Maybe you are like me and this summer you may have finally dabbled in gardening. For me, it’s been a very low-level gardening, and when I say that, I mean I haven’t done very much this year. I have big planter box and a tub with a tomato plant and my strawberry plants are doing well this year. The tomato plant has been growing, and is not looking promising. We had essentially no rain this spring and we’ve had a couple of downpours this June, so my plants are a little confused.
What about the soil of our hearts? The parable of the sower breaks down four types of people who receive the word of God. We are going to go through a 4-part series on the Parable of the Sower.
Overview of the Parable of the Sower
There are four types of soil mentioned in the parable of the sower:
1. Along the Path
To begin with lets focus on the seed that falls along the path.
“And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured them’”(Matthew 13:3-4).
How Jesus Explains This Parable
The beauty of this parable is that Jesus explains what He meant to His disciples. Instead of trying to interpret and understand what the seed along the path meant, Jesus tells us that this is the person who hears the gospel and does not understand it because the enemy takes away what is trying to take place in his or her heart.
Matthew 13: 18-19says,“Hear then the parable of the sower: When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path.”
Real Life Examples
Have you ever had a gospel conversation with someone and it seems like they are hearing you, only to realise that they weren’t really paying attention, that they quickly become hostile, or that they are so deep in their own religious beliefs that it’s as if they don’t even hear you? When we think about gardening, a sower’s job is to sow the seeds. If he places seeds along the path, he might have hope for them to grow, but their exposed position makes them vulnerable to birds.
Anyone who has ever been an avid bird feeder knows that birds love seeds. They are attracted to them and eat them up quickly. My mother feeds the birds and it is always lovely hearing the sounds of birds outside of my parents’ home. However, it adds up because the birds go through the feeders very quickly and she has to go buy more seed.
When we think about the enemy territory, we recognise that all of us are exposed to the powers of darkness on this earth. The prince of the world is Satan.
“I will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in Me”(John 14:30).
We do not need to be afraid because Satan has nothing on our Saviour Jesus. However, as we share the message of the gospel from the Bible, we need to be spiritually aware. Sometimes we might tell someone the hope of heaven and this person hears it like the seed that falls along the path. But before it can even take root in their heart, the forces of darkness keep this person blinded from the truth.
I have had the opportunity to share Christ with college students in the past. It is both a challenge and a joy. When I have shared the gospel one on one, I never know how the conversation will go, but I know that the Holy Spirit is with me and can use any experience. Sadly, when I think about many of the college students I encountered, I would say that they are like the seed along the path. People are trying to share, but many of them reject the message of the gospel quickly because the enemy is so rampant and at work.
This is not to say the Holy Spirit is not moving as well, but many people are afraid of or angry at Christ and His people. This does not mean we give up sharing the hope that they can have. It does mean that we better get our armour on and realise that this is a spiritual battle. We need the Spirit and the Word of God to share in places where the enemy tries to snatch away the message like a bird along the path.
The Seed Is the Same
One thing to recognise is even though Jesus mentions four various soils, the seed is the same. The seed is the Word of God, the gospel of Jesus, and it does not change no matter who is hearing the message or where they are located. This seed (message) is shared in hopes that many will come to the freedom and security of relationship with Jesus and have a future in heaven.
Remember too that growth takes place once a seed takes root and begins to receive nourishment. Those who hear the gospel “along the path” do not accept the gospel, so they cannot grow in their relationship with God. The seed is snatched up by the bird.
The Greek word for snatch is harpazo and means “To seize, snatch, obtain by robbery.” This is a quick and vicious theft. When this happens, the enemy is literally robbing a person of the gift of salvation. He does not want the person to have relationship and forgiveness in Jesus, He wants to quickly take away the opportunity from him or her. This should utterly break our hearts.
Instead of assuming that we did something wrong or get angry at the quick rejection of the gospel, we would do well to remember the seed along the path. We can pray that they would be given more opportunities to hear the gospel and that the enemy would not steal their call to salvation. We can pray for the courage to share again one day, and that God would send other genuine believers in Him to share the gospel. Ultimately, we trust in the Lord’s sovereignty.
