Preached at First Presbyterian Church of Rolla on July 16, 2023. Based on Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23.
Who here is a gardener? Rhonda is, and her parents are, but I’m not. My preference is to buy produce at the store, or perhaps at the farmer’s market. If we must grow our own vegetables, then my preference is to buy plants, not seeds.
Rhonda’s parents are a lot more dedicated, though. In about February, which is probably too early, they start plants from seeds in their garage. They have two big tables that they cover with little seed-starter pots. They put the trays of pots on heating mats, and when the seeds germinate, they start the grow lights. Once the weather is acceptable and the plants are reasonably large, they put the plants outside for brief times to harden them, then eventually plant them in the garden. If a frost comes, they cover the baby plants with straw to protect them.
Now, perhaps this is an appropriate approach to growing vegetables, but it is not at all what farmers do to grow grain. This parable describes very different agricultural practices, which were common at the time. First, the land is cleared. There’s no discussion of tilling the ground, but presumably the farmer does something to get the ground ready. Then, the seed is spread indiscriminately. Not placed carefully in neat rows, but broadcast, kind of like the way we might plant grass. Well, after all, wheat is a grass, so that makes sense.
I did a little bit of research about wheat germination. If you take particular care of the seed, storing it at the right temperature and humidity, and plant it at the right time, you might get 92% germination rate. However, if you allow the moisture content to get too high, or you have certain kinds of wheat, or your timing is off, perhaps the germination rate is as low as 8%.
All in all, farming in ancient Judea and Galilee was a dicey proposition. Even setting aside the heavy tax burden, the methods and materials and equipment available to them were far less sophisticated than modern farming. Jesus’s audience would have known all of this. They would have known how hard they had to work to get a good wheat crop each year. They would have known how careful they needed to be with their seeds. They would have known how important the soil is to the success of their harvest, but also how little control they had over where they were able to sow. I mean, it’s not like they could just choose a different plot of land—they had to sow and reap on their own land. Maybe that land would be hard packed in places due to footpaths. Maybe that land would be rocky. Maybe that land would be adjacent to wild thorn bushes that would invade after they planted their crops.
Jesus used this common knowledge to teach his audience about the kingdom of God. One way to hear this parable is to consider yourself to be the soil. Hear and understand, not like the ones he likens to the path. Have deep roots, not like the ones he likens to rocky soil. Keep free of the cares of the world and the lures of wealth, not like the ones he likens to wheat among the thorns. Yield good fruit, thirty or sixty or a hundred-fold.
Absolutely. We should absolutely strive to be good soil, receptive to the message of God’s love. Repent! Turn away from the cares of the world. Have deep roots, and be willing to go wherever God calls you, even if it means carrying your cross, being accused of disrupting society or even of sedition.
But in verse 18, Jesus calls this “the parable of the sower,” not the parable of the good soil. So, he must have been trying to teach his disciples something about the action of the sower. When he is explaining the four scenarios, he starts with, “this is the one who hears the word.” So somehow, Jesus is trying to connect the action of the sower to the ones who hear the word of God’s love.
Who is the sower? Well, it could be God. The Holy Spirit does indeed flow over people, and Creation itself sings of God’s goodness. Perhaps Jesus was describing what he was doing. But I think he was trying to teach his disciples that they should be good sowers.
Let’s think again about the farming process. One season, you harvest your crops. You eat what you need, sell what you can, and save back some seed for the next year. When the time is right, you clear the land and prepare it to receive the new planting. Then you spread seed broadly over the land.
So, the first step is to feed yourself. Hear God’s Word. Study it. Experience it. Immerse yourself in God’s love. Be a part of a community that helps you connect with God. Then filled with the Holy Spirit, filled with love for God and for your neighbor, you will be ready to go forth and spread the seed of God’s love in other hearts. Remember, the kingdom of God is marked by abundance, not scarcity. There is always plenty of love to go around. If you feel depleted, it’s because you’re giving more than you’re getting, and you need to refocus on feeding yourself. Each person has different needs; figure out your needs, what you need to feel spiritually replenished.
Then go and spread love. The sower spreads seed indiscriminately. They know that some places won’t produce and some seeds won’t grow, but they don’t know which ones, not really. Like the sower, spread love indiscriminately. Jesus said to love your neighbor, and basically kept re-defining “neighbors” to include everyone. He never taught anyone to withhold their love, but rather that people who seem unlovable are like the barren ground—they just haven’t received the seed of God’s love yet. But if you plant love there, it might yield fruit.
