“So, what kind of soil are we?”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Tuesday, May 24, 2022
Matthew 13:18-23 (Forward, p 26) CEV p. 999
Jesus, in His explanation of the Parable of the Soils, mentioned something in passing that is very significant. All four kinds of soil, all four kinds of the human heart, did receive the message initially. It wasn’t as if they were closed or unresponsive to start with. No, it was rather a case, in the first three soils (or hearts) that they had no ‘staying power.’
So what, we might ask, led up to this? The first soil, we are told, did not understand the message and so it had no roots at all. It was thus easy work for the devil to come snatch it away.
The second soil, the shallow soil (or shallow heart) quickly warmed up to the message and accepted it with eagerness, but because the soil of their hearts was so shallow, it did not have a chance to put down much in terms of roots. (Sadly, this is what sometimes happens in crusade evangelism: amid the strong emotional appeal people are ‘swept away’ and make a decision without really weighing the consequences, and as soon as ‘the light of day’ shines on it, they turn away.)
The third soil, the weedy soil (or cluttered heart) does indeed have a depth of soil, and seemingly, lots of room—that is, lots of room if there were not so many other things already there! The good seed is crowded out by everything else, all their other worries and concerns. (And notice: one of these concerns, the concern for riches, for material wealth, has a certain contemporary ring to it.) I would dare say that many people in our world today fall into this third category. It isn’t that they are diametrically opposed to the message, or even indifferent. It just that they don’t have time. It just gets crowded out by everything else!
Interestingly, when it comes to the fourth kind of soil, the receptive kind, Jesus once again mentions the need for people to understand the message. The fourth group receives the message and understands it.
Perhaps that is where the other groups, the other kinds of soil, fall short.
And here is where I think that much of the church has been grossly and sadly deficient. We really haven’t provided in the way of opportunities for sustained and disciplined study of the faith. I do not believe that a sermon, once a week at most, is sufficient. We need to supplement that with Bible studies and courses in our spiritual life. Otherwise, we will have a whole bunch of soils that produce absolutely nothing—yes, even with the most effective of Sunday preaching! God’s word is out there and God wants it to be effective and do its work, and so, here is where we need to do our part. Amen.
Forward notes: “As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing” (verse 22).
“Millet is an annual grass. One variety is found in birdseed; another is an excellent forage usually made into hay. Since we plant the millet in early June, it has to sprout and grow quickly to crowd out the weeds that also thrive during that time of year. On our first attempt to grow dryland hay millet, we worried that nitrates could accumulate in the forage in a drought, so we decided not to fertilize the soil on a remote field. After the spring rush, we visited the field and found it was a sickly yellow. Immediately, we ordered an application of fertilizer. We did not know any better, but it was too late. The undernourished millet had not shaded out the sandburs. Without that advantage, the sandburs hijacked the fertilizer and overwhelmed the millet.
“Too often, we forget to fertilize the Word and instead immerse ourselves in the cares of the world. But when we do that, we risk fields of weeds, days of wading through chest-high sandburs, and (speaking from experience) months of picking stealthy sandburs from our underwear.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Are you nurturing the Word or the weeds?”