Pastor Scott Andrews | December 8th, 2024
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Luke 8:4-15
For you married couples, or for anyone who has ever been in relationship with another person, you know there is a difference between hearing and listening. I have been told, on occasion, that I hear, but I don’t listen. The truth is, I can’t hear, so how can I listen? Which reminds me of this post I once saw, “Husbands are the best people to share secrets with. They’ll never tell anyone, because they aren’t even listening.” How many times have you had, we’ll call it a discussion, and one says to the other, you’re not listening to me. I don’t know what you mean – I’ve heard every word you’ve said. But there’s a difference between hearing and listening.
Hearing the words coming out of your mouth is one thing. Understanding, comprehending, acting upon those words is something altogether different. It’s why Jesus one day said to those hearing Him – He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Now, if you were with Jesus any amount of time, you knew everyone had ears to hear – if they didn’t, He’d heal them. So there must be something more to hearing than the mechanics of distinguishing sounds. I know you hear Me, He says, but I want you to listen.
Every week, I stand up here and talk. And you hear. Here’s my question – are you listening? Because what I have to say today – actually, what Jesus says is of eternal consequence. Again, there’s a difference between hearing and listening – understanding, comprehending, and acting on what you hear.
We arrive this morning at the first extended parable of Jesus in the gospel of Luke. It’s a parable of the kingdom. Through it, Jesus begins to reveal to us the mysteries of the kingdom. The word parable comes from the Greek word parabole, meaning to throw or lay something alongside. Through this literary device which Jesus mastered, He’s uses familiar, everyday stories and lays them alongside spiritual truths – to illuminate those truths. Now surprisingly, Jesus used parables first, to conceal truth from those who refused to believe, and second, to reveal deeper truth to those who did believe. To be clear, parables help darken the line between insiders and outsiders. Spiritual truth is for insiders – which is why He explained the parables to His disciples. It is not for rebellious outsiders, which is why He spoke in parables.
You see, while Luke has presented undeniable evidence that Jesus is the Christ, there has been a variety of responses to the proof. Surprisingly, there have been those who doubted, others who resisted, and those who rejected and opposed Him. Eventually, there will be those who put Him to death – even though they heard Him. But they weren’t listening. And so they were hardened in their unbelief.
So at this point, while there are still large crowds and popularity is rising, so also is opposition. And that opposition came from those you would never expect. Religious leaders – this was a religious movement, right? They were supposed to be waiting for the Messiah. And so, as opposition rises, a question arises, is this kingdom going to make it? After all, Jesus does have some followers, but the twelve He chose to be leaders of His band – no one else would have selected – fishermen, tax collector, Zealots and no name Galileans, sinners. The leaders, the respectable, the religious of the day were rejecting Him. What will become of this kingdom?
And so, lest there be any doubt or confusion, Jesus launches into a parable which describes the nature of His kingdom. And He assures us – despite all the opposition, despite all the rejection, the kingdom will succeed. Let me just give you a little preview – that is the mystery revealed. The seed will spread, and some will fall on good soil. Sure, it’s going to fall on bad soil – sure, there will be weeds and rocks to contend with. But, the good seed will grow, and it will produce miraculously. And after 2000 years of church history, we’ve found that to be true. And the kingdom is growing today – to those who have ears to hear. Are you listening? Turn to Luke 8 with me. Let’s start by reading verses 4-8.
I’ll outline the text like this:
I. We’ll look at the Parable in verses 4-8. Jesus is giving a physical story, laying it alongside spiritual truth.
II. Then, in verses 9-10, Jesus tells the Purpose of Parables, and it’s a little surprising. It’s there in all three synoptic gospels, but somehow, we seem to miss it. We speak of parables making it easier to understand. Not so – it’s actually the opposite.
III. Then, in verses 11-15, we’ll see The Interpretation of the Parable. Jesus explains for us the spiritual truth He was illuminating. And as we look at the interpretation, we’re going to apply this parable in some practical ways to our own lives. Specifically, is the kingdom growing in you – are you producing fruit – or are the distractions of this life choking out your once seemingly vibrant, but now meager or nonexistent faith?
Let’s start by looking at the parable. By the way, this parable is told in all three synoptic gospels. It’s important we remember the context in Luke. Luke has been proving conclusively that Jesus was the Messiah. Despite the rising opposition from the religious, He continues to teach and perform amazing miracles. But, was anybody listening? What would become of this movement? Sure, He has ragtag group of disciples – we looked at them last week. What now?
The other gospels tell us Jesus went down to the Sea of Galilee, got into a boat, sat down, and began to say many things to the crowds, in parables. Luke only records the parable of the sower here. It’s addressed to the crowds, but only explained to His disciples. You see, the parables revealing spiritual truth are not for outsiders – they’re only for insiders.
