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.”
This parable describes four different types of people who hear “the word of the kingdom.” The first does not understand, the second gladly hears but does not endure trouble or persecution, the third hears, but is distracted by the cares of the world and the lure of wealth, the fourth hears, understands, and bears fruit. It is clear from the parable’s last verse that it is the responsibility of Jesus’ audience to do the necessary preparation in order to become the good soil: “Let anyone with ears listen!”
The parable says nothing about the responsibility of the sower. Once the seed is sown, it is out of the sower’s hands. It would seem the key to the efficacy of “the word of the kingdom” is the hearer’s understanding of the word and reaction to it. In this parable Jesus does not define what’s involved in “bearing fruit,” but it is not merely divine action; neither is it chance nor whim (that is, that I happen to hear on a good day when there is no persecution and I have no worldly cares). Rather the good soil is the person who responds, who does something.
But let me add an important caveat at this juncture. While I am beginning this study with the parables and allowing the parables to speak without an extra interpretive layer, the parables are neither the only word nor the last word on salvation and the kingdom. Missing from this particular discussion is the Holy Spirit. With a more complete study of scripture we will discover that humans aren’t left to their own devices. Jesus gives us “a Comforter” who will “guide us into all truth.” But that is not the topic of this parable, nor of Matthew 13 as a whole, so that piece of the puzzle will have to wait.
With the caveate in mind, what we learn from this parable, then, is that the kingdom is not only God’s action upon humanity, it is God’s action coupled with human response. If we begin with a Protestant sensibility, this seems a terribly unsure state of affairs. And from a Protestant perspective, uncertainty is antithetical to good news. But I say that in order to say we're not beginning from that perspective. Consider Peter, the storm, and Jesus walking on the water in Mat. 14. Jesus stayed behind to pray and sent the disciples ahead in the boat. While they were crossing, a violent storm came up and the disciples were probably concerned about the storm (the text doesn't tell us). At this point Jesus comes toward them walking on the water, and upon seeing him, they were terrified. But Jesus calms them and continues toward the boat. The story could have ended here, with everything be good and well, but it doesn't. Peter wants to come out and meet Jesus, so Jesus says, “Come.” But Jesus’ command is not the end of the story. His command requires Peter’s attentiveness and cooperation. As long as Peter keeps his eyes on Jesus, his walk on the water goes fine. As soon as he looks away, he begins to sink.
The story ends well. We knew the story would end well because Jesus is God incarnate and God is good. But between a good beginning and a happy ending comes a whole variety of unsure moments. Peter could have stayed in the boat and everything would have been fine. But he takes an extra step of faith. One would think that since Peter was “walking by faith” that God would then have all the bases covered, but God doesn’t. Faith by itself is inadequate, and Peter begins to sink. In addition to faith, Peter needs to be attentive, focusing his gaze on his Savior. Without that cooperation, Peter sinks into the murky seas.
Faith at its best and highest is frightening. It’s not a sure deal because we are prone to not being attentive. But when we begin to sink into the sea and our salvation begins to fade out of sight, Jesus “immediately reaches out,” as long as we cry out “Lord, save me!” It seems a very different sort of eternal security than the Protestant version, but it is a vibrant security that we can be utterly confident in because of who God is. It is a vibrant security in which we can take incredible risk and even fail in those risks, knowing that if we are attentive, and even if we fail to be attentive, if we cry out to God, that God will immediately reach out to us. True faith—and the real kingdom—doesn't deny human responsibility in the face of an overwhelmingly absolute God; but it does allow us to be realistically confident in divine mercy and grace in the context of the command to be attentive.
Copyright © 2006 James E. Nelson (Just Another Jim). All Rights Reserved.
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