The Parable Of The Sower

“THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER”

Matthew 13.3-23; Mark 4.3-25; Luke 8.5-18

This message deals with one of the Lord Jesus Christ’s parables. Throughout human history, God has dealt with a remnant, with the vast majority of sinful people living in open rebellion against the revealed will of God. We begin to see this evidence when God saved Noah and his family from all the people on earth before the Flood. Yet there was still a mixed multitude among the Jewish people in the Exodus, a tiny nation among men.[1] Therefore, a tactic the Lord Jesus Christ used during His earthly ministry to cope with the volatile hostility of so many gathered to hear Him preach and work wonders who were inflamed by the truth of what He said was to employ parables.

Let me describe and define and seek to clarify what parables are. The word parable comes from a Greek compound word, parabolή, that refers to throwing something down beside something else.[2] So a parable is a brief verbal illustration thrown down before an audience to draw a comparison. A parable is stated in such a way as to highlight a timeless principle that will shed light on something pertinent or important to an audience.

Some interesting characteristics of parables are worth noting to save yourself a great deal of trouble when studying the Bible. First, parables always illustrate principles using the ordinary details of life anonymously. So, if you read a passage with a talking vine, you’re not reading a parable. And if you are reading a passage in which someone’s name is mentioned, you are not reading a parable.

Second, the very nature of parables is to illustrate or highlight a single principle. For that reason, anyone seeking to build a set of doctrines from a parable is doomed to error. Don’t try to get more truth out of a parable than was put into the parable. When the Lord Jesus taught in parables, He taught with a form of communication, a literary genre, that was already developed in His day to communicate a single principle, thought, or idea. There is no evidence in Scripture suggesting that the Savior altered that communication. Instead, He used a literary device already familiar and in use by others. Another form of communication, the allegory, was used to communicate many truthful facts by illustration, but not with parables.

Third, in English, we tend to use the word parable in a much narrower sense than the Greek word used in the New Testament. It only causes confusion and misinterpretation. Therefore, we must exercise caution so as not to force our English understanding of this type of communication onto the Bible.

Read the comment the Lord made in response to a request by the Pharisees and doctors of the Law for Him to work a miracle to impress them. Keeping in mind what I have just told you about parables, let us be careful in our attempt only to see what is there for our understanding and personal benefit in three verses.

Matthew 12.43-45:

43 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none.

44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.

Three things to note as we prepare to deal with my sermon text: First, we have the subject of the parable we just read. It is self-reformation. Assuming that the Lord Jesus Christ generally uses parables to communicate one central thought, principle, or idea, this parable is relatively straightforward and easy to understand. Typical of parables, we have a familiar scenario for the audience; a man possessed by an unclean spirit who seems to get better for a while and then takes a dramatic turn for the worse. But understand this form of communication makes no effort to be accurate in all details.

For that reason, we cannot assume from what this parable says that when a demon leaves a person, he will necessarily bring seven more wicked demons back with him. With this recognition, it seems evident to me that the truth the Lord Jesus sought to impress upon His listeners with this parable was the futility of self-reformation. If you try to improve yourself, you will end up worse off than when you started:

“Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation.”

The Pharisees and doctors of the Law were examples of religious men seeking to establish their righteousness. They were trusting in their diligent allegiance to the Law, their vigorous efforts at being holy, to stand them in good stead. But it would end up worse than if they had not tried. And how could that be? Because they ended up proud sinners instead of just sinners.

Now for the parable’s sideline. What this parable seems to teach often distracts the Bible reader from communicating the real truth. Is there anything in the context leading to this passage that would suggest demons or demon possession is the issue the Lord addressed to His audience? No. That is one of the reasons why I believe we need to be careful and not take the details of any parable more seriously than they were intended, obfuscating the real thrust of this lesson, which was the futility of self-reformation.

This parable suggests demons can leave someone they possess. But what do we find elsewhere in the Gospels about demons, particularly the maniac of Gadara?[3] Do we not see that demons never seem to want to leave someone they possess and that they have to be driven out or cast out? Absolutely. The parable before us also suggests the danger of a spiritual vacuum. In this parable, it would seem that being possessed by one relatively mild demon is preferable to being an unsaved person who was formerly demon-possessed.