The parable is an agricultural metaphor. It’s not difficult to see. Perhaps Jesus, from the boat, even pointed toward a farmer off in the distance doing his work. The farmer, the sower, would have a bag around his neck, in which he held the seed. As he walked along the furrows, he would broadcast the seed by hand. This was usually done, by the way, in the winter, awaiting the spring months.
Now, bordering the field would be paths that separated the fields and led from one field to another. They were the roads of the day, hard-packed from years of being packed by travelers. In the field, there would also be rocky soil. By that, we shouldn’t see soil with a bunch of rocks lying on top like we have around here. A good farmer would have taken care of those. In Palestine, lying right beneath the surface of the soil, a few inches deep, could be a layer of limestone rock. That’s what Jesus is talking about – it looks like good soil, but it only goes so deep before it hits a bedrock of resistance. And then, of course, in the field, in any garden, there would be those inevitable weeds, here called thorns, thistles which were everywhere. The farmer didn’t plant them any more than you planted your dandelions. They just appeared.
So, as the sower broadcast the seed, some would land on the path. The birds would come behind and eat the seed still lying on top. Others would step on it, pulverize it, rendering it useless. You see, it would never penetrate the road, it was too hard. Some of the seed would fall in that shallow soil with the limestone rocks. The seed would spring up quickly, the rocky soil was warm from the warmth of the sun. But, as soon as it sprung up, the plant would wither, because there was no depth of soil – it was shallow – no water, no roots.
And some of the seed would fall among the thorns. Oh, you didn’t see the thorns and weeds at first – it was right at winter, right after the field had been plowed – they hadn’t grown up yet. But they did, right along with the good seed. And because they were so tenacious, as weeds usually are, they choked out the good seed. They robbed it of water and soil and sun, and it died.
But, finally, Jesus tells us, there will be some seed that will fall on good soil. Dark, rich, deep, moist soil common to Galilee. And the seed will flourish and yield a good crop, a hundred-fold. You might be interested to know that back then, before all the chemicals, fertilizers, irrigation and technology that we use today, a good crop was considered to be an eightfold increase. This was an abundant harvest – even miraculous.
Let me point out some things here that interpreters notice. First, there were three bad soils, followed by a good soil. Interesting – once we get to the interpretation, does that mean only about one in four will believe? That the majority won’t? Notice second, the first three soils all had things that ultimately destroyed the seed – the birds, the scorching sun, and the thorns. Notice third, the increasing nature of the bad soils. First, the seed on the path didn’t do anything – it just laid on top until it was eaten by the birds. Second, the seed on the rocky soil immediately sprouted, showed some promise, but then soon died. The seed among the thorns grew, continued to grow, but produced no crop – it was fruitless. All three, in increasing measure, started with some hope, but ultimately accomplished nothing.
Well, what does all that mean? Of course, for many of us, the story is so familiar, it seems glaringly obvious – we figure the disciples must have been sort of dense to not figure it out. In fact, in Mark, this is the first of several times Jesus refers to the denseness, the slowness of the disciples. But before we’re too hard on them, remember, we have 2,000 years of familiarity with the parable – and we’ve probably never read it without its corresponding interpretation. And even with the interpretation given, there is still a fair amount of disagreement as to what it means. But before we look at the interpretation, let’s look at it in our second point, the purpose of parables. And I say parables, plural, because while the disciples asked about this parable, Jesus told them the purpose of parables. Let’s read verses 9-10.
What does that mean? We often hear parables are earthly stories with heavenly or spiritual meanings. They are simple stories to help people understand spiritual truth. And that’s true…to a point – that is, for believers. For insiders, not for outsiders. Not for those who refuse to believe – you know, like the religious, like the Pharisees. Look at verse 10 – to you, disciples, it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom. A mystery in the Scripture speaks of truths that were before hidden, previously unknown, but now have been made known by God. And the only way it can be known is if God revealed it. To whom? To His disciples – His followers.
But notice the rest of verse 10 – but to the rest, namely unbelievers, it is in parables, so that seeing they may not see and hearing they may not understand. That’s a quote from Isaiah 6 – and we have to remember the context of Isaiah. They were going into captivity, because they had refused to listen. Their hearts were rebellious, so to judgment they would go – even though Isaiah would preach the truth them. God hardened them in their rebellion.
You see, there is a difference between hearing and listening – hearing and understanding, comprehending, so as to do something about the truth. You see, when you hear and believe, you commit your life to it. And the only way you’ll understand is to commit yourself to the gospel. You’re not going to understand everything. But commit your life to Christ, and grow you will. You’ll understand more. Some of you know enough to believe, but you’re simply hearing. Some of you have heard, but refuse to believe. So, I’m asking you to listen, and believe. More understanding comes, when you receive the Holy Spirit. Some of you have heard the truth over and over, yet refuse to surrender and submit to Christ. I’m suggesting, as this text says, there is a point of no return.
