The Daily Dig - Parable of the Sower - Day 3

The Parable Of The Sower
Matthew 13:1-23
Pull Up The Weeds (vs 7, 22 & Luke 8:14)

Only Eden was free of weeds. Since then all good gardeners have spent much time pulling up unwanted invaders so the productive plants can grow unhindered and uncrowded. The soil of our heart seems to easily sprout both the prickly and the pretty. It is our duty to be pulling out the weeds so God's Word can grow to maturity.

In this parable, Jesus listed three thorny weeds which can choke out God’s Word in our lives. “The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches, and pleasures, and they do not mature.” Luke 8:14

Life’s Worries
Now there’s a big weed! What have you ever worried about? Or perhaps the better question is, what haven’t you worried about? God knows are hearts are prone to fret, and He wants us to pull up that weed while it is still small. In Matthew 6:25-32 Jesus gives us specific instructions about worry.

What does He say we should NOT worry about?

And why does He say that we should not worry? (vs 32)


Matthew 6:33 tells us to spend our energy focusing on God instead of fretting about ourselves. What are you anxious about today? How will you seek God first in the middle of the mess?

If your heart is full of worry, copy Philippians 4:6-7 on a card and carry it with you today. Memorize God’s promise of peace and let Him guard your heart and mind from the weed of worry.

Life’s Riches
Being rich isn’t wrong, but wealth can become a weed which chokes out God’s Word. In Matthew 13:22 Jesus said that the deceitfulness of wealth can suffocate the good God is growing in our lives. How do you think wealth can be deceptive?

Read the Parable of the Rich Fool in Luke 12:13-21. How has greed been a weed in your life? Have you pulled it up? Really? All the way from the root or have you just cut it off where it can’t be seen from the surface?

We all need to be richer toward God. How will you invest in the eternal today?


Life’s Pleasures
If pleasure was a problem back in the pre-modern day of Jesus, then we are certainly in trouble now! Life today is filled with more time and money than ever in history, and we seem to have no trouble spending both on pleasing ourselves. Having fun and feeling good aren’t bad unless our means of getting there are sinful and our motives are selfish.

What things bring you the greatest pleasures in life?

How do you put what brings you pleasure as a higher priority than your personal relationship with God?

How can you make your hobby more holy?

Have you ever noticed that much work is required for a productive garden but that weeds seem to grow no matter what the conditions? This fact of the farm reminds us to be diligent to dig out those weeds while they are still small when they are much easier (and much less painful) to pull!

The Daily Dig - Parable of the Sower - Day 2

The Parable Of The Sower
Matthew 13:1-23
Pile Up The Rocks (vs. 6, 20-21)

Rocky terrain was the norm in Palestine, and seeds could not grow long and lasting roots on top of rocks. The farmer spent many long, hard hours removing rocks from the field and piling them along the edges. Rock removal wasn’t easy, but it was necessary for fertile soil. So too with us. We must make the effort to remove the things which keep God’s Word from making a difference in our lives. We must rid ourselves of the rocks.

Colossians 3:8, Ephesians 4:31, and 1 Peter 2:1 say we must get rid of what things?



How have these attitudes and actions created problems in your life?



Whom do you stay mad at the most and why?


Whom are you the most bitter at and why?


Whom do you envy the most and why?


Whom do you slander (talk badly about) the most and why?


By God’s grace and power, these actions and attitudes, which were a normal part of our lives before we became Christ-followers, can now be eliminated. And they should be. Three of the best “Rock Removal Tools” are found in Ephesians 4:32.

1.__________________________

How has someone’s kindness to you made a difference? How will you show kindness to the person you envy most?



2.__________________________

Think of the person you are mad at the most. What root causes could be the reasons for their wrong or offending actions toward you? Ask God to give you a heart of compassion, even as you deal with their choices.



3.__________________________

Bitterness might start out as a small stone, but it quickly grows into a big boulder which crowds out the good and much of God in our hearts. Forgiveness – letting go of my right to hurt you for hurting me – is the only way bitterness can be removed. Whom do you need to forgive? How will you begin to let go and let God handle the situation and heal your pain?



Keep piling up the rocks and cleaning out your heart!

The Daily Dig - Parable of the Sower - Day 1

The Parable Of The Sower
Matthew 13:1-23
Plow up the Hard Places (vs. 5, 12)

The soil of our heart must be continually ready to receive God’s Word. Jesus said that sometimes the seed of God’s Word falls on the “path” where the Satan easily snatches it away. The grain fields in Israel often had paths around them and through them. The dirt was hard and packed, not at all conducive to growth and productivity. I’d love to say that there are no “paths” in my life, but there are. And you probably have a few too. Hosea 10:12 tells us to “break up our unplowed ground.” We need to plow up the hard places in our hearts so God’s Word can take root and grow in every area of our lives.

