You would turn with me in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 13. Matthew 13. Going to read verses 1 through 23 of Matthew chapter 13. That same day, Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. And great crowds gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat down. And the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell upon the path, and the birds came and devoured them. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil. And immediately, they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and produced grain, some a hundredfold, some 60, some 30. He who has ears, let him hear. Then the disciples came and said to him, why do you speak to them in parables? And he answered them, to you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says, For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their eyes they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them. But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches it away, what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Yet he has no root in himself but endures for a while and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word but cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and it unproves unfruitful. As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty." Let's pray together. Our Father God, thank you for the privilege of ending another Lord's Day gathered with your children in worship and singing your praise and hearing your truth. Lord Jesus, thank you for your promised presence when two or three are gathered in your name. Thank you that we come with joy and not in fear because you have paid for our sins and have given us your righteousness that we can stand joyfully in the presence of your glory. Holy Spirit, you have inspired men to write the words of truth, words that are spirit and life to us. It is through hearing the Word that faith comes, and yet none of us can understand the Word. No one can receive the Word apart from your gracious work of regeneration and illumination. So Holy Spirit, grant us ears to hear, eyes to see, and hearts to understand the word as we consider it tonight. And we pray in the name of Jesus, our Savior and our Lord. Amen. The Bible is filled with stories. One pastor has even written a book about God's revelation of himself entitled, He Gave Us Stories. We all love a good story and Jesus often taught by telling stories. There are many types of stories. There are stories that are true, they're about actual events. There are fictional stories that sound like they could have happened but were really just made up by the storyteller. They're fantastical stories that have nothing to do with reality, couldn't possibly happen. They're fables like those of Aesop who present some moral truth but are not real life situations. Jesus taught using a special type of story that we call a parable. Parables are not fables because they speak of real life and real life situations. They're also distinct from allegory, stories that have every detail means something beyond itself. And a parable is a story about real life and real life situations that points to something beyond itself, to some spiritual truth. And they generally have one main point to communicate, not every detail in a parable means something beyond itself. So tonight we want to begin a series of studies of the parables of Jesus. But before we look at our first parable let's think a little bit more about parables in general. We've already mentioned some of the characteristics of parables that make them distinct from other types of story. The nature of the parables, the what. The question I want to look at before we begin is the why. Why did Jesus teach in parables? What was His purpose in using parables? We see in our text that Jesus' disciples had the same question. In verse 10 they came and they said, why do you speak to them in parables? It seems that the disciples made a distinction between themselves and the crowds, the us and them kind of mindset. And in Jesus' answer to them in verse 11, he makes a similar distinction. He says, to you, you disciples, it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. then a couple of verses later Jesus tells the disciples why He spoke to the crowds in parables. Verse 13 He says, "'Because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.'" This leads us to an intriguing aspect of Jesus' parables that several commentators highlight. The parables both reveal and conceal the truth. those whose heart is prepared and receptive the parables reveal truth. But to those whose heart has grown dull is the phrase that Jesus uses in verse 15, the truth is concealed from them even in the parable that reveals it to those who are receptive. And even the disciples themselves at times had to have the parable explained to them and that happens in the story of this parable. required an explanation. So in verses 18-23 Jesus explains the parable, tells them what it means, what its point is. The truth is concealed until it is revealed. It sometimes requires explanation. In fact, Terry Johnson put it like this, he said, the Father reveals the truth to some and hides it from others. Look again at verse 11. There's something that has been given to the disciples that has not been given to the crowds. Truth is revealed. We can draw some implications from this, but one thing is clearly seen. Knowing the mysteries of God's