Biblical Text: Mark 4:1-20

Today, the lectionary gives us the parable of the sower. Parables were a common teaching method for Jesus, but this one is unique. Here, we get an explanation. There is no guessing at what this parable may, or may not, mean. Jesus spells it out. Let’s take a brief look.

Jesus is sitting on a boat on the edge of the sea of Galilee, his voice being carried across the water, teaching the assembled crowds. And he is teaching them in parables. This, in itself, is not uncommon. Parables were a common teaching tool for Rabbis in Jesus’s time. They were designed to convey a core theological truth. They weren’t necessarily intended to be dissected and inspected, so that every part could find some corresponding spiritual point (in this sense they are different from allegories), but instead they existed to make one key point.

Jesus paints a picture for the crowd. A sower sowing seeds, it seems indiscriminately. Some seed falls on the path, where it is quickly eaten by the birds; some falls on rocky ground, where there is no depth of soil; some falls near thorns, and its growth is choked; and finally, some falls on good soil, where it grows in abundance. “Let anyone with ears to hear listen” says, or perhaps warns, Jesus!

Presumably the disciples are looking at him with confused looks on their faces, because as soon as the teaching has ended and they are alone, they ask Jesus what on earth is going on. Apparently they do not understand, even though they have “been given the secret of the kingdom of God.” 

It’s very easy to look down on the disciples in this moment, and in plenty of other New Testament accounts, but let’s not forget they are living this in real time. If you’ve grown up in church you’ve probably heard this parable multiple times, but for the disciples, this was their first encounter with it.

Jesus’s response to them is puzzling. They’re a paraphrase of Isaiah 6v9-10, and it makes it seem as though parables are given that people might not understand, in case, heaven forbid, they might turn to God for forgiveness. We’ll come back to that.

Jesus moves on to explain the parable. The seed is the word of God, and for some it is snatched away the moment it is preached, as though pecked from the path. For others, they receive it with joy, but they “have no root in themselves,” and persecution proves too difficult. For others, it is care of this world, the lure of riches and desire for worldly wealth, which act like thorns choking the growth. But those who are ready to receive and accept the word are like good soil, and they see an incredible harvest as a result.

As I said at the beginning, Jesus’s parables are meant to convey truth, and usually one core truth that can be taken away. Scripture itself, although we read it, has a funny way of reading us. It challenges us, provokes us, and in this case asks us, are you willing to receive? Are you seeking understanding? Is your heart open to receiving God’s word?

In many ways this parable is the core of Jesus’s teaching on parables. It asks us to examine ourselves, to prepare the soil of our hearts to receive God’s word, and to ask for help when we don’t understand it. Like the disciples, we may not understand at first…it might require time and effort, but that can lead us to a greater understanding of God’s truth that will bear fruit in our lives and in the world around us.

The disciples may miss the point, quite often in fact, but their strength lies in their willingness to inquire, to ask questions, and their desire to know what Jesus is saying to them. Their strength is not in their intellect, although it would be a mistake to think they were stupid. Their strength it in the attitude of their heart. They want to understand. They embody the words of St Anselm, “faith seeking understanding.” And when they do understand, it leads to them to action. We are reading and hearing Jesus’s words today because they heard, accepted, and bore fruit.

Today, the lectionary gives us the parable of the sower. Parables were a common teaching method for Jesus, but this one is unique. Here, we get an explanation. There is no guessing at what this parable may, or may not, mean. Jesus spells it out. Let’s take a brief look.

Jesus is sitting on a boat on the edge of the sea of Galilee, his voice being carried across the water, teaching the assembled crowds. And he is teaching them in parables. This, in itself, is not uncommon. Parables were a common teaching tool for Rabbis in Jesus’s time. They were designed to convey a core theological truth. They weren’t necessarily intended to be dissected and inspected, so that every part could find some corresponding spiritual point (in this sense they are different from allegories), but instead they existed to make one key point.

Jesus paints a picture for the crowd. A sower sowing seeds, it seems indiscriminately. Some seed falls on the path, where it is quickly eaten by the birds; some falls on rocky ground, where there is no depth of soil; some falls near thorns, and its growth is choked; and finally, some falls on good soil, where it grows in abundance. “Let anyone with ears to hear listen” says, or perhaps warns, Jesus!

Presumably the disciples are looking at him with confused looks on their faces, because as soon as the teaching has ended and they are alone, they ask Jesus what on earth is going on. Apparently they do not understand, even though they have “been given the secret of the kingdom of God.” 

It’s very easy to look down on the disciples in this moment, and in plenty of other New Testament accounts, but let’s not forget they are living this in real time. If you’ve grown up in church you’ve probably heard this parable multiple times, but for the disciples, this was their first encounter with it.

Jesus’s response to them is puzzling. They’re a paraphrase of Isaiah 6v9-10, and it makes it seem as though parables are given that people might not understand, in case, heaven forbid, they might turn to God for forgiveness. We’ll come back to that.

Jesus moves on to explain the parable. The seed is the word of God, and for some it is snatched away the moment it is preached, as though pecked from the path. For others, they receive it with joy, but they “have no root in themselves,” and persecution proves too difficult. For others, it is care of this world, the lure of riches and desire for worldly wealth, which act like thorns choking the growth. But those who are ready to receive and accept the word are like good soil, and they see an incredible harvest as a result.

As I said at the beginning, Jesus’s parables are meant to convey truth, and usually one core truth that can be taken away. Scripture itself, although we read it, has a funny way of reading us. It challenges us, provokes us, and in this case asks us, are you willing to receive? Are you seeking understanding? Is your heart open to receiving God’s word?

In many ways this parable is the core of Jesus’s teaching on parables. It asks us to examine ourselves, to prepare the soil of our hearts to receive God’s word, and to ask for help when we don’t understand it. Like the disciples, we may not understand at first…it might require time and effort, but that can lead us to a greater understanding of God’s truth that will bear fruit in our lives and in the world around us.

The disciples may miss the point, quite often in fact, but their strength lies in their willingness to inquire, to ask questions, and their desire to know what Jesus is saying to them. Their strength is not in their intellect, although it would be a mistake to think they were stupid. Their strength it in the attitude of their heart. They want to understand. They embody the words of St Anselm, “faith seeking understanding.” And when they do understand, it leads to them to action. We are reading and hearing Jesus’s words today because they heard, accepted, and bore fruit.