Mensa Otabil - A Sower Went Out to Sow
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Welcome to a new week of «Where to Go,» and today we start to look at an interesting parable of Jesus. We will be covering it throughout the week; it’s the parable of the sower. I begin with Matthew, chapter 13, verse number three: «Then he spoke many things to them in parables, saying, 'Behold, a sower went out to sow.'» That is how Jesus begins the telling of this parable. Jesus used parables to talk about the kingdom of God, and a parable is a short moral story with a lesson at the end.
In the days of Jesus, it was the way most teachers or rabbis taught their lessons. They would tell a story and then draw a moral lesson from it, and Jesus, being a rabbi, applied the method of the rabbis to teach his lessons. He also used parables. Parables are very easy to remember because of the story, so the lessons stick very well. Most parables speak to an immediate situation, and most of Jesus’s parables have an immediate application; they also speak to other situations. We can say that a parable has a primary application and a secondary application: it speaks to something directly and then to other things later on.
The parable of the sower primarily talks about the preaching of the gospel and how people respond to that preaching. However, we can also apply the principles of the parable to how people respond not only to the gospel but also to new ideas, new knowledge, and how they respond to that. Thus, we see a primary application toward the gospel, but it can have a secondary application to other new ideas shared with us.
In this parable, there are three factors we will look at—three images. The first is the sower; Jesus starts the parable by saying that a sower went out to sow. The sower is the person who goes out to do this work; he’s the one who goes about preaching the word of God or spreading a new idea. He is the main person making things happen at this time. There is the sower, and then the sower went out to sow implies a seed; thus, there is the seed. Throughout the parable, you see seed being mentioned. The seed is the word of God, so the sower goes out with the word of God to sow it.
However, as we have noted in a secondary application, it could also refer to a new idea. It’s interesting that Jesus describes the word of God as a seed. Seed is tiny and looks insignificant, but it packs a lot of power because within every seed is a forest. That is the potential that comes from the word of God. The gospel may seem simple and insignificant, but it has a lot of potential to transform individuals, nations, and the whole world. So there’s the seed, and then there is the soil. The sower went out to sow; he definitely sowed in soil, and the soil represents the attitude with which people receive the word of God.
This parable shows our attitude toward the word of God, and throughout this week that’s what we will be examining. I will use this parable as a mirror to conduct an inspection of our hearts to determine what kind of soil we are and how we are receiving the word of God and how it applies to us. So, get ready; prepare your heart for the word of God to bless you, and examine how you receive the word of God. Let’s share a word of prayer together: Say with me, «Heavenly Father, thank you for the power of your word. Help me to receive your word with a right heart attitude, in Jesus' name, Amen and Amen.» Well, that’s the introduction to our lesson throughout this week. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom—peace and life to you.