Why? Because it could end up being seven times worse at any time. But is there anything in Scripture that would suggest that being a lost person who is unpossessed is less safe than being a lost person who is possessed by a demon? No. The danger of the damage of the demon returning with seven worse than him is taught in the parable because it forms the decisive thrust of the parable’s teaching about the futility of self-reformation. But this is an insufficient reason to seek profound meaning from every statement made in the parable.

So, because of the context of the larger passage this parable is set in, and because of an analysis of some of the details of the parable, I assert again that a parable is intended to communicate one central principle without searching for or expecting precision as to the details found in the parable. This encounter with the blasphemers led to a change in strategy by the Lord Jesus Christ, introducing the first great group of parables that He taught to His audiences. The Lord’s audience completely understood the guidelines and limitations of a speaker's use of a parable. And they understood the thrust of what He was teaching very clearly.

The first grouping of parables was taught to the multitudes. Introduced to a multitude and then explained to His disciples, it is the Parable of the Sower. Then there were parables taught only to the Lord’s disciples. We will focus on the first of these parables, possibly the most important. My text is Matthew 13.3-23, Mark 4.3-25, and Luke 8.5-18. But time constraints prohibit my usual practice of reading my entire text, requiring that I keep mainly to Matthew because that Gospel records the parable in greater detail than Mark and Luke. To conclude my message, I will pick up a necessary detail from Mark’s Gospel not found in Matthew.

There are four activities the Lord Jesus engages in to communicate this parable to His audience:

First, THE LORD JESUS IMPARTS

Matthew 13.3-9:

3 And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow;

4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

8 But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

This is a classic parable. A timeless truth is presented as a brief illustration using the everyday and ordinary events of life. Most of our Lord’s audience were rural and agricultural people. In those days, even city dwellers were not very far removed from the farm and all of its attendant details. So the things mentioned here by the Lord Jesus are details thoroughly familiar to all but the youngest children.

At first glance, three ingredients seem to stand out. First, there is the sower. A sower is simply a man or a woman who walks across the tilled field, casting seeds as he walks. Second, there is the seed. We are not told what kind of seed because the specific type plays no part in the parable’s lesson. Then, third, there is the soil. Specifically, there are four kinds of soils upon which the seeds are cast by the sower. And although there is only one sower and only one type or kind of seed, the four different kinds of soils onto which the grains fall produce markedly different results.

Second, THE LORD JESUS EXPLAINS

Matthew 13.10-17:

10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?

11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.

14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

15 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Although the Lord Jesus presented this parable to the multitudes, only His disciples approached Him afterward to ask Him why He was teaching in parables, which were more difficult for folks to understand. Remember, since Matthew does not attempt to present most of his details in chronological order, it is likely that this question came after the Lord had taught all four of these public parables grouped, not necessarily immediately after this particular parable.

Why did the Lord Jesus resort to parables? He seems to provide two reasons for parabolic teaching in these eight verses: First, it is given for the disciples to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but for “them it is not given.” The question is, who is the “them”? Does the Lord Jesus refer to all the multitudes, or is He referring only to His active opponents, certain of the scribes and Pharisees, and, as we will see later on, the Sadducees and those of the Herodian party? It’s a tough question to answer.

Second, alluding to Isaiah 6.9, the Lord Jesus Christ indicated that the parable was His chosen manner of communicating to people who were spiritually dull of hearing and spiritually near-sighted. So, a prophecy is being fulfilled by communicating to people who are dull and insensitive to spiritual truth and who have no discernment or perception of spiritual concepts. The disciples, however, had been wonderfully blessed in that they had been given to see and to understand things the prophets and righteous men of old yearned to know of. And they were curious enough to ask for clarification. Who else might have understood more if only they asked for clarification?

Think about what the Lord has just said for a moment. If you’ve read the Gospels much at all then you probably marveled at how incredibly dense and imperceptive the disciples of Jesus actually were so often. How spiritually blind the others must have been, then, for the disciples to be so favorably compared here. And why the difference? It can only be attributed to the grace of God for illuminating their understanding as they sought to satisfy their curiosity about the parable’s meaning.

Let me point out something here that is frequently, in my opinion, overlooked and misunderstood. In verse 11, the Lord Jesus said,

“Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.”

Then, in verse 17, He refers to prophets and righteous men. These are Jewish prophets of Old Testament times and righteous Jewish saints of old.

