Parables: The sower and of the mustard seed

The sower

Mark 4:1-20 (CEB)

¹ Jesus began to teach beside the lake again. Such a large crowd gathered that he climbed into a boat there on the lake. He sat in the boat while the whole crowd was nearby on the shore. ² He said many things to them in parables. While teaching them, he said, ³ “Listen to this! A farmer went out to scatter seed. ⁴ As he was scattering seed, some fell on the path; and the birds came and ate it. ⁵ Other seed fell on rocky ground where the soil was shallow. They sprouted immediately because the soil wasn’t deep. ⁶ When the sun came up, it scorched the plants; and they dried up because they had no roots. ⁷ Other seed fell among thorny plants. The thorny plants grew and choked the seeds, and they produced nothing. ⁸ Other seed fell into good soil and bore fruit. Upon growing and increasing, the seed produced in one case a yield of thirty to one, in another case a yield of sixty to one, and in another case a yield of one hundred to one.” ⁹ He said, “Whoever has ears to listen should pay attention!”

Jesus explains his parable

¹⁰ When they were alone, the people around Jesus, along with the Twelve, asked him about the parables. ¹¹ He said to them, “The secret of God’s kingdom has been given to you, but to those who are outside everything comes in parables. ¹² This is so that they can look and see but have no insight, and they can hear but not understand. Otherwise, they might turn their lives around and be forgiven.

¹³ “Don’t you understand this parable? Then how will you understand all the parables? ¹⁴ The farmer scatters the word. ¹⁵ This is the meaning of the seed that fell on the path: When the word is scattered and people hear it, right away Satan comes and steals the word that was planted in them. ¹⁶ Here’s the meaning of the seed that fell on rocky ground: When people hear the word, they immediately receive it joyfully. ¹⁷ Because they have no roots, they last for only a little while. When they experience distress or abuse because of the word, they immediately fall away. ¹⁸ Others are like the seed scattered among the thorny plants. These are the ones who have heard the word; ¹⁹ but the worries of this life, the false appeal of wealth, and the desire for more things break in and choke the word, and it bears no fruit. ²⁰ The seed scattered on good soil are those who hear the word and embrace it. They bear fruit, in one case a yield of thirty to one, in another case sixty to one, and in another case one hundred to one.”

In the Gospel of Mark, the parable of the sower begins and ends with the word “listen.”  

It is common thought that this parable encourages believers who have already accepted the word of God to nourish their faith to grow. It also explains why some people fail to respond or become mature Christians.  

At first, the focus is on the sower, but then turns quickly to the seed. As Christians we are quick to identify the sower as Jesus and the seed with those of us who hear his preaching and believe. If we review the verses prior to this parable, Mark 4:31-35, we see Jesus pointing to those who are seated in the circle and stating that they are his mother, his sisters, and brothers. Do these verses have anything to say about the farmer? 

If we understand Jesus to be the sower, and consider the prior conversation about who are his brothers and sisters, we can also reason that Jesus is asking who is going to do the work with him. Most scholars would agree that farmers in that day would have had access to some form of a plow. They likely understood that there was work for the sowers to do in preparing the field to be ready to receive the seed. Given the ratio of good soil and the seeds, the harvest identified in verse 20 remains surprisingly abundant.   

After speaking publicly, Jesus has a word with just his disciples in Mark 4:10-12. We may not consider this important, and yet, we can assume that public instruction only goes so far. The element of private instruction is also important in how Jesus taught both the crowds and the disciples. I think this parