In these verses our Lord explains three other
kinds of soil in the parable of the sower. In verses 16-17, He called the
second kind of soil the rocky places. “…these are the ones on whom the seed was
sown on rocky places, who immediately receive with joy; but have no firm root
in themselves, but only temporary; then when affliction or persecution arises because
of the word, immediately they fall away.”
The problem with this second type of soil, is
that a small root that sprouted from the seed did not continue to become firmly
established. The response to the word was a shallow and an emotional one. The
word did not deeply penetrate the whole heart. When troubles came, immediately the
Word was rejected. They are those who respond very quickly to the Word, tasted
a little of God’s power but have not really experienced true conversion. When
trials come, like the withering sun of Palestine, they will weaken the shallow
profession of faith and mortify it. Genuine faith brings with it emotion but
also engages the mind and the will. Faith is not wishy-washy. It’s a subjective
and personal experience that rests objectively on the Word of God.
In verses 18-19, the Lord talks about the
divided heart. He said that some seed fell among thorns. He explained that the thorns are “the worries of the world, deceitful
riches of life and desire for other things,” indicating a heart that’s divided.
We can trace the worries of this life to the distractions from this world. They
are the ones that would cause us to be pulled into many directions and leaving
us with no time for cultivation of our spirit. The deceitfulness of riches is
one of the other things that gets people so busy. There are those who think
that wealth is power and everything. However, we all know that one can be full
of possession yet find life to be empty. It is so because it’s devoid of a relationship
with God. Remember no man can serve two masters. If we chose to serve mammon it’s
impossible to serve God, because the love of riches and worldly things will
strangle faith.
And finally in verse 20 the Lord concluded by explaining
about the good soil that allowed the seed to germinate and grow into a fruit
producing plant. It yielded fruit of thirty, sixty and hundred times more than
it was sown. This kind of soil is free from encumbrances, leaving no room for
other things to strangle and dissipate the word of God. It allows the seed to
take root and germinate.
From this parable one thing is stressed: true reception
of the word is so very important to spiritual growth. Jesus is the Living Word
of God. Through the Bible, the Written Word, He is revealed. The issue is how do we respond to it? Do we
read it cursorily or do we truly spend time reading, studying, memorizing, meditating,
digesting and assimilating it into our system?
Don’t be too busy, leaving no time to reflect on
the Word. And also don’t just give little attention by only responding to it emotionally.
We need to engage our heart, mind and soul as we seek to apply it. Meanwhile be
alert and not allow the concerns, the riches and the value of this material world
to stifle the growth God wants to bring to our life. Let’s set our heart and be
like the good soil. Be receptive to the word and allow it to take root so that
we can reap a bountiful harvest in our spiritual progress.
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