Parables of Jesus—

The Sower (Planting Seeds)

by Joyce Webb 2008

A parable is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.

Jesus told stories so people could understand things about heaven.

The Parable of the Sower

Matthew 13:3-23 Mark 4:14-20 Luke 8:4-15

A sower is a person who throws seeds out onto the ground. It is like planting seeds but it was done differently long ago. Today we make a furrow (line) in the soil (dirt) and plant the seeds in the furrow and then cover the seeds over with the dirt.

Long ago, a man would walk up and down the field and would throw the seeds out in a fan shape (half a circle shape). As he walked up and down the field, he would “cast” or throw the seed out and let it fall on the ground wherever it landed.

Jesus tells this story: A sower went out to sow seeds. Some of the seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it.

Some of the seeds fell on rocky places. There the seeds did not have much soil to grow in. The seeds grew into plants, but because the roots did not have much soil, when the sun came out hot the plants died.

Some of the seeds fell among thorns and weeds. The seeds grew for awhile but soon the other weeds squeezed them out and they died, or stayed skinny and weak.

Some of the seeds fell on good ground and grew strong and healthy and gave good grain giving a good harvest.

 

Then Jesus explained the story. The seed that fell on the path is like a person who hears the word of God and is happy to hear it.

Some people are like the dirt on a path where it is packed down hard.

The seed does not take root. Like the birds eating the seeds—the words of God go from their mind and heart, they soon forget what they heard and go back to their old ways.

The seed that fell on rocky places is like a person who hears the word of God and is happy to hear it.

The word of God goes in his heart and he begins to obey God. In a rocky place there is not much soil, so the seed does not make good roots.

This kind of person soon gives up following Jesus. Troubles come, disappointments come, maybe other Christians fail to do right and this person sees all of that and gives up following Jesus.

 

The seed that fell among the thorns and weeds is like a person who hears God’s word, believes, and begins to follow Jesus.

Then hard things come into this person’s life, they get busy with life and taking care of their family or doing their job. Life’s activities take up all of their time and they do not take the time to read the Bible and pray and go to church.

The things of God get squeezed out of their life by other things, and soon their “ Christian plant” is weak and skinny and is never has fruit or grain. It just barely stays alive.

The seed that falls on good ground is like a person who hears God’s word and follows God. His life grows with good roots. He can live through hard things happening to him. He can keep his faith even if other Christians do wrong things to him.

He grows to give fruit or grain–he develops and matures as a Christian. His faith grows stronger, he helps others find Jesus, he can lead others in the Christian way.

Jesus said that the seeds on the good ground all grew but some grew better than others.

Some seeds gave a harvest of 30%, some gave a harvest of 60%, and some gave a harvest of 100%.

So it is with people. Some people have trusted God so much that God has been able to use their lives greatly to win others for Jesus and to teach them. Some people have a harder time trusting God and so God has a harder time using them. They still bring other to Jesus but not as much.

As we hear this story of the sower, we need to think about our lives.

Has the seed of God’s word grown in our hearts? Have we let other things squeeze out God from our lives? Have we learn to trust Him so much that He can lead us and use us to grow a big harvest for Him?