With these two things in mind, I am pretty strongly of the opinion that these parables concern themselves with matters related to the Messianic Kingdom. I know the phrase used here is “kingdom of heaven,” but I believe that “kingdom of heaven” describes the source of the kingdom, not its location. There is only one kingdom, with the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven referring to the same kingdom, the Messianic Kingdom or the Theocratic Kingdom. Besides, there was no hint or suggestion of the mystery of the Church given to the prophets and saints of old.

When they heard the word “kingdom,” they were thinking “Messianic Kingdom,” and I see nothing in Scripture that suggests this wasn’t exactly what God wanted them to think. So the mystery has to do with the Messianic Kingdom, which is the Theocratic Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven, the Kingdom of God, not the Church. The Messianic Kingdom, as in “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” has to do with God’s fulfillment of the promises He made to Abraham. That subject was foremost in the thinking of the Jewish people, and rightly so. But their concept of what the Messianic Kingdom would be like was in some ways wrong. And some parables were used by the Lord Jesus Christ to provide valuable instruction about the kingdom to those with more spiritual discernment than was typically the case.

The Lord Jesus imparted the Parable of the Sower. Then He explained the Parable of the Sower.

Third, THE LORD JESUS INTERPRETED THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER

Matthew 13.18-23:

18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower.

19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;

21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

Please keep in mind that usually, when the Parable of the Sower is studied, the focus of attention is almost exclusively on the four kinds of soils mentioned by the Lord Jesus and which He refers to in His interpretation of the parable. But, although we will not neglect what is said about the four types of soil, we want to pay careful attention to other things that are just as important to a correct understanding of this parable. Please note that we are given to see three main pieces of information conveyed in this interpretation which the Lord provided to His disciples.

First, there is the target audience, Matthew 13.19a:

“When any one heareth the word of the kingdom.”

Although it is frequently overlooked or ignored, it is essential to note that this parable refers explicitly to a situation in which someone hears the Word “of the kingdom.” And folks, to whom was the kingdom promised? To the Jewish people. So understand, the Lord Jesus Christ is precise, in this parable, teaching something about preaching the Word of God with respect to the kingdom. And although there is a definite application of the timeless principles to Church Age believers and unsaved people living during our time, the comments were directed to the Jewish people. This must be kept in mind as this parable is studied.

Next, there is the response of those not understanding, Matthew 13.19-22:

20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;

21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

Do we recognize that most of those who sit under the preaching of the Gospel, whether it be the Gospel of the kingdom or the Gospel of Jesus Christ, will not truly understand what they are hearing? That being so, notice the three ways in which people responded to the Word of the Kingdom who did not understand. These three different kinds of responses are likened to three different kinds of soils onto which the seed of the Word of God is sown:

First, there is the seed cast by the wayside, Matthew 13.4, 19:

4 And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up:

Not all of the seed which is sown is cast onto tilled soil. Sometimes the precious seed is cast onto the wayside, where the seed lies on the ground and is eaten by birds. That’s what we are told in verse 4. But in verse 19, we are told that picture of everyday life is parallel to how some sinners respond to the Word of the Kingdom. The Word is in their hearts, though they do not understand it, it is then plucked out of the heart by the wicked one. I suggest that the thrust of this segment of the parable is that someone who hears the Word of God and has no response, not really understanding, can have the Word snatched out of his heart by Satan.

This might correspond to Second Corinthians 4.3-4:

3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:

4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Next, there is the seed that is cast onto stony places, Matthew 13.5, 20-21:

5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:

20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;

21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Boy does this one seem to strike home in the lives of so many. The stony ground is a region where there is a very thin layer of topsoil. Enough for a seed to germinate, but insufficient soil for the roots to pull up moisture from down deep during periods of dryness and hot weather. The Lord tells us that this is comparable to someone who hears the Word and makes a joyful decision. But because there’s no depth to the individual, he is offended at the first sign of persecution or tribulation because of the Word. That is, when something happens because of his profession, because of the Word, he doesn’t have any endurance or staying power, and he falls. And how many times have we seen someone who makes a profession of faith and may even have a persuasive testimony and be baptized but who can’t take any of the heat that must always come into the life of a believer. The result? He falls by the wayside. He leaves the kitchen because it’s gotten too hot for him, even though it’s not all that hot. But, boy, did that one seem to start well.

