Good Seed, Bad Soil | Sunday, January 25, 2026

Amen. Praise the Lord. God is so good. Thank you, Anthony. Good morning, Cross Connection. You guys can have a seat. Welcome to Cross Connection Church.

I told Anthony in the last service that I've had a shift in my life. I've decided to become a Seattle Seahawks fan this weekend, and we are praying. We just sang the song "Whom the Sun Sets Free," and we're praying that Anthony will be set free from Los Angeles. My own mother just said, "Go Rams." That's okay. I'll get over it. I won't hold it against her.

Good morning! It is so good to see you all here this morning. We are going to get into the Scriptures. If you want to take out your Bible, in just a few minutes, we'll be opening to the Gospel of Luke and studying in Chapter 8. If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and Anusha will bring you one. If you don't own a Bible, feel free to keep that as a gift to you this morning.

This last week, I was having coffee with a truly exceptional young man who is just starting out in life, making that transition into adulthood. He recently graduated from high school, and he shared with me that his desire, as he makes that transition—which you all probably remember, if you can think back to that point—is challenging. You're at that point where you're done with high school, and the world has kind of opened up to you. You're not 100% sure how to navigate that whole transition, and it's not always clear. There's not always someone standing right there saying, "Hey, this is what you ought to do, what you ought not to do."

It can be a real challenge. He was sharing with me his desire to make wise and right decisions. As a pastor, hearing that means a lot to me; it's a blessing. I've known this young man for a long time, and it's a blessing to see someone trying to navigate that transition with wisdom and looking to the Scriptures. He shared that he genuinely wants to honor God and serve Him. Again, as a pastor, that's one of the greatest things for me to hear—that this person wants to serve the Lord, wants to be useful to the Lord, and wants to help others come to know the Lord.

However, as he was sharing that with me, he mentioned that he sometimes doesn't feel like he's very good at the whole role of evangelism or being an evangelist. I think that's not unique to him; a lot of people feel that way. I certainly have felt that way many times, and even still today, I find...

I often find myself feeling a desire to share the good news of the gospel, not only with strangers but even more so with those who are close to us, such as friends and coworkers. However, we sometimes feel inadequately prepared to do that. Recently, a friend shared his desire to be more effective in the area of evangelism. He mentioned concepts like sowing seed—the seed of the gospel—and reaping the harvest.

I found it interesting that he brought this up because this Sunday, we will be in the Gospel of Luke, chapter eight, discussing the parable of the sower, which is exactly where that idea and concept originates. It doesn't surprise me anymore, but I still find it fascinating how often, while preparing to teach something on a Sunday morning, I have interactions with people that align perfectly with what I plan to discuss. It feels like God's grace is at work, preparing both the message and me for it.

Today, we will consider the parable of the sower in this section of the Gospel of Luke, which is part of the parable section found in the three synoptic gospels. There are four gospels in the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are referred to as the synoptic gospels because they provide a brief synopsis of the same material regarding the life and ministry of Jesus. There is a lot of similarity among them, and each of the three gospels contains a section that focuses on the parables of Jesus. Specifically, you can find these passages in Matthew chapter 13, Mark chapter 4, and Luke chapter 8.

The parable of the sower is perhaps the most well-known and famous of Jesus' stories, partly because it is the first story that appears in the parable section of each of those chapters in the synoptic gospels. Some Bible teachers consider it a key to understanding the rest of the parables, and I believe they are right. Not only does Jesus tell the story of the parable of the sower, but he also provides an explanation that helps us interpret it.

This can be one of the challenging aspects of studying the stories of Jesus. Without a clear understanding of what a story means, people can develop all kinds of strange interpretations. However, that is not the case with this parable, as the interpretation is given to us by the storyteller himself. He tells us exactly what the story means as we proceed.

Through this passage, before we even consider the parable of the sower itself, I think it's important to consider what a parable is. The word "parable" isn't really something we use frequently apart from the study of the Bible. It's not a word in our culture that you're going to hear much unless you are a student of the Scriptures or you go to church.

