the sower

Alright. Matthew 13: 18-23. Parable of the Sower Explained; the headline in my Bible. 4 kinds of seed sown -- by the wayside, on stony ground, among thorns, in fertile soil. Wayside: hears the gospel, doesn't quite understand and Satan ultimately snatches him away. On Stony Ground: hears it, loves it, but once persecution or trials arise, he stumbles. Among Thorns: hears it, but the cares of this life and all its deceitfulness choke him and he produces no fruit. Fertile Soil: gets it and bears fruit.

I don't know about you, but I haven't experienced persecution (so therefore cannot be stony) nor do I like to think that I am carried away by the cares of this world. And I have been a steady believer for awhile now... So I've been sown on fertile ground, yes? But really? There are so many other warnings not be to carried away with the cares of this world and to endure persecution. And I don't think it's safe to think you're doin' just fine. You know?

To reference a good talk I had with Kristen Vorel this Sabbath evening, what do you think you are? What am I? Kristen (I don't think she minds my divulging) thinks she is a Fertile/Thorny hybrid. Definitely a good thought, but I see there to be an obvious distinction; you are either one or you're another. It didn't make sense to me that you could be both.

So I asked Mr. Beyersdorfer. To encourage Kristen, he told me to tell her, "God does not sow bad seed." He went on to explain that the 4 types of ground the seed found themselves sprouting up amongst were conditions. We may at various times find ourselves to be in one or all of those four conditions. Or we may see others go through some of the various conditions as they come to understanding. But the ulitmate lesson is to know not only that these types of things may try us, but that we've been given the ability to count the cost, know where we stand, and call on our Gardener to help change our situation, the type of ground we find ourselves in.

I ah-ha'ed not only at Mr. B's comment, but also at Mark's point. Note Luke 13:6-9 -- "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?' But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if it not, after that you can cut it down." Word. Who is the Gardener and Keeper and Advocate? :) Though we may be cut down and thrown into the fire if we do not bear good fruit (Matt. 3:10), we do have someone who will help us see to it that the ground we are sprout among is able to help us bear fruit, "some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."