The Kingdom of God is Like...A Sower

Today we are starting a brand-new sermon series called “The Kingdom of God is Like…” It is all about the Kingdom of God. (Hence, the rainbow-ish, otherworldly colors in the logo) I’m excited because we are going to be learning about the kingdom of God from the foremost expert in the Kingdom of God.

No, I’m not talking about myself.
I’m not talking about some scholar at Duke.
I’m not even talking about flying in some professor from the Seminary.

I’m talking about Jesus.

Because when it comes to the Kingdom of God, there is no one better to learn from than the One who came from God’s Kingdom.
He’s the “of God” in Kingdom of God.
He’s the foremost expert becomes He is the One who developed the concepts behind it.

So, what we’ll be doing is looking at 10 parts of Scripture where Jesus himself tells about the Kingdom of God.
 
10 lessons.
10 sections of Scripture.
10 glimpses into the Kingdom of God.

Now because the Kingdom of God is such an otherworldly thing, I want to introduce you to a concept that we’re going to become very familiar with over the next 10 weeks. It’s something called a “Parable.” A parable is a short earthly story that teaches about the Kingdom of God.

It’s kind of like Aesop’s fables. Have you heard any of those? The Gnat and the Bull. The Puffed-up Frog. I think the most famous is the Ant and the Grasshopper.
 
The ant works hard; the grasshopper is lazy.
The ant carries some food; the grasshopper takes a nap.
The ant carries 10 times his body weight, back and forth, all day; the grasshopper gets to level 12 on Minecraft.

But…when winter comes, the ant has plenty of food; the grasshopper is starving.
The lesson? Do work.    

Jesus’ parables are similar to Aesop’s fables in that they both use earthly elements to tell the story.

But the parables of Jesus are a bit different from Aesop’s Fables in this:

Aesop’s fables teach an earthly lesson.
Jesus’ parables teach a heavenly lesson – a spiritual lesson – an eternal lesson.


Today we are looking at a parable from Mark 4. It teaches us that the Kingdom of God is like a Sower. How? And what does it mean for you? We’ll examine that in a moment, but first a prayer:
Lord, strengthen us by the truth; your Word is truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; our ears to hear what you want us to hear and our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen.
 
I. The Story

The story that Jesus told his disciples starts in Mark 4:3. Jesus is teaching to a very large crowd.  Sometimes to deal with the large crowds, Jesus taught at the top of the hill and the crowds sat at the bottom, looking up to see him. But on this particular occasion he was next to a lake, so…what Jesus does is pretty genius. He gets into a boat and casts out to sea -- it’s a floating pulpit of sorts so that all could see and hear him.

Granted, of the people that came to listen to Jesus, they came for different reasons.
 
Some thought he was a phony. Others were intrigued. 
Some wanted to see a magic show. Others had fully devoted themselves to him – their Savior.

From his floating pulpit surrounded by crowds of people with varying opinions of him, Jesus said this:
“Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.”

Have you ever planted anything before? On a farm? In a garden?

If you’ve ever planted a lot of seed before, you know it can be time consuming. If you plant seed in a garden, you get on your hands and knees push the seed into the perfect part of the soil. But if you’ve had to get more seed into larger section of soil, you might use one of those little wheelie grass sower thingies. Know what I’m talking about? You fill it with seed, a propeller spins as you move, and it hurls out grass seed in all directions. Some of the seed that comes out will grow; other seeds will not.

Back at Jesus’ time, they didn’t have such incredible inventions as the little wheelie grass sower thingy. Instead, the one who needed to sow a lot of seed simply reach into a pouch and tossed the seed into the air.

The seed then landed in a lot of different places.

As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.  Maybe that path was concrete. Maybe it was gravel. Maybe it was just really, really hard from lots of travel. Regardless – when the seed fell on the hard ground – it didn’t stand a chance. The birds thought it was some kind of gourmet meal, descended onto the feast and ate up the seed.

And – well – seed doesn’t grow well inside the belly of a raven, so…

The seed didn’t grow.
 
Some fell on rocky places where it did not have much soil. (v.6) Thus the seed had a better chance than the seed that fell on the sidewalk. At least, there was some dirt for the roots to move through. In fact, because of the little rocks that were in the soil – the soil held water fairly well and the seed grew quickly. The moisture was trapped in the first ½ inch of dirt. The soaked seed grew quickly.

It’s the same thing that happens in the “wrap a seed in a wet paper towel and place it in a plastic baggy” experiment from Kindergarten.  At first, the seed does well.

