II. WHY PARABLES?
A. Before we consider the parable of the sower, let us understand what a parable is.
1. The word "parable" in English is taken almost directly from the Greek word parabolē. It literally means "a placing of one thing by the side of another."
2. In the case of the Lord's teachings, He used parables to create comparisons so that his listeners could understand the truth about the kingdom of God.
a. By these comparisons, He was able to illustrate unfamiliar spiritual truths by using familiar earthly examples.
b. For this reason, some have aptly described a parable as an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
B. In Matthew 13:10, Christ's disciples asked a question that many of us ask as well: "Why do You speak to them in parables?" Why did Jesus not speak plainly and directly? Consider the Lord's explanation.
1. Jesus answered by describing two groups of people.
a. One group has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 13:11; Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10). Not only do they have knowledge, but also more will given to them so that they will have an abundance (Matt. 13:12).
b. The other group has not been granted this knowledge, and even what they have will be taken from them (Matt. 13:11-12). These "who are outside get everything in parables" (Mark 4:11; Luke 8:10).
c. The first group is blessed because their eyes see and their ears hear. This opportunity is one that many prophets and righteous men sought and did not receive (Matt. 13:16-17).
d. The purpose in giving parables to this second group is "because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand" (Matt. 13:13). The Lord declares this to be a fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy (Matt. 13:14-15; ref. Isa. 6:9-10).
2. Over the years it has been debated whether a person can choose the group to which he will belong or whether God makes that choice via the Calvinistic doctrines of predestination and election. Jesus gives us the answer.
a. Christ's use of Isaiah's prophecy shows that the choice lies with the person.
i. The emphasis is on what the people have done with their senses. Their hearts have become dull, their ears scarcely hear, and "they have closed their eyes."
ii. If a person does not understand, then it is because of the attitude of his heart and his own unwillingness to listen without bias and distraction.
b. Jesus further answers this debate in His explanation of the parable of the sower.
3. Keep in mind that when Jesus was teaching in parables during His ministry, the kingdom of God was still a mystery in many ways.
a. Jesus was just beginning to reveal the truth of the kingdom through the gospel. The full revelation of the kingdom would not be made until after Christ's crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension (Acts 2:14-41).
b. The foundational fact of the kingdom is that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matt. 16:13-19). During His ministry, Jesus was beginning to reveal this fact to His disciples, but He did not permit them to tell others until after His resurrection (Matt. 16:20; 17:9).
c. Thus, parables were appropriate for Christ's purposes during His ministry. After the gospel was fully revealed, Christ's apostles did not teach in parables (see Acts).
III. "HEAR THEN THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER"
A. This parable was given in a general setting to a universal audience.
1. In some cases, the setting in which a parable is taught is vital to a proper understanding of the teaching. However, in the case of the parable of the sower, the setting is not especially significant.
2. Jesus offered this parable as a lesson for all men when He said, "He who has ears, let him hear" (Matt. 13:9; Mark 4:9; Luke 8:8).
B. Although the Lord called this the parable of the sower (Matt. 13:18), the main point of the parable is not about the sower. Rather, the Lord's primary lesson is about the various soils in the parable.
1. Jesus explained that "the seed is the word of God" (Luke 8:11). The sower of this seed is not identified by Jesus, but it is obviously the Lord Himself, and it could also be applied to anyone else who tells the word of God to others.
2. The first seed sown fell beside the road.
a. This represents God's word when it is heard by those who do not understand it (Matt. 13:19).
b. The birds that eat the seed represent Satan, who comes immediately (Mark 4:15) and takes away the word "so that they may not believe and be saved" (Luke 8:12).
c. For these hearers of God's word, Satan quickly closes their opportunity. He preys on their initial lack of understanding and does not give them a second chance.
3. The second seed sown fell on the rocky places.
a. This represents an instant, joyful reception of God's word that is only temporary.
b. Such a hearer "has no firm root in himself" (Matt. 13:21). These hearers are only pretenders, for "when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they fall away" (Mark 4:17).
4. The third seed sown fell among the thorns.
a. This represents "the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful" (Matt. 13:22).
b. Just as thorns and weeds will starve a garden for nutrition, so also the "desires for other things" (Mark 4:19) and "pleasures of this life" (Luke 8:14) can fill one's heart and leave no room for the word of God.
5. The fourth seed sown fell on the good soil.
a. The good soil "is the man who hears the word and understands it" (Matt. 13:23). Such hearers accept the word (Mark 4:20) and hold it fast because they have honest and good hearts (Luke 8:15).
b. As a result of this understanding, the good soil hearers bear fruit in different measures by perseverance (Luke 8:15). Unlike the other hearers, these hearers do not allow anything to separate them from the word of God.
C. The application of this parable trains our hearts to make them receptive to the word of God.
1. Obviously, we want to be the good soil, which requires us to have honest and good hearts.
2. Whether we will be this good soil is within our power to determine.
a. When we hear the word of God, will we allow anything to take it away from us? Will Satan, temptation, persecution, affliction, worry, wealth, pleasures, or anything else come between us and God's message?
b. It is left for us to answer these questions by what we choose to do with God's word. Notice James 1:21-22:
Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
IV. CONCLUSION
A. Is your heart the good soil of which Jesus spoke in the parable of the sower? The sower has come, and the seed has been sown. What will you do with it? Will you be a doer of the word or merely a hearer who is self-deluded?
B. What seed is growing in your heart? "Each tree is known by its fruit" (Luke 6:44). What fruit are you bearing? If your heart is that good soil, then certainly you are bearing a harvest of spiritual fruit for the Lord (Gal. 5:22-23).
