The Parable of the Sower: There is no SPF 4000

Mark 4:1-9


If you remember from last week, we are talking about the parable of the sower. Last time we talked about the first soil mentioned in the parable, the path. This week we are going to look at the second type of soil Jesus mentions, the rocky ground. Verses 5-6 says,

Other seed feel on rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and Immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil. And when the sun rose, it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away.

In this instance the word of God hits the dirt and a plant shoots up, but because the soil is so shallow the sun kills the plant, and it doesn’t produce any fruit.

So here is what it looks like in our lives. God speaks to you and says, “Stop looking at those other women and be faithful to your wife.” Or “Find your identity in me. Find your value in me, not in how you look or what other people think.” And you say, “Yes Lord! I am not going to do that anymore.” Your plant springs up. You get excited and you start to run forward. You no longer participate in the conversations about the new receptionist. You stop worrying so much about how your hair looks, and everything is good. But then the sun comes out. In verses 16 and 17 Jesus says,

And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. (ESV)

Your buddies start making of fun of you, or you hear those ladies whispering behind your back. This is the point where your plant is tested. And depending on the soil it is planted in, it will either live and produce fruit or it will die, whither and be burned. Our first response might be to try and hide from the sun, but there is no escape from it. Jesus says that the world will hate us. And like we talked about last week, Satan wants to destroy us. He is going to do everything he can to try and keep the word of God from bearing fruit. There is no escaping from the sun; it’s going to try and burn you. There is no SPF 4000. Luckily, the secret to saving the plant is not hiding it from the sun, but increasing the depth of the soil. So how can we make our soil deeper?

Psalm 1:1-3 says,

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. (ESV)

The psalmist tells us that the people who obey God and remain in him; those who mediate on God’s law day and night, they are the ones who produce fruit. So if your soil is shallow, spend time reading your Bible. Know what the word of God says, so when the sun comes out it does not burn you up. Paul calls the word of God the Sword of the spirit. We can fight with it. Your friends say, “Come on man, it’s just looking. It’s not like your doing anything.” And you can say, “Jesus says if you look at a woman lustfully you have already committed adultery with her in your heart.” Or maybe that voice inside your head tells you that people won’t like you if you look like that, and you can answer back, “I am not to let my beauty be external but internal as the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit.” We can fight against Satan with the word of God, but we have to know it if we are to use it. There is a reason why Paul says to “take up” the sword of the spirit. Just because it is sitting on your night stand doesn’t mean it is protecting you. You must immerse yourself in the scriptures and prayer. We must know the promises of God if our plants are to survive the sun of persecution when it rises in our lives.

- Mitch