ONEFamily
Outreach exists to "Connect
Kids to Community and Communities to Kids."
I originally began posting these studies as a service to the jails and shelters where I was a Chaplain. They are available for free. If you can make a donation (no donation is too small), that would help defray some of the costs and support our work. If you are unable to support us at this time -- it's okay, I've been there too -- God bless you in your ministry and I pray this study can be a blessing to you.
ONEFamily
Outreach is primarily
supported by your donations and by trainings, workshops, retreats and concerts.
(1) That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. (2) And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.
(3) And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; (4) and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. (5) “Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. (6) “But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. (7) “Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. (8) “And others fell on the good soil and *yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. (9) “He who has ears, let him hear.”
(10) And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” (11) Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. (12) “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. (13) “Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.(14) “In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;
(15) FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL,
WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR,
AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES,
OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES,
HEAR WITH THEIR EARS,
AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN,
AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’
(16) “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. (17) “For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
(18) “Hear then the parable of the sower. (19) “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. (20) “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; (21) yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. (22) “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. (23) “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
Matthew 13:1-2
(1) That day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting by the sea. (2) And large crowds gathered to Him, so He got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd was standing on the beach.
He got into a boat and sat down
I remember my early days as a Christian musician showing up to sing to a thousand young people yet the promoter had no public address system. “But Jesus spoke to thousands with no microphone,” I would often hear. “I’m not Jesus,” I would mumble—and then make do.
Jesus was the consummate speaker. His teachings were replete with contemporary images and humor but rarely stuffed with the endless and repetitive dry quotes used by his contempories. In fact, he rarely even quoted scripture except to the religous and to Satan.
Our Lord rows out on the lake to use the water as an acoustical aid, he sits to show he is ready to preach with authority. There’s a flair of the dramatic to all of this, he wants the people to hear him clearly and know he is ready to make an important statement. Jesus’ style was so uncustomary and powerful that observers would say:
Matthew 7:28-29
(28) When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; (29) for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
What exactly made Jesus’ teaching so unique, so authoritative?
When Jesus was twelve he was in the temple “sitting in the midst of the teachers [Luke 2:46].” There were learned men standing around Jesus on that day who had waited their entire life to sit where Jesus was sitting. Men who had devoted their lives to the study of Scripture and the Law. Yet, here’s sits the twelve year old astounding the masters.
When Mary and Joseph returned to find them there would have undoubtedly been those who would offer to sponsor Jesus in a rabbinical school. No doubt they would have cajoled our Lord’s parents to allow him to stay, “Don’t take him back to a life of labor, leave him with us and we’ll educate him—he could become one of us!’”
It is actually Jesus who probably made the choice. He was twelve, he was “of age” now. Let’s look at what he decided to do:
Luke 2:51-52
(51) And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart. (52) And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
Jesus chose to “continue in subjection” to his parents. He returns to the carpentry work of his earthly father, carries that work on when Joseph dies and increases in wisdom, stature and favor with God and men. In short, Jesus’ education came from working hard with his hands; the daily grind of running a business in an occupied town. His reputation grew with his work, taking care of his customers, his mother and his business until it was time for his public life. His stories were thus filled with references to yokes and oxen, seeds and weeds, hard work and stewardship.
While the students of Jerusalem were ever-delving into interpretations of religious law, Jesus was ever-delving into how God was experienced in the life of a common working family. So, when he rows out on the lake and sits down, he doesn’t start by quoting this rabbi and that law, he begins with, “Behold, the sower went out to sow…”
Matthew 13:3-9
(3) And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; (4) and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. (5) “Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. (6) “But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. (7) “Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. (8) “And others fell on the good soil and *yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. (9) “He who has ears, let him hear.”
“Behold, the sower went out to sow…”
Every fertile plot of land in Israel would have been treasured and utilized. Small farmers in Jesus’ day, like many today, would literally scratch out a living on hard and shallow topsoil, then pray fervently for the right combination of rain and sunshine as well as protection from pests and crop disease to grow enough for their family to eat.
