Happy Sabbath friends! Today’s post will be on one of my favorite parables in the book of Matthew. My two favorite books in the Bible are the book of Psalms, and the book of Matthew. I absolutely love Psalms for the poetry, and I absolutely love Matthew for the parables. I pray this parable speaks to you and/or blesses you in some way.

To start off, let me share the parable of the sower and then we will delve into what it means:

“Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.””
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭13‬:‭3‬-‭9‬ ‭NIV‬‬

This parable makes me so happy to read because it just really makes you reflect on where your walk with Jesus truly is, and sometimes we need to have tough love with ourselves so we can grow in our relationship with Christ.

The parable starts with the farmer’s seeds falling on rocky places where there was little soil. For those that are familiar with gardening like I am, you may know that this foundation is not good in successfully planting a plant. It is hard for the roots to take hold and keep the plant strong. With this in mind, it is by no surprise that the plants withered because they had no root. This brings up the question, how can this relate to us? Well Jesus actually goes on to explain to the disciples what this means:

“The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭13‬:‭20‬-‭21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In full transparency, I have been in this place before. There has been times in my life where I had a relationship with Jesus, but the moment life got too hard, I would fall away instead of just giving it to God and allowing Him to take full control of the storm. During these times, my foundation was not firm and strong in Christ. I was planted in the rocks.

The parable goes on to mention the seeds planted amongst the thorns, which ended up choking the plants. This environment was not a prosperous place for a plant to be firm and strong right? Well how can this part of the parable relate to us? Let’s delve into what Jesus said to the disciples about it:

“The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭13‬:‭22‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Wow. Like I said before, every time I read this parable it just brings happiness to my heart because of how powerful God’s Word is! God mentions not just in this parable, but also in Matthew 6:25 and Matthew 6:34 that we should NOT worry!!!

““Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭25‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭34‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I know it is easier said than done to not worry and just give it all to God, but this parable in Matthew gives us a glimpse of what can happen to us and our relationship with Christ when we allow the worries of this world to consume us. With this in mind, shouldn’t we make a change? We need to stop the worrying, and allow God to just take the wheel in our lives! I am speaking this into existence for my own life as I do struggle with anxiety. Let me tell you something though…when I allow my anxiety to consume me, I have noticed it tears me away from my Heavenly Father and it literally feels like I am being choked and it’s hard to breathe…you see what I am saying? This parable is so powerful because of how much it relates to our lives!!! When we allow our worries and anxieties to consume our minds and thoughts, we are planted in the thorns.

The parable ends with the seeds that fell on good soil where it produced a plentiful crop. This is where we need to be planted as children of God. We need to be planted in the good soil. NOT the rocks. NOT the thorns. the GOOD SOIL. Why should we be planted in the good soil you may ask? Well, Jesus explains what He means by the seed being planted in good soil:

“But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.””
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭13‬:‭23‬ ‭NIV‬‬

When we are planted in the good soil, we understand the Word of God. We understand who Jesus is. We allow Him to take the wheel in our lives and put our complete trust in Him. When we are planted in the good soil, our relationship with Jesus is plentiful and fruitful! It is prosperous in so many ways that we will produce a crop yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Just like when we garden, when we plant the seed in the good soil, the root is strong and firm in the foundation which leads to a strong and firm plant being grown.

What are you planted in? Are you planted in the rocks? Are you planted amongst the thorns? Or are you planted in the good soil?

Spend some time with God today in prayer and in His Word and ask Him to show you where your foundation is and where your seeds are planted. If it is not the good soil, ask Him to help move your seed to the good soil so your roots can stay firm and strong which will lead you to being prosperous and fruitful in your relationship with our Heavenly Father. I pray that we all can get to the point where we can confidently say that we are planted in the good soil.

Amen.