So, what is a parable? Well, it is a simple, not very difficult to understand story that's intended to illustrate a deeper truth. It's meant to bring to the surface a spiritual meaning or a moral lesson. Jesus frequently used stories, or parables, when he was teaching, especially when he was talking to the multitudes. Many crowds came from the villages and cities to see Jesus. When he was speaking to the crowds, he would most often speak in stories.

The Gospel of Matthew tells us that Jesus would not speak to the multitudes unless he spoke with a parable. He began to teach in parables in Matthew chapter 13. His disciples came and inquired of him, "Why do you teach like this?" He answered them in Matthew chapter 13, verse 10. The disciples asked, "Why do you speak to the multitudes in parables?" He replied, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them, the crowds, it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have an abundance. But whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore, I speak to them, the crowds, in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand."

This is an interesting answer. His disciples noticed that when he spoke with them, he talked differently than when he spoke with the crowds. With the crowds, he veiled the things he was saying in a story. They were still good and important things, but he spoke in stories to them and shared deeper truths with his disciples.

David Guzik, in writing about what a parable is, has a line that I think is really helpful. He says they are earthly stories with a heavenly meaning. That's what these are: simple, earthly stories with a heavenly meaning. One of the things you discover as you read the parables of Jesus in the Gospels is that they are intended to provoke thought. They are told in such a way that encourages deeper reflection.

The way that they should stir your mind is to start thinking. Thinking in a manner that says, "I think there's something more to it than this." The surface is not the whole story in a parable; there's something deeper underneath the first layer. They are meant to stir you to think and to reflect. As Jesus said in Matthew chapter 13, they also kind of veil a deeper meaning. For the person who is just looking around on the surface, they'll find something, but there is a lot more if you go a little bit deeper into the parable. They do veil the deeper truths that are there.

There were some people who heard Jesus' teaching when he was speaking in parables, and they thought, "Oh, here he goes with another story. He's always telling stories." But then there were others who heard the parables, the stories of Jesus, and realized that the story had a deeper meaning. These are the ones who would come to Jesus after he told the story and ask him a question about it. They would say, "I think you meant more to that story than you said when you told it. So what does it mean?"

When they would come, Jesus said to them in Mark 4:11, "To you, it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God." I don't even think I need to ask the question because I assume the answer already. I think I'll probably write on the answer, but I would think that most of you would like to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God. That might be part of the reason why you're here today; you're trying to understand and comprehend the mysteries of the kingdom of God.

If you're interested in understanding the mysteries of the kingdom of God, you should become a student of Jesus' parables. You should look into these things because there are some deep truths hidden in them. The parable that we're going to examine today, as I said, is the most famous of Jesus' teachings: the parable of the sower. You find it in Mark chapter 8. So if you have your Bible, you can open with me to the Gospel of Mark. Turn to about the middle of your Bible and start turning to the right. You'll find Matthew, Mark, Luke, chapter 8.

Let's stand together. Last week, we opened Luke 8 by looking at the first three verses. Today, we're going to pick it up in verse 4. Luke chapter 8, verse 4: "And when a great multitude had gathered and they had come to him from every city, Jesus spoke by parable. And he said, 'A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside, and it was trampled down. The birds of the air devoured it. Some fell on rock, and as soon as it sprang up..."

It withered away because it lacked moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked it out. But others fell on good ground. It sprang up and yielded a crop a hundredfold. When He had said these things, He cried, "He who has an ear, let him hear."

Then His disciples came to Him and asked, "What does this parable mean? We perceive it means something more than you just said." He said to them, "To you, it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God. But to the rest, it is given in parables, that seeing they may not see and hearing they may not understand."

Now, the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they heard, received the word with joy. These have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation, they fall away.

The ones that fell among the thorns are those who, when they heard, go out and are choked by the cares, riches, and pleasures of life, bringing forth no fruit to maturity. But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.

