A parable is really a riddle – to be figured out. It is also a story with a hidden meaning…that people are to seek out. Or, you can just accept it as it is, at face value. Some say, it is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.
Regardless it was a teaching tool a technique, if you will.
People seemingly loved the stories that Jesus created and told.
Perhaps because his stories were drawn from everyday life and living, from the simplicity of life and not its complexity…
Jesus never used theological abstractions like Paul did. By telling a story, Jesus created pictures of abstract ideas that everyone could relate to! The way Jesus told the stories…the abstract ideas became visual and concrete.
The sources for his preaching and teaching materials were homey and down to earth experiences of people’s everyday lives…
So in his first parable, he chose the most common of experiences from the lives of everyday people: seeds, sowers, hard paths, rocky soil, thorny soil and good rich soil.
People could relate.
And then to underscore the importance of his teachings, Jesus said, “Hey, if you have two good ears, listen!” Pay attention! Listen up! Open your hearts and your minds to what you are about to hear!
But his story of the sower caused people to react instantly…they could not believe it. They had never…in all their lives…met a sower…such as this one.
We hear the story today, and think it is all about the soil…
We focus our attention on the 4 types of soil – that are supposed to be representative of all-different-kinds-of-people.
Obviously, we want to see ourselves as being the good soil.
Also, quite obviously, we want to see ourselves as bearing or producing a lot of fruit for the kingdom.
But the parable is not about us. Only people like us would turn a parable on its ear – to be a reflection of us.
Some people seemingly think that everything is about them.
The sun rotates around them. They are the center of the universe. They have to be the center of attraction. The most important in the family… The most important person in the kingdom…
Let me tell you that Jesus’ original audience of hearers would have focused their attention on the sower…and not the soil.
No sower was ever like him. Certainly no one they had ever come into contact with…this guy was nuts. He was reckless. And at the same time he was extremely generous. He was completely careless. No one in his right mind would be so careless to waste so much good seed.
Seed was not easy to come by. Seed was of great value. Seed had worth. You do not waste seed.
Seed was sown by hand and the farmer or the sower would be extremely careful to make sure that all of his seed was landing on the proper soil – where it would have a chance at germination.
His family was dependent on this. The village was dependent on this. It is more than just you and your immediate family that is affected by such recklessness.
The shock of this parable would have been immediate. It would have had people talking to each other-out-loud. It was a quandary. How could one man be so wasteful? Such wastefulness needs to be punished.
Some seeds fell on the path! Are you kidding me? How stupid is that putting good seed on a solid, worn, well-traveled path? That makes no sense, whatsoever!
And likewise, why would anybody recklessly throw or toss any seed on a rocky or thorny soil? This is outrageous! Who does such outrageous things?
Just as everybody was thinking that such wastefulness needs to be punished… The answer is NO! Instead the outcome or the yield is 30-60 or even 100…when the normal yield at the time was 4-5%.
The crowd was confused. How is this even possible? Unless we are talking about God…because as everybody knew and believed…with God anything is possible. Anything…
God is extravagant. God is generous.
God gets great results…even from sowing seeds willy-nilly. God does not worry about wasting his efforts. He gives and then, he gives some more…and he keeps on giving…
God’s extravagant wastefulness bestows blessings on all. Even on the likes of people like us. We are blessed. Abundantly blessed…. Now what is our response to him?