kingdom, understanding spiritual reality, it only comes to a receptive, open heart. And that is something that is given. We don't come to know God, to understand His ways on our own. Terry Johnson, again, puts it like this, if I am a disciple of Christ today, if I understand the gospel, it is because God has granted to me to know the truth. Jesus reveals truth to some and hides it from others. This means that potential disciples of Christ cannot rely upon their own reason, their wisdom, or their best thoughts if they are going to know God. I don't begin my search for God autonomously and self-sufficiently, thinking that somehow I can discern the truth on my own. Instead, I must come submissively, humbly, to receive from Him what He has revealed. So, we must approach the parables in humility. We must recognize our need of the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Word, to guide us into truth, And we must pray for wisdom from above. It is only by God's grace that Christ is revealed to us and we may know Jesus more fully as we study the parables together. begin then with what is known as the Parable of the Sower. It's interesting that it's called the Parable of the Sower and yet when Jesus explains this parable He never mentions the sower. We'll talk about that some more in a moment. But this is not the first parable that Jesus taught and yet it is one that It kind of starts at the beginning. It reveals the origin of the kingdom, the growth of the kingdom. The kingdom originates with the Word of God. Scripture tells us that it is the Word of God that fosters faith. Faith comes by hearing, hearing by the Word of God. This parable presents this idea of the word being the source of the growth of the kingdom. The parable really is made up of four sort of mini-parables, one about each of the different types of soil. And the first one begins with the seed that is sown along the path. Anyone who has been involved in farming or gardening knows how important the preparation of the soil is. Some of the Old Testament prophets used the idea of preparing the soil to talk about spiritual growth, preparation for spiritual growth. Jeremiah said, break up your fallow ground and stow not among thorns. And Hosea also used that phrase, break up your fallow ground for it is time to seek the Lord. In the parable of the sword, Jesus uses images of agrarian life to picture the spread of the word of God among different types of people. And he first speaks of people who are hardened, people in whom the word finds no acceptance, no reception, and those in whom the word is unfruitful. Some seeds fell along path and the birds came and devoured them." Jesus explains this to his disciples later in verse 19, when anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. Luke's account identifies the evil one who snatches the word away and Mark even uses the name Satan, the accuser. his account of the parable. The image that Jesus gives us is of seeds falling on a path referring to a place where there had been constant walking, trotting, and the soil is just so packed that it cannot be tilled, and the seed will not be get any moisture from it. And so Jesus speaks of one who hears the word of the kingdom, but who does not understand it. This word understand here literally means to put together. In other words, the thought is not, for those who don't understand, the thought is not organized. It's not put together in the mind and comprehended. As I thought about this, I remembered Libby's mother. She came to mind, I remember the time when she was in the early stages of Alzheimer's. And she said to Libby one day, I just can't think. And Libby very sympathetically said, Mama, what do you mean when you say I can't think? She said, well, I hear the words, but it's like they're just floating around and I can't get them in place in order. I don't understand because they're just kind of, floating around and they're not in order. And that's the picture we have here of one who hears the gospel but they don't put it together, they don't get it in order and they can't understand and so it bears no fruit. The second image that Christ uses in presenting this is that of seeds falling on rocky ground. For most of us we probably conjure up an image of a field that's just scattered with stones and rocks and it needs to be cleaned out, they need to be gathered up, carried out of the field. That kind of rocky ground is the plight of many farmers. They have to overcome the problem of gathering up all the stones and a lot of times you'll be in areas like that and they'll gather them all up and there'll be rock walls all around the fields where they stack up the rocks and the stones. This may not have been what Jesus had in mind or what those who heard him speak, what came to their mind as he shared this. The root word in the Greek here is not so much small stones that can be gathered out of a field, it speaks more of massive rock formations. For example, The word is used to designate a big rock where a tomb would be hewn out for burial. Or in the close of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus speaks of a rock that would serve as a foundation for building a house. And we're talking about a big rock here. And so the idea here is that you have this huge slab of rock and it's covered with a very thin layer of topsoil. And so the seed that falls there quickly springs up, but it can't last because there's nowhere for