Introduction

Good morning, friends. I’m so glad we get to sit under the kindness of Jesus together today. If you could see my heart right now, you’d notice both a hunger and a hush—hunger for God’s voice and a hush that says, “Speak, Lord. I’m listening.” Isn’t that what we all long for? A steady word in a noisy week. A clear call in a crowded life. A fresh start where our faith feels thin and our strength feels small.

Jesus, our Lord, tells a story about a Sower who walks into ordinary fields with extraordinary hope. He flings seed with a farmer’s freedom—on the hard path, the stony ground, the thorny patch, and the soft soil. He sows not stingily but generously. Why? Because He knows what we often forget: His Word carries life, and life has a way of finding cracks we cannot see. He’s not scanning the field for perfect earth; He’s searching for a willing heart.

Have you ever noticed how the soul can be a crowded place? Worries stack up like unopened mail. Disappointments settle like dust. Temptations whisper, and trials shout. And still the Sower comes—again and again—scattering His promises over sidewalks and sand, over seasons of sorrow and stretches of success. He doesn’t give up on your heart. He doesn’t give up on your home. He doesn’t give up on today.

When Jesus speaks of seed and soil, He’s inviting us to a simple, searching question: What kind of listener am I? Do I hear God with an undivided heart? Do I settle for a quick sprout rather than a steady root? Are there thorns—good things grown too big—that choke the best things? Or is there a holy hush in me, a softness that says, “Yes, Lord, you can have all of me”?

Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship) Strong words, but not harsh. They are compassionate, clarifying, and kind. To say yes to Jesus is to let old ways wither, to let new life take hold, to welcome His seed and surrender our soil. And take heart—wherever your heart has been, God’s grace is greater. Hard ground can be softened. Shallow faith can gain depth. Thorny corners can be cleared. The Sower specializes in transformation.

So, as we open the Scriptures, let’s listen—not with hurried minds, but with hopeful hearts. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to till the tiers of our attention, to sweep away distractions, to warm what’s cold and water what’s dry. The Savior is speaking. The seed is good. The harvest is possible.

Scripture Reading: Matthew 13:1–9 (KJV) 1 The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the sea side. 2 And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. 3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: 6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. 9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Opening Prayer Father, we quiet our hearts before You. Thank You for sending Jesus, the faithful Sower, and for the living seed of Your Word. Holy Spirit, soften the hard places in us. Break up the cold crust of cynicism and the compacted path of busyness. Pull the thorns—our worries, our wealth, our wants—that choke Your voice. Give us depth where we’ve been shallow. Establish strong roots where we’ve been fragile. Make our hearts good ground—humble, hungry, and honest—so that Your Word would bear fruit in us: thirty, sixty, a hundredfold, all for Your glory. Speak, Lord; we are listening. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

Hear the Word with an undivided heart

Jesus ends the story with a call. “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Hearing is more than sound on skin. Hearing is attention that turns into trust. Hearing is welcome. Hearing is consent. The field in the parable is the inner life, and the ear is the gate.

So we ask a simple question. How do we meet the Word with a whole heart? Jesus shows us four scenes in the field. Each scene teaches us how listening works. Each scene shows why listening can fail and how it can flourish.

Some seed lands on the path. It is pressed hard by many feet. The seed cannot sink in. Birds see the seed and rush in. It is a fast loss. Jesus says this is what happens when the Word is heard and not held. It stays on the surface. It stays like a note left on a doorstep. Before the listener can think or pray or respond, the words are gone.

A hard path forms when traffic never slows. Many voices pass over the mind. Tasks pile up. Screens glow late. Talk keeps going. The surface becomes tough. A sermon plays while we cook. A chapter is read while the inbox opens. Truth lies there, but it does not settle. The moment also has an enemy. Jesus says the wicked one snatches away what was sown. So the scene is busy and hostile at once.

Guard the seed as soon as you hear it. Say a short prayer before and after you read or listen. Put the phone in another room. Give the verse a chair at your table. Read it aloud. Write it by hand. Speak it back to God. Tell a friend what you heard within the hour. Ask, “What will I do with this today?” Move one small step. Make a plan for the next moment you will hear again. Softness grows where time is honored and gates are watched.

Some seed falls on rocky ground. There is thin soil. The plant springs up fast. It looks bright in the morning. Then the sun grows hot. There is no depth. The plant dries out. Jesus says this is the person who receives the Word with joy and then falls away when pressure shows up. Heat reveals the lack of depth. Trouble and pushback arrive, and faith wilts.

Shallow places form when we live on rush and praise. We love the spark. We chase a lift. We skip slow habits. We like the feeling of a fresh word and avoid the weight of daily practice. The heart can look like soft soil but hide stone right under the surface. The blade breaks through, yet there is no space for a system of roots.

Depth grows through simple, steady acts. Sit with a short passage until it sinks in. Read the same psalm every morning for a week. Memorize one verse and carry it through the day. Say yes to small obedience right away. When trouble comes, bring the heat into prayer. Name the fear. Ask others to pray with you. Show up for worship when you feel dry. Sing even when your voice shakes. Keep a list of God’s past help and read it when the sun is high. Systems form slowly. A network beneath the surface holds in hot hours.

Some seed lands among thorns. The plant rises, but the thorns rise too. They pull strength away. They take light. Jesus names the thorns. The worries of this age. The pull of wealth. The lure of many wants. These grow fast. They do not always look sharp at first. They look normal. They look wise. They look like success. Over time they crowd out life.

Worry eats attention. Plans multiply. Lists stretch. Sleep shortens. The mind loops through what-ifs. Money speaks in promises. Buy this. Save that. Secure more. Keep up. Add one more thing. The calendar fills. The plant tries to breathe but the space is thin. The Word is there, yet it loses room.

Make space on purpose. Set a quiet time that nothing can steal. Give thanks for three things each night to push back the habit of fear. Practice simplicity. Delay a purchase for thirty days and pray about it each week. Give first, even when the amount feels small, to loosen the grip of riches. Review your budget with open hands and ask God where to trim. Schedule rest like an appointment. Put news and feeds on a short leash. Weed by naming the weeds. Say out loud, “This worry is choking me,” and bring it into the light with a friend. Prune good things that crowd great things, and let the plant breathe again.

Some seed falls into good soil. Jesus says it bears fruit. A lot of fruit. Thirtyfold. Sixtyfold. A hundredfold. The picture is full harvest. The Word goes in deep. It stays. It changes the whole field over time. This is not luck. This is a heart ready to receive and quick to respond.

Good soil does not mean perfect life. It means a teachable spirit. It means soft hands that open when God speaks. It means more than feelings. It means steps. Hear. Trust. Act. Then repeat. Fruit shows up as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Fruit shows up as mercy toward enemies and steady prayer for neighbors. Fruit shows up as witness at work and care at home. Fruit multiplies beyond the person who heard. Others eat and live.

How do we become that kind of soil? Ask for help each day. Keep short accounts with God. Confess sin quickly. Forgive quickly. Place yourself under the Word often. Read whole chapters. Listen to preaching that opens the text. Join a small group that stays in Scripture. Serve in hidden ways. Obey in ordinary tasks. Say yes to what you already know. Keep going when no one claps. Keep sowing even in seasons that feel slow. Over months and years the field changes. The ear stays open. The harvest grows.

Resist shallow roots and choking thorns

Hearing happens in a moment ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO