Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.
Text (Luke 8:4-15):
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.
Kä ce̱t kuay tin ci pɛn muun mi gɔaa kɛ nɛy tin ca ruac liŋ kä ka̱pkɛ jɛ kɛ luth kɛnɛ lo̱c ti gɔw, kä bikɛ dɛy ti gɔw kuir kɛ li̱ep bitdä kɛnɛ dhieel.
Prayer: May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
In our Gospel reading today, Jesus compares the word of God to a seed. The word of God is not a rock that you have to collect and put in your pocket. It is a living seed that is planted in you and grows in you.
If you want to know how to live a Christian life, all you have to do is be exposed to the Gospel. The Gospel will do its work. It will grow. It will flourish.
Sometimes people think that the Word of God is just information. Some people think it really doesn’t have any power of its own unless we “accept” it or unless we “decide to follow Jesus”. People say, “I’ve told you about Jesus, now it’s up to you to accept him.” That’s not true: it’s not “up to us”. We don’t save ourselves, but God saves us through his Word. He is the one who says, “Your sins are forgiven. Go in peace.” We don’t save ourselves.
Pastors don’t preach about the gospel. They actually preach the gospel!
People don’t come to church and hear things about the Word of God! They hear the Word of God itself!
People don’t come to learn about Jesus! They actually learn Jesus himself!
St Paul in Ephesians talks about “learning Christ”, not learning about him, but actually learning him himself!
So when we hear the Word of God, we are being worked upon by God. We are being changed by God. God is the one who works and wills in us to his good pleasure. He is the one who is planting the seed.
The word of God is a powerful force. It does things.
There’s no point in telling people to do good works, if we don’t actually give people Jesus Christ himself to do the good works through them. There’s no point in telling people what they should do, if they don’t know who they are: forgiven sinners washed in the blood of Christ.
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St Peter says, “[Since God] who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Another way we could say this is that you will be holy, because the seed which is planted in you is holy. The Word of God which is spoken to you is holy, and it makes you holy.
Actually, there are two ways in which we understand what it means to be holy.
The first type of holiness is the holiness which comes from the Word of God. The Word is God is perfect and is totally holy. God’s word says, we are forgiven, therefore we are forgiven. God says you are holy because Christ died and rose for you, therefore you are holy. Even if you can’t see anything good in yourself, it doesn’t matter. You’re not supposed to look for holiness in yourself, you supposed to look for it in the Word of God. God’s Word says, “You are baptised”. “You are forgiven.” “Take, eat, this is my body, given for you.” God’s word says it. That settles it. This is the most perfect holiness.
But there’s another type of holiness. This is the holiness that comes from what you do. We might say, “He’s a holy person, because he did this or that.” But this sort of holiness is not perfect, and it is not acceptable to God unless it is forgiven by him. Your good works are no good, unless they are forgiven by God. Sure, sometimes you do things which are very good – but then as soon as you realise that it is a good thing, you want to take the credit for it, and you forget that all glory belongs to God. Everyone does this, even when they do good things. So this type of holiness isn’t perfect. It needs to be forgiven.
Even who you think is the best person from a human point of view might go to hell. And who you think is the worst person in the world might go to heaven. That’s because salvation doesn’t depend on what we do, but about the Word of God which is planted in us. Even the best and the worst person need to be forgiven. Even the best and the worst person need to be purified. And we might say that God isn’t fair – well, he’s not! He’s just good! We’d all be completely up the creek without a paddle, if after communion today we said the words: “Give thanks to the Lord for he is fair!” Instead, we say, “Give thanks to the Lord for he is good.”
So that’s why we constantly need to hear the Word of God. We constantly need to be made new through the Word of God. We need the seed to be planted into our ears and into our hearts and to bear fruit.
But in our parable today, which Jesus tells us, he warns us about how people can reject the gospel. This passage which we have read today is one of the most important parables in the bible, because it tells us why some people are saved and why some are not. People are not saved, because God doesn’t chose them. People are not saved, because they reject God. The problem’s not with the seed, the problem is where the seed is planted.
If we want to know how to live a Christian life, all we have to know is how not to reject the Word of God. If we reject the Word of God, and the good news of the forgiveness of sins, then we will not live a Christian life. If we simply hear the Word of God, and let it grow, then we will live a Christian life. Our Christian life will happen without us even thinking about it, or even knowing about it, so long as we don’t reject the Word of God.
In a garden, I’m sure that dirt doesn’t notice how nice the plants are that grow in it. Rather it’s the person who plants the seed who notices. And the person who plants the seed is God. We are just the dirt.
But there are four types of ground.
There’s the path. There’s rocky ground. There’s thorny ground. And there’s good soil.
So let’s look at the first one: the path. Simply put, the path is just the wrong place.
Jesus says: “As he sowed, some seed fell along the path and was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it… 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.”
Is your heart a path? If so, wake up and confront yourself. Don’t let the vultures comes and make a meal of your faith.
Watch out, says St Peter. Your enemy the devil roams around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.
