"the Parables Of Matthew 13" The Seed Is The Word Of God...sow It!

In Jesus Holy Name July 19, 2020

Text: Matthew 13:24-25 Pentecost VII - Redeemer

“The Parables of Matthew 13”

The Seed is the Word of God… We Just Sow

The parable of the Seed and the Sower in Matthew 13 provide answers to the disciples regarding the success or failure of the Word of God. In order to understand the parable of the Seed and Sower, and the parable of the Weeds in Matthew 13 you must read it in the context of Matthew 12.

Matthew 12 begins with Jesus and his disciples walking in the grain fields. When the Pharisees see the disciples rubbing the grain in their hands, they challenge Jesus for allowing His disciples to break Sabbath rules. “Jesus: It is a Sabbath day. What your disciples are doing is considered work.”

“Majoring in minors was the expertise of the Pharisees. By nature they were rule keepers in order to please God. They were focused on traditions, rituals, and “bylaws”, rules and regulations of the Jewish religion. When Jesus arrived, many Jewish leaders missed the spiritual reality of Jesus because they were blinded by their religion.” (Who Broke my Church Kent Hunter p. 155)

This parable of the Seed and Sower is the first in a list of seven stories Jesus told in Matthew 13. (Read verse 1-3) Jesus gave these parables on “that same day.” What same day? The Sabbath. Later the same day, the Pharisees on the same day accused Jesus Christ of working miracles by the power of the Devil.

In other words: Jesus… “If you are who you say you are, why doesn’t every one believe in your message? A second question might be: “why are the religious leaders rejecting His message?” These are questions that still ring across the centuries. Why does a wife believe and her husband reject? Why does one brother become a missionary and the other a pornographer? Why do two children raised in the same family end up with completely different values? How is it that the same Word of God produces such differing results in the human heart?

Jesus said the seed is the Word of God (Luke 8:11). It’s the only thing that has the power to change the human heart. Preaching alone won’t do it because we cannot talk people into a new heart. Our words have no power in and of themselves. Programs won’t do it. Programs are helpful in creating fellowship and community….but changing the human heart is the work of the Holy Spirit.

I’ve helped start a Lutheran School. Did all the children who attended over the past three decades remain in the Christian faith? I don’t know. I’ve lead different retreats and bible studies, been trained in Evangelism Explosion and I went to several of the big Promise Keepers rallies. I was involved in the District Youth Committee when there were no District wide youth events. I’ve been on the District Board of Directors…but without the Word of God being preached at those events and in our churches they will not produce fruit that lasts.

Here is the central teaching of the parables in Mathew 13. There is nothing wrong with the seed. The seed is the Word of God. The same seed that the birds eat is the same seed that produces a good crop. It’s the same seed that produces a plant that withers away or gets choked by the thorns. Our job is to sow the seed but as we sow, we need to be realistic. Some seed will fall on the hard path, some on the stony ground, some on thorny soil, and some will fall on good soil. But you can’t know in advance where all the seeds will fall.

(Sermon by Ken Prichard Keep Believing Matthew 13)

Preaching the Gospel, the Word of God produces different results. That happens in every church. Jesus told this story, this parable of the weeds so we won’t be surprised and we won’t be discouraged when things don’t go the way we expected.

The farmer in this parable freely scattered his seed. Pastor Scott told us last week that the farmer was happy to scatter the seed with freedom. He carried the seed in a pouch slung around his neck and threw handfuls in every direction. He knows that a certain amount of the seed will fall on the beaten path where it cannot take root.

What the farmer doesn’t know—and can’t know—is where the

stones and thorns are just under the surface. And therefore he also doesn’t know where the good soil is that produces lasting fruit. It is in his own best interests to sow his seed as widely as possible. The same is true with the Gospel we possess. The best way to reach more people is to sow the seed, the Word of God.