God, I pray as we consider these words today, as we think about the story that You told here and the interpretation that You gave, I pray that You would unlock the meaning of it to us. Lord, help us to understand and comprehend the mysteries of Your kingdom. Help us to come to know You more fully, and that by the working of Your word and the power of Your Spirit, You would continue the work of transforming us by the renewing of our minds.

May we be able to show forth this week Your good and perfect will in our lives. God, help us by the working of Your Spirit and Your word to be exemplary, to be those who might be able to say to others, "Imitate me as I imitate Christ." God, transform us. We pray this in Jesus' name. And all those that agreed said, "Amen."

You can be seated. There's a good chance that this is a story you've heard before, because, like I said, it's the most famous of Jesus' parables, the most famous of His stories. We find it at the beginning of the parable sections in Luke 8, Matthew 13, and Mark 4. It's in each of the three synoptic gospels.

The general story is very simple. You don't have to go deep to comprehend the basic gist of it. Even the youngest child can understand it. Many of the kids in our children's ministry have heard this story, know it, and understand the basics of it. It's a rather simple story.

Jesus talks about a farmer, a sower. He goes out and scatters seed. Some of the seed falls in various different areas. He tells us about the seed that fell on the footpath or by the wayside, around the field that ultimately would be harvested. This is the area where people would walk routinely, and the ground gets hard-packed and dry. As it does, the seed that falls there is just going to be trampled underfoot. Eventually, the birds come and take it away. It's never fully productive; it doesn't germinate and bring forth fruit.

Another portion of the seed fell on the stony ground. This would make a lot of sense to the hearers in Jesus's day because, if you ever go to the land of Israel—where He was in the region of Galilee—you will find that it is a rocky land filled with big rocks, small rocks, and all kinds of rocks intermixed with the dirt. If you're going to plant a field, the first thing you have to do is remove the stones to prepare it for the seed. However, there is ground that is not adequately prepared. Some of the seed fell among that ground that had a little bit of dirt, but mostly it was rocks. Jesus said that it quickly sprang up because this is not a watered area, but it withered away quickly when the heat of the sun came.

The third portion of seed fell among the weeds and thorns, the product of the curse—something that many of us cannot stand. If you've ever done any sort of farming or gardening, you know that you can't stand the weeds and thorns. They grow so quickly, and because they grow so quickly, they come up and choke out the seed before it can bring forth maturity, before it can be harvested into fruitfulness.

Finally, the fourth portion of seed fell on the good ground. It was fertile soil, very fertile soil. Jesus said it produced a hundredfold; a hundred times what was sown is produced in this area because the ground was fertile. It had been prepared, all the stones had been removed, and it had been plowed. It was an area that was well-watered. The seed matured unto harvest and produced an abundant harvest.

So, it's a simple story. You do not have to be all that impressive in your intelligence to comprehend the basic gist of this story.

But as with all of Jesus's stories, we're going to look at more of them in the next several weeks as we go through Luke chapter eight. There's more to this story because, as David Guzik said, this is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. His disciples, those who were closest to him or interested in his teaching, came and inquired of him. They wanted to know, "What exactly does this parable mean?"

The fact that they came to Jesus and asked him this question teaches us a very valuable and important truth. Point number one, if you're taking notes: a disciple wants more from Jesus than just a good story. This is key. There are lots of people who have heard the stories and teachings of Jesus. They even regard him as a good storyteller, a good moral teacher, or an insightful person who had an understanding of humans and the world. They hold him in high regard, but they never seek anything more from Jesus than just that surface-level understanding.

A disciple, however, wants more from Jesus than just a good story. Disciples are the inquisitive ones who come to Jesus and say, "Lord, what does that mean?" They sense that there is something more beneath the surface. They are the ones who draw near to Jesus after the sermon, after he has spoken from the platform, and prayerfully say, "God, would you teach me more?"

