Matthew 13:1-23
Introduction:
The immediate context of this parable is surrounded with thoughts of understanding and misunderstanding. Only a few paragraphs back in chapter 12 we find the Pharisees misunderstanding Jesus’ approach to Sabbath, misunderstanding as to who he is… is he the Son of David or Beelzebub. Misunderstanding as to what is family to Jesus. Directly after the parables in chapter 13 we see misunderstanding as to who Jesus is “Isn’t this the carpenters son” The parable of the Sower is fixed in the context of misunderstanding who Jesus really is. The parable of the sower helps us with “Understanding Jesus”.
NB Confusing the parables: We often could be in a place of confusing these parables one with each other. We could say that they are all saying the same thing. The two we have to watch for and mine the meaning for individually are the parable of the sower and the parable of the weeks. They are saying different things. They don’t convey the same thing. The seed and the sower in both parables are different. As we will see. The Parable of the sower is God sowing Jesus the saviour in the world and the parable of the weeds is Jesus sowing salvation in the world.
A Parable about “Understanding” God.
- In verse 18, Jesus calls the story "the parable of the sower." This alone is instructive. It means that this is a parable about God, and not about us.
- It's the parable of the sower, not the parable of the four kinds of soil.
- It's about what God does, It’s about the extravagance of a Sower who flings seed everywhere, wastes it with holy abandon, who feeds the birds, whistles at the rocks, picks his way through the thorns, shouts hallelujah at the good soil and just keeps on sowing, confident that there is enough seed to go around, that there is plenty that everywhere needs the seed.
- · It’s not about us and our feeble efforts at putting God's word into action. But it’s God’s heart in making Christ known in the world.
- A common view of the parable is that Jesus was going around throwing out "the word." Don’t be confused with the parable of the weeds.
- For example we may want to prepare ourselves to be really good soil so that when Jesus throws "the word" on us, we--splendid people that we are--can put it into action and (finally) make it into something. Wrong.
- This is completely wrong-headed for the very basic reason that the sower is not Jesus. God is the sower.
- God sows the Word--logon, Christ--absolutely everywhere.
- Jesus is not the sower, but the seed that is sown.
- In Matthew and Luke the seed is Jesus, In Mark the parable is developed to meet his context which is that of persecution and suffering, so the parable takes on a mixture of both the parable of the sower and the weeds. Mark seeks to encourage faithfulness to Christ in the midst of the darkness. “Noble and good heart”
- Vs 19 Jesus says “It’s a parable about the message of the kingdom” It’s not just the kingdom but it’s the king. The seed is the king. No kingdom without a king.
Conclusion: Let’s truly recover the meaning of the parable of the sower. That it’s all about what God the father thinks of his son, and where he has sown him in this world.
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