The first mention of sin in the bible is in the story of Cain and Abel. God says to Cain, “Sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”
But notice that the birds are on the lookout for seed. As soon as they see seed on the path they will come and grab it. Every one has to wrestle with sin. The birds desire you, the devil wants to have you. Sin is crouching at the door. Will you be its master, or will you be its slave?
Maybe you are a path. Maybe you really worry about being a path. Never mind. The Holy Spirit was sent to convict you of sin, and now he is doing his work in you, wiping away the path, and making furrows in you, and including you in good soil. If you have any worry about being a path, then know for sure that you are repentant. Know for sure that your repentance is good enough. Now Jesus Christ asks you to trust him that his words of forgiveness are bigger and better than you. Now Jesus asks you to look at him on the cross, and he will take the cross and make furrows in you with it, and make you good soil. Listen to the words of forgiveness, and hold them fast in your heart, and be patient. Wait for the Lord. Be strong and let your heart take courage. St John says, “whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart.” God does not predestine some ahead of time to hell. Anyone who says that is a liar, and sins against the Word of God, and will be punished for their lies. The purpose of the Word of God is not to condemn you but to encourage you. St John says, “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world may be saved through him.” And St Paul says in Romans, “Whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
But let’s have a look at the second type of ground: Rocky ground.
Jesus says: “Some fell on the rock, and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture… The ones who fell 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 the time of testing fall away.”
Are you rocky ground? You’ll find out on Monday. Maybe you love the gospel and you love hearing it, but you just seem to get nowhere! Rejoice in the fact that God has brought you back here. He’s not finished with you yet. In Ezekiel he says, “I will take away your heart of stone, and give you a heart of flesh.” If you are rocky ground, and all of us in some sense are hard of heart to the gospel, then hear the word of God, and hold it fast, and be patient. If God’s going to make good soil out of you, he’s going to have to get out his hammer, and send you some suffering. And when it comes, then rejoice!
Maybe you are always doing the same sin, and you come every week to have it forgiven. And then you do it again! So hearing the forgiveness of sin doesn’t give you any joy anymore because you think it doesn’t work. Of course it works, but you might not feel it. Rejoice, when you suffer, rejoice when you feel nothing, because when you feel nothing, and your heart is heavy and you are on the brink of despair, then you know that there is nothing else to put your trust in, there is nothing else in the whole world to hang your hat on but the living and active Word of God, which is the forgiveness of sins, the voice of God which doesn’t come out of your own heart, but the living and powerful gospel that is the voice from heaven, the gospel which showers upon you from heaven, that tears out of heaven and seeks you out to rescue you.
Third type of ground: thorny ground.
Jesus says: “Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up with it and choked it… 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 live, and their fruit does not mature.”
Are you thorny ground?
Do you fear, love and trust in God above all things? Do you have any other gods? Is anything more important to you that hearing the word of God? Do you ever think that something is more important to you than prayer or coming to the house of God? Do you support to work of the church financially, or do you think that that’s other people’s job? Let Jesus forgive these thorns and pluck them out.
Ask yourself, “What is your greatest worry? What is your greatest fear?” If it is not your salvation, then repent, and let your master Jesus Christ cut the thornbushes. Jesus says: “Consider the birds of the air. They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?... Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you.”
We have to be careful, because we have many nice things in Australia. And there’s nothing wrong with having things and owning things and having good things. But if these things are in charge of us, rather than us being in charge of them, then there’s a problem. People don’t come to church, because they don’t need God’s help. When people need God, they come to church. That’s why Christianity flourishes in poor countries and goes rotten in rich ones. If you know that there are thorns crowding your faith, then ask for the Holy Spirit to remove them.
If you don’t have time for God, ask God for time, and when he gives it to you, thank him for it. If you don’t have money, ask God for it, and when he gives it to you, thank him for it. If you don’t have anything that you think you need, ask God for it, and when he gives it to you, thank him for it. As soon as you do this, you put your thorns in Jesus Christ’s gardening gloves.
But the last type of soil is the good soil.
Jesus says: “And some fell into good soil, and grew and yielded a hundred fold… As for those in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold if fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient.”
So listen to the word. Hold it fast. Be patient.
Be faithful unto death, and you will receive the crown of life.
Let yourself be renewed by God. Let yourself be renewed with the word of God. Let yourself be fallowed.
The word of God is not dead! It works, you know!! It forgives, it saves.
If the Word of God has ever been a dead thing to you, then let it go to seed now, and let it be planted in you abundantly.
The word of God is living and active. And Jesus has died for you, he was planted in the tomb and he has sprouted up from the grave. And this Word has been preached into your ears, into your own ears! And God’s Word doesn’t lie, but it is “the power of salvation”.
Jesus says, “He who ears to hear, let him hear!”
Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ, plant your word in us, and let us treasure it in our hearts. Keep us firm and strong and rooted deeply in your words of forgiveness. Send us the sunshine of your grace, the drenching rains of your Holy Spirit that we grow, and yield a hundredfold. Amen.
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