However, the family’s bellies were only the beginning. The farmer needed enough to pay taxes to Rome, taxes to Jerusalem (if they were going to worship as required by law), have enough to sell in order to buy other commodities and finally, enough to save to plant a crop next year. Can you imagine how valuable each seed was to the farmer? Each kernel of grain represented each member of the farmer’s family.
Farmers in Christ’s day had to walk into the wind and through their seed high in the air. If they didn’t go out in the wind, the seed wouldn’t scatter. If they closed their eyes to the dust blowing in their eyes and wound up wandering about the rows, their seeds would double up in some places and miss other places altogether. If they waited for a windless day, the seed would simply land in clumps. Farmers today, with their precise technology, would wince at the wasted seeds. As Jesus illustrates, of all seed held from the family table, fully three-fourths were wasted. One quarter to birds, another to rocky soil, another to thorns and finally… the good seed. Still, if the seed were really good, it could grow thirty, sixty, even a hundredfold of the bounty the farmer labored to harvest. Friends, that’s God-Mathematics. You don’t harvest one tomato from one plant. If you care for the plant just right, you harvest a basket of tomatoes. Even though one-in-four is not a good ratio in planting, God still provides.
So, just where do the “other three” land?
The Birds
The birds reaped what they did not plant, they waited and flew in at the right time to live off other people’s sweat. Who do you think that Jesus was referring to in this illustration? Who is the Evil One and his minions. We have examined the Hebrew and Greek names for The Evil One in another study. The critical principles are this:
Jesus tells us Satan exists, an evil entity intent on undermining God’s creation and primarily by destroying us. It is not that Satan wants us for himself, he wants to use us to hurt God.
Satan’s full name is Kata-Diaboulos. It means “cast out to the dung heap to rise from the dung heap.” That name reveals the nature of Satan. He wants nothing more than to coat us with the sins of our past and to say, “You will never change.”
His minons are named Demons, a word which means “Manipulators of destinies.”
Satan coats us with sins, his manipulators use us to undermine God’s creative purposes. Who would they be in today’s society? Who undermines God’s most forgotten ones? Who charges usurious fees, interest or taxes that makes the poor poorer while the rich prosper?
While Jesus frequently speaks in a social sense, he also speaking in an allegorical religious sense. Who are the birds in our religious lives? Who “swoops down” before our seed takes root?
There are many who use religion as a manipulative tool of people’s emotions. People who use religion to toy with others and keep them addicted to the highs of worship and the lows of guilt. By so doing, they expand their membership and fill their coffers. Yet, their “disciple’s” never get beyond the church doors or the elementals of Christian theology. They faith never makes it from preaching to praxis. It never goes from “me” to “us”—meaning the greater community of humankind.
Rocky Soil
While the seed lost to the birds focuses on is done to the seeds, this section focuses on what the seeds fail to do. Landing in shallow soil, they do not develop roots and are trampled upon or easily washed away. How deep are my roots? My faith development can never be someone else’s responsibility. It is my own. Do I look for deep soil?
Am I cultivating my own faith through daily prayer, study and service? Do I plant myself in a community fertile for growth?
How do I tell if I am in a fertile community? How much does my church ask of me? Are they willing to let me be a spectator as long as I pay my tithe or do they hold me accountable to the example of church Jesus cites in Matthew 10:40-42? Does my church welcome the least of these, send out prophets into the community, work for justice, and welcome the least acceptable person with radical hospitality. Does my church put as much emphasis on service as it does on worship? Could the leaders of my church stand up on Sunday and preach the Ultimate Sermon of Jesus Christ? “Do you see how I love… Love like that.”
The Weeds
A garden grows with work but weeds grow just fine with no assistance. If left uncontrolled weeds will take over the seedlings and steal their nutrients. They will starve out what is healthy and nutritious.
Every community has cynics and gossipers who either chase away the prophets and servants of justice or are challenged to change their behavior by church leaders. Thist.s what Paul had to “weed” in the Corinthian church:
2 Corinthians 12:19-2
(19) All this time you have been thinking that we are defending ourselves to you. Actually, it is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ; and all for your upbuilding, beloved. (20) For I am afraid that perhaps when I come I may find you to be not what I wish and may be found by you to be not what you wish; that perhaps there will be strife, jealousy, angry tempers, disputes, slanders, gossip, arrogance.