Might. Jesus didn’t give his disciples any guarantees. He knew that some people are just not receptive to the message, and others seem receptive but don’t stick with it. Perhaps this is a counterbalance to his commissioning back a few chapters. I spoke about Matthew 10 a couple of weeks ago. Jesus had been working hard, teaching and preaching all around Galilee, and he decided to commission some disciples to work in his name. He gave them some instructions, which honestly were a little bit intimidating. I mean, he said they were like sheep among wolves, that they would be handed over to councils and flogged in synagogues and they would be hated by all. Gee, sign me up. Still, the disciples went forth and came back rejoicing! Well, even if they had some initial success, there was no guarantee of their long-term success. Building God’s kingdom is a marathon, not a sprint. So perhaps Jesus wanted to embolden them a bit, so they wouldn’t be disheartened when they returned to a village and found that people had turned away from what they had taught.
Jesus said when he commissioned the disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” He knew that God would multiply the efforts of the disciples. Their little bit of work would yield fruit 30, 60, or 100-fold. They might return to a village and find that some were like the seed that fell on the path, or like the seed that fell on rocky ground, or like the seed that was choked out by thorns. But they would find some who were like the seed that fell on good soil. Those few who heard the good news, understood it, grew deep roots to tap into God’s love, and turned away from the cares of the world would produce fruit in abundance for God’s kingdom. They in turn would spread God’s love to others, who would spread it to others, and so on until the world is transformed.
Have you ever wondered what it would have been like to be among those early followers of Jesus, or of the movement that sprouted after his resurrection? Hearing stories straight from the Son of God, or from eyewitnesses of his life. Seeing the signs of the inbreaking of God’s kingdom. From a few close disciples, a movement spread, first across Judea and Galilee, then later around the Roman Empire and points beyond. It grew from a small sect within a minor religion to the largest religion in the world. How did this happen? From people telling stories of their encounters with God, caring for their neighbors, and holding firm to the teachings that they received. God indeed multiplied the efforts of those early Jesus-followers to create a massive network of believers.
What we have seen in America and other Western nations over the past generation or two is a steady erosion of that network. Five hundred years ago, the western church splintered into thousands of denominations. Collectively, these splinters retained enormous cultural power, but fifty years or so ago, that cultural power was disrupted so that now, people no longer feel a need to be Christian to be part of society. This has had all sorts of negative effects on established churches, but one important positive effect is that we now need to think seriously about what we’re doing. We can’t just go through the motions and keep doing what we’ve always done because we’ve always done it. No longer do people attend church because their parents told them to, at least adults don’t. They consciously choose what to believe, what community to join, and how to connect to the Divine.
So, the task before us is to sow God’s love broadly, among people who don’t automatically assume that Christians are the kind of people they want to be around, but more often the opposite. We are tasked with sowing God’s love—somewhere. Remember what I said a couple of weeks ago, about God’s call to each of us individually and to all of us as a congregation? Well, it’s time to be specific. Everyone should have received a note card on their way in, and there should be pencils in the pews. I’m not going to collect the cards, but I do want you to use them. Here’s what I want you to do right now. I want you to think about God’s particular calling for you personally. Forget about what the church is doing. Just think about what you are called to do. What are you passionate about? Who do you feel called to serve? Who do you feel called to love? What you write down could reflect something you are already doing, or it could be something that has been nagging at you, a discomfort that is calling you to action.
Eventually, after you have really thought things through, you should only have ONE calling. I mean, I do lots of different things, but they all have ONE thread that ties them all together. If you’re wondering which activity in your life is your actual calling, maybe ask yourself: if there’s a schedule conflict, which one would you choose?
Once you have that down, I want you to take another step and think about who in this congregation might have a similar calling. Maybe not the same, but similar. Someone who might want to help you in whatever you’re called to do, or who might have some ideas that would help you. Try to come up with three names. The challenge will be to get people whose ONE THING is connected to your ONE THING.
So, let’s take a few minutes and think about that, writing notes on your card, and then we’ll pray.
Let’s pray: Lord God, we thank you for the strength you give us by your Holy Spirit, and the way you bind us together and multiply our efforts so that we can transform the world into your glorious kingdom. Bless us now as we consider what steps we should take to be effective sowers of your love in our community. Give us courage and endurance, open hearts and open minds. In Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.
Now over the coming week, I want you all to continue thinking and praying about your calling. Feel free to talk with others about it, but don’t feel obligated to do so. Next week we have another agricultural parable, and we’ll think and pray more about our future together.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
One Reply to “Sowing God’s Love”
Comments are closed.