Many people are part of the crowd, the multitudes who hear Jesus's teaching, but it is a much smaller core that comes from the crowd to Jesus and says, "Lord, give us understanding. I want to know what you meant by this." That is what sets a disciple apart.

I think one of the challenges with the word "disciple" is that when we hear it, we often have an image that comes to mind due to its connection to the Bible. Maybe it's the same image I have. When I hear "disciple," I think of someone in a robe with sandals who followed Jesus thousands of years ago and did amazing, mighty works. We hear "disciple" and think of Peter, James, and John. It gets even worse if you use the word "apostle." Just saying "disciple" can make it seem like a high class of Christians, and many may feel they haven't attained that level.

It's really important for us to understand what this word actually means. The word "disciple," one of the definitions, one of the ways you could...

Translate it. It is the word "apprentice." That changes the meaning in a big way because there are a number of you here today who came into your career through an apprenticeship. You spent time with a master builder. You watched what they did and learned from them as you did the work. As you apprenticed with them, you started to do the same thing. You made your way into that career path by spending time with an apprentice.

This changes my understanding of the word "disciple" from a guy in a robe with sandals who followed Jesus thousands of years ago to someone who's a tradesman or tradeswoman learning the trade by being with a master builder. The word that's translated as "disciple" in Greek is connected to the word "math." I didn't really like math much when I was in high school, and some of you probably didn't either. When I say the word "math," you might think, "Goodness gracious."

But what is it about math that turns someone into a mathematician? It's all about building blocks. You have to start with the basics and build up from there. If you miss some of those basic truths, you're going to have some real problems. I think that was my problem with math in high school. Math is a building block sort of thing. You have to start at the basics and build up from there.

This is the same with learning the way of Christ. You start at the very basics. The word "disciple" could be translated as "learner," "pupil," "student," or "apprentice." A disciple is all of these things. The question arises: How do you become a disciple? Well, it's actually quite simple. If you want to know more than just the stories or the sermons of Jesus and you're looking for more from Him, you find yourself in prayer or in private devotions with the Lord, engaging in personal study, and asking that question: "Lord, help me to understand your disciple." Because you have now become a pupil, a learner, a student, an apprentice.

Here's the cool part. If you're taking notes, point number two is that Jesus reveals His secrets to His disciples. I don't even need to ask the question to know the answer: How many of you want to know the secrets of Jesus? I think all of you do. How do you get to know the secrets of Jesus? All you have to do is simply ask. To you, it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God (Luke 8:10). If you want to know the deeper truths of the mysteries...

Of the kingdom of God, all you have to do is ask. So I have to ask you, have you ever asked? Have you ever genuinely asked in prayer, "God, help me to understand?" I believe, and we teach, that this book we study from is inspired by God. That's an audacious claim, and I understand it. But if this is actually inspired by God, is it possible that God, by His Spirit, could also help us understand it? Have you ever simply asked God, "Help me to understand that?"

Do you realize that that petition, that prayer, is an ancient prayer, a prayer that many disciples have asked? I ask it frequently. It's the same prayer that King David puts forward 3,000 years ago in Psalm 119, verse 18, when he said, "Open my eyes that I may see wonders from your law." Let me tell you, that's a prayer I have prayed many times when I opened the Scriptures.

Here, let me ask you a question that I actually want your feedback on. Have you ever read something in the Bible that you didn't understand? It happens to me all the time. I've been studying and teaching this Bible, this book, for decades, and there are still things, even this week in this passage that I came to, where I had to pray this prayer: "Open my eyes to see wonders from your law."

Another one is Psalm 119, verse 27: "Make me to understand the way of your precepts." Have you ever prayed that? "God, help me to understand your ways." Here's a longer one; we'll put it up on the screen. Psalm 119, verse 33: "Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I shall keep it to the end. Give me understanding, and I shall keep your law. Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart. Make me to walk in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. Incline my heart to your testimonies and not to covetousness. Turn away my eyes from looking on worthless things, like Twitter, and revive my heart in your way." That was for me, not you.

