Spring is truly upon us. Flowers are blooming and birds have built their nests; Nature is once again returning to new life. Spring is a season of growth and new starts. Before our lockdown at school, in my Reception class, we were learning about ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’. The children all had the opportunity to grow their own beans, linking to our story and also to the topic of plants and how seeds grow. Needless to say, some children’s beanstalks were more successful than others! There were many factors that influenced the seeds outcomes such as how much water they received, how much sunlight they received or how carefully the children handled their plants (some seeds just really didn’t stand a chance against those 4-5 year olds!)
Anyway, this all got me thinking about the illustration of seeds in the Bible and what they represent, especially in the Parable of the Farmer scattering seeds in Matthew 13. Jesus often taught through parables as this helped illustrate his teachings in a form that the people would understand, as they related to their prior experiences.
Later that same day Jesus left the house and sat beside the lake. A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat. Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore. He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one:
“Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn’t have deep roots, they died. Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted! Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”
His disciples came and asked him, “Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?”
He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but others are not. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.That is why I use these parables,for they look, but they don’t really see.They hear, but they don’t really listen or understand.
This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah that says,
‘When you hear what I say, you will not understand. When you see what I do, you will not comprehend. For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes— so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.
“But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but they didn’t see it. And they longed to hear what you hear, but they didn’t hear it.“Now listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds: The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message about the Kingdom and don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts. The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!”
Matthew 13: 1-23
The seeds which fell on the footpath (v.4; 19) represent those who hear the message but do not understand it. The bird is Satan, who comes in to remove that ‘seed’, through our doubts, emotions or outside pressures. When we share the Good News with others, we can all plant the seed, but ultimately it is God who makes it grow.
“I planted the seeds in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. Its not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow”.
1 Corinthians 3:6-7
The seeds which fell on the shallow soil (v. 5-6; 20-21) are those people who hear and receive the message. However, as their roots of faith are not deep, when faced with problems or persecution they give up and resort back to their old ways. Perhaps this is something you struggle with; you want to believe but you just can’t fix your roots into anything. These seedling Christians need the most encouragement to develop their roots, and support to withstand in their faith when things get tough. We need to water them with our love and time, when they are searching for guidance. To be someone they can be accountable to, when they feel the need to return to old habits. Maybe you’re reading this and someone springs to mind that you know is in this situation – maybe it’s time to reach out to them?
The seeds which are among the thorns (v. 7; 22), illustrate the people who are overwhelmed with the worries of life or the lures of the world, which ‘choke’ them out of faith. Rather than being in the world not of the world, their vision is sidelined. It is because of this that no good fruit is produced because their focus is elsewhere. As Christians, there are times when our faith wavers and we find ourselves drifting away from God. We allow ourselves to be overcome by our insecurities, our desires, our difficulties, that we are pulled away from God instead of pursuing more of Him. I know I can sometimes allow my anxiety to grow into thorns of self-doubt and unbelief which begin to strangle my faith. However, through spending more time with God and focusing on developing my relationship with Him above anything else, I can begin to prune back these thorns and move into more fertile ground. We need to aim towards developing a strong, healthy relationship with God in order to grow and develop in our faith.
Finally, the seeds which fell on the fertile soil (v. 8; 23), are those who hear and understand God’s word, and try to prioritise Him and remain persistent in their faith. By deepening our roots further in Christ we stand a better chance of blossoming in our faith, which will produce good fruit. More than likely we probably will shift between being different ‘seedlings’ depending on where we are at with our faith, and the season of our lives we are experiencing. Despite this, it is important to remember that unlike my class of children, who were clueless at caring for their beanstalk, we as Christians are being nurtured by a gardener who knows exactly what we need to establish and thrive!
Another representation of seeds in the Bible is the mustard seed; the smallest of all seeds.
“You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible.”
Matthew 17:20-21
Sometimes I feel I need to have BIG amounts of faith; that I need to have it all together, in order to be classed as a good-rooted Christian. But here, Jesus is saying all you need to have is a miniscule amount of faith to be able to do incredible things! There’s no requirements, other than to simply believe and have a little bit of faith.
So, by deepening ourselves in Christ, spending time with God and exploring His written words, we can nurture our environment to enable our faith and relationship with God to grow stronger and healthier. As well as focusing on ourselves, it is also important to look out for fellow ‘seedlings’, and ensure we give our encouragement, and support them with their own faith, instead of leaving them to wither.
Whether your faith is as small as a mustard seed or as big as a palm tree seed (which is the largest seed in the world), we must all focus on challenging ourselves to remain firmly rooted in Christ.
God Bless! 🙂
“Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.”
Ephesians 3:17
STEADFAST 