MANY of you know what it is to sow seeds in your gardens, to put some little brown, dry seeds into the ground, and cover them with the mould. In a week or so you go to see if they are coming up; if the seed was good, you see some tiny green leaves, which increase in size day by day. Other leaves and stalks appear, followed in time by flower buds. You watch these open, and, if you do not gather them, in time the flowers drop off, leaving a seed-vessel behind. When that ripens you can gather it, and find seeds just like those you sowed.
But if, instead of sowing the seeds on nice earth in your garden, you let some drop on the hard path, you know those seeds would never grow; very likely some little bird would eat them. Or, if your garden is very stony, and has only a little earth, though the seeds might grow for a short time, directly there were two or three hot days the little plants would wither and die.
Again, supposing you did not weed your garden before sowing the seeds, but allowed, brambles to grow in it, and you let some of the seeds fall amongst the brambles, though the seeds might come up and grow for a little time, the brambles would soon choke them.
If you want to have flowers and seeds, or fruit, the ground must be properly prepared.
Now Matt. 13:3-233And he spake many things unto them in parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; 4And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: 5Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: 6And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. 7And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: 8But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. 9Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. 10And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 12For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 13Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 14And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 15For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 16But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. 18Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. 19When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. 20But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 22He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. 23But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (Matthew 13:3‑23) speaks of seed sowing. The seed is God’s Word, and the garden is your heart or mine. Whenever you read God’s Word, either alone. or with your parents and teachers, whenever you hear the Gospel preached, seed has been sown in your heart.
Satan is always watching to take away the Word, by filling your mind with something else, just as the birds watch to pick up a grain of corn, or a pea, that has been dropped on the path or road. He does not care what you are thinking about so long as you are not listening to God’s voice in His word.
If Satan succeeds in making you forget God’s Word the seed has been sown by the wayside.
Perhaps another time you do listen, and you enjoy hearing of the love of Jesus, and, for a few days, feel very happy. Then a companion asks you to do something which you know would displease God. At first you refuse. Then your companion laughs at you, and asks if you are turning religious. As you do not like to be laughed at, you join in doing what you know to be wrong.
The Word has been sown on stony ground in your heart; it has no depth of earth. You have never known yourself a lost sinner, and you bring forth no fruit, for, when tempted or persecuted, you go back where you were before the seed was sown.
But, perhaps it is, you are so busy at school with your lessons, and are having such good games of play on half-holidays, that you have no time to think of your soul, and soon forget all about the love of the Lord Jesus. You forget your need of a Saviour, and think only of pleasing yourself. You bear no fruit.
Surely a child can bear fruit, and every child, in whose heart the word of God is sown on good ground, does bear fruit, for the Holy Spirit dwells in that child’s heart.
Every healthy plant bears, first flowers; then seeds or fruit. Does not every grain of wheat that grows and flourishes bear a number of grains of wheat? Would a farmer be satisfied with a sickly field of wheat, in which the plants turned yellow, and never bore any ears of corn? Surely he would not.
Even so God looks for fruit when He sows seed.
The ground of our hearts needs to be broken up before the seed can grow there. We must know ourselves to be sinners, before we shall really receive Christ as our Saviour. Now, remember, each time you read or hear God’s Word, that God Himself is sowing seed in your hearts, and what He looks for is fruit. May He find it in many a young heart.
ML 01/28/1906