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18 Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside. 20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles. 22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ~ Matthew 13:18-23
Today, we return to our study of Matthew 13 where the Lord Jesus is found teaching the people in parables. He spoke in parables in order to reveal further truth to those who were honest with the truth and to conceal it from those who were not. In today's passage the Lord Jesus explained the meaning behind the parable of the sower after the disciples came to Him with questions about it. The sower is anybody who sows. The seed is the Word of God or God's definition of all things.
In v.18-19 of today's passage we read, "18 Therefore hear the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is he who received seed by the wayside."
The word "hear" is emphasized in today's passage. It is the most important thing we can do to advance ourselves in relationship and fellowship with God. You will have noticed that the word "receive" is also accentuated in today's passage. If we just hear and do not welcome the teaching into our souls, what have we accomplished? In fact, this idea is reinforced by the word the Lord Jesus used here translated "word." His rhema or His spoken word is what creates faith in our hearts according to Romans 10:17 which reads, "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
The Lord Jesus accentuated "anyone hears the word of the kingdom." You will remember that back in Matthew 6 He taught us the Disciple's Prayer which began with "Our Father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, thy will be done." The kingdom of God points us to the One in charge. The kingdom of God is the area in which God is King. Our problem is that we skip the first part and immediately go to the second part, "Thy Will be done." When we begin with worship of God, we gain His perspective. I've discovered when I approach God with the right perspective, I realize He sees what I don't see. He knows what I don't know. I find that when I pray with that perspective, I am granted more faith and a broader perspective. As a result, I tend to pray with more faith which is the heart's ability to see God. His kingdom must come first before we see the wisdom of His will for us.
The word "heart" is the key to interpreting the whole parable here. This parable is about the heart condition. It's not about the skill of the sower and it's not even about the seed. The heart of the matter is the matter of the heart. Learning to get vulnerable with God is hard because we are born with a skeptical heart, especially toward God. It is out of a broken heart that we find our pursuit of God. Once we have come to know the Lord through confessing to Him that our way does not get us to where we truly want to go and His way does, it is then that we begin giving our heart to Him. Giving our heart to Him is a slow process that speeds up with experiencing His faithfulness for ourselves. And, when we do this and we let God love us, we mustn't be surprised that our heart begins to hear music it hasn't heard before and our feet starts dancing as never before.
In v.20-21 of today's passage we read, "20 But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles."
Those whose hearts are described by the stony ground are those who never get beyond their questions to the place of being vulnerable with God. It's a matter of trust. Most often we judge God by our natural fallen human motives. The fallen approach to this life fails to judge God accurately because unforgiven and fallen man does not know God's forgiveness. This obstructs our view of Him. Without a personal relationship with the God of the Bible, we view Him in accordance with the view that Satan has of Him. Once we come into a personal relationship with God and we allow Him the opportunity to reveal Himself to us, it is then that we gain an increasing understanding of Him and the more we learn about Him the more amazed we will be at who He is.
In v.22-23 of today's passage we read, "22 Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 23 But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."
The word "received" here is of utmost importance. To receive is to hear and to take into one's being. Due to this, the seed remains long enough to sprout and grow and to bring forth the fruit of God which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self-control. The person who gets it is the person who will increasingly be defined by the Lord. All of the things of this world that he once depended upon to define him will lessen in value over time.
There are five passages in the New Testament that we see this 30 fold, 60 fold, and 100 fold return. The context in each of them is people’s response to the Word of God sown in their lives. The seed here is always God’s Word. We are told that the seed keeps producing because it is in good soil. The good soil describes the heart that is responding to God's grace. Most crops in Israel average about a tenfold yield. So, a thirty, sixty, and a hundred fold crop is extraordinary. When the Lord Jesus explained this, He saw that the word “understanding” is decisive, it implies receptivity, response, transformation. This person not only hears the gospel, but understands it and he values it deeply. The good soil is the heart that receives the seed of the gospel, cultivates it in the heart, which in turn produces fruit in his life. For some the fruit is more than others. Parallel to more fruit in our lives is our recognition of God's faithfulness. We would not have faith without God's faithfulness. Sometimes in order to see God's faithfulness we must go through difficulty. And, if we run from the difficulties, we will find ourselves running from God.
