Sowing Seeds
The Parable of the Sower is a Parable told by Jesus found in Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, and Luke 8:1-15. In the parable, a farmer sows seeds in various places, each with a different result. In one place, birds eat the seed before it could begin to grow. In another, the seeds were sown on rocky ground and thus grew quickly on shallow roots, but because the roots were so shallow they withered and died. In another place the seeds fell among thorns and were choked by the thorns. In still another place the seeds fell on good soil and so they grew and produced a wonderful crop. You can read Jesus’ own explanation of this parable in any of the three books, but I will pull it from Luke:
“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.”
Jesus in this parable seems to focus on the interaction between the seeds and the ground, as well as the many factors associated with the different types of ground the seed fell upon. This is emphasized by the use of the word “sower” within the parable itself. In Luke 8:5, it says: “A sower went out to sow his seed…” While some translations of scripture translate the greek word speiro as “farmer,” the word is more accurately translated as “sower” as seen in the NRSV translation above. It is actually the same word used for “sow” in the same verse. This is important because it emphasizes the action of sowing seeds instead of all of the other duties a farmer would have (tilling the ground, taking care of the seeds, etc.) The fact that Jesus doesn’t later mention the sower in his explanation of the parable to his disciples I think adds to this. I believe Jesus is driving a point home about how people receive the word of God, more so than how the word of God is given.
While I think it is important to recognize how people may receive the word of God, I think it is also important to talk about how we communicate it. Jesus speaks to this and shows it throughout his ministry. So while I am keeping the same symbolism of the seed representing the word of God, I would like to talk more about our responsibilities as the people entrusted to sow the seeds of the word of God.
Prepare the Soil
The first step you would take when planting seeds is to prepare the soil. In agriculture, this means a lot of presence and hard work as you make the soil ready to receive the seeds. You have to till the ground by digging and overturning the soil, with the goal of breaking it up in a way that allows for the roots of the seeds to grow deep. Many people would also recommend adding in nutrients such as compost or manure in order to provide the nutrients that will best help the seed to grow. In short, you are trying to create the most receptive place for the seed to be planted.
I think this translates well to how we should sow the seeds of God’s word. Sharing the Gospel is a relational endeavor, and preparing the soil simply means building a relationship with the people around us. We are called to love our God and our neighbor first and foremost, and only after that can we share the Gospel of Christ. Forming relationships with those around us is actively “loving our neighbor,” and it is exactly what Jesus did throughout his ministry. This type of relational ministry means to be present with those around us. To be truly present. Our purpose must become a true love of neighbor, not to form a relationship in order to add another medal to our sash of evangelism. We can’t do this without a sense of humility. Our relationships with others aren’t about ourselves or our goals, but about the people we are in relationship with—about the light and image of God that is present in them. Developing this sense of humility and presence takes time.
What would have happened if the sower in Jesus’ parable had the presence, humility, and time to break up the rocky ground, or clear away the thorns before sowing the seeds?
Placing the Seed
The next step you would take in the process of planting a seed would be to actually place the seed in the ground. I like the concept of “placing” the seed because it alludes to taking care in where the seed goes. When you place actual seeds in the ground, it is usually a good idea to put them in a spot that has enough space for them to grow. You want them to have plenty of space for their roots to grow without being limited by the size of the pot or being choked out by too many plants in the same spot.
In placing the seeds of God’s word, I believe this means first being intentional about placing the seeds. God’s word is too important and powerful to just flippantly toss around without intention. We also must give the seeds of the word of God space to breathe and time to grow. In the same way that too many seeds in the same spot limit each other's growth, constantly bashing a person over the head with a Bible hurts the growth of any seeds you may have planted to begin with. This takes elements of hope, faith, and trust. We have the hope that each seed we place will grow, otherwise we wouldn’t be planting them at all. We have faith that our hopes are built off of a solid foundation. We have the trust to truly believe that the seeds we plant will in fact grow.
What would have happened if the sower had the hope, faith, and trust to place each seed with intention, and the space it needs to grow?
Caring For the Seed
After placing the seed in the ground you have prepared, you have to take care of the seed. You have to water the seed and continue to provide it with nutrients so that it has everything it needs to successfully grow. If the seed was planted in a pot, you probably will need to place the pot in a space that receives at least some amount of sunlight. You may even need to regulate the temperature for indoor plants. However this looks, the point is that it usually is not a good idea to plant a seed and leave it—it probably won’t grow if you do.
This means in order to best support the growth of the seeds of God’s word, we must continue our relationships with those people we have shared seeds with. It is important to model our own ministry after the ministry of Christ, a ministry that included prolonged relational discipleship. If we begin this process in true relationship, that relationship doesn’t go away once the seed is planted. If anything, that relationship should become that much more important. This takes commitment—the commitment to relational ministry. This also takes patience. Some seeds take a really long time to grow, and some people take a really long time to understand who Christ is and accept him into their lives. There is no fast track, only the continued commitment to relationship. Most importantly, this requires love. More specifically, it requires our love for our God and our neighbor, and not our love for ourselves, our evangelistic goals, or any other ulterior motives.
What would have happened if the sower had the patience, commitment, and love to care for the seeds he had sown after sowing them?
Our role in the sowing of the seeds of the word of God is an important role, but we must be careful not to expand our role as the sower past its rightful place. We can do everything right in preparing the soil, placing the seed, and caring for that seed—and the seed still not grow. Likewise we can do nothing but toss the seed out and it take root and flourish. This is because when it comes down to it, the only one truly responsible for the growth of a seed is God. We can work our butts off providing an environment most conducive to the growth of a seed, but we can’t make it grow. God is the one who makes all seeds grow. Our place in all of this is to partner with God and sow each seed in the best way we can, with the faith that God will do the rest.