Parable of the sower (part 3) - Same seed but different grounds

Rev. Tetteh-Annor Larbi | April 28, 2023 | Matthew 13:18-23

KEY VERSE:

But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Matthew 13:23 (NIV)

MESSAGE:

The Sower scatters his seed, and they fell on different grounds. The ground on which they fell determined what happened to the seed and how they turn out during harvest time. Where they fell also suggests the conditions in that environment which eventually either facilitated or hampered the growth and yield or otherwise of the seeds. It is worth noting that the same seed was scattered by the Sower at the same time and in the same setting. For all seeds scattered, the weather must have been the same. That is, holding seed, time, and weather constant, so to speak.

So, the problem is not the seed, the time of sowing, or the weather. The ground becomes the only component of this parable equation that has the potency to determine the outcome. Jesus explained that the ground represents the HEART of any man who receives God’s word: the seed that was scattered.

Jesus mentioned three factors that keep the heart from producing the desired crop and bearing the desired fruit: lack of understanding (Matt 13:18), not entrenching oneself in the word to build a solid foundation (Matt 13:20-21) and not keeping one’s focus (by studying and meditating) on the word to gain the power it provides to stand against the cares and fleeting riches of this world (Matt 13:22).

FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE:

How we cultivate our hearts and prepare them to receive the word of God is very important and directly related to how much yield we can harvest from the seed of the word that is sown into our hearts. Again, how we guard our hearts to prevent the word of God from escaping or being stolen has a direct bearing on the fruit the seed of the word bears and the crop harvested.

Understanding the word comes by hearing it and meditating on it continually (over and over again), this makes available to us the inherent hidden power to overcome the wiles of the enemy and the cares of this world, intended to steal the word from our hearts and make us unyielding and unfruitful. Let us be on our guard. Prepare your grounds and guard your heart.

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, help me to receive your word with gladness and meditate on it to obtain Divine strength to overcome the cares of this world. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING.

SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!