"Establish your word to your servant who is devoted to fearing you. Turn away my reproach, for which I dread, for your judgments are good. Behold, I long for your precepts. Revive me in your righteousness." That's an ancient prayer that you should probably pray this week if you're looking in any way to understand the things of God's word. I guarantee you this one thing: God loves to answer that prayer. God loves open ears and an open heart.

He who has an ear, let him hear. He loves open ears and an open heart. He delights to speak to those who are quick to listen, and He reveals His secret to His disciples. Therefore, Jesus said, after His disciples came to Him and said, "Lord, teach us this."

In Luke chapter 8, verse 11, we find the parable: "Now, the parable is this." It didn't take a lot of prying to get the answer to the question. Jesus was looking for the questioners to come and ask the question. The parable is this: the seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

But the ones on the stony ground, the rock, are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy. However, these have no root; they believe for a little while, and then in a time of temptation, they fall away. Now, the ones that fell among the thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked by the cares, riches, and pleasures of this life. They bring forth no fruit to maturity.

The ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it. They bear fruit with patience. Again, this is not hard to understand. You do not have to be a scholar of the Scriptures, a theologian, or someone who understands Greek to peel back the layers of meaning in this passage. The meaning is so clear.

The sower is not a farmer; it is an evangelist. It is someone who is taking the word of God and proclaiming it or scattering it. The seed is the Bible, the Scriptures, the word of God, and the soils represent the ears and hearts of those who are the hearers of the message as the sower scatters the seed.

Jesus identifies four different hearers. We have the one who has a hard heart, the one who, through many years of breaking it down and pushing it down, has developed that hard soil. When the word of God falls, it falls on deaf ears. It just keeps getting trampled over and over again, and the birds of the air, which He says is a demonic force, come and snatch it away.

We've all met people who have hard hearts. They are the ones who, when they hear these things, say there is no meaning or value in this two- or three-thousand-year-old book.

What does this have to say to me? They didn't have technology, medicine, and all the things that we have in 2026. There's no value in this at all. Because of the hardness of the heart, it doesn't even begin to penetrate the goodness of the Word. The Word is still good, but the seed gets plucked away by the enemy.

Then there's the ground that is filled with rocks, which springs up quickly. In Matthew's telling of the same story, Jesus says the sun comes, and the sun represents trials and difficulties. It burns out the seed and withers away because there was no water to saturate the ground. The seed that fell among the thorns represents the hearer who hears the Word but is so concerned with the cares of this world, the riches, and the pleasures of this life. They don't have time for this because they're invested in trying to build their life and career. They think, "If I just get this degree, that job, and that spouse, then everything would be great." Their focus is not on the Kingdom of God; their focus is on the kingdom now—my kingdom, this place. Because of their focus on the things of this world, they don't have time for this sort of thing.

Finally, there's the last good ground, the well-prepared heart. The good seed of the Word of God finds soil that has been prepared. The stones and rocks have been removed, the weeds have been taken out, and the scarecrow has been set up to scare away the birds. When the seed goes in, it finds root and produces a hundredfold—one hundred times what was planted.

As I said, this is not difficult to understand. However, as you hear this story and look at it, you might realize there's something much deeper here than just an anecdote about a not very efficient farmer. Let's be honest: if you are a first-century farmer hearing Jesus's message, I would suggest there were a lot of first-century farmers listening to Him. When they heard this guy tell this story, they had some thoughts.

I think as the first-century farmer listened to what Jesus was saying, they might have thought, "This preacher man doesn't know anything about farming." No foolish farmer would do such foolish things. The farmer in His story seems stupid; three-quarters of his seed is wasted. No farmer would do it that way. Seed is precious to a farmer. Is he really just going to scatter it so flippantly and frivolously that it doesn't...

