Our Lord often used parables in His teaching to illustrate spiritual truths regarding the nature, growth, and coming of the kingdom of God. These parables used objects and events from everyday life that people in His day could relate to. The parable we will be considering is that of the Sower. It is mentioned in all three synoptic gospels, and it is the first of the kingdom parables. The parable depicts for us a sower sowing seed in the field. The seed falls on four different types of soils; and the seed’s flourishing depends on the type of soil it falls on. He begins the parable with a command for everyone to “listen,” and ends it with the words “he who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Jesus then gives a private interpretation to His disciples and close followers of the meaning of the parable. The sower is the evangelist, the seed is the gospel of the kingdom, the soils represent the different types of hearers: the hard-hearted hearer, the shallow hearer, the distracted hearer, and the receptive hearer. By calling everyone to listen and to hear, Jesus was telling His audience and us to examine ourselves to see which kind of hearers we are. Upon honest assessment, we are then to turn to the Lord for help to soften our hard hearts and to remove distractions that would keep us from bearing fruit.
As you read this passage, consider the following questions:
- What does this parable teach us about the method by which the kingdom of God is spread, and our responsibility in that?
- How does this parable encourage us in regard to the success of our evangelism efforts?
- List some of the prominent “thorns” in your life that are keeping you from receiving the word and allowing it to bear fruit in your life. What are some of the ways you can cultivate the soil of your heart to help you receive the word and bear fruit?
- Based on John 15:4-5, for us to be fruit-bearing Christians, what must we do first?
- What are the fruits that the Lord is looking for in our lives, and based on John 15:8, how much fruit?