Which One Are You

Luke 8:5-8; “A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. v. 6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. v. 7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. v. 8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear”.

Luke 8:11-15; “Now the parable of this is: the seed is the word of God. v. 12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, least they should believe and be saved. v. 13 They on the rock are they, which when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. v.14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are chocked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. v. 15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience”.

The soil is the heart of man and the seed is God’s Word. This means the heart is capable of receiving the Word of God and bringing forth the fruits of the Word of God. Unless the seed is sown into the soil it will bring nothing of value.

The sower is the person preaching or telling others about the Word of God. But it is up to the person that hears the Word of God to do with what he has heard. Then the devil comes along and takes the Word out of the hearts of careless hearers. The devil doesn’t want anyone to believe and be saved. In verses 5 and 12 it says “least they should believe and be saved”. This means a person cannot be saved unless they believe. The devil will do anything to keep us from believing the Word when it is given to us or we read it.

Then there are the ones that hear the Word with joy, it makes an impression on them but it is not deep in their heart like being sown on a rock and is unable to take root. These people will believe for awhile but when temptation comes along will fall away from what they have heard, verses 6 and 13.

In verses 7 and 14 it talks about the thorns in a person’s life. These people have heard the Word and go out to tell the world about the Gospel but the cares and the pleasures of the world get in their way and chokes out the Word and they are unable to bring forth the fruit to perfection. This would be like not bringing any fruit at all.

We have in verses 8 and 15 the good ground where the seed takes hold and the seed grows and the good fruit is brought forth. This is the heart that is honest and a good. The heart firmly believes in God and His Word. He has heard the Word, receives the Word, understands it, and keeps it. From this, much fruit is put forth and will continue to grow. This person will be able to go out in the world and tell people about the Gospel and what it has done for them.

When a person hears the Word they need to listen intently, not carelessly. If it is listened to with intend of taking in what is said they will have the patience to carry on to the end with well doing.

What type of person are you when it comes to hearing the Word? Are you the person where the seed has been sown in the good ground, taken hold and is showing fruit?

May you always know the love, joy, and peace of the Lord!