prohibit our ability to see clearly the things which God would have us do
• This type of person is quite often referred to as being in a ‘Back-sliding’ condition
• These people show potential to serve God in a mighty way but fall short because:
a. They allow things of the world to take precedence over God’s will
b. They claim the blessings of God when convenient
c. They call upon God only in times of need
• This always results in a failed attempt to balance spiritual living with living in the flesh
4. HARVESTED SOIL (VS 8;23)
• This person has allowed the word to take root in their lives, allowed it to blossom and ultimately used the growth to help plant other seeds
• Colossians 2:6-7: “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.”
• THREE CONDITIONS TO GOOD GROUND:
a. HEARING
b. UNDERSTANDING
c. BEING FRUITFUL
• HEARING
• We must hear the call of God when he seeks to talk
• Romans 10:17: “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
• We can’t hear unless we prepare, cultivate and seek to be responsive to God
• Hebrews 3:15-16: “While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses.”
• UNDERSTANDING
• Ephesians 5:17: “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”
• James 1:5: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”
• We must seek the ‘understanding’ of God, not looking to obtain his wisdom, but seeking his direction
• BEING FRUITFUL
• Only the people who haven’t allowed the storms, thorns and winds to destroy them will be fruitful in the kingdom work of God
• Colossians 1:10: “That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;”
• The only way to do this is to not allow the shallow seed to be sown, but allowing it to take root, bloom and become a start for something else
• Romans 12:1: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”
• Our reasonable service is that which God has gifted us for, given us the ability to do and directed on the right path to travel
• The difference between the fertile ground and the others is simple: FRUITFULNESS, Jesus does not indicate that there are no stones or thorns in its midst, but indicates that those items have not been allowed to prohibit the spreading of the beautiful blossom
