Starting with a message of gratitude and setting the stage for the study of Matthew chapter 13.

Introduction and Setting the Stage

Exploring the meaning of the sower and the different types of soil in the parable.

Parable of the Sower

Part 2 - Detailed explanation of the rocky ground and the impact of shallow faith.

Detailed explanation of the rocky ground and the impact of shallow faith.

Part 3 - Understanding the impact of worldly distractions and riches on receiving the word.

Understanding the impact of worldly distractions and riches on receiving the word.

Exploring the purpose of speaking in parables and its significance.

Understanding the context of speaking in parables and the opposition faced by Jesus.

Detailed explanation of the parable of the sower and its spiritual significance.

Exploring the roles of the sower, the seed, and the soil in the parable.

Understanding the different heart conditions and their responses to the message of the kingdom.

Exploring the impact of shallow faith and the lack of depth in receiving the word.

Understanding the impact of worldly distractions and riches on receiving the word and becoming unfruitful.

Understanding the conditions of the good soil and the fruitful outcome.

Exploring the different types of fruit and the significance of producing fruit for God.

The transformative power of God in changing the heart and producing fruit.

Reflecting on the condition of the heart and the importance of bearing fruit.

Encouragement to sow the seed and have courage in sharing the gospel.

- The speaker begins by thanking those who have been praying for him
- He then introduces the passage from Matthew chapter 13, verses 3 to 9
- He explains the different types of soil the seeds fall on and how they affect the growth of the plants
- The parable illustrates the importance of finding good soil for growth
- The disciples ask Jesus to explain the parable further, showing their confusion and need for clarification

- Jesus spoke in parables to reveal truths to those who are receptive, conceal truths from those who are not, and fulfill Isaiah's prophecy
- The parable of the sower explains that the soil represents the heart, and the outcome of hearing the Gospel depends on the condition of the heart
- The different types of soil (path, rocky ground, thorns, good soil) represent different responses to the Gospel, from rejection to acceptance
- The parable emphasizes that the effect of the word on an individual is determined by the character of the heart, not the skill of the sower or the seed

- The speaker discusses the hardening of hearts by daily sins and the impact on receiving the gospel message
- He uses the analogy of different types of soil to represent different responses to the gospel
- The first type of soil represents hardened hearts that are unresponsive to the gospel message
- The second type represents shallow faith, lacking genuine commitment
- The third type represents distractions and worries of the world that choke the word and make the person unfruitful
- The speaker emphasizes the importance of removing distractions and weeds from the heart to allow the gospel to take root and grow

- The speaker discusses the parable of the sower and the different types of soil
- The good soil represents those who hear, understand, and accept the word, producing fruit for God
- The message emphasizes the importance of examining and changing the condition of one's heart
- It also encourages sowing the seed of the gospel, regardless of the skill of the sower, in hopes of finding good soil
- The ultimate goal is to receive and share the transforming message of the gospel of Christ.

- The speaker prays for a change of heart and removal of distractions
- They ask for courage to spread the gospel and be living testimonies
- The prayer is for a meaningful and challenging life to reflect Jesus's glory

The speaker discusses the parable of the sower from Matthew 13, emphasizing the importance of the condition of the heart in receiving the gospel message. He explains the different types of soil as representing different responses to the gospel, and encourages removing distractions and weeds from the heart to allow the gospel to take root. The ultimate goal is to receive and share the transforming message of the gospel of Christ, and the speaker prays for a change of heart and courage to spread the gospel."""

So, I want to thank those of you who have been praying for me.

I hope that God will use me today to speak His word, to challenge you, to uplift you, and to bring you closer to him.

This morning as we come to the Word of God, we're going to be looking at Matthew chapter 13.

So you can turn to your Bibles or you can focus on the screen.

We're going to start in Matthew chapter 13 verses 3 to 9.

And he told them many things in parables, saying, A sower went out to sow, and as he sowed, some seeds fell along the path, and the birds came and powered 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.

He who has ears, let him hear." Now, Jesus is telling this parable by the Sea of Galilee, and he's a master teacher.

So, let's go through this passage, verse by verse.

So, first verse, a sower went out to sow.

You have a farmer with responsibility to sow seed and he'd have a field full of rows already furrowed and he would go and slowly distribute the seed, pacing himself to spread the seed evenly, and he'd have his leather pouch with the seeds and he'd cast the seeds slowly up and down the rows.

And the people in Galilee at that time, they were very used to seeing it, right?

So they're at the sea, and I'm sure that sea was surrounded by fields.

So maybe while Jesus is teaching this parable, you could see someone in the distance sowing some seed.

Well, in verse 4, it says, And as he sowed some seeds fell along the path, basically the road.

Well, in ancient Israel, you have these fields.

But between these fields, you have a hard path.

Basically, these hard paths are where you walk along to get to the other field.

Or you have animals or people walking through these paths to get from 1 location to another.