Great gardens and great churches constantly watch for the weeds that would undermine its purpose.
Matthew 13:10-23
(10) And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?” (11) Jesus answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. (12) “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. (13) “Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.(14) “In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,
‘YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND;
YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;
(15) FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL,
WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR,
AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES,
OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES,
HEAR WITH THEIR EARS,
AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN,
AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.’
(16) “But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. (17) “For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.
(18) “Hear then the parable of the sower. (19) “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road. (20) “The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; (21) yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away. (22) “And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. (23) “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
“He will have an abundance”
“You need to spend money to make money,” most of us recognize this Biz 101 dictum. Jesus also recognizes it as Religion 101. If we don’t use our faith we won’t grow our faith. If my faith is dull and flat it certainly isn’t God who lost the luster. To experience a miraculous faith, I need to put myself in circumstances ripe for change. Homeostasis and miraculous do not go hand in hand. Where in my life do I need growth? Where in my community does change need to occur? For my faith to grow I need to push beyond my comfort zone and into God’s growth zone.
“While seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear...”
Jesus quotes from Isaiah 6:9-10. The prophet had just been commissoned by God and sent to reprimand his own people. Why?
Isaiah 9:16
For those who guide this people are leading them astray; and those who are guided by them are brought to confusion.
Thousands were following Jesus at this time and the Lord was not going to tickle their ears like other leaders had done before him. The sermons that Matthew compiles in these chapters might accurately be described as the sermons that emphasize the “follower’s responsibilities.” Our Lord wasn’t going to leave his followers “astray” or “confused.”
We are responsible for developing the habits of faith no matter where our seed lands. There will be little room for blaming in heaven. We won’t be able “I would have been a better follower if God had sent me better leaders.”
We are responsible for the depth of our seed and the investment of our faith. Jesus didn’t want lazy followers.
“Many prophets and righteous men desired...”
So many of the prophets and others who worked for justice did so for decades without a kind word or hint of support. How they would have longed for one glimpse of Jesus or a whisper of support. We should never forget their sacrifice nor the courage of those today who speak on behalf of the disempowered. We have an obligation to do more than “pray” for them. We need to seek them out and be Christ to them as they are Christ to others. We “receive the prophet’s reward [Matthew 10:40-42], when we support the prophet, the righteous person or provide a cup of cold water to the least, little one.
How am I supporting the prophetic or righteous ones today? How does my church support those who do works of compassion in my community and in my world? That is Christ’s image of the church working together. Do I know the prophetic and the righteous well enough to understand their true needs? Am I a support in their lives, do they know me and call me “friend?”
This reading tells us that I will have “an abundance” from Christ’s viewpoint, when I plant myself deeply in the field of compassion and mercy.
About the Author
Jerry Goebel is a community organizer who started ONEFamily Outreach in response to gang violence and youth alienation in a rural community in Southeastern Washington. Since that time, Jerry has worked with communities around the globe to break the systemic hold of poverty by enhancing the strengths of the poor.
A primary philosophy of ONEFamily Outreach is to teach; “poverty is a lack of healthy relationships.” And, a primary focus of ONEFamily Outreach has been to break down the barriers of poverty through creating “cultures of intentional courtesy.”
As well as having developed ongoing mentoring outreaches in his own community, Jerry travels extensively to work with church leaders, community governments, and educators.
Jerry has received five popular music awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers, a Best Educational Video Award from the National Catholic Education Association, and a lifetime achievement award from the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry for living Gospel Values.
To contact or book Jerry for a presentation in your area write or call:
The New Testament Greek Lexicon based on Thayer’s and
Smith’s Bible Dictionary plus others; this is keyed to the large Kittel and the
“Theological Dictionary of the New Testament.” These files are public domain.
The Old Testament Hebrew Lexicon is Brown, Driver,
Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon; this is keyed to the “Theological Word Book of the Old
Testament.” These files are considered public domain.