The third type of soil onto which the seed is cast is the soil that is choked with thorns, Matthew 13.7, 22:

7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them:

22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

Look what we have with these three types of soils. The first soil pictures the Word snatched away by Satan. Absolutely nothing happens to the seed. The second begins to germinate, but withers under pressure. This shows an inability to deal with difficulties and opposition. The third soil, the one choked with thorns, speaks of the lure of materialism. The cares and affairs of this life, the deceitfulness of riches, and the demands of the job results in unfruitfulness.

Consider this carefully. Each of these three types of soils illustrates someone who hears the Word of the Kingdom and does not understand. The first example produces no visible response to the Word. The second example produces a disappointing response. But the third example shows a beautiful response to the Word in every way except one; no fruit. If we are not careful, we will completely miss the import of these three types of soils. Every one of these examples is an example of an unsaved person’s response to the Word of the Kingdom. How do we know? We know because, in each situation, we are dealing with someone who is identified as a hearer who does not understand. And the last example, with the thorns, there is every evidence of life except the most important one, the capacity to bear fruit. These are not examples of different kinds of believers. These are examples of different sorts of unbelievers!

How do we know this to be true? Two reasons: First, the audience was comprised of men who heard the Word of the Kingdom and did not understand. Second, because there was one thing absent in each of the examples given in the parable, the only thing that mattered to a people whose food came from the land. Fruit! Who cares if a tree is pretty if it doesn’t bear fruit? Life, real life, isn’t growing green and tall. It’s bearing fruit!

Finally, there is the response of those with understanding, Matthew 13.8, 23:

8 But other fell into good ground and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold.

23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

How different is this example from the previous three. The picture of the good ground, something the previous three are not called, is the person who hears the Word of the Kingdom and understands. I beg you to consider that this is the only person who receives the Word of the Kingdom correctly. This is the person who receives what he hears to the saving of his soul. What happens when someone is saved? What happens when there is genuine understanding? Fruit is the result. Varying amounts of fruit with each individual, granted. But fruit. It seems, then, that the Lord Jesus Christ would have us evaluate the presence of real life based not upon the appearance but upon what is produced by that person’s life. Fruit.

The Parable of the Sower. The Lord Jesus, first, imparted. Then, to His inquiring disciples, He explained and interpreted. Finally, He inquires. Immediately following this parable in Mark’s Gospel we find Mark 4.21-27. Remembering that the Gospel accounts make no attempt to record everything Jesus said, Mark was used by the Holy Spirit to record something related to the Parable of the Sower that the other Gospel writers were not moved to record. Notice the two parts of this inquiry.

First, there is the question, Mark 4.21-23:

21 And he said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed? and not to be set on a candlestick?

22 For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested; neither was any thing kept secret, but that it should come abroad.

23 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.

What is the purpose of the light but to illuminate? Amen? Therefore, concealing the light thrown off by a candle makes absolutely no sense. Take that same analogy and apply it now to someone who hears the Word of the Kingdom and understands it, and is saved. Would God save that person to bear no fruit? Would God give that person understanding without also giving that person the behavior that corresponds to understanding? No. This perfectly fits the founder of The Navigators, Dawson Trautman’s saying, “A non-witnessing Christian is a contradiction in terms.”

Then, there is the caution, Mark 4.24-25:

24 And he said unto them, Take heed what ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given.

25 For he that hath, to him shall be given: and he that hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he hath.

Here the Lord Jesus cautions us. And why should we be careful what we hear? Why take heed? Because the law of sowing and reaping applies to what you hear and respond to as well as anything else. Keeping in mind that the target audience comprises Jewish people who were beneficiaries of the covenants of promise, the Lord Jesus was cautioning those folks that their response to the Word of the Kingdom would determine whether or not they would gain the Kingdom.

The straightforward thrust of the Parable of the Sower? If you do not bear fruit, you do not understand and receive the “word of the kingdom.”

The application of the parable for you and me? Simple. A sinner’s salvation is utterly dependent upon his response to the preaching of God’s Word. Good soil, hear and understand leads to salvation. Poor soil, hear and not understand, regardless of appearances, and there is no salvation from sin.

Are you saved or not? Easy to tell. Is there fruit? What is your fruit?

__________

[1] Exodus 12.38

[2] Bauer, Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, (Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press, 2000), pages 759-760.

[3] Mark 5.1-13

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