Thursday, Oct. 10

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As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.  - Luke 8:15

As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”   - Matthew 13:23

In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus is urging His followers to be “Good Soil”.  He wants us to receive His word into our hearts the way that good soil receives a seed.  He wants us to be receptive the His Spirit and His Word so that He can produce the fruit of His Righteousness in our lives!

What does it really mean to be “Good Soil”?

Being Good Soil means taking the time to read the Word and meditate on its meaning. Even among regular church goers, so many are simply ignorant of what the Bible says because they do not take the time consistently to read it and think about what it means. In our busy schedules, we often rush through devotions (if we have them at all) without taking the time to chew on what the text means and how it applies to our lives.

Carl W. Sharsmith was an American naturalist and Yosemite park ranger, famous for his knowledge and interpretation of the Sierra Nevada.  He taught botany at various universities, and even discovered a species of flower in the Sierra. Carl spent over 50 summers as a ranger and guide in Yosemite National Park.  He was said to have explored nearly every "nook and cranny" of Yosemite's High Sierra.  

Old Carl loved the everything about the mountains and he took particular delight in the spectacular beauty of Yosemite, and he was always discovering some new facet of it to revel in.  He once said that in order to motivate people to learn, "people are not interested in facts. The greater appeal is to the heart." 

There is a story that one afternoon a female tourist rushed up to him and said, “I’ve only got an hour to spend at Yosemite,” what should I do?  Where should I go?”  The old naturalist ranger finally found a voice to reply.  “Ah, lady, only an hour.” He repeated it slowly. “I suppose that if I had only an hour to spend at Yosemite, I’d just walk over there by the river and sit down and cry.”

Just as there is enough in Yosemite to spend a lifetime of summers exploring, so there is enough in the Bible to spend your lifetime digging out and meditating on.

Being Good Soil means always seeking to apply the Word to your own heart and life. The two questions that Paul asked the Lord on the Damascus Road are good ones to ask when you read the Word or listen to it being preached: “Who are You, Lord?” and, “What shall I do, Lord?” (Acts 22:8, 10). Those two questions are linked: If He is the risen Lord and Savior, who gave Himself for my sins, then it has a great deal of bearing on how I must live.

To read the Word without applying it doesn’t do us any good. The Word was not given to fill our heads with interesting facts, but to change our hearts into conformity to Jesus Christ. I have met Christians who can tell you the tense of Greek verbs in the New Testament and who will argue the subtle nuance of some theological point, but they are angry and insensitive toward their families. The whole point of Scripture is summed up in the two great commandments, to teach us how to love God and to love one another. If we aren’t learning to do that, we’re missing the point.

Oh Lord help us by Your Spirit to become truly good soil, so that we might receive the seed of Your gospel into our hearts and bear the fruit of Your righteousness as we grow into the likeness of Your Son - Amen.

Jeff Frazier