Produce the fruit? I mean, imagine this for a moment. The 25% of the seed that fell in the good soil produced a hundred times what was planted. Imagine if a hundred percent of the seed was planted in good soil. I would think a first-century farmer who actually knew something about farming would have heard this and thought, "This guy doesn't know anything about farming. He should stick to carpentry or maybe talking because he's not a very good farmer." No farmer would ever be so careless and thoughtless as to scatter seed in this way.

But I want to suggest something to you. Point number two: Jesus's stories are meant to strike you as strange. When you hear the story or read the story, there should be something there that says to you, "There's something more here. This doesn't quite make sense." They're designed to make you ask, "Wait, what?" The weirdness is the point, but maybe you didn't catch the weirdness before.

I know there are more than a few of you here this morning who have come across this story before, and it never really stuck out to you as odd. But I suggest to you that there's some weirdness here. Isn't it a little bit strange that a farmer would be so thoughtless and careless in planting this valuable seed, that 75% of the seed would be totally wasted? I would think he would be a little bit more thoughtful in his work.

I think the strangeness is the very thing that should inspire questions. Jesus wants us to ask questions because questioners become disciples. They're the ones who come out from the crowd. They're the core of those who come and ask questions because questions make you seek answers. I think that some of you are here this morning seeking answers, and I think that's a good thing. I hope you never lose that inquisitiveness.

That's what stirred me for more than 25 years to go into the Bible: this inquisitiveness. There's something about this book that stands out to me, that there's something important here, and I want to figure out what it is. If you've got questions, I think Jesus has answers.

I think He actually wants you to come with your questions. As I was looking at this, I've got some questions. For one, what exactly is Jesus getting at here? Yes, the seed is the Word of God. He tells us that and interprets the meaning for us. You don't have to try to come up with something; the seed is the Word of God.

Yes, the Word of God produces fruit in the hearts and lives of those who receive it, where the seed is planted in good soil. Our hearts are fertile ground when they're prepared and ready. Fertile ground for the Scriptures, and when the Scriptures are planted in, they produce good fruit in the hearers. But what's the point? What's the point of this story?

Well, I think the point has something to do with sowing. Rocket science, huh? It has something to do with evangelism, scattering the Word of God. I'm not the only one who's thought that. Many people throughout the last 2,000 years of Christian history have considered this and written about it. If you go read the likes of John Gill, Matthew Henry, John Calvin, or Martin Luther, you will find that they all talk about evangelism when they discuss the parable of the sower.

This idea about the parable of the sower was certainly on the mind of the young man I was having coffee with last week. He was talking about wanting to be a better evangelist and do the work of evangelism. He mentioned sowing seed and reaping souls. One of the first hearers of this story was Peter. Decades later, after Peter heard this story—he probably heard it multiple times—Jesus didn't tell these stories just once. He told them multiple times, and that's probably one of the reasons why Matthew's telling of the story is different from Mark's telling of the story. Mark's telling is a little bit different from Luke's telling as well.

It's not that there are contradictions or discrepancies in the Scriptures; it's just that they are recounting a story that Jesus told many times, and He told the story differently every single time. Every single wife in here knows this: your husband doesn't tell the story the same way every time, and you know he's telling it wrong. Don't correct him; just let him tell the story.

Years later, Peter wrote this in 1 Peter 1: "You have been born again, not with...".

Corruptible seed, but incorruptible through the word of God. Where did Peter come up with this idea that the word of God was seed? He got that from Jesus. Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, chapter 3, when he was speaking about preaching the gospel, likened the work of preaching the gospel to planting seed.

In a number of places in the New Testament, evangelism is likened unto sowing and reaping. The sowing of the Scriptures, the planting of the word of God in the hearts, and the reaping of the fruit of faith in the hearer. We sow the seed of the word of God through preaching the gospel, and we reap the souls of individuals as they believe and come to faith.