So why do we have these “hard paths” in our lives? In Jesus’ time, the paths were shortcuts through the field. What “shortcuts” have you taken in your life that might have caused you to become hard?

Sometimes the paths in fields became more packed by constant use – habitual use. What habits have you developed in your relationships that are not creating an environment of growth?

In your relationship with God?

With your husband?

With your children or grandchildren?

With friends?

With people you work or serve with?


Often a difficult situation has caused our hearts to be callous and hard toward God and others. Who or what has hurt you? Don’t wait for your feelings to catch up with the fact that God knows and He really does care. He can use even the hardest and most hurtful of times for our good and for His glory. Read Romans 8: 28-39. What can separate you from God’s love?

Read Hebrews 3:13.

What can harden you?

How can encouragement help you not become hard?

Who will you encourage today?


Honestly ask God to show you where your heart might be hard to His Word. Pray for grace to receive His answer and know that He will be your strength.

Have fun plowing!!

TELL ME A STORY

Unpacking the Power of the Parables
The Parable Of The Sower
Matthew 13:1-23

“Grandaddy, tell us a story.” During summer vacation I watched amused as all nine grandchildren clamored around my father on the couch, begging for another tale of his childhood. Perhaps they would hear of the “skunk surprise” he hid in the mailbox for the unsuspecting mailman or of afternoons spent skinny dipping and diving in the creek. Maybe he would tell them of the one week vacation he turned into three – without parental permission. No matter which subject he chose, they listened eagerly and attentively, not wanting to miss any details.

Why? Because they wanted to know the story. And because they wanted to know the storyteller.

My dad is good at telling stories, and perhaps one day he’ll write some down. But the greatest Storyteller of all time has already written us His story, and we should read them. Why? Because we want to know the story. And because we want to know the storyteller.

God knows everyone likes a good story, and He told many. We call some of them parables. One-third of Jesus’ recorded teachings are parables. “Parable” comes from the Greek words para and ballo, which together mean “to throw alongside.” A parable is a story which uses the things of earth to illustrate the things of heaven. Where something familiar describes something unfamiliar. The two are “thrown alongside” each other to help us grasp something great about God.

Jesus told over 20 parables, but over the next few weeks, we will look closely at just 8 of them. We’ll open the pages of the Book and unpack the power in each story, for Jesus wants us to know their meaning and their message. While on earth, Jesus spoke in parables to reveal the truth of God to ones who were seeking and to conceal the truth from those who were insincere. As His followers, may we have eyes that see, ears that hear, and hearts that understand as we listen to these stories of grace and truth.

The Parable of the Sower comes first. The pulpit for this parable was a boat, while the crowded congregation listened from the shore. Jesus said, "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear. Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."

While this parable specifically describes four responses of those who hear “the message about the kingdom,” we can apply it generally to our own lives and consider our personal responses to God’s Word each time we hear it. God sows the seed of His Word onto our lives each time we read the Bible, hear a sermon, listen to a Christian song, attend a Bible study, and many other ways. Just as the seed of a plant contains life, so does the seed of God’s Word. Whether or not that life flourishes depends on the soil into which it has been flung.

So what about our soil? This story is called the Parable of the Sower, but it’s really the Parable of the Soils. What about you? How fertile is the soil of your heart? I remember when I was young I would often find little white boxes filled with dirt in my father’s truck. Although they looked very inviting to play with, I knew they were “soil samples” from different fields on the farm that were on their way to the lab to be analyzed for quality and fertility. Today is “soil sample” day. The analysis from this parable will show us our “soil” problems and how to solve them. Working in dirt can be messy, but the results will be marvelous! Let’s get on our gloves and get busy!

The Seed – God’s Word
The Soil – Our response to God’s Word

How To Get Good Soil:
 Plow up the Hard Places (vs. 5, 12)

God’s Word speaks to all areas of our lives. He leaves nothing “unspoken” to.
Hosea 10:12 “Break up your unplowed ground.”

What areas of your life need plowing?


 Pile up the Rocks (vs. 6, 20-21)

Rocks of rebellion, resentment, and rage
Boulders of bitterness
Stones of selfishness or stubbornness
Pebbles of pride

What do you need to pile up?

 Pull up the Weeds (vs. 7, 22 & Luke 8:14)

Life’s Worries
Life’s Riches
Life’s Pleasures

What do you need to pull up?

 Produce the Crop (vs. 8, 23)

By hearing the Word
By understanding the Word
By living the Word

What are you producing right now?