“And he spake to them many things in parables, saying, Behold, the sower went forth to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the birds came and devoured them: and others fell upon the rocky places, where they had not much earth: and straightway they sprang up, because they had no deepness of earth: and when the sun was risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And others fell upon the thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked them: and others fell upon the good ground, and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He that hath ears, let him hear.” (Mat 13:3 -9)
Perhaps you have read the text many times and you have discovered there is nothing new in reading it from the first time. I always ask God questions about His word since it is, indeed, His word. I figure HE will give the best answer and just the right way to answer me. When seeking Him one day through His word I came upon this text and I wanted to share what I believe God shared with me.
1. At one point in our lives we all have had seed sown into our lives that fell among every instance of illustration in this parable. We have all had the word choked out by the thorns in our lives and experienced the seeds withering away from sun scorching them from by perhaps poor timing or unprotected. We have all had seed in our life that fell by the way side because of one reason or another as well as in in the rocky places and where there was a lack of depth or where the fouls of the air ate it.
2. We all have had to be cultivated in our life to get the the good ground to yield fruit.
3. The cultivation process does not necessarily look pretty to the outsider nor does it “feel” so good. The point is it is a process and it is what it takes to yield fruit. I don’t know about you but I see someone who doesn’t look so good in the cultivation process and often what to help them look good and talk more spiritual. I have put more rocks back in and pushed them back into place or tried to put the soil like it was and what did it profit. If you look upon a farmers field or some ground that has never been cultivated you will notice all of the above: You will notice thorns and thistles, rocks, fowls, sun etc but if you note the process that it takes to cultivate the land it will also yield fruit after the ground had been turned over and over until every rock is gone and the hard ground is broke up. It takes on another process of getting all the weeds out so that it doesn’t choke out the precious seed of the farmer.
As I pondered and looked upon the fields at my grandparents house that day, I asked God about this. I realized I was looking at, Yes, manure! Manure being spread. “Oh Lord, that stinks,” I said. “Why manure? Surely that can’t be scriptural!”
But when I asked my knowledgeable friends about the manure they told me that it held moisture in the ground and also it would open the seed casing for it to grow.
There are no short cuts for fruit bearing. The process is an unsightly scene and sometimes don’t smell good. God showed me to stop trying to clean off the manure that protects the seeds not only in my own life but also in others. Gods Word tells me not to judge even myself. That is God’s job and that may be a precious seed going through the process before it can bear the fruit.
“He that hath ears, let him hear.” (Matt. 13: 9)
Melanie J. Ingalls 10/06/02