Parable of the Sower Meaning
I’ve always been told that the meaning of the Parable of the Sower is that only the fourth soil Jesus described represents a true Christian. As I’ve read through and studied the text, and considered what else we know to be true from the Bible, I’ve come to a different conclusion.
As Jesus tells the parable (Mt. 13, Mk. 4, Lk. 8), He describes 4 different types of soils and what happens as the seed (which represents messages about the Kingdom of God) falls on each of the different kinds of soils. The soils represent different kinds of people.
THE HARD SOIL
The first type of soil that Jesus describes is what is known as the path. When you think about a path, you think about people walking on it over and over and it being trampled down over the years. The soil becomes packed down and hard. And so, because the soil is so hard, the seed cannot penetrate at all.
This represents a person with a hard heart, where because of sin the good news about the kingdom doesn’t penetrate their heart and he or she rejects God’s truth, mercy, and grace.
The only hope is that God will break up this hard heart so that this person will become more receptive to His grace, but unfortunately that will often require hitting rock bottom before someone will ever feel like they have to look up.
THE SHALLOW SOIL
This is the type of soil that Jesus described as rocky ground. This kind of soil is softer and has room for the seed to penetrate the soil but because it is shallow, the roots that grow are also shallow and allow the plant to burn up and get scorched.
The person that this type of soil represents is a believer who only knows that he or she had to receive the good news to be saved but unfortunately doesn’t go much deeper into the Christian life than that.
Jesus, in his explanation of the parable, does say that this person, “receives the word with joy.” (Matthew 13:20)
Only believers receive God’s grace. Grace is a gift we receive through belief/faith. In Luke’s version of Jesus telling this parable, He tells us that “they believe.”
The last time I checked, John 3:16 says that whoever believes in Jesus will not perish but have eternal life. This is one of the reasons that I am convinced Jesus is talking about a believer here.
The other reason I believe this to be true is what distinguishes this person and the 3rd person from the 4th person. What distinguishes them from the “good soil” is not whether they received or believed the message, but whether they bear fruit or not.
Jesus is describing a believer here in this second soil and in the third soil, but He is showing us how Satan will deceive us and deflect our attention away from producing fruit after we have received Him into our lives.
Jesus mentions that when trouble comes this person drifts away.
Doesn’t that sound just like Satan to convince us (deceive us) into believing that when trouble comes our Christian life isn’t working?
He will put thoughts in our minds about how becoming a Christian was supposed to make our lives easier, and more comfortable, and that God would bless us with our dreams and ambitions.
And when that isn’t happening in our lives, we’ll begin to turn our attention away from God and to other things to make our lives easier, and more comfortable, or to achieve our dreams.
Of course, the truth is that Jesus will work even in the suffering and through the trouble to produce fruit, but if Satan can keep us from knowing that, then he can keep us from bearing that fruit.
THE CONSUMED SOIL
This is the type of soil that allows all the other stuff in it to consume it and take over it. The thorns and weeds grow around the plant and choke it out so that fruit doesn’t mature and end up getting produced.
So, similarly, a consumed type of heart for us is one that gets consumed by certain things in this world and they take over our lives rather than the fruit Jesus is wanting to produce through us.
In Jesus’ explanation of the parable, He mentions 2 things that we get consumed with.
The first is “the worries of life.” Satan keeps us preoccupied with and worried about financial problems, our kids, cancer, the economy, our jobs, and anything and everything else in this world.
And as we focus on these things they will most certainly consume us and choke out the fruit Jesus is wanting to produce in us and through us.
The 2nd thing Jesus said consumes us is riches.
Did you know that money was one of the most talked about things by Jesus in His earthly ministry? Why? Because He knew how easy it is in this world to be captivated by it. He knew how easy it would be to be deceived into thinking that money will solve all of our problems.
He knew that Satan takes a good thing given to us by God and twists it into something different.
And so if we focus on money, chase after it, and depend upon it then it too will consume us and choke out the fruit Jesus could produce through us if we were focused on Him instead.
THE GOOD SOIL
The final soil Jesus described was the good soil. In this type of soil, fruit is produced a hundred, sixty, or thirty times what was sown.
And Jesus said this kind of soil represents someone that hears and understands the word (Mt. 13:23).
This is a person who is open to hearing what Jesus is saying even if it’s upside down from what the world says is true. He or she then begins to understand it and how God is working through their life to produce fruit.
This person is open when trouble and difficulties come. He or she may feel like running away, but stays and is open to hearing what God says about trouble and difficulties in our lives. As understanding comes in these areas, they allow God to work through them in these times, and fruit is produced.
This is the type of person that is open when worries come or when the deceit of wealth comes knocking. Instead of staying in a state of worry or pouring their life into consuming wealth, they are open to what God says about worrying and what He says about money. As their understanding grows about how God will provide for them and how He will use their money to bless others, they are open to Him using them to produce fruit through them in those areas.
CONCLUSION
So, I don’t see Jesus trying to use this parable to show us that no true believers ever drift or fall away when trouble or persecution comes.
I don’t think that Jesus was telling this parable to show that no true believer ever lets the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth consume them and choke out fruit from being produced.
I don’t think that Jesus was trying to say that the only kind of true believer is one who is always bearing unimaginable volumes of fruit in their life.
No, He is showing us that some will not receive Him at all, but some will receive Him and not be open to what He is doing in their lives to produce fruit through them because Satan has their eyes blinded to it.
This is one of the reasons that the apostle Paul was having to write letters to churches. Some of them were shallow soil or consumed soil.
Take the Corinthian church, for example. This church had multiple problems. Paul describes them as carnal or fleshly in 1 Corinthians 3.
You don’t have fruit being produced through you by your flesh. Fruit production is a work of the Spirit. They were shallow soil or consumed soil who were having their fruit production burned up or choked out.
But Paul still called them “saints” in 1 Corinthians 1:2, and he called them “infants in Christ” in 1 Corinthians 3:1. They weren’t producing fruit, but they were still in Christ. They were still believers.
Paul was writing to teach them more truth so they wouldn’t be so shallow or so consumed with earthly things. He was writing so that fruit would be produced through them, not to tell them they weren’t true Christians!
So, the meaning of the Parable of the Sower is to be good soil. If you’ve found yourself running every time trouble comes or being consumed with worries and the deceit of wealth, then be the good soil instead, by being open to what God says about these things and how He wants to produce fruit through you at all times.
Don’t miss out on His Life in you and being expressed through you!