The Parable of the Soils - Matthew 13:18-23 – How About Your Heart?

Matthew 13:18-23 18 "Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: 19 When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not receive it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. 20 The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. 21 But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. 22 The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. 23 But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."  

Jesus, the Son of God came to live on this earth to show us what God is like, to help us understand how much better God’s plan is for us than our own plan.  In the story about soils, He is teaching us that the seed is the Truth of God and the soil types reflect the condition of our hearts. Our heart condition is vital in affecting our relations with Him and those around us. The seed is always good, and the same good seed fell on all the soil. What caused the different results in each case was the condition of the soil.  God’s Truth is powerful and absolutely necessary for us to be healthy, caring people.  Our hearts need to be open to receive the good seed of God’s Truth. 

The soils describe the condition of our hearts.

a.    Path – soil that had been packed or pressed down.  Many times our hearts become very hard by the experiences of our lives.  The soil is not really bad, but what has happened to it has made it so hard that truth cannot come in and bring understanding, love, hope and joy.  So, the enemy comes and steals the seed, the Truth of God.

b.    Rocky Places – soil that had a lot of rocks in it.  The seed comes and Jesus said, the soil (heart) received the seed with joy, but the seed couldn’t grow strong roots, because the rocks hindered the roots from growing deep.  Once again, the soil is not bad, but the rocks in the soil prevent the seed from growing strong.  The seed comes and starts to grow, understanding and joy come, but when the sun (trouble or persecution) comes, the plants were not strong and died. To grow in God we must remove the rocks from our hearts, so God’s roots can grow deep in us.

c.    Thorny soil – soil that was already growing many plants, so once again the soil is good. When the seed starts to grow, the thorns (worries and brokenness) grow stronger than the new plant, so the thorns choked out the new growth and it couldn’t produce more good fruit.  We must allow the Lord to remove the thorns, the worries and deception regarding what we really need to satisfy our souls. Then our lives can grow the good Fruit of God’s Truth, love, joy, peace etc.

d.    Good soil – soil that was not hard, rocky or thorny allowed the seed to grow strong and it produced a crop that was 100 or 60 or 30 times more than what was planted.  When we have open hearts to hear, receive and understand God’s Truth then we can be a strong, powerful influence in bringing healing and good fruit to the lives of the many people the Lord Jesus brings into our lives.  

How About Your Heart?

Ann Greve