The Parable of the Sower

Ever wondered why certain individuals, inspite of giving them clear cut evidence from the Bible, would still argue and reject the truth about God's Word? Why individuals call the Bible as incomplete? Why individuals fail to understand the Lord's Grace? The Bible answers this question in "The Parable of the Sower". This is one parable which is recorded in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. The Parable of the Sower starts from Matthew 13:1, and goes on all the way till verse 23. This parable is about a man who sowed seeds which fell on different types of ground. While he was scattering the seeds, some seeds fell along the path, while some seeds fell on rocky places which did not have enough soil, some seeds fell among thorns, and other seeds fell on good soil.

The problem was not with the man who sowed, and neither was it with the seeds that were sown. The problem was the different grounds on which the seeds fell. The man who sowed is none other than Jesus Himself, and the seeds that fell were the "Word of the Lord". Once our Lord Jesus had finished talking to the crowd, His disciples came to Him and asked "Why do you speak to the people in parables?". The reply which the Lord gave to His disciples, and how He took time to explain the parable only to His disciples, gives us the answer to our above questions. Jesus first answered as to why He spoke in parables, by saying:

“Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given” - Matthew 13:11

People looked at Jesus as a mere carpenter's son, whereas Jesus's disciples perceived Him as the Son of the living God, and looked at Jesus as the only way to salvation. For this reason, Jesus spoke to the others in parables, whereas to His disciples, He took time to explain the parable. Jesus continues saying:

“For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath” - Matthew 13:12

The context of the above verse is "having a hearing ear". We can derive this context by comparing the above verse with Luke 8:18. To have a "having a hearing ear" is to be teachable, or to be humble enough to be open to correction, by realizing ones own mistakes and to repent. For example, the Pharisees and the Sadducees were too proud, and did not have a hearing ear, which is why they only found fault with Jesus's teachings. Whereas the tax-collectors and sinners had a hearing ear, which made them humble enough to be open to correction, and therefore they experienced the Lord's Grace. Hence whoever has a hearing ear, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance. Whereas whoever does not have a hearing ear, from him shall be taken away even that he has, in other words, they would be deprived of the Lord's wisdom and understanding. For the above reasons the prophecy by Isaiah was fulfilled:

“And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not” - Isaiah 6:9

Jesus, commended His disciples for they were blessed because they had a hearing ear, and hence they were able to see and hear things which many prophets and righteous men had longed for:

“But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them” - Matthew 13:16-17

Now our Lord finally begins to reveal the hidden secret in the parable from Matthew 13:18 onwards, and explains about the different grounds on which the seeds fell. The seeds that fell on the path are like people who hear or read God's Word. But since they fail to meditate on it or fail to study and go deeper in detail, they don't produce fruits. These people take words and verses out of context from the Bible, hence the seeds do not take root in them, and they are ultimately carried away by the wicked one. The wicked one represents the principalities and powers in high places. The Bible says:

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” - Ephesians 6:12

The seeds which fell on rocky places represent people whose lifestyle is not based on the Bible, but hear the Lord's Word casually, and treat the Word as if it was some motivational speech, therefore they ultimately lose it. These are people who rely on worldly wisdom, and try to interpret the Bible with worldly understanding. These are people who seek excuses by saying "only renowned Bible scholars and theologians can understand the Bible" rather than seeking the Lord's Wisdom. The Bible says:

“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” - James 1:5

The seeds which fell among the thorns are like people who receive God's Word, but the cares and worries of life, and riches, choke the Word. These are people who depend on their own works, rather than depending on the finished work of Jesus on the cross. These are people whose faith is not rooted in God's Word, people who walk by sight, instead of walking by faith. The Bible says:

“For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith” - Romans 1:17

Finally the seeds that fell on good soil represents the people whose lifestyle is based on Bible values and principles, who see and perceive, who hear and understand and are constantly meditating on God's Word. These are the people whose faith is rooted in the Word of the Lord, and the fruits of their faith are seen by the others as good works. Some of these people bring forth fruits which are a hundred fold, some sixty fold, and some thirty fold based on how much revelation they have had about Jesus.

There is a reason why the Bible contains certain obscure verses that seems as though they are contradicting, but they really are not. For example, like Romans 4:4 and James 2:26. To a casual reader, who are like one of the first 3 grounds in the parable of the sower, the verses would seem to contradict. But to a Blood washed Christian, who knows that they have been justified by Jesus's one time and eternal Blood sacrifice, who is constantly meditating on God's Word, who are like the good ground, Romans 4:4 and James 2:26 would only vindicate their security in Christ. The explanation for James 2:26 can be found here in my article titled "Faith of a Believer". The Bible cautions us to be careful on how we hear, in other words to stay within the context by rightly dividing the Word of the Lord. To know more about rightly dividing God's Word please read my article on "How to read the Bible". Jesus says:

“Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have” - Luke 8:18

The key of this parable is having a hearing ear, or having a teachable heart. Once the seed of God's Word takes root into our faith, by retaining the Word upon constant study and meditation, it grows into a tree and produces fruits. The Bible says:

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” - Romans 10:17

Once the Word grows into a tree, no principality or powers, neither the cares of the world, would be able to remove God's Word from our hearts. The fruits of a faith, rooted in the Lord's Word would be seen in a person's lifestyle which would be based on Bible values and principles.