Jesus Christ the same yesterday,
and to day, and for ever.
- Heb. 13:8
The Seed Word
The Seed Word
Posted on 12 Apr 2015
The Seed Word
Text: Luke 8:5-15
Luk 8:5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.
Luk 8:6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.
Luk 8:7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.
Luk 8:8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Luk 8:9 And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?
Luk 8:10 And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.
Luk 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
Luk 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
Luk 8:13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.
Luk 8:14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.
Luk 8:15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
Introduction
- A seed is a plant’s unit of reproduction.
- When you plant a seed, you expect it to germinate out of the ground, grow and produce fruit
- The fruit produced is dependent on the type of seed that was planted
- An orange seed will produce an orange fruit, apple seed – apple, grape seed – grape
- You cannot plant an apple seed and expect a mango fruit – it doesn’t work that way
- However, there are conditions that can aid or hinder the development of the seed into a fruit
- A seed planted by the water side will develop better than a seed planted in the desert
- The Word of God works in the same manner
- The Word of God is described as a seed in this parable
- The seed is sown in the heart of men, but the conditions in the heart of men determines what happens with the seed
- If the condition is conducive to the seed, the seed will grow and bring forth fruit.
- Otherwise, the seed will die under non-conducive conditions
Main Topic
Non-Conducive Conditions of the heart
1. Way Side
- The way side is a non-conducive condition of the heart of man
- It is typically a hard surface, that does not allow anything to grow, not even weeds
- It allows anything to walk through it – stepping on any seed that may want to take ground there
- Since the ground is hard and people and animals walk on the way side, the seed is stepped on and destroyed
- This is when the heart is exposed to anything that can destroy the Word of God in the heart
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- The books and magazine being read
- The movies and tv shows being watched
- The news and gossips being heard
- If they are not filtered, they will harden the heart against the Word of God
- If the seed escaped being stepped on, it will become food for the birds
- Jesus described this as the devil taking the Word away from their hearts – they don’t believe and be saved
- This describes the state of the heart of some non-believers
- It does not matter how you preach the gospel message, they will not receive it
2. Rock
- The rock is another non-conducive condition of the heart of man
- It is a hard surface that has a little soft top soil, which allows the seed to germinate
- The tiny soft part receives the word with joy
- However, because it is not deep, the seed cannot take root – so their belief is only for a little while
- When the sun beats on the seed, it withers away
- Jesus described this as when temptation comes, they fall away
- The main problem here is the foundation – it will not allow the seed to grow
- The Word of God is unable to make a difference in their lives
- Notice that these are believers, because they receive the Word with joy
- But their belief is shallow, as temptations causes them to fall away from the Lord
- These type of believers will struggle greatly in their Christian walk with the Lord
- They are the type that will easily backslide into the world because the Word has no root
- They have one foot in the church and the other foot in the world
3. Thorns
- The thorns is also a non-conducive condition of the heart of man
- The ground is not the problem – as the seed is allowed to grow and bring forth fruit
- The problem is that thorns are also allowed to grow alongside the seed
- Notice that these are believers as well – they receive the Word with joy
- However, they also have different priorities in life….
- The cares of this world, riches, and pleasures of life are growing alongside the Word of God in their heart
- The focus becomes superficial rather than spiritual
- How they look or how they are being perceived on the outside is more important than how they are on the inside
- They bring forth fruit, but the fruit is not to perfection – because it is not from the heart
- Matt 6:19-24
- Their treasures are here in the world – rather than in heaven
Conducive Condition of the heart
1. Good Ground
- The only conducive condition of the heart that allows the seed to grow
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- It is not way side – these are believers, guarding their hearts against things that can destroy the Word of God in their hearts
- It is not rock – the soft soil is deep, allowing the seed to take root
- It is not among thorns – the cares and riches of this world is not their priority
- The condition is highly conducive for the Word of God
- They hear the Word (they allow themselves to be exposed to the undiluted Word of God)
- They study the Bible on a daily basis, listen to messages regularly because they treasure the Word of God
- They keep the Word
- They practice the Word
- They bring forth fruit with patience – they allow the Word of God to grow
- They water the seed of the Word of God regularly
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- The Holy Spirit is key
- Studying the Word is key
- Prayer is key
- They bring forth fruit an hundred fold in due time
- Mat 7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
- What fruit are you known for?
- Is it fruit of the Spirit or is it something else?
Conclusion
- This parable of Jesus Christ describes the 4 possible conditions of the heart of man
- The question is, where is your heart? What is the Word doing in your heart?
- Is it the Way Side, the Rock, the Thorns or the Good Ground?
- Is the seed of the Word taking root in your heart?
- Are you allowing the Word to grow? Or is it being choked by the cares of this world?
- If it is not the good ground, a change is needed
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