Which brings us to our third point – the interpretation of the parable in verses 11-15.
Notice as we begin, Jesus doesn’t identify the sower. In Matthew’s account, the next parable after this one is the parable of the tares of the field, and the sower is identified as the Son of Man, Jesus Himself. Certainly, the sower could be Jesus – the kingdom message started with Him. But beyond that, I think the parable applies to us today, and the sower is anyone who shares the seed. In fact, last Thursday our Life Group went to the Billy Graham Library. There was a bronze statue in Ruth’s Attic depicting this parable – and the sower was supposed to be a likeness of Billy Graham. But, the caption on the statue said it represents anyone who shares the message of the kingdom. The message of the gospel. I agree.
Well, what is the seed? Jesus identifies that for us in verse 11 – it is the word. The word is the message of the kingdom Jesus has been teaching all along – Repent and believe the gospel, for the kingdom of God is at hand. It’s the same message we preach today – the message of the gospel of the kingdom. Repent, for the kingdom is at hand. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has died for sinners. Turn from your sin, make Him the Lord and Savior of your life, and you will know the forgiveness of sin. This seed is being broadcast – which soil are you? Are you listening?
So, the sower went out – whether that’s Jesus, or His followers whom He soon commissions in chapter 9 – or us – and we broadcast the message of the gospel. Notice, first of all, we spread the seed everywhere – to anyone who will hear – and we pray that God will open their hearts to listen. Notice also the seed was the same, as was the method of broadcast. Same sower, same bag, same seed, same process. Meaning, it’s not so much how the seed is spread – we’re not talking about a good presentation of the gospel verses an inadequate presentation – rather, it’s a matter of how it is received. Along the path, along the rocky soil, along the thorn-invested soil, and along the good soil. We broadcast the message – it is then the soil’s responsibility to receive the seed and do something with it. So some have suggested, perhaps rightly, this should be called the parable of the soils.
And Jesus identifies four types of soil or hearts which correspond to four kinds of hearers of the message of the kingdom. The difference? Those who hear, and those who listen and respond.
The first is the seed sown along the road, and represents the unresponsive hearer. The hard and indifferent heart. Jesus says this is the kind of person who hears the message, but doesn’t understand it. Why? Because the path is hard – the heart is hard – there can be no penetration of the truth of the gospel in this person’s heart. The problem isn’t with the seed – there is no deficiency in the message. The problem is with the reception. The truth just sits there and does nothing. This person is unconcerned with the things of God – he doesn’t have time for it, she’s not interested. He’s got other more important things to do – all this Christianity talk is just foolishness. Over and over as the seed hits the heart, it becomes more compacted – harder, more indifferent to the truth. His heart is never softened by remorse, never broken by conviction, never cultivated by even the smallest desire for anything godly or good.
Paul says of this person (II Corinthians 4:3-4): “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.” In fact, birds, or Satan, comes and snatches away what has been sewn. It’s very possible Jesus is talking about the religious with whom He does battle. They’ve heard it all, they’ve seen it all, but it does nothing. There is no reception of truth – their hearts are hard. Does this describe you?
The second seed falls on the rocky places and represents the superficial or shallow hearer. Remember, the seed sprouted quickly – but then, it withered, because it had no root. Jesus describes this hearer as the one who hears the truth of the gospel and receives it quickly, with joy. This is great stuff – I like this church stuff. Because everybody likes community. Or maybe, I like all the promises of the gospel. I like the promise of abundant life. I like the idea of eternal life. I like the benefits of Christianity – healing and forgiveness and grace and life. This person’s on an emotional high, a spiritual euphoria. Notice, the seed sprouts quickly – this guy is all zeal – very excited, all talk, no depth. No reality.
It’s very possible this person heard the gospel preached as some kind of spiritual lollipop – anybody here want to live forever, say I do. Raise your hand, sign a card, walk an aisle, sign me up – and the truths about the costs of following Jesus are never shared, never heard. This person never read the fine print. He is unaware the true follower of Jesus must take up His cross daily. This person is unaware of what Jesus said, if they hated me, they will hate you also. You will be scourged in the synagogues, you will be handed over to governments. People will hate you because you name the name of Christ. .
This person doesn’t understand there is a cost. There is no root, so when the sun of affliction and persecution arise because of the word, he falls away. Notice, this is persecution or affliction because of the word. This isn’t just difficulties at work, financial stresses, problems at home – that’s the next soil. These are trials because of the word – the message of the kingdom. People turn on you, just like Jesus. You see, there are lots of people who don’t like the gospel.