So, yes, the parable of the sower is a story about sharing, preaching, and teaching the Scriptures through evangelism. A big word. The sower is an evangelist. But there's a challenge in that. Because, like the word disciple, when I hear the word evangelist, there's an image that comes to my mind. And it's not an image that only I see; it's an image that you see as well.

When I hear evangelist or evangelism, I think of Greg Laurie. I think of Billy Graham. If you've studied Christian history, you think of individuals like Whitfield, Wesley, Billy Sunday, and D.L. Moody. We imagine the person on a platform proclaiming the Scriptures and calling people to faith and repentance, and then coming forward to an altar call. That's the image we have in our minds when we think of the sower and evangelism. We think of the evangelist.

And here's the problem with that: that's not ninety-nine point nine nine percent of Christians. So we think something like this: "Well, I guess I'm not an evangelist. I guess I don't do evangelism because I'm not Greg Laurie." We think, "Well, this message isn't for me. This message, this story is for the evangelist, and that's not me."

Some of us think, "Well, great, because I was looking for an exemption. I was looking to get out of that one." But, you know, what's interesting about this story is that in some Bibles and in some commentaries, the heading is not the parable of the sower.

The parable of the soils contains an important key. The story is called the parable of the soils, not the parable of the sower, and it teaches us an extremely important lesson about evangelism. Evangelism isn't only about sowing seed and harvesting souls. That's part of evangelism, and it is the part that gets the most notoriety and high praise. This aspect of evangelism is associated with figures like Billy Sunday, Billy Graham, and Greg Laurie. However, that is not the whole story.

When we think of evangelism and evangelists, we often envision the preacher on the platform proclaiming the gospel and calling people to faith and repentance. The evangelist, that individual, is frequently the one who receives all the praise in the work of evangelism. They occupy the high-profile and praiseworthy position of calling people to faith. Sometimes we hear statements like, "They saw a million people come to faith. What an amazing thing! What a great evangelist!" This can lead us to think, "Well, that's not for me. I couldn't possibly do that."

As we reflect on this, we may find ourselves thinking, "That's not me. I could never stand on a platform and preach to thousands, or even hundreds, or even dozens, or even just one. I guess I'm a lousy evangelist." In fact, some may feel they are not evangelists at all because they have never led someone to pray the sinner's prayer or harvested a soul.

In his last letter to Timothy, Paul said, "Fulfill your ministry; do the work of an evangelist." Many Christians have read that verse and thought, "Well, that's not me because I'm not Billy Graham, and I'm not Greg Laurie. So I guess I don't have to pay attention to that one." We read verses like that and conclude, "I guess I can't and won't do what Paul said to do because I'm not an evangelist."

However, just as the work of farming involves more than just sowing and reaping, the work of evangelism is much more than preaching and calling people to repentance.

Decades ago, when I was probably about 13 years old, I had this idea one year that I wanted some money. When you want money, you have to get a job. So, even as just a young guy, 13 or 14 years old, I went down the street from my parents' house to a farm stand. It's still there; it's called Fran's Farm Stand. There was this lovely old lady named Fran Hillebrecht. She has since gone on to be with the Lord. Fran, her husband, and their family worked as farmers here in Escondido, where they owned a lot of land. I asked if I could have a job, and they were gracious enough to give me one. I had to get a work permit and everything.

Their daughter, Laura Hillebrecht, who is still around, said, "Well, here's your job. You're going to become a farmer." They had a piece of ground, a couple of acres, and they had me farm it. You know what I learned? Farming is a lot of work, and it's a lot more than just planting and reaping. Before you can ever plant, you have to prepare the ground. You have to remove the rocks and stones, and then you have to plow the ground. After that, you get to the point where you can plant.

But something I discovered during that summer of working for the Hillebrecht family is that you don't plant the ground and then reap a harvest the next day. It takes a little while. In fact, Jesus alluded to this in John chapter 4. He says, "Don't say yet four months, and then comes the harvest, for the harvest is white now." But it does take time. During that time, you actually have to do some work. You have to water the ground, weed it, and sometimes chase away birds. Some things you plant need shade so that the sun doesn't ruin them. There's a lot of work that goes into it.