the roots to go deep and get moisture. There's that rock underneath. And so the scattered seeds find just enough moisture to germinate and spring up. But Jesus says, when the sun rose, they were scorched. And since they had no root, there was no depth to it, they withered away. explains that in verses 20 and 21, that people like this hear the word and immediately receive it with joy, yet he has no root in himself, and when tribulation and persecution arise on account of the word, immediately falls away. You know, there are always people who, in a sort of herd mentality, follow the excitement, go where the action is, they want to be where it's happening. And so along comes a church that is growing by leaps and bounds, their buildings are elaborate, and they have all the latest conveniences, and they're adorned with all the gadgetry of modern technology, and the leadership is energetic and well-dressed, and they're privy to all the cutting-edge pop culture, you know, they use the language. And there are many who will quickly follow and respond to the message of such an exciting movement, but there's no depth. There are no roots that go down and reach into the deep richness of understanding of the truth. And when opposition comes, when there's persecution, tribulation, trouble, there's no strength, no perseverance, no ability to stand firm. The faith is only superficial. And the excitement fades and they turn away, unable to endure the persecution and trouble. And then thirdly, there is the seed that is sown among thorns. Unlike the first two scatterings of seed which were unable to bear fruit, these seeds fall on soil that may have been fertile and capable of producing fruit. But the problem here is that the surrounding plants, the more mature plants, that choke the life of the young seedlings that are springing up in their midst. So Jesus reveals the meaning of this as he applies it to those for whom the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word so that it proves unfruitful. The gospel writers give us multiple examples of this in recounting Jesus' earthly ministry. You remember the rich young ruler who went away saddened because of his possessions. Riches had gotten his heart. Some who were invited to a wedding feast gave excuses. One had to go look at a field he'd bought, and another one had to test some oxen that he'd purchased. One had married a wife and he couldn't come. And so they all were turned away by the deceitfulness of riches and the cares of this world. There are those like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea who at first would not profess their faith openly because of their fear of others and even the And among the 12, there was one who was snared by the deceitfulness of riches and went his own way. Jesus warned us and his disciples, no one can serve two masters. You can't serve God and money. And so how quickly we are distracted by the stuff of this world and how easily we become enthralled with God's gifts and forget about the giver who daily showers us with blessings. So those seeds that were choked by the thorns and the plants around them. Finally, there is the seed that is sown on good soil. Our Lord speaks of this seed as being fruitful and productive. We're so familiar with Jesus' words that we may miss the impact that they would have had on those who first heard them. One commentator says that the average crop yield in Jesus' time was probably about tenfold. And so it would have been astounding to the people of Jesus' day to suggest a yield of 30-fold, 60-fold, 100-fold miraculous crops. Such fruitfulness can only come from good soul. And just as that is true in the physical world, it is also true in the spiritual realm. Jesus says that good soul is the one who hears the Word and understands it. Luke expands this understanding of the word, those who hearing the word hold it fast in an honest and good heart and bear fruit with patience. Of course, he's not implying that anyone has a good heart, a perfect heart, but a heart that is receptive and responsive to God, honest about who he is before God and receptive to what God says. So, from this last of the four types of soil, the four places where the seed fall, James Boyce points out that we can make several minor points from this in addition to the main point of the parable. Boyce says that one of the things we need to see in this is that only a portion of the preaching of the gospel bears fruit. Even Jesus did not get all the people to believe on Him. And so we must not think we failed when people reject the message. I remember when I was in seminary, I had an evangelism professor, his dear friend, Dr. Oscar Thompson, has gone to be with the Lord, but in class one day we were having a discussion about methodology and evangelism and how you present the gospel, and Dr. Thompson brought up the rich young ruler, and the student was questioning the methodology And his final statement to Dr. Constable, but he lost him. Really? The son of God lost a convert? We sometimes get focused on what we're doing as we share the gospel, and we need to recognize that the reception of the gospel is dependent on the heart that's being shared with, But primarily it is dependent on whether or not the Spirit of God has given life to that heart and revealed the truth so that it can be received. And so know that the preaching of the gospel doesn't win everybody. It is only productive in certain