By Don M. Ayock
07.13.08
Proper 10
Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
Jesus once gave His followers a lesson in determining who belonged to His family. He was told that His mother and brothers were outside of a house wanting to speak to Him. Jesus then gestured to the disciples and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers for whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother” (
Matt. 12:46-50).
In the next chapter of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus then went out to a lake and taught large crowds from a boat. He explained to everyone how to become a member of the family that he had talked about. He told them a parable about something they had all seen — a farmer out sowing his seeds. But Jesus asked the people to consider the problems and results of the sowing. How did the seed grow? What happened to it? Did it all make it?
We join Jesus’ family by hearing, receiving and growing in the gospel.
I. The Problem of Hearing
Since the seed was sown by hand, some of it went to places unsuitable for crops. Jesus said it fell on the path. Since the path was hard packed by many feet, the seed could not penetrate the soil. It simply lay on top of the ground and could not germinate. Birds followed the farmer and ate the seeds that did not find the safety of tilled dirt.
Jesus later explained the parable to his disciples. The seed on the path is like people who have heard the gospel, but they really did not “hear” it. It did not penetrate to the deep places of life to lead to repentance and righteousness.
The problem of hearing is not new. If anything, it is more of a problem now than every before. We often have trouble really listening to another person. A “Dilbert” cartoon shows Dilbert walking with his mother. She asks, “How is work, Dilbert?” He answers, “Well, Mom, I’m like a fly stuck in a thick tar of despair. Incompetence hangs in the air like the cold stench of death. I’m drowning and monkeys dressed as lifeguards are throwing me anvils. My job has convinced me that life is a stale joke with no punch line. I long for the comfort of the grave.”
His mother looks at him and says, “Next time just say, ‘It’s fine’.”
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