The Parable Of The Soils.

Definition of impenitent - IMPEN'ITENT, a. Not penitent; not repenting of sin; not contrite; obdurate; of a hard heart.

They died Impenitent.

IMPEN'ITENT, n. One who does not repent; a hardened sinner.

*Noah Webster 1828 dictionary

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 13:3-9 "And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear."

INTERPRETATION: Matthew 13:18-23 "Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

PROPOSITION: To use this text and others to show that there are three types of impenitent bad soil hearers of the gospel and also to show that those who receive the word of God in good soil (a contrite heart) are the only ones who are converted to Christ.

1.) What are the three types of impenitent hearts represented by Jesus in this parable?

A. The wayside is a place where the ground has been trodden under foot of men and beast, this made for a very hard surface for the seed to fall upon, this type of a hard packed ground represents an impenitent heart, a heart so hard that that the seed of the word of God never penetrates it, this is a type of impenitence which shrugs off all conviction of sin, and never even makes a profession of Christ.

Zechariah 7:12 "Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the LORD of hosts."

Romans 3:3-4 "For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged."

B. The stony gound has a thin layer of surface dirt right above the rocks and because of this when it rains that thin layer of dirt becomes very moist and sprouts the grain quickly with the sun shining down on it like an incubator, but after it sprouts the same sun begins to dry out the ground very quickly so that that which has sprouted becomes scorched and never produces any fruit, a stony ground hearer is one who has what apears to be a surface tenderness for the word of God and professes a belief in Christ. but right underneath the surface is a heart that is impenitent, a heart in love with sin and self and the world "when he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended."

C. The thorny ground is a ground that has a rival crop growing, and because of this rival crop the seed is robbed of fertilizer, micronutrients, and moisture and it becomes unfruitful, there are those who make a profession of believing in Christ but in their heart they are really in love with the things of this world they attempt to serve God and mammon at the same time, but Jesus has told us that this is impossible. The thorny ground hearer is a picture of an impenitent belief in Christ, one who draws nigh unto Christ with his mouth and honors him with his lips but his heart is far from him. the thorns are a representation of his idols and of his impenitence.