Year A
Season after Pentecost
Proper 10 (15)
Contextual Background:
Jesus tells the parable of the sower: seed falls on various soils, with mixed results. The good soil bears abundant fruit. Mediterranean people understood that what happens in the ground is the gift of God. Growth in wealth through crop and flocks was a blessing from God.
Within the Jewish Tradition:
Agricultural imagery filled Israel’s scriptures: God’s word as rain, Torah as seed, Israel as God’s vineyard.
The Challenge Then:
The challenge was to understand that the Kindom grows mysteriously, not always visibly, and to remain open as good soil. Jesus was tempted in the wilderness. These temptations were always present to him and all. In this passage he speaks of these temptations through the the image of grain on various kinds of soil. He speaks plainly about the social, political, and economic pressures to maintain the unjust status quo.
The Challenge Now:
Our religio values quick results and measurable success. Jesus insists the seed’s power is God’s — our task is receptivity and faithful sowing.
Today we also experience social, political, and economic pressures to maintain an unjust, even if different from Jesus’ context, status quo. There is tremendous pressure on people, pastors, and churches to remain quiet, to escape notice, and fit in. But those in whom, by the grace of God, deep roots grow bear many seeds.
But these seeds are not necessarily just seeds of the church, but the Kindom of God. For a seed to bear fruit, of course, it needs to go into the ground and die.
Implications for Leaders & Communities:
- Leaders: sow widely, trust God with results for the Kindom of God.
- Communities: cultivate depth, take risks, and openness for God’s word to take root.
What I Am Learning:
Fruitfulness depends less on control than on openness and willingness to risk.
The Question I’m Sitting With:
Am I good soil for God’s word, or distracted ground? Am I willing to die for for the Kindom of God?
