Living Deeply

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Opening Prayer

Father, I am grateful for Your Word. May I faithfully read it, eagerly study it, and resolutely obey it.

Read LUKE 8:1-15

^[1] After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, ^[2] and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; ^[3] Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. ^[4] While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: ^[5] “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. ^[6] Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. ^[7] Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. ^[8] Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” ^[9] His disciples asked him what this parable meant. ^[10] He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’ ^[11] “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. ^[12] Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. ^[13] Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. ^[14] The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. ^[15] But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.

Meditate

“It is your speech to us that carries us where we have never been, and it is your speech to us that is our only hope. So give us ears” (Walter Brueggemann).

Think Further

We continue the theme of loving gratitude expressed by women towards Jesus. Several are named as traveling companions and financial supporters (2-3). They had done the unthinkable–they had left the well-defined social space of home and family and joined an itinerant preacher on his travels. This is just as shocking, from a first-century Palestinian point of view, as the previous story of the woman anointing Jesus’ feet.

In so doing they illustrated this parable. Here were individuals whose lives were already bearing fruit as they put comfort, money and reputation on the line for this extraordinary new kingdom movement. They had proven to be good soil (8), as had the Gentile centurion and the unnamed woman overwhelmed with gratitude. The response of Simon the Pharisee, however, was of soil choked by thorns of prejudice (7). This parable is not so much about the nature of God’s Word as about those who receive it and how they do so, not merely their initial response. Are we open and receptive to God’s words? Or are there factors in our lives preventing them from taking root and bringing about genuine change?

Jesus describes three kinds of unfruitful soil–hard, shallow and thorny with preoccupations. These conditions can exist at any time, not just when we engage with the message of salvation, so it is important to ask ourselves how receptive we are to what God is saying to us now. Are there things getting in the way, distracting us or choking out the invitation of God in our lives? Are we living our Christian lives in quite a superficial way, skating across the surface, paying lip service to faith with little inner reality? In contrast, are there promises of God within which we can live more deeply?

Apply

If you have a journal, look back to occasions when God spoke to you. Do you still need to respond? If you don’t have a prayer journal, try starting one.

Closing prayer

Lord, sometimes I feel my spiritual mouth has developed more than my spiritual ears. I talk to You more than I listen to You. Enable me to listen more than speak.

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