The Parable of the Sower (Mt. 13:1-9, 18-23)
1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. 6 But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 Let anyone with ears listen!”
One of the important features of this parable is that Jesus offers its interpretation in vss 18-23.
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower. 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. 23 But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
Traditionally called, “The Parable of the Sower,” this parable is actually about the soil, for the Sower fades into the background after the opening phrase, “a sower went out to sow.” What the parable does focus on is four types of soil: hard-packed (the path), rocky ground, soil full of weeds, and “good soil” (by implication, soil properly prepared for planting). Or, more precisely, it focuses on four conditions that affect the soil’s fertility.
But even though the Sower fades into the background, once we understand that this parable is about the condition of the soil, the Sower’s role suddenly becomes very significant once again. What is the difference between good soil and rocky soil? What’s the difference between good soil and weedy soil? The soil is presumably the same. The difference is what has been removed (the rocks and the weeds) presumably by the Sower.
Similarly, what’s the difference between the hard-packed path and the good soil? In this case, it’s what been added. Soil packed hard into a path can once again be productive if the violence of the till cuts through it, turns it over, breaks the packed earth up so air, moisture, worms, and all the other things that make good soil good can be incorporated over time.
So this Parable of the Sower, which is more accurately identified as a Parable of the Soil is in truth a Parable of Time. It takes time to properly prepare a plot of dirt and transform it into good soil. It requires the initial work of plowing up a plot of unprepared land, the hard labor of removing rocks, and the ongoing labor of eradicating weeds. Only after all these things are done will soil be able to produce thirty, sixty, or even a hundredfold.
I grew up with the urgency of salvation in my ears. Life is too often far shorter than we expect, “See! now,” as Paul says in 2 Corinthians, “is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation” (2 Cor. 6:2). (This translation misses the urgency of that first word, by the way. That word see – idou in Greek – is an emphatic interjection. It could be translated as “Listen!” or “See here!”)
But most of the time there is no urgency in farming. It is the farmer who methodically gets his work done and patiently waits for the proper time to do things that typically is the most the successful. Our first year living in Blue Rapids, Kansas, we were busy planting potatoes in the early spring. Our parishioners were quietly laughing behind our backs. Experienced gardeners knew that there was hardly ever an advantage in planting potatoes before Good Friday. Rushing the process only led to rotten sprouts.
In this parable Jesus is telling us that God understands this too. We might therefore call this the Parable of Excessive Time or the Parable of Prodigal Time.
The Orthodox Church has this maddening (from a Protestant perspective) habit of telling potential converts to wait a bit longer, of implying that there is no rush when considering becoming Christian (and more specifically, Orthodox). Why would they do such a thing? As any successful Bible College student could tell them, it’s best to lay out the plan of salvation and try to close the deal (that is, encourage them to invite Jesus into their hearts) as soon as possible. “See here! Now is the acceptable time. Listen!! Now is the day of salvation.” (I may have mentioned this before.)
The word “decision” in Greek is krisis. What we learn from this parable, contrary to the popular evangelistic spirit of the day, is that entering the kingdom is no crisis. Furthermore, if we have ears to listen (v. 9 of the parable) we will recognize that if we turn entry into this Kingdom into a crisis, it will probably end badly. If the heart is not tilled and broken, the word will be snatched away. If the heart remains rocky, the person will fall away at the first hint of trouble. If the heart has not suffered the pain of having the other seeds of hoped-for wealth, fame, family obligations, or even the good intentions of being a world-improver, removed and tossed aside to make way for the true seed of the Kingdom, the “cares of this world” will choke out that most perfect seed and it will “yield nothing.”
Certainly there is a time for everything, a time to prepare, a time to plant, and a time to harvest. But when it comes to the kingdom, time is on God’s side. As the creator of time itself, God uses time and the passage of time to further his kingdom. The modern English word “decision” comes from the Latin decisio, which literally means, “to cut off.” Forcing a decision is to “cut off” time (which God created), and gives advantage to the evil one (v. 19). That may be good marketing, but the Kingdom of Heaven is not like that.
