Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23.
Jesus
often told stories when he was teaching people. This is a very good way to
teach, because people remember stories. We call his stories parables. (A parable
is a story that teaches us a truth about God. Or, the story shows us behaviour
that pleases God.) The stories of Jesus are very easy to remember. They are very
important. They help us to know what God wants.
A
favourite story is the parable of the farmer and his field. This is often called
'the parable of the sower'. [A sower is a farmer who is sowing his seed.]
The story of the parable of the sower [that is, the story of the farmer and his field]
The
story is simple. A farmer sows seed in a field:
· Some seed falls on the paths,
and the birds quickly eat it.
· Some seed falls where there
are rocks, and not much soil. Plants grow quickly, but soon the sun dries them.
There is not enough soil, and the plants die.
· Some seed begins to grow in a
place where there are too many weeds. The weeds stop the growth of the plants,
and the plants die.
· But other seed falls on good
ground. So, the plants grow well. The farmer has a harvest from these
plants.
The explanation of the parable of the sower
The
explanation of the story is also simple. Jesus himself explained it to the
*disciples. The farmer is like Jesus. The seed that he sows is the seed of the
good news about Jesus. The farmer sows the seed in many different places, just
as Christians tell God's good news in many different places. What happens to the
seed is different in different places. It is the same with the good news about
Jesus. It has a good result in the lives of some people, and it has a poor
result in other lives.
The
first seed fell on the path, where there was no soil. Some people hear the good
news but give no attention to it at all. This is like the seed on the path.
These people do not change their behaviour. These people do not think about
other people. They are selfish. They quickly forget about the good news.
Some
seed falls where there are rocks. It grows quickly, but then it dies. This
teaches us that some people listen to the good news. They seem to like what they
hear about Jesus. But this does not last. They have a difficult time, or other
people laugh at them. Then they have no more interest in Jesus. They never
really trusted him.
Some
seed began to grow among weeds, and the weeds killed it. This teaches us that
some people have no time for Jesus. They are selfish, and they want things for
themselves. Perhaps they want to be rich, or to be powerful. They worry all the
time. They are anxious about their possessions.
Finally
we hear in the story about seed on good ground. The good ground is like people
who love the Lord. They believe in Jesus and they trust him. God will *bless
these people. His *Holy Spirit will help them to love other people. They will be
able to forgive other people, and to live in peace with them. They will be
joyful. This is because God can change them. He changes the inside of these
people, and this changes their behaviour.
A lesson from the parable of the sower
This
parable can teach us about ourselves. God will *bless those people who trust
him. We learn from this parable the same truths as we learn from the
*beatitudes. When we know that we need Jesus, we should trust him. When we
really trust him, he will teach to us. We will change, because Jesus will change us. What kind of soil are you? Barrie Wetherill.
