Lessons from the Parable of the Sower Part 1

 “This is my comfort in my affliction, for Your word has given me life.” (Psalms 119:50) 

I’ll never forget the day when I discovered the power of God’s word and how it gave me life. Since that life-changing day, I’ve been a college freshman, a student missionary, a wife, and a mother among many other things. This Bible verse in Psalms, clearly summarizes my experience with God’s word. It gives me all I need to live well throughout every season of life. throughout these life seasons, I’ve come to realize, that it’s the daily, moment by moment connection to the truth found in God’s word that keeps me rooted in my Christian experience. For all spiritually-minded parents who want to grow in faith, feasting on the word every day ought be as natural as drinking water when thirsty. 

 But many of us are parched. Life gets busy, distraction gets the best of us, and intentional meditation on God’s word just doesn’t happen. The moments when we do make time for God, the scriptures fall flat and lack power to penetrate our hearts. I know this pattern well, because I have experienced it myself at times. How can we make sense of when the word doesn’t impact us like it should? What gets in the way of God’s word transforming our heart and making change in our lives? In the parable of the Sower, Jesus explains why the word doesn’t bear fruit when it is sown in a person’s heart. The full story of the sower is found in Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20, or Luke 8:4-15. I see 3 different ideas emerge from this story that shed light on the things that get in the way of the word taking root in our hearts. In this post I'll cover the first one.

Supernatural Forces 

“...as he sowed..some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.” (Mark 4:4)

In the parable of the Sower, a sower or farmer sows seed on 3 types of ground. In first type of ground, He sows seed on the wayside which is on hard ground, then very soon the birds comes and devours the seed. Based on the different Bible passages that recount this parable, a few things happen to people in this first group. 

1. Overt Attacks. In Mark 4:4,  Jesus says these are people who hear the word, but Satan takes it away.  When they read the Bible, the enemy is already planning how to zap whatever they read right out of their minds.
2. Dull Understanding. In Matt 13, Jesus says they hear it but, they don’t understand it.  So when they read the Bible, they don't get it because they lack the ability to sit long enough to understand it. The enemy takes advantage of this weakness and draws away their minds from meditating on the Word.
3. Lack of Belief. In Luke 8, Jesus says they hear the word, but Satan takes it away because he knows if they believe it they will be saved. The enemy fosters doubt in God’s word and His promises.  The enemy doesn’t want us to know how powerful Jesus’ words are. The amount of promises and counsel found in God’s word is immeasurable are abundant. "For God so loved the world that He gave His begotten son, that whosoever believes in Him will have everlasting life." Our belief in Jesus saves us, Satan knows that and wants to take that truth away from those who could believe.

This reminds me of this verse: 

"Be sober be vigilant, for your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whomever he may devour." (1 Peter 5:8)

Have you ever felt that something was overpowering you that you felt like you had no control over? Maybe it came as an intense emotion, or a wave of deep sadness or darkness. Or perhaps you have felt that your best efforts towards change and growth have been met with one roadblock after another. 

We simply cannot deny that there are dark forces in this world. I believe that it is Satan's express interest to keep us from seeing the truth in the Word of God. For in it, reveals God's true character and an invitation to get to know Him personally for ourselves. 

Overt attacks, a dull understanding, and lack of belief are all factors that can impact the quality of your spiritual life and why the word is not bearing fruit in your life. Think about these things, are any of them impacting the word from bearing fruit in your life? If not, perhaps something else is at play. In our next post, we'll look at another barrier that may be keeping the word from being rooted in your heart.