The Gospel along the Path
As we share the gospel and the Bible, it is important for us to be realistic and trust what the Scriptures tell us about the variety of people who receive the message of hope. We do not control the outcome; we share the hope of Christ with others. This comes back to effective evangelism as described by Bill Bright. He once said, “Successful witnessing is taking the initiative to share Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.”
We can trust that the Spirit and the Word are working in a world that has many “soils.” We never know who will accept Jesus’ gift and grow in relationship with Him, so we should not judge or withhold from others. However, we would be wise to not let the enemy discourage us from sharing, out of fear that he will “snatch the seed.” Greater is He who is in us than He who is in this world (1 John 4:4).
2. Rocky Ground
I once used to live on a farm and we had 3 tall pine trees down at the bottom of the front lawn. It always made us nervous in storms when the wind would blow, and one night they blew down because although pine trees are massively tall, they also have very shallow roots. Their roots can grow outwardly very far to anchor them, however an unsteady roots system can cause a major problem with these large trees. Roots are key to the health and success of a plant or a tree.
Real Life Situations
When looking up information on heat stress when gardening. “Shallowly rooted plants will dry out more quickly and will wilt faster.” I have seen this in my own plants this spring; the plants in pots are only able to root so deeply and they often get stressed on these hot summer days. If they were in the ground, they would have much deeper roots and would be able to absorb more water to prevent damage from the hot summer sun.
How Jesus Explains This Parable
“Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow.But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root” (Matthew 13:5-6).
What do we notice here? We can observe that the seed (the Word) fell on rocky places with shallow soil (a person’s heart that is excited but not serious about the gospel). The sun (the trials and hardships of life) come and destroy the growth because there were no roots (depth, authentic connection with Jesus).
Have you ever met anyone who is very excited about Jesus when they first hear about Him, but then the “heat” of life comes and they cannot handle the cost of following the Lord? This is what Jesus was talking about. The “seed” of the gospel that is received by someone with a “rocky soil heart” is shallow.
So what happened to the person who does not have those deep roots?
When people get excited about the concept of the gospel and Jesus but never truly surrender to Him as Saviour and Lord over their lives, they will quickly deny or leave Him when times are tough. In other words, they want the meal but do not want to make it. They want to be fit, but do not want to exercise or eat right. We can be tempted to want to receive the benefits and rewards of being followers of Christ and neglect the hardships and the refinement. When we do this, we miss our part of picking up our cross and following Jesus.
As we share the gospel of Jesus with others, they may appear zealous at first about what we are sharing. This is great! It can be really exciting to walk alongside someone who is hearing the good news and wants to react straight away. However, In the Parable of the Sower, the “rocky ground” represents those who hear God’s word and receive it with immediate joy, but fail to develop deep roots. When faced with the “sun” of trouble, trials, or persecution, their superficial faith withers away, and they quickly fall away.
Understanding this specific type of soil from the Bible analysis reveals several key spiritual truths about this condition:
No Perseverance
Initial Excitement: Just like seeds that sprout quickly on a shallow layer of dirt, these individuals seem zealous and passionate at first. Their emotional response to the message is genuine, but lacks a firm foundation
No Root System: Because the dirt is shallow and obstructed by rock, the plant cannot establish deep roots to draw moisture or anchor itself. Similarly, when a believer lacks deep, foundational understanding of their faith, they struggle to sustain it through adversity.
The “Sun” of Testing: Jesus explained that when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, the sun scorches the shallow plant, causing it to wither. These difficult circumstances expose the absence of root and resilience
“The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away” (Matthew 13:20-21).
Jesus takes the time to break down the meaning of the rocky soil. He explains that people can hear the gospel and receive it with what seems to be joy. However, they have no depth and trust in the true gospel and in Jesus. This might be the person who seems zealous about Jesus, but may not fully understand what He calls us into.
The rocky ground serves as a challenging reminder of the importance of cultivating a heart that not only welcomes truth in the good times, but digs deeply enough into God’s word to endure the inevitable heat of life’s trials.
Jesus says that many will receive God’s word with joy and then when troubles come, they fall away because they did not have a deep faith.
Seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. (Mark 4:16-17)
