Pictures of HeavenSample

The Parable of the Sower

This story has been called by many the “parable about parables.” It’s found in three of the gospel accounts—Matthew, Mark, and Luke. They all record Jesus’ presentation of this particular metaphor. And there’s a pretty significant reason why.

A large crowd gathers around Jesus and He sets up a scene in their minds by talking about a farmer who goes out to sow his seed. Some seeds fall on the path, some on rocky ground, some among the thorns, and some on good soil. Each of these different kinds of terrain produce a different result. The seed on the path is quickly eaten by birds. The seed among the rocks can’t grow any roots, so the young plants wither and die. Any seed that falls and grows up among the thorns is eventually choked out. And lastly, the seed that actually lands on good soil produces a significant harvest. 

All right, cool. Seeds and plants and crops. What does this have to do with the Kingdom of God? The disciples were wondering the same thing. And honestly, Jesus’ response is pretty confusing. He says:

“The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, ‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’” Luke 8:10 NIV

So Jesus doesn’t want people to understand? That feels so cruel! This guy, by His own admission, has the words of life! Why would He want to conceal them from anyone? 

All great questions. And what we learn from this parable about parables is that Jesus’ teachings are not going to be full of cute sayings and easy answers. They’re going to invite us to wrestle with hard truths. Because parables conceal in order to reveal.  

What does that mean? Take King David for example. During the time when kings would normally go out to war, he stayed home. He was somewhere he shouldn’t have been, so he saw something he shouldn’t have seen. He chose obedience to his own desires over obedience to God and ended up having an affair with Bathsheba, the wife of one of his top warriors. God sends the prophet Nathan to confront David about it, and Nathan takes a really interesting approach—he tells David a story. 

In Nathan’s story, there’s a rich guy and a poor guy. The rich guy has a bunch of sheep. The poor guy only has one and he LOVES this little lamb. It’s his prized possession. Well, one day, the rich guy is entertaining a guest, sees the little lamb, and decides to take it and serve it to his friend for lunch. Messed up, right? He used the power he had to take the poor man’s most treasured possession. 

David was rightly outraged when he heard this story. He asked Nathan who this rich punk was so he could punish him for what he had done. Nathan looked at the king and simply replied, “You are that man …”

Can you imagine the air getting sucked out of the room at that moment? Nathan’s parable lands so hard on King David that he immediately recognizes his sin and repents on the spot. 

And it’s this teaching style that Jesus implements throughout His ministry. Because He understands the human condition. He knows that often, the best way to confront our hearts is indirectly. So through His parables, Jesus comes sideways at the truth of the Kingdom, the unsettling grace of God, and the countercultural way of life we’re called to. Jesus’ parables beg two questions of every listener: Will we receive the truth He offers? And if so, how will we respond? 

Let’s carry these questions into each parable that we examine in this plan. 

Prayer: God, thank You for knowing and understanding my heart. Thank you for speaking to our hearts gently but also truthfully through Your stories. I pray that You would give me ears to hear. Help me receive the truth You offer and respond with humble obedience.