And what happens is the soil gets compacted and the soil remains unplowed.

People are always transversing over the path.

What ends up happening is as the sower is at the edge of the boundary, right?

He's at the edge of the field, but he's sowing all the seed at the edge of the field.

Some seeds will eventually fall to the path.

And it's inevitable that's going to happen.

The seed then just sits there on that path, and what happens is the birds come down.

The birds, as soon as the farmer turns his back to the seed, the birds come down and swoop and take that seed.

And if they don't do that, people walking along that path may trample the seed and it gets destroyed.

Basically, it never penetrates the soil and it is destroyed and it bears no fruit.

Okay, So that's 1 type of soil we have here.

The second kind of soil you'll see in verses 5 and 6.

And it says, other seeds fell on rocky ground, but they did not have much soil.

Now what that means is not that there were rocks in the soil.

What he's actually talking about is, see, like no good farmer would leave rocks in their soil.

When they plow the soil, they don't leave these huge chunks of rocks.

What happens is after they plow, plow is usually 8 to 10 inches long, after they plow they actually kind of miss these huge limestone rock plates beneath the soil.

And they can't really get them, you know, with all the ploughing they have to do.

So what happens is the seed will get into this shallow soil.

It'll sprout the roots, but the roots can't go very deep.

So what ends up happening is the roots hit that rock bed and instead they have to grow, so they shoot up instead.

So the roots shoot up and the farmers think it's deceiving, it looks like it's a good crop.

But the plant is ultimately lacking that water that it needs to grow.

So what ends up happening is, in verse 6 it says, But when the sun rose, they were scorched.

You see the moisture that the plant is trying to get from the ground, it can't.

So when the sun comes up, it dries out the plant and it withers.

You'll see in verse 7, up on the screen, others fell among the thorns and the weeds.

See, despite the farmers best effort to remove the weeds, sometimes the roots of the weeds are not eradicated.

And these roots of the weeds, they grow back even stronger and stronger.

I don't know if you have your backyard or something, but roots, I mean, sorry, weeds are very prevalent.

It doesn't matter how much you pluck the top, if you don't get the root, it's going to come back even stronger and stronger.

And despite appearing ready, it's hidden with these weeds.

What ends up happening is as these roots of the weeds grow, they take away the nutrients from the seed that we want to grow.

They take away the moisture and eventually if this weed sprouts, it has these big broad leaf that covers the plant from sun and it doesn't allow the plant to grow.

So essentially we have our seeds getting choked.

It's getting choked because it doesn't have enough water, it doesn't have enough sun.

So again, we have a seed that's unfruitful.

Otherwise it'd be pretty discouraging to be a farmer, right?

In Versailles we see other seeds fell on the good soil and produced grain.

And the crop that it produces varies from 30 fold, 60 fold, 100 fold, and because the nutrients in the soil vary from place to place.

And the key thing here is it produces crop.

Now if you're a farmer in Israel, a 10 fold crop is very, very good.

But the Lord uses this hyperbole here to make a spiritual point.

And that is that there's a possibility that if a seed finds good soil, it can produce an unbelievable amount of crop.

You have seeds that fall onto the hard path.

They are picked up by birds or trampled by foot.

Then you have seeds that fall onto this rocky soil with this rock bed underneath.

It doesn't have enough moisture and is dried by the sun and withers away.

You can't see them, but when the weeds grow they suck all the moisture and suck up all the resources and nutrients that the plant needs and eventually it doesn't bear fruit.

Then finally there's this good soil and that soil bears fruit.

So if you're 1 of Jesus followers that day, you'd be listening to this parable and that would be it.

And then he would move on to another parable.

And if you're thinking what I'm thinking, you'd be thinking, Jesus, you know, we need more.

Would you explain this parable to us, you know?

Because you could have lots of interpretations from this parable if it's not clearly explained.

So that's the question I had when I read this parable.

This is all he said to the people on the shore as he talked to that huge audience that day.

So the disciples, they had that same question.

They said to Jesus, Jesus, why are you speaking in parables?

And when he spoke to them plainly, they barely understood.

And now Jesus is here speaking in parables, basically riddles.

And if we turn to Matthew chapter 13 verses 10 to 17, let's read that passage.

Jesus explains why he's talking in parables.

Then disciples came 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 1 who has more will be given, and he will have an abundance.

But from the 1 who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

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, You will indeed hear, but never understand.

Verse 15, for this people's heart has grown dull and with their ears they can barely hear and with 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 long to see what you see and did not see it and to hear what you hear and did not hear it.

And what I got out of that message is that context, context, context.

Context is so important in discerning a parable.

Context is also important in discerning why Jesus spoke in parables in the first place.

And don't touch on this, but I'm going to reiterate this.

In the chapter right before, the Pharisees were actively opposing Jesus.

They were looking for a way to discredit him.

They accused him of not respecting the Sabbath because disciples plucked years of corn or grain during the Sabbath.