But – eventually little Jimmy forgets to add water to the towel.
And – the roots can’t make their way past the plastic bag.
So…the little plant runs out of water and dies.
 
And little Jimmy throws a fit.

The same principle applies in real gardening.
The rocks allow the water to fast track the seed.
The seed grows quickly while it’s raining.
But then…the sun gets hot, there’s no water and…
 
The plant dies.
The seed didn’t grow.
 
Other seed fell among thorns. (v.7) 

AKA Weeds.

Have you ever noticed that weeds don’t need to be watered?
Nobody ever says, “Scuse me. I need to go water the weeds so that they don’t die.”
Nobody ever buys a bag of “Miracle Thistle Grow” at Home Depot.
Nobody ever says, “I’m taking this can of poison to my Rose Bush so that the poison ivy will grow a bit better.”

Nobody wants weeds in their gardens because they take over.
They grow too big.
They sap the soil of nutrients, soak up all the water and block the sun from starting photosynthesis in our little plant.

Unfortunately, the seed that’s surrounded by weeds has the same thing happen.
It grows – it just doesn’t have a lot of fruit.
Maybe, one little rotten tomato – that’s about it.

The seed didn’t work like it was supposed to.

Still other seed fell on good soil; it came up, grew and produced a crop, some multiplying thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times. (v.8)  

Because sometimes, the seed works.
Sometimes the soil is soft enough.
Sometimes the roots can grow deep enough.
Sometimes the weeds are weeded enough and then...

The seed grows into a plant.
The plant grows into a mature plant.
The mature grows into a natural sower.

It plans seeds and produces a crop of thirty, sixty, even a hundred times what was originally sown.

I’ll tell you what – it’s amazing when this happens.

For instance, last year – we planted carrots. They grew – ish. 
They were crooked, brown, and ugly. I pulled most of them because I figured it wasn’t worth it.
But this year – low and behold – a few more had sprouted. Planted, not by me, but by the ugly, brown carrots I had previously planted.

It’s amazing when a plant grows so well that it doesn’t planting all on its own.
And that’s what happens with the seed on the good soil.

It grows.
It plants.
It does what it’s supposed to.

Jesus finishes the parables and says: “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” (v.9)
 
You’ve got ears.
I’ve got ears.
Let us hear us take to heart the parable.

II. The Truth about the Kingdom of God
 
But…what are we supposed to take to heart?

The challenges of farming?
That Jesus was a big Agricultural Enthusiast?

Remember: A parable is a short earthly story that teaches about the Kingdom of God. This is more than just an article for Better Homes and Gardens.
It’s talking about heaven.
It’s talking about the spiritual.
It’s talking about God’s kingdom.

To be fair, the disciples were confused, too.
They came to Jesus and asked him to explain it to them.
Thankfully – Mark wrote down Jesus’ explanation.

Let’s take it one seed at a time:

The farmer sows the word. (v.14) The seed is God’s message. The message that we are sinners. The message that we deserve God’s punishment. The message that we need a Savior. The message that we have a savior in Jesus. The message that Jesus died on the cross to take away all of our sins.

The farmer, then, is anyone who proclaims God’s Word.

A pastor.
a Preschool teacher.
A dad reading a dinnertime devotion.
A mom reading a bedtime Bible story.
A friend telling his coworker about what he believes.
 
The farmer is anyone who proclaims God’s Word. Because every time he speaks this message of Jesus – it’s as if that person is tossing seed onto the ground.
Think about that – every time you speak the message of Jesus, you are tossing seed onto the ground of someone’s hearts.

But what happens next?

Well…
That depends.  

(1) Hardened Rejection

(v.15) Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.
 
You met someone like this?

They want nothing to do with Jesus.
They tell you do change your cross screensaver at work.
They love not believing there is a God so much that they won’t even consider the fact that God might exist.

They are hardened in sin.
They are hardened in unbelief.
They are hardened in absolute, complete rejection of Jesus.

I had this happen recently. I posted one of those ads on social media that invited people to church to hear about forgiveness in Jesus.
And someone commented: “You stupid bleepity, bleep. This is a bunch of bleepity, bleep.”

Hardened rejection.

(2) Quick to Grow, Quick to Fade
 
Others, like 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. (v.16-17)

And these types of people get on fire for God’s Word!
They love the message of Jesus.
They fly through Bible Basics.
Get baptized.
Get their kids baptized.
They sign up for all the ways to serve.
They help on all the work days at church.
They tell all of their friends about Jesus!

