“That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop- a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
Matthew 13:1-9 NIV
When we read the Bible, we should be thinking:
Who are they?
What can they represent?
For me:
The farmer is God.
The seed is knowledge and experiences from God.
The soil is us.
Parables, for me, are a way to create a visual picture of what God is saying.
A farmer went out to sow his seed as he was scattering seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it quickly because the soil was shallow: God gives us experiences and knowledge but because of the devil and/or we reject it, it never takes root and grows in our lives.
Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow but when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root: God gives us experiences and knowledge but because of pain and suffering and/or our life condition the experiences and knowledge never takes root in our lives and/or it produces superficial changes that we quickly abandon because of the condition of our lives.
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plant: God gives us experiences and knowledge but because we are so harmed and traumatized and filled with so much pain that it has turned into anger, bitterness, and resentment. The knowledge and experience is choked out because of the condition of our hearts.
Still other seed fell on good soil where it produced a crop- a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown: God gives us knowledge and experiences that begin to birth growth, maturity, and heal our lives. It gives us new perception and produces good fruit in our lives.
“The disciples came to him and asked, ‘Why do you speak to the people in parables?’ He replied, ‘Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak in parables:
‘Though seeing, they do not see;
through hearing, they do not hear or understand.
In them is fulfilled the prophesy of Isaiah:
‘You will be hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
For this people’s heart has become calloused;
they hardly hear with their ears,
and they have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts
and turn, and I would heal them.
Matthew 13:10-15 NIV
The knowledge of God requires us to connect with our spiritual selves. The knowledge of God requires us to become aware of the condition of our soil, which is the condition of our heart.
“But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears because they hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
Matthew 13:16-17 NIV
People within the Christian community will never know Jesus enough to experience the John 10:10 life. Life to the full. A life where they let Jesus heal their belief system.
“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart. This is the seed along the path.”
Matthew 13:18-19 NIV
For me, this is people that are steeped in culture. The people that willingly hand their life over to harm and pain, that is self-created. These people never even know that God is driving them into experiences and knowledge meant to offer them good fruit, because of the way they live, they never even get to see the seed.
“The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.”
Matthew 13:20-21 NIV
This is a person that receives the seed from God and it produces changes in their lives. This person doesn’t realize that persecution and people reacting negatively means that they are actually on the correct path of healing and growth. People will want to harm you and your growth as you become a mirror for their insecurities. This person perceives the negative experiences from others as a sign that they need to return to their well worn path.
“The seed falling among thorns refers to someone who hears the word and the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word making it unfruitful.”
Matthew 13:22 NIV
“On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. ‘Teacher,’ he asked, ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’
‘What is written in the Law?’ he replied. ‘How do you read it?’ ”
Luke 10:25-26 NIV
Jesus asked the religious expert- the person that knows and understands The Law- what does it say and how do you read it? Because a life of suffering and pain, will choke out anything that God sends our way. An example: “Living under The Law” vs “Living in the Freedom of God.” Both of these people can look the same on the outside. However, one person is using God’s grace and mercy to heal their life and they make different choices (Freedom of God). The other person is using shame and self-criticism to force themselves to change (The Law).
The condition of our hearts will control our perception and beliefs. It will control whether we can receive a message and experiences meant to grow us.
“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what is sown.”
Matthew 13:23 NIV
God gives us experiences and knowledge. The results is that we began to grown, heal, and mature.
“By wisdom a house is built,
and through understanding it is established;
through knowledge its rooms are filled
with rare and beautiful treasures.”
Proverbs 24:3-4 NIV
We build our house on wisdom from God. We fill our house with rare and beautiful treasures.
