The Sower

Luke 8:4-15  And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable:  (5)  A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.  (6)  And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.  (7)  And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.  (8)  And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.  (9)  And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?  (10)  And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.  (11)  Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.  (12)  Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  (13)  They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.  (14)  And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.  (15)  But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

Introduction:       When John the Baptist started preaching and Baptizing, the whole Jewish world was in a state of revival.

              It started with John the Baptist and continued on with Jesus Christ the Messiah.

              They both were preaching for us to change the direction of our lives.  They were asking us to change (repent) our ways and accept God.  (That is what we did when we accepted Jesus as our Saviour.)

              The whole nation was electrified with expectation.  Not only was Jesus claiming to be God, He was backing it up with demonstrations of power, the kind of power only God could have.

(John 2:25)  And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man.

Jesus knew that many were not sincere.

He knew they didn’t have what it takes to walk the narrow road.

They lacked:

1.               A real spirit of repentance (change)

2.               A changed life

3.               An honest commitment

4.               A willingness to sacrifice

5.               To be consistently obedient

They had no faith.

                        Jesus knew others followed not because they wanted to know Him, they followed because:

1.               Their family and friends followed.

2.               For the fellowship

3.               A social identification

4.               Maybe just to feel good about themselves

This insincerity cut to the quick of Jesus heart.        He knew He must warn and win many people.

              Jesus wanted us to know that just hearing the Word of God was not enough.

Jesus tells us that those who sincerely believe and sow seed will bear fruit.

              We see in verse one multitudes followed Him.  We understand Jesus led thousands to their salvation. 

              When Jesus finished the parable, (v 8), it says Jesus cried, (we suspect in an elevated voice) “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.”

I.            THE SOWER IS:

A.              Jesus Christ The Lord

(1 Peter 1:23)  Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

1.               A servant of Jesus is a sower.

(1 Corinthians 3:9)  For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.

i.                US

ii.               Anyone who with sincerity called upon Jesus name,

a.        For their salvation

B.              The Gospel

1.               It brings forth fruit

(Colossians 1:5-6)  For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; ⁶ Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:

C.              The Seed

1.               It’s success depends on the hearer.

II.           JESUS INTERPRETS THE PARABLE

              A.           The Seed By The Wayside

1.               Hears Gods Word

i.            He is present at church

ii.           He does not involve himself

iii.          He respects Christ

2.           He never misses a Sunday or Wednesday service.

i.            Pay little attention to the Word’s warnings

(Hebrews 3:13)  But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

3.           If we haven’t accepted Him there

could be a day when we cannot accept Him.

B.              The Seed On The Rock

1.               This hearer becomes excited

i.                Receives God’s Word

2.               Fails to count the cost of:

i.                The commitment

ii.               The self denial

iii.             The sacrifice

3.               Consequently, does not get rooted

i.                In God’s Word

ii.               Has no grounding in God’s Word

4.               When trials come he falls away

i.                The same when temptation comes the hearer falls away

ii.               Stops coming

(Luke 6:49)  But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

C.              The Seed Among The Thorns

1.               Honestly tries to live for Christ

i.                Likes the church

a.        The fellowship

ii.               It all appeals to this hearer

2.               One problem

i.                The thorns for this hearer

ii.               He is unwilling to leave his old friends

iii.             His old sins

(2 Corinthians 6:17)  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

3.               There are three areas that choke the life out of men.

1.               The cares of this life

(Matthew 6:25)  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

2.               The riches of this life

(1 Timothy 6:7)  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.

3.               The pleasures of this life

(1 Timothy 5:6)  But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.

            D.           The Seed On The Good Ground

1.               Has a willing heart  (Honest / Sincere)

i.                They honestly seek

a.               To learn

b.               To know the Truth

(1 Thessalonians 2:13)  For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

2.               This Hearer has a sacrificial heart

i.                Devoted

ii.               Committed

iii.             Given over to the Truth

iv.             When the Truth is known

                                                                          i.     They hold fast

(Deuteronomy 26:16)  This day the LORD thy God hath commanded thee to do these statutes and judgments: thou shalt therefore keep and do them with all thine heart, and with all thy soul.

3.               They keep the Word

i.                They resist the devil

ii.               They resist temptations

iii.             They endure trials

(1 John 2:3)  And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

4.               They bear fruit with patience

i.                They constantly water the seeds

ii.               They constantly pluck out the thorns

iii.             They continue until the fruit is ripe

a.           Ready to be taken home by the master.

(John 12:24)  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

CONCLUSION: So which hearer are you?

              Are you by the wayside just hanging around, not ready to commit to anything?

                  Or are you the seed on the rocky ground, excited but when times get tough, it is time to go?

              Or are you among the thorns, afraid to lose your friends, afraid to fully step away from the world?

              Or are you the one who is on good ground, ready to water the seed and pluck the thorns and serve God to the best of your ability?

              I hope and pray that each person here today is in the last category, it is the only place to be.

              I cannot see your heart nor can I judge your motives.  Only you and God can do that.  If you have a notion, you are not in the last group today is the day that should be taken care of, before it is eternally to late.