Sermon on the Parable of the Sower
I’ve been excited to preach on this gospel for a few days now, and I’ve been waiting to share with you the treasure that is here.
The 13th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew is a key chapter. It’s where Jesus gives seven parables—or eight, if you count the last one, which some see as an allegory. Either way, they are all about one thing: what is the kingdom of God? What is this new kingdom that Jesus has come to establish? What is this new way of life that Jesus has come to offer us? In a word: what is the good news? What is the gospel?
All of this is unveiled here through parables. Jesus himself explains why he uses parables rather than plain speech: he uses these stories as a way of veiling the message of the kingdom of God from those who are not ready to receive it.
This is like in the Old Testament, when the Israelites were fleeing the Egyptians. Behind them was a cloud, and ahead of them was a column of fire to light the way. The fire encouraged the Israelites that the presence of God was with them, but the cloud covered the scene, keeping the Egyptians from seeing the glory of God. In the same way, Jesus uses parables because he wants those who are willing to accept the word of God to have access to it. But those who are unwilling or lack faith have no business seeing what Jesus is revealing.
Parables are an amazing way to distinguish between those two hearts. A parable is not something you spoon-feed people; it requires work to receive the truth of the gospel. You have to enter into the story, and only through humility and faith are we able to see the beauty of the good news.
I remember reading a spiritual classic called The Cloud of Unknowing. It begins in a very similar way, stating: “If you are not serious about seeking out God, please do not read this work. It is not for you.” In other words, unless you are sincere in searching for God, walk away. Don’t waste your time. The parables are a way of unveiling the truth to the sincere, while veiling it from the insincere so that they do not waste their time or God’s time.
The Focus of the Parable
The first parable offered to us today is the Parable of the Sower. It is so easy to look at this parable, get lost in the details, and miss the message that is supposed to lift us up. We get lost if we only focus on all the different kinds of soils Jesus names—the soils that were unable to receive the seed, the word of God, and failed to bear fruit. You even see that in biblical commentaries; experts on scripture can get lost in this parable if they lack openness to the purity of the good news. But the parables were given to the simple.
It is easy to misunderstand this parable and think it’s all about self-improvement. If God is the sower, his word is the seed, and Jesus names all the circumstances where the soil is ill-prepared, it’s easy to walk away thinking: “This is all about us improving ourselves, making our soil better. It’s about doing more. It’s about saving ourselves.”
But that isn’t good news. How is that supposed to fill anyone with joy? If the whole point of the gospel is “work harder, do more, be better,” we knew that already. That doesn’t offer hope, joy, or peace.
The great scholars and fathers of the church—St. Augustine, Chrysostom, Athanasius, the Anglican divines, and contemporary writers like C.S. Lewis and N.T. Wright—all affirm that this parable is rooted in the good news of Jesus Christ. And what is that good news?
The gospel is that God sows the seed, and he sows it generously. The good news is in the seed, not in the soil.
Jesus says the sower went out to sow, and he sowed the message of God lavishly. Yes, some fell on rocky ground, on the path, and in areas where it couldn’t grow. But the primary key here is realizing that on our own, every single one of us is soil unable to receive the word of God. The only thing we have to do to care for our soil is to respond to Jesus Christ in faith—a faith-filled response to what God has done and what Jesus offers us: the gift of eternal life.
It is only through faith in Jesus and acceptance of his word that whatever is lacking in us can be softened, changed, and overcome—not by our own ingenuity, abilities, or hard work.
Grace for the Broken
That is the good news. If I come here today and my life is a mess, I can humbly acknowledge it. I can say, “Lord, the soil of my life is full of thorns and rocks. It’s paved over by weaknesses, sins, impatience, and a lack of humility.” All of that may be true, but I can confess it and say:
“Lord Jesus, I believe in you, not in myself. I believe in what you have done, what you have sown, and what you continue to offer me. I come as I am—not because I want to stay as I am, but because I know you can change me.”
It is God’s Spirit that changes everything, and we have access to that right now. Not someday when we behave, but now—even in our broken state. The work of renewing our soil, our hearts, and our minds begins now through faith and grace in the power of the Holy Spirit.
God offers us a free gift. Even when we come broken, imperfect, sinful, and ashamed of our own behavior, God accepts us and wants to work within us.
Have you ever had the experience of encountering grace where you least expected it? Have you ever known that you deserved to be punished or called out for how you behaved or what you said, only to have the other person respond with kindness you didn’t earn, or love you didn’t work for?
That is exactly what God offers to you and to me.
A sower went out to sow. He didn’t ask where the seed was going to land. He didn’t pick only the best spots, the best people, or the most perfect individuals. He simply continued to sow and spread the message: You are worthy, you are chosen, and you are God’s beloved just as you are, right here and right now.
God will do the changing, the tilling, and the growing. The only condition is repentance and acceptance through faith.
A sower went out to sow. Do you have the ears to hear? Do you have the ears to hear so that the good news of Jesus can land in your heart in such a profound way that it changes how you feel about yourself, how you feel about the world, and how you feel about God?
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
Father Wojtek Kuzma