cases. where God has given life and understanding. Another thing that we can gather from this is that the only sure evidence of a genuine reception of the Word of God is spiritual fruit. If there's no fruit, the Word has not been received. If it has been, it will produce fruit. The presence of fruit is the important thing, not the amount of it, not the quantity of fruit, but the fact that fruit is produced in the life. So, as we wind down our consideration of this parable, I want you to notice that in his explanation of the meaning of it, Jesus doesn't even mention the sower. Of course, his presence is assumed, but it's not explained. Christ is not focused on the sower. One pastor has pointed out that neither the sower nor the seed gets the blame or the credit for what happens. When the seed fails to grow, it's not the sower's fault. And when the seed grows, it's not the sower's credit or the credit to the sower or to the seed. The responsibility is on the hearer, the soil, the receptum of the word. And so this means that as I look at this parable, I need to ask myself some questions. I need to ask myself, looking at that first place where the seed fell, is my heart hardened? The path in the parable is a place that was hardened by being trod by feet over and over and it was just impermeable to the seed. Is my heart like that? What is it that hardens the heart to the gospel? Hebrews warns us in Hebrews 3, verse 12, take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an unbelieving heart leading you to fall away from the living God, but exhort one another every day as long as it is called today that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. Sin hardens the heart. It deceives and it destroys and it leads us away from God. We need to hear the gospel every single day. Without that daily exhortation, we're in danger of falling away, of being hardened against the Spirit, against God's Word. Another question I need to ask myself is, Is there depth in my understanding, in my response to the gospel? Am I content with a superficial, shallow grasp of spiritual matters? Does the word penetrate into the very core of my being? You know, that's how it's supposed to work. Hebrews 4.12 says, the word of God is living and active sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Is that how I receive the word? Is it something that goes deep into the very innermost part of my being? Looking into the Word and allowing the light of the Word to shine in my heart can be daunting at times, but I think perhaps maybe that third area that Jesus addresses It may be the most applicable for us as 21st century American Christians, and maybe framing it that way points to our difficulty. Maybe we are too much American and not enough Christian. It could be that we've been deceived by riches, by the abundance of life that we have in this wonderfully blessed land. I wonder if we've been pressed into the mold of the world, living the American dream, and come to the place where somehow the word is choked by the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches. So, what is the main lesson of this parable? You know, we've all heard messages, I'm sure, that focused on the different types of soul and what kind of heart we have and the reception of that. The truth is, we all are some type of soul like this. In fact, we, I think, are all of those from one time or another. And we have to look at ourselves and say, am I hard-hearted, unable to receive the word? Or when I receive it, do I receive it in a superficial or shallow way that really lacks the perseverance that is necessary and things that really matter? Are there things in this world that choke out the Word as it comes to me? Or do I have a heart that is ready to receive and obey what God says? If at any time I find myself in any of those categories where the word is unfruitful, I need to run to the Father and pray. Change my heart, oh God. Change my heart. Make it ever new, the little chorus says. May I be like you. We need to, daily, ask God to mold and make it pliable and make our heart receptive to the truth. So let me close with a word of encouragement. One commentator says that this is in fact the main point of this parable. We need to be encouraged by the fact that the Word of God, the truth of the gospel will always bear fruit The Word of God is living and active, it's effectual, it's powerful, and God's promise is that this is how it will be. His Word, when it goes forth out of His mouth, will not return to Him empty, but it will accomplish what He purposes and will succeed in the thing that He sent it to do. And so, we can live confidently in the knowledge that the Word of God is sufficient. It will produce fruit. It will produce it in us and in those with whom we share it. May we be faithful sowers of the Word and faithful recipients of the Word and may it produce multiple fruit in us. Let's pray. Lord Jesus, you were faithful to the Word of God, even facing temptation by declaring that we live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. You proclaimed that truth in spite of all the persecution and the trouble and the trials of your earthly life, and you went even to the cross in obedience to that word. So, Lord, grant that we would be faithful proclaimers of the truth and that we would receive the truth daily in our hearts walking in obedience to what you say. We pray this in your holy and precious name. Amen.