June 9, 2025 - Luke 8:11 - "The Sower and the Soil"

Luke 8:11

"Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God."

This parable of the sower is often read as a description of different kinds of people—some who hear and never believe, some who fall away, and others who bring forth fruit. But, instead of distinguishing different types of individuals, our LORD is opening to us the various ways the heart of God’s elect responds to His Word at other times, under different seasons, and according to His sovereign will.

We know that the Seed is the Word of God—the Gospel of grace, the message of the finished work of Jesus Christ. The sower is Christ Himself, (Matthew 13:37) Who by His Spirit sends forth His Word through chosen instruments. The soils then represent the condition of the heart, not fixed by human will, but shaped and tilled by the sovereign hand of God.

By the Wayside (v. 12)

“There are some that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.” Even in the elect, there is a season when the heart lies hardened, trampled down by sin, pride, or spiritual ignorance. The Word comes, but seems to make no impression. How many of us, before regeneration, heard the Gospel many times and thought little of it? The devil gladly snatches away that Word, lest light enter in. Yet the elect are not left in that condition. In due time, God sends forth His Spirit and ploughs up the fallow ground.

Upon a Rock (v. 13)

“They...receive the word with joy...but have no root...in time of temptation fall away.” Here, we see the heart stirred emotionally, perhaps under a sense of need or fear of judgment. There is a gladness in hearing Christ preached, but without depth—many of God’s elect experience such a season—a short-lived zeal that soon wanes under trials. But the Rock does not speak of Christ here—it speaks of shallowness. And yet even in this, the LORD is not done. He will not allow His own to be content with mere excitement. He will break them, humble them, and root them deeply in Christ.

Among Thorns (v. 14)

“They...are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.” How often the believer, still tender in faith, finds himself overwhelmed by worldly concerns! Even the redeemed can be distracted and entangled. This choking is real, but not final. It is the gracious hand of God that purges, prunes, and disciplines His children, that they may bring forth fruit. The thorns are not removed by human effort, but by the work of the Spirit, Who teaches us to set our affections on things above.

On Good Ground (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.” This is the heart that God has prepared. Not naturally good, but made so by sovereign grace. The same heart that was once hardened, shallow, and thorn-choked is now made receptive, fruitful, and enduring. Why? Because God was pleased to bless the Seed. This is the triumph of grace, not the difference of men, but the difference God makes in men. The heart is changed by the Sower of the Seed itself, in conjunction with the Spirit Who gives the increase.

Let us then see in this parable not a reason to boast if we bear fruit, nor a reason to despair if we have not, but a call to look to Christ, the Sower and the Seed, the Author and Finisher of our Faith. The same Word that fell lifeless yesterday may spring forth today in power, when the LORD speaks life. And when He does, it will bring forth fruit—not by our might, but by His mercy.

“So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.” — 1 Corinthians 3:7