But then…
…one of their friends…
Tells them to: Shut up. I don’t care about Jesus. And I can’t believe you believe that foolishness.

And…woah!
I didn’t know people could treat us like that.
I don’t like this.
If that’s what it means to be a Christian, maybe…

I stop serving.
I stop going to group.
I get rid of all Christian themes on Social media.
And I stop attending church. Don’t want Pastor to put a picture of me doing Christian stuff on Social media.

Quick to Grow; Quick to Fade.
 
(3) Choked by Worry and Wealth Weeds
 
Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. (v.19)

This type of person hears the word and believes.
Not just for a short time; for a while.

They might even be a longtime member of a church.
They have given lots of money.
They have their name on a plaque!

But….
Then…

The boss offers a new job.
The new job takes more hours at work.
The new hours get more money.
The more money buys new things.
The longtime Christian thinks – “Boss wants me to work this Sunday? It’s ok. I will. It’s only one Sunday. I need the money.”

One Sunday becomes two Sundays.
Becomes weeks.
Becomes months.
Becomes – a complete and utter lack of faith.

The weeds of worry and wealth; choke the plant.
The faith stops bearing fruit.

Even…
Dies.

(4) Grown and Multiplying
 
Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—some thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown. (v.20)
 
This type of person hears the word and believes.
And grows in faith.
And keeps growing in faith.
And bears fruit.

And becomes a sower, too.

Good seed.
Good soil.
A good plant.
 
III. What Now?

(1) Garden Your Own Heart

The first question that always pops into my mine when I read this is: What kind of soil am I?

Humor me.
Consider.

What kind of soil are you?

A heart full of hardened rejection?
A heart that was quick to believe and now is quickly falling away?
A heart that is slowly being choked by worries and wealth?
Or are you the good soil on which faith is growing? And bearing fruit? And being a super impressive, gorgeous plant?

Except – if you are trusting that you’ve got a faith growing heart…Isn’t the plant that’s growing the plant of faith in one’s ability to grow faith?

Here’s the deal.
No matter what kind of heart you have and what kind of faith plant is growing in your heart – the solution is the same:

God’s Word. 

Therefore – What Now Number 1:
 
Garden Your Heart with God’s Word.

God’s Word softens hearts. Ezekiel 11:19 says, “I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.”
God’s Word removes obstacle rocks. Luke 3:5 says, “The rough ways will become smooth.”
God’s Word cuts weeds. Hebrews 4:12 says, “The Word of God is living and active; sharper than a double-edged sword.”
God’s Word causes faith to grow. Isaiah 55:9 says, “Like rain and snow that nourish the earth, so is God’s Word.”

In other words:

God’s Word softens our rejection.
God’s Word removes our doubts.
God’s Word grows deep roots.
God’s Word cuts down weeds.
God’s Word nourishes our faith plants so that they grow…
…and bear fruit.
…and become a sower.

(2) Expect Varied Results
 
I think this is the main point of Jesus’ parable -- When I plant seed (share God’s Word), what kind of response should I expect?

Because remember – Jesus is telling this is to the disciples. The disciples who – if you remember our ACTS Sermon series – planted all kinds of faith seed up and down the Middle Eastern coast as they shared God’s Word.

Some people believed.
Others? Threw stones at them until they were thought to be dead.

Different results.

Jesus is preparing his disciples by telling them that the result will not always be great.
That their work will not always lead to a confession of faith.
That many times they share the Gospel will lead to nothing more than a Meh.
 
Think the same way.

Don’t expect awesome results all the time.
If you do, then, it’s so easy to get discouraged.

I know this as a pastor.
Honest truth – a lot of times people don’t follow through on Bible studies.
People don’t seem to listen to encouragements to get into God’s Word.
People don’t care much for the message of Jesus.

If I was expecting it to work all the time, then…I would have given up.
But Jesus tells us to expect various result.

Which means – it’s going exactly how he said it would.
 
And so…that leads to our final what now:

(3) Keep Sowing
 
Because just about the only thing that will ensure a plant never grows is if you never plant the seed.
And just about the only thing that will ensure a person never comes to faith is if you never tell them about Jesus.

Notice. Your job is simple.

It isn’t to convert a heart.
It isn’t to make faith grow.
It isn’t to make a faith blossom into a mature plant.

Nope.

Your job is simply to plant the seed.
God’s job is to make it grow.

And God? He’s awesome at making faith grow.
 
The Kingdom of God is like a Sower.
Are you a part of the kingdom of God?

Sow.

Amen.