The third seed sown among the thorns represents the worldly or distracter hearer with misplaced priorities. This person, like the last, hears the word. In fact, much like the rocky ground, this seed sprouts up. But, so do the thorns of this world. Jesus describes them as the worries of the world and the deceitfulness of riches. In other words, they are the things in this life that compete for our attention or affection. These may be the challenges of home, of work, of school, of relationships. These are the things in our society that demand our time, our resources, our loyalty, and our love. And when you give into those worries and wants, when you make them the number one priority in your life, then spiritual life dies. It becomes unfruitful. Jesus will have first place, or He will have no place.
Which is why Paul said in I Timothy 6, “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” It’s why John said, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him….The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever.”
Now, the question at this point is, are the first three hearers believers? This is where there is a raging debate, a diversity of opinion. Almost everyone agrees the first hearer, described as the hard-hearted one, is not a believer – there is, and never has been any life.
But others argue the next two hearers, the rocky ground and the thorny ground, are either not believers, or believers who have lost their salvation, or believers who are backslidden – that is, there is no fruit, but they’re still saved.
You see, they point out – there was an initial reception of the message of the kingdom. There was life, however short it was, before it was snuffed out. As attractive as that may sound to explain our lives, or the life of some loved one – they’re just unfruitful believers – the Scripture knows of no such thing. James 2 says faith without works – that is, faith without corresponding fruit – is dead. He asks the question – can that kind of faith save a man? The answer is no. It is dead – meaning, it does not produce the intended result: the salvation of the soul.
While there was an initial reception of the gospel – there was no real conversion. There is a religious experience, but not a relational one. The feelings changed, the mind even changed, for a while. But there was no change of heart. These are like those in Matthew 7 who built their houses on the sand, but when the winds and waves came, the house crumbled. To which Jesus said, “No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
The point is this. True discipleship, true following Jesus is exacting and demanding. True followers are willing to give it all up for Him, and they produce fruit. It’s not the fruit that saves – it just proves you have been saved. Fruitless Christians is an oxymoron. They don’t exist. You will know them by their fruit, Jesus said. No fruit, no life. These are people who liked what they heard, they even accepted what they heard, but they weren’t redeemed. No life. Are you listening?
You see, only the fourth hearer, the good soil, is the true believer – the one who what? Hears, receives, believes, and produces fruit. The other gospel accounts suggest there are different levels of yield, if you will. They are not all at the same level. This isn’t a comparison – some will be more effective than others, thirty, sixty, a hundred-fold – but there will always be fruit when the seed finds the good soil of an accepting heart. And they will reproduce – they will yield a spiritual crop. Luke simply identified the hundred-fold crop – not that it’s necessarily the best – he simply shortens the parable, but it makes the same point.
Notice Jesus doesn’t identify what the crop is. Everyone tries to do that. Some say, a true believer will make others believers. Others say, the fruit of the Spirit will be evidence in his life. Still others say, you will see the fruit of obedience – a holy and blameless life. What is it? I don’t know – perhaps a combination of all the above. The fact is, a true believer will lead a productive life. But don’t miss this: it’s not the crop that saves him – it’s just proof that the seed found good soil.
I also want you to notice something else. This is very important. The good soil likely has to deal with the complications of the other three soils. What do I mean? The first soil had the problem of the birds – the attacks of Satan. The second soil had the scorching sun – afflictions and persecution. The third soil had the thorns – the worries of this world and the deceitful call of riches. A true believer must face those things. But because the word has penetrated his heart, and found good soil – there’s depth of soil, there’s nourishment – there strength of character – he is able to withstand those complications of life. He perseveres to the end.
So, as we close, what’s the encouragement? What’s the mystery of the kingdom? The message of the kingdom, as clear and as understandable and as reasonable and as wonderful as it is to us, will not be received by everyone. Jesus gives a parable to illustrate the truth: hearing, they will not hear, seeing, they will not see. The seed of the message will be shared with lots of different people. The success of your ministry is not dependent on how good you sow. It is dependent on the seed – life is in the seed. And no matter how well you sow, some will not receive. You’re not going to win everybody. Some will be so hard they’ll reject it outright. Others will initially receive it, only to turn away because it’s too difficult – the demands are too great. Still others will initially receive it, only to be sidetracked by what this world has to offer.
The mystery of the kingdom is this: the kingdom will grow. The message for us is to follow – at any cost. Don’t give up. Don’t give in. It’s real, it will succeed, it’s worth it. Follow Christ, and in so doing, you will produce a crop – you will prove the reality of your faith.
These have been hard words. Jesus told us, many will hear, but not all will believe. Where do you find yourself this morning? I know most of you have believed. As difficult as it’s been, you’ve remained faithful. I want to encourage you – stay faithful. It’s worth it. But maybe, for some of you, your heart is crisscrossed with areas of hardness. Maybe afflictions or persecution have unsettled you. The worries of this world and the deceitfulness of wealth have sidetracked you. And perhaps, in this moment, it’s time to recommit.