The Parable of the Sower & the Seed
For the first time in over seventy years, the United
Kingdom and the world have renewed their fascination with a King in
anticipation of the Coronation of King Charles III on May 6th,2023. If
you grew up in a Catholic or a Protestant Church, you might be familiar with Lord's
Prayer. "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your
will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." It ends with, "For yours
is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen." Matthew 6:9-13,
NIV. How fascinated are we with our King and His Kingdom?
We are embarking on a new series of teaching,
"Kingdom Life," Do you know what God's Kingdom is like? Has it
already come, or will it come one day in the distant future? How will we live
in this world as citizens of God's Kingdom? Before we go further, I want to
clarify certain truths and misconceptions regarding The Kingdom of God.
I.
The Kingdom of God.
As the name suggests, it is not mine, yours, or even
the devil's but God's Kingdom. God has always been and always will be the eternal
King of the heaven and the earth He created. The prophet Isaiah proclaimed,
"O Lord of Heaven's Armies, God of Israel, you are enthroned between the mighty
cherubim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You alone created
the heavens and the earth." Isaiah 37:16
King David praised God: "He made heaven and
earth, the sea, and everything in them. He keeps every promise forever."
Psalm 146:6. "Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King,
sing praises! For God is the King over all the earth. Praise him with a psalm.
Ps 47:6-7
God wanted to be the King of Israel. Instead, people
wanted a human king like other nations around them. God gave Saul as their
King, which turned out to be a disaster. Since many kings and kingdoms came and
went, let's not be too impressed by them. Instead, let's get to know, love,
serve, worship, and stand in awe of our God, whose Kingdom will endure forever.
II
A few facts and misconceptions about the Kingdom of God.
We must study and know certain truths about God's
Kingdom to refute the false teachings and prophets out there to deceive sincere
followers of Christ. Here are a few
facts about God's Kingdom. First, God's Kingdom is the reign of God in the
universe and His children's lives.
Secondly, it never comes to an end. Prophet Daniel
prophesied in Daniel 2:44, "During the reigns of those kings, the God of
heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed or conquered. It will
crush all these kingdoms into nothingness, and it will stand forever."
Third, when will it come? One Biblical view, which I
also believe, is called the "already but not yet" view of the Kingdom
of God, developed by Princeton theologian Gerhardus Vos early in the 20th
century. As per this view, Christ's followers actively participate in God's
Kingdom here and now. The full expression of it happens when Christ returns.
Some claim that the miracles performed by modern-day "prophets
and apostles" are greater than anything done by the original apostles.
This heretical teaching is known as Kingdom Now Theology and Dominion Theology.
It is also popular among "Word of Faith" teachers who teach that
salvation brings total healing of all diseases and problems right now is not
Biblical.
The prosperity gospel, name-it-claim-it teachings, are
based on the teaching that God's Kingdom is in full
operation and that by prayer, we can appropriate its blessings. People are told
they never need to be sick or poor because the riches of God's Kingdom are
available to them now.
We can overcome these false teachings by knowing the truth about God's Kingdom.
Jesus began and concluded his ministry by teaching
people about God's Kingdom and its implications in the lives of his followers.
He used stories and metaphors to teach His disciples about God's Kingdom and
how they were to live as Kingdom citizens on earth. On one occasion, he shared
a parable of the Sower and the seed to elicit Kingdom life among His disciples.
III.
Parable of the Farmer Scattering Seeds.
Jesus was a great storyteller. He would often pick up
an everyday activity or situation and uses it to teach his disciples and
listeners Kingdom truths. He told many stories in the form of parables, such as
the parable of the farmer scattering seed found in Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Why use parables? His disciples even asked him why?
Jesus replied (Mk 4:11-12), "You are permitted to understand the secret [
mysteries] of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables for everything I say to
outsiders so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled. He quoted Isaiah
6:9-10.
"When you hear what I say, you
will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend.' For the
hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed
their eyes so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their
hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal
them." (Greek version).
Then Jesus challenged
them, saying, in Mark 4:13, "Then Jesus said to them, "If you can't
understand the meaning of this parable, how will you understand all the other
parables? The
first parable sets the premise for the other parables, seven in total, that Jesus
shared in Matthew chapter 13. They intended to teach his disciples and us about
the purpose and the principles of God's Kingdom. Let us listen to the purpose
of the parable of the farmer scattering seeds.
It was the spring season in Palestine. A farmer went
out to his field to plant some seeds. As he scattered them across his field,
some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds ate them up. Others are on shallow
soil with rock. They sprouted and died quickly because of the hot sun and
shallow roots in shallow soil. Some among thorns that grew up and choked out
the tender plants.
Still, other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they
produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had
been planted! Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand." What
underlying purpose of God's Kingdom can we understand from this parable?
IV.
Without someone preaching, people will not hear the Gospel.
What do we need to reap a rich harvest of the crop? We
need the seeds, the ground, and a farmer to prepare and plant the seed. You may
have the seeds, and the environment may be well prepared, but without the
farmer out there scattering the seeds and taking care of it and the field
afterward, you forget about reaping a harvest, let alone a rich harvest.
This parable gives us the primary purpose of God's
Kingdom. For God's Kingdom to be established and bear fruit in people's lives,
its message must be spread far and wide. What was the message of God's Kingdom?
It was the Good News. When people repent of their sins and turn to God by
believing in Jesus, they will enter God's Kingdom, enjoying all of its
benefits.
As a farmer who went out to his field to scatter some
seeds, Jesus came to His own preaching the message of God's Kingdom. He
traveled the entire region of Galilee with one message saying, "Repent of your
sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near."
The purpose of God's Kingdom is that it is spread out far and wide so that more people will come to know God and live a
fulfilling life on this earth by practicing the principles of His Kingdom. How
would that purpose be realized without a messenger who would go out and spread
the Good News, like the farmer who scatters his seeds?
For that reason, Jesus commanded His disciples to "Go
into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone. 16 Anyone who believes
and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be
condemned." Mark 16:15-16. He used this parable of the farmer scattering his
seed to teach his disciples to become the scatterers of the Gospel seeds
everywhere.
Similarly, sharing the message of Hope is not limited
to pastors, evangelists, and missionaries but is open to all the Kingdom
citizens. The first sign of Kingdom life is that we become the Gospel seed
carriers. How are you scattering the seeds of God's Kingdom?
