December 12, 2016 - Jesus told a story of a man who is sowing seeds in the field.
As he works across the land he encounters 4 types of soil in which he drops seeds; (1) the wayside (2) stoney ground (3) thorns (4) the good soil.
"Behold, a sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell in stoney places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root withered away. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has ears let his hear." (Matt. 3:3-9)
In this story we see the seeds as the Word of God, the scriptures, and the 4 types of soil as 4 types of people. Three of these can be found in church, some occasionally, some very regularly, going to all services, most though on Sunday mornings only.
First, we have the wayside, the ones who are not even interested in the gospel or Christ or salvation, any seeds dropped there are immediately swept away by the creatures of the earth. These are the ones you might try to testify to that can't get away fast enough from being told about Jesus.
Second, we have the stoney ground, these are the ones who go to church and accept the preaching but they have no depth and as soon as they pass from the church building they are immediately back into their earthly world, the seeds were wasted on them. You find them in church occasionally on Sundays, usually Easter Sunday and Mother's Day.
Third, the thorns, these accepted the Word and even held on to it until a crisis or hard times comes along. Then, they turn away from God and back into their worldly haunts where the Word is choked off and they slip back into the world of the Prince of the air. Thankfully, many of these do return to the Lord and get their spiritual lives back in order and become productive for the Lord.
Fourth, the good ground, the solid Christians who understand their relationship with the Lord and know that they are not "of this world", but are simply strangers passing through looking for a city, not built with hands.
These yield good fruit, many times the amount needed to seed their lives, Jesus says even as many as one hundred times the investment. These are what we all strive to be, living and walking with the Lord daily, doing His will and not our own nor the wishes of the world. Working daily to bring others closer to our Lord.
James, the half brother of Jesus, says this; "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." (James 1:22)
That is yielding the good fruit, not just sitting and listening to the word each week, but using our talents to grow good fruit for the Lord. Amen...
May the Lord bless and keep you every day...
