REFLECTIONS

I used to wonder why some people hear the Word of God and obey the Lord, while others hear the word of God and do not? It depends on the heart of the person listening.

Jesus said, “A farmer was sowing grain in his fields. As he scattered the seed across the ground, some fell beside a path, and the birds came and ate it. And some fell on rocky soil where there was little depth of earth; the plants sprang up quickly enough in the shallow soil, but the hot sun soon scorched them and they withered and died, for they had so little root. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns choked out the tender blades. But some fell on good soil and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as he had planted. If you have ears, listen!” (Matthew 13: 3-9)

When Jesus gave that illustration, His disciples didn’t understand what he was trying to say. When I first read it, I didn’t either.

But Jesus continued, “Now here is the explanation of the story I told about the farmer planting grain: The hard path where some of the seeds fell represents the heart of a person who hears the Good News about the Kingdom and doesn’t understand it; then Satan (literally, “the evil”) comes and snatches away the seeds from his heart. The shallow, rocky soil represents the heart of a man who hears the message and receives it with real joy, but he doesn’t have much depth in his life, and the seeds don’t root very deeply, and after a while when trouble comes, or persecution begins because of his faith, his enthusiasm fades, and he drops out. The ground covered with thistles represents a man who hears the message, but the cares of this life and his longing for money choke out God’s Word, and he does less and less for God. The good ground represents the heart of a man who listens to the message and understands it and goes out and brings thirty, sixty, or even a hundred others into the Kingdom.” (Matthew 13:18-23)

We must open our hearts to God if He is to become part of our lives. We must invite Christ in. Only by loving Him and obeying God’s will can we become the best versions of ourselves we can be and share His message with others.