Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1-23)
To better understand this parable, we first turn to Isaiah 6:9-13, when God sent Isaiah to preach to a long-rebellious Judah:
Due to their idolatry and rebellion, Judah would be conquered and the Jews driven out of their land; as in the analogy of the shedding of the teil tree/oak leaves
While they would return, they would be conquered again.
Nonetheless, God will honour His promise, and restore Judah through the Messiah promised; the substance of the teil tree/oak is still in them.
The Gospel of Matthew, so far:
God sent the Messiah to restore God’s domain on earth,
But Israel rejected the Messiah.
From now till Christ returns, God manifests His Kingdom through the church of Jesus Christ, to which the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven are revealed (Matt 13:11, 35).
With this understanding, we see 4 different kinds of soil on which seeds are sown in the parable, which the Apostles had encountered before:
Consequently, just as how the Apostles had experienced the 4 soils before, the Apostles and the church now should expect that there will be different responses to the gospel preached.
To the yet-saved: Matt 11:28-30:
Grace: there’s saving grace in Jesus Christ
Pray: repent and seek God for forgiveness in Jesus
Sow: share the good news of Jesus so that others may share in the Grace
To the graced: Matt 13:16-17:
Grateful: we don’t deserve His saving grace, yet God worked supernaturally in our hearts
Pray: that the Holy Spirit will allow the seed of God’s Word to take effect in the heart of others
Sow: share the good news of Jesus so that others may share in the Grace
Hence, as we hear and receive the gospel, believe in the good news of God’s Kingdom and be blessed!
コメント