“…He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” – Matthew 13:9

For those of us who have grown up in the church, we can allow the constant entrance of the Word to grow dull in our ears. Now I don’t think any of us would admit that we willingly reject the Word of God, but it can happen by not preparing our hearts to receive it.

Jesus’ Parable of the Sower is one of His most famous parables, but in reality it may be more aptly titled the Parable of the SOIL. Let’s take a look:

There are two consistencies in this parable.

1) The seed.

We learn in Jesus’ explanation of the parable that the seed is the Word. Everything that is needed to bear fruit is contained in that seed.

2) The sower.

The sower is a picture of Christ planting (or attempting to plant) seed in our hearts to bring forth fruit in our lives.

The only inconsistency in the parable is the soil. We are presented with 4 different kinds-

the soil on the side of the road,

the shallow soil,

the soil among the thorns and finally,

the GOOD soil.

We have all probably been like one of these soils at different times in our lives. In my life there have been times that I have been so far from God that I have completely neglected the tending of my heart so that His Word just bounces off unnoticed, allowing the enemy to sweep in and snatch it from remembrance.

You may have been excited by a sermon, or by reading your daily devotional on a specific occasion, but your heart was not prepared for God’s word to take root so that when a difficult circumstance came about you resorted back to the mundane routine of complacency.

Then there are those who sit in church and receive the Word and it begins to take root but they allow themselves to get caught up in the cares of this life (finances, relationships, career paths, agendas, worries, anxiety, you-name-it), even their sin, and it gets a stranglehold on them so that they cannot bear proper fruit as they should.

Our ultimate goal is to be the final soil, the good soil. This soil is plowed and watered and rich in nutrients making it the perfect place for a seed to take root and grow. Once it has been planted we want to allow the fresh water of the Holy Spirit to saturate us continually and constantly be in the light to encourage growth. Breaking up the fallow ground in our hearts in most cases can be a painful process but it is worth the pain to see the results of the fruit that is born from that very soil. Is God’s Word to us simply -in one ear-out the other- or do we have a heart that is prepared to receive what He is offering?

Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For [it is] time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you. – Hosea 10:12