7th Sunday after Pentecost
Isaiah 55:10-13; Psalm 65:1-13; Romans 8:1-11; Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
I wonder what those among us who are master gardeners and farmers would think of someone walking around throwing seeds everywhere without caring where they land and without any soil preparation. Clueless? Lazy? Yet, that is precisely the method the sower uses in the parable from the Gospel of Mathew this Sunday.
The seed is the word from the domains of heaven, in other words, the good news of Jesus Christ. So here, the Word incarnate among us is both the spreader and the seed. Should we contest the wisdom of the sower again?
God does what God does, often at a level of wisdom that escapes us. Jesus’ explanation of the parable proves the point (verses 18-23). Not everybody gets it. Some do not understand it at all, and the seed does not find a cradle to germinate. Some get it somewhat but are not properly nurtured, so the word goes only so far. Some seem to possess a permissible frame of mind, and the seed grows and bears fruit. The one who spoke everything into existence certainly knows which soil is what. Considering that we are the myriad of soils, what Jesus may be up to throwing seeds everywhere?
No soil is beyond repair, and every soil can be mended. Paul, a former murderer and persecutor of Christians, can personally testify to that. In his letter to the faith community in Rome, he encourages the baptized into Christ to allow the Spirit who now dwells in them and saves them from condemnation to take over their minds and lead them to bear the fruits of abundant life.
The prophet Isaiah gives voice to the Lord’s promise of a relentless pursuit of redemption for God’s people:
“so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
For you shall go out in joy,
and be led back in peace (Isaiah 55:11–12).”
The psalmist sings:
“By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,
O God of our salvation;
you are the hope of all the ends of the earth
and of the farthest seas.
“You visit the earth and water it,
you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
you provide the people with grain,
for so you have prepared it.
You water its furrows abundantly,
settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
and blessing its growth (Psalm 65:5, 9–10; NRSVue).”
Bridging Faith 