The Sower, the Seed, and the Soils

The Sower, the Seed, and the Soils

Introduction
This time of year many of us leaf through seed catalogs and sketch rows in our minds. A harvest always rests on three essentials: someone who will do the work, a seed worth planting, and soil that can receive it. Remove any one of the three and nothing grows. Jesus used this everyday picture to reveal how the word of God brings life. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record the lesson, and Matthew 13 gives the parable and the Lord’s own explanation so we can understand it clearly.

The Sower: Our Shared Task
“Behold, a sower went out to sow” (Matthew 13:3). In first-century Palestine that meant walking out beyond the village and scattering seed with a faithful hand. In the kingdom, every disciple who teaches the gospel truthfully steps into this role. Ecclesiastes urges steady diligence: “He who observes the wind will not sow… In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not withhold your hand” (Ecclesiastes 11:4–6). Waiting for perfect conditions produces empty fields. The harvest reflects the measure of our sowing: “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly” (2 Corinthians 9:6). The Lord’s seed bag never empties. Teach today and you still have gospel seed for tomorrow.

The Seed: God’s Living Word
Jesus identifies the seed as “the word of the kingdom” (Matthew 13:19). Seed looks dry in the palm, yet life rests inside it. So it is with Scripture. Jesus said His words are “spirit and life.” God’s word is “incorruptible seed… by the word of God which lives and abides forever” (1 Peter 1:23). Seed yields after its kind. Plant corn; harvest corn. Plant the pure gospel; God makes Christians. Mixtures and hybrids in doctrine cannot produce New Testament disciples. The life and the pattern for the kingdom come through this seed alone.

The Soils: Four Hearts in One Field
The Lord sows into the heart—the place where we think, feel, and choose (Matthew 13:19). The same seed meets different conditions, and the harvest follows the heart.

The Wayside: The Hard Path
“Some seed fell by the wayside, and the birds came and devoured them” (Matthew 13:4). Luke says the devil snatches away the word “lest they should believe and be saved” (Luke 8:12). This is the trampled path—hard, untouched, and closed. Pride, prejudice, empty religion, or the false comfort of “plenty of time” can harden a person until truth cannot enter. Sin deceives and hardens (Hebrews 3:13). The result is simple: no faith, no salvation.

The Stony Ground: The Shallow Heart
“Some fell on stony places… they immediately sprang up… but… had no root” (Matthew 13:5–6). This is a thin layer of soil over bedrock. The hearer receives the word with joy, yet conviction never takes root. When trials or reproach arise “because of the word,” he stumbles (Matthew 13:20–21). Many in John 6 loved full baskets and easy days; when Jesus spoke hard sayings, they “walked with Him no more.” Emotion can launch a start; only counted cost sustains a walk (Luke 9:23).

The Thorny Ground: The Crowded Heart
“Some fell among thorns… and the thorns… choked them” (Matthew 13:7). Jesus names the choke points: “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches” (Matthew 13:22). Luke adds “pleasures of life” (Luke 8:14). Ordinary duties can swell into distractions. Martha’s busy house in Luke 10 shows the danger of good things displacing the best thing. The desire to be rich lures into snares (1 Timothy 6:9–10). “Lusts of other things” crowd the soul (Mark 4:19). Divided loyalties suffocate fruit. Set affections “on things above” and the thorns lose their power (Colossians 3:2).

The Good Ground: The Honest and Good Heart
“Others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Matthew 13:8, 23). Luke describes this heart as “honest and good” that hears, keeps the word, and bears fruit with patience (Luke 8:15). Mark adds the step of acceptance (Mark 4:20). Hear. Understand. Receive. Obey. Then comes fruit—often far beyond the single seed planted. The Bereans modeled this readiness, examining the Scriptures with eager minds (Acts 17:11). James urges us to “receive with meekness the implanted word” (James 1:21).

Preparing the Heart and Persevering in the Work
Soils can change. Hard paths can be broken. Stones can be cleared. Thorns can be pulled. No one else can do this part for us. Discipleship carries a cost, and Jesus asks us to count it up front (Luke 14:25–33). Return to the field daily, cultivate your own heart, and keep sowing into the hearts of others. The reward is truly out of this world.

Conclusion
The Lord’s picture is simple and searching: a sower, a seed, and four soils. The harvest rests in God’s power and in our response. Keep your heart soft. Keep your hand full of seed. Keep your feet in the field. God gives the increase.

Sermon Outline

• Introduction: seed catalogs and the three essentials; Jesus’ parable in Matthew 13

• The Sower

  • Definition: any disciple who teaches the gospel (Matthew 13:3, 18–19)

  • Always sow: Ecclesiastes 11:4–6; avoid paralysis from “perfect conditions”

  • Measure of sowing and reaping: 2 Corinthians 9:6; God’s seed supply never runs out

• The Seed

  • Identity: “word of the kingdom” (Matthew 13:19)

  • Nature: living, incorruptible (1 Peter 1:23); Jesus’ words are spirit and life

  • After its kind: pure gospel produces Christians; mixtures cannot

• The Soils / Hearts

  • Wayside: hard path; Satan snatches; causes of hardness; result—no faith, no salvation (Matthew 13:4, 19; Luke 8:12; Hebrews 3:13)

  • Stony: shallow soil; joy without root; trials for the word; fair-weather following; John 6; call to counted cost (Matthew 13:5–6, 20–21; Luke 9:23)

  • Thorny: crowded soil; cares, riches, pleasures; divided loyalty; Martha’s distraction; snares of wealth; set mind above (Matthew 13:7, 22; Luke 8:14; Luke 10:38–42; 1 Timothy 6:9–10; Colossians 3:2; Mark 4:19)

  • Good: honest and good heart; hear, understand, accept, keep; fruit with patience; Bereans; implanted word (Matthew 13:8, 23; Mark 4:20; Luke 8:15; Acts 17:11; James 1:21)

• Preparing the Heart

  • Break hardness, clear stones, pull thorns; personal responsibility

  • Counting the cost; perseverance in sowing (Luke 14:25–33)

• Conclusion: keep your heart soft, your hand sowing, and your hope in God’s increase

Call to Action
Choose the good and honest heart today. If you have never obeyed the gospel, confess Christ and be baptized for the forgiveness of sins. Rise to walk as good ground, ready for fruit. If thorns have crowded your life or stones have stunted your roots, clear the field and return to steady obedience. Take seed with you this week. Speak the word to someone God places in your path.

Scripture Reference List

• Matthew 13:3–9, 18–23 — Parable of the Sower and Jesus’ explanation

• Mark 4:18–20 — Parallel emphasis on “accepting” the word and “lusts of other things”

• Luke 8:11–15 — Parallel emphasis on Satan’s snatching and bearing fruit “with patience”

• Ecclesiastes 11:4–6 — Steady sowing rather than waiting for perfect conditions

• 2 Corinthians 9:6 — Measure of sowing and reaping

• 1 Peter 1:23 — The incorruptible, living seed of God’s word

• Hebrews 3:13 — The deceitfulness of sin hardens the heart

• John 6:60–66 — Hard sayings expose shallow following

• Luke 9:23 — Daily cross and true discipleship

• Luke 10:38–42 — Martha’s distraction and choosing the good part

• 1 Timothy 6:9–10 — Snares attached to the desire to be rich

• Colossians 3:2 — Setting the mind on things above

• Acts 17:11 — Bereans receive the word with readiness

• James 1:21 — Receive with meekness the implanted word

• Luke 14:25–33 — Counting the cost of discipleship

Prepared by Bobby Stafford of the church of Christ at Granby, MO