You see, farming is more than just planting and reaping. Evangelism is more than preaching and calling people to repentance. There's a whole lot more to the story, and that's where the 99.9 come into the equation. There's a lot more to the work.

Point number four: good evangelism isn't only about the sower, the seed, and the harvest; it's also about the soil. While you may never stand on a platform and preach a message—and for many of you, that would be the most fearful thing you could ever be asked to do—don't worry. The high likelihood is that God won't call you to do that, but He has not said that you get an exemption from doing the work of an evangelist.

You may never stand on the platform to proclaim and cast the seed of the Word of God or call sinners to repentance in the harvest, but you can certainly be part of the work—the prayerful, patient work. Notice the last word of Luke chapter eight that we read was the word "patience." And that's where you come in. The patient work of preparing the soil, watering, weeding, tending, and chasing away birds—all of those things—are all evangelism. It's the less high-profile and praiseworthy work. Your name is probably not going to be plastered on some sign for a big evangelistic event. People may never know who you are here in this world, but I guarantee you, if you do the patient work of preparing, planting, watering, tending, weeding, and all that sort of stuff, your name will be known in heaven, and great will be your reward.

This work doesn't get all the praise here on earth, but I can guarantee you this: my haphazard scattering of the seed will be far more effective if you help do the work of preparing the soil. You have a big part to play in that. When all is said and done, Paul, in speaking about this concept, sums it up beautifully in First Corinthians chapter three. He says this: "So then, get this. This is amazing. So then, neither he who plants is anything." Take that, Greg Laurie. "Neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase."

But note this in verse eight: "Now he who plants and he who waters, they are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his labor." Did you catch that? You're going to be rewarded for your faithful, patient work of preparing, plowing, watering, weeding, praying for, and inviting people to come and hear the Word. Now, he who plants and he who waters, they are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers, and you are God's field. You are God's building. You can be certain that if Greg Laurie brought in the harvest of a soul at an evangelistic event, he will by no means...

Receive a greater reward in heaven than the one who prayed for that soul and invited that person to come to that event in the first place. How shall they hear without a preacher? But how shall the preacher have an audience without the people who invite others to come and hear him? Your work of plowing and preparing the hearts is just as important, if not more important, than the work of the proclaiming preacher. The work of the proclaiming preacher is far less effective if you don't faithfully and patiently invite people and pray for them as they come, or do the extremely important work of plowing and preparing the ground day in and day out.

When Paul says to Timothy, "Be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry," he is talking to you. Even if you didn't think that you were an evangelist, you may not be like Greg Laurie or Billy Graham, but you are no less important in the work.

One final note on this: do not grow weary in well-doing, for in due season you shall reap if you do not faint. Your work is not in vain. The amazing thing is that some seeds take a very long time to germinate and grow. Do you realize there will be many seeds that did not break forth with a small root and a tiny leaf until the moments before they entered into eternity? Those seeds were watered and prepared by dozens, if not hundreds, of faithful farmers, watering, planting, plowing, and tending year after year after year. Your work is not in vain. Amen.

Let's stand up for a closing prayer. God, thank you for the encouragement of your word. I have a feeling that there was something here in this text today that even those who are so familiar with this passage never saw before. I pray, God, that you would help us to not only know these things in our minds and in our hearts, but now to go out practically in the power of this word.

Recognizing that You have called us to this farmland here in North County, San Diego, You have set us here for such a time as this. We are in this place to prepare, to plow, to plant, to water, to weed, and to chase away birds—whatever it may be. You will by no means overlook the reward in eternity, and we rejoice in that.

God, empower us to recognize that You have called us to fulfill our work as evangelists. Help us, by the enabling power of Your Spirit, to do so. For we ask it in Jesus' name. And all those that agreed said, Amen.