And then Another part of the chapter, Jesus was caught healing on the Sabbath and the Pharisees were after him again.

And then finally at the end of the chapter, the Pharisees accused Jesus of having demonic powers.

You see, The Pharisees were really after Jesus.

And a big reason why Jesus now spoke in parables was to conceal the meaning from those who were opposed to him or were indifferent.

All the while challenging and engaging those who are receptive to his teachings to find meanings in these parables or mysteries.

Now, in this parable, Jesus used the familiar practice of sowing.

It's well known in their agricultural society to teach the disciples spiritual truths that they had not yet understood.

So the purpose of the parables are threefold.

Number 1, to reveal truths to those who are receptive, number 2, to conceal those truths from those who are not, and finally number 3, to fulfill Isaiah's prophecy.

Well, Luckily for us and the disciples, Jesus explained this entire parable.

Let's read Matthew chapter 13 verse 18 to 23.

When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil 1 comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.

As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is 1 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 all was sown among thorns, This is the 1 who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.

As for all that was sown on good soil, this is the 1 who hears the word and understands it.

He indeed bears fruit and yields in 1 case a hundredfold, in another 60, in another 30.

I'm glad that Jesus explained this parable because it makes our lives a lot easier to understand.

And actually, we're so blessed to hear these words.

As he said in those verses, so many of the prophets would have longed to hear the meanings of these words.

Anyway, let's look at that parable narrative.

There's the sower, there's the seed, there's the soil.

Now, the parable doesn't say anything about the sower.

And it doesn't say much about the seed in this parable.

But we can find some insight somewhere else.

If we were to look at verse 37 of Matthew chapter 13, in another parable as he's talking about the parable of sowing weeds and terrors, in that verse it says that the 1 who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, which is talking about Jesus Christ.

So, while you don't want to take something from another parable and put it into this parable, we can really conclude that Jesus Christ is that sore.

It's safe to say that Jesus Christ is a sore.

And Jesus Christ was the first to preach salvation through his name.

Jesus was the first to preach this, but he definitely was not the last.

In Acts 19.15, God says that Paul was chosen unto me to bear his name.

If we all belong to Christ, we are all sowers.

Well, in verse 19 it really tells us what the seed is.

It says, when anyone hears the kingdom, when anyone hears the word of the kingdom.

The word of the kingdom is the message of how to get into that kingdom.

This is the message that God is a king of our spiritual kingdom.

He's inviting all of us, people, to come to that Kingdom.

This Kingdom involves joy, peace, fulfillment, satisfaction, and blessings unimaginable.

It involves the good grace and mercy and kindness in this life and eternal glory in heaven forever and ever.

The kingdom involves all that enter through the gates by putting your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.

So, this whole parable is really about presenting the gospel.

The good news of how to get into that kingdom.

That brings us to the main emphasis of the parable, which is the soils.

Sometimes you know that it's called the parable of the sower, but actually it's the parable of the soils.

Well, we see in verse 19, that which was sown in his heart.

The basic truth of this parable is that the results of Hearing the Gospel depends on the soil, not the skill of the sower or the seed.

So it's the character that determines the effect of the word on an individual.

If you hear the Gospel, the message of Christ, and you turn back and you walk away, it doesn't say anything about the seed, it doesn't say anything about the sower.

It's just a revelation of where your heart is.

So let's look at that first type of soil, the path.

So, as I go through these slides, I have a description, a spiritual meaning, basically an outcome, and what it means to have that outcome.

What is your heart condition when we talk about that type of soil?

So we see here that seeds fall on the path, they are eaten by birds, and basically it represents those who hear the word and reject it.

The evil 1 then comes and snatches it away, and basically your heart condition is that you are hard hearted, you are indifferent, you are resistant to spiritual truth.

So in the world today, many hearts resemble this impenetrable hardness that we see on the footpath.

They are constantly exposed and hardened by daily sins.

These hearts remain unbroken and often they have no conviction or repentance and it kind of leads them to become callous and unreceptive to the gospel despite its goodness.

And this reminds me of the people that Jesus came to in Israel, right?

He threw seeds all over Israel And what did they do?

And what ended up happening is they executed him and they screamed for his blood and Satan then came and snatched away the seed.

Never to go deep into their hearts and produce fruit.

He snatches it away through different means.

He can snatch it away through influence of false teachers.

He snatches it away through your procrastination.

You have to look at your own heart this morning.

Are you that hard, dry road at the end of the field?

Has your life been hardened by sins that you're so callous to the message?

And we see many examples of people with a hard heart.

Saul of Tarsus, before he was converted, his heart was so hard.

Anything and everything that was said to him just bounced right off.

You see sometimes you may be going through life and you're so excited what Jesus has done in your life.

And you're so thrilled about what's going on.

And you want to share that message with people and you think the next person you're going to meet is going to love that message.

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Parables of Jesus