SUPERNATURAL SEEDS
Luke 8:11-15 ESV
11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. 14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
This is one of Jesus' most important parables. He told His disciples that it was one of the secrets of the Kingdom of God. Other translations speak of the mysteries of the Kingdom. The principle of the seed is a secret worth spending time with.
The seed is the word of God. There is so much we could say about the miracle of a seed. We know of small seeds that become huge trees. I am thinking of a huge oak tree we had in my backyard when I was young. I was amazed that a tree of that size could come from an acorn. I knew acorns were good for throwing at friends in the neighborhood, but there was massive potential in that small seed. There is even more potential in God's seed.
The first group are those who are on the path and never receive the seed of God's Word. They may have heard, but either rejected it outright or dismissed it as unimportant. In either case, the enemy stole the potential that God's Word could do in their hearts, and nothing changed.
The second group is where the seed fell on the rock. They did receive the seed of God's Word with joy. They accept and believe in God's seed and are glad about it. But when they are challenged and tested with the problems of life, they stop believing. When pressure comes, putting the heat on what they believe, they stop believing. They don't stay with what they first heard and believed and so the seed does not get a chance to develop.
The third group is the thorny ground bunch. They believe when they hear. They are not dismissing the seed of God's Word, but. But there are too many things competing for their time and attention. So, instead of focusing on the supernatural seeds of God's Word, they are distracted. Life is happening and they are deep into all the temporary things of this life. Not necessarily bad things or wrong things, but they are too busy to nurture and focus on God's seeds, and so what those divine seeds produce is severely limited.
The last group is the good ground people. The seed of God's Word finds a healthy home in their hearts. They receive the seed with gladness. They hold onto the seed even when the heat is on. And they are able to push past the distractions of this life to act on God's seeds instead of life's temporary gains. They are productive. They stay committed to God's seeds and produce fruit as they persevere.
This entire passage is about application. We must locate where we are in our attitude and receptiveness of God's supernatural seeds. Then, we must stay with what we believe and continue to act on God's seeds as our highest priority. This is an aspirational goal that is available to all. So, bring on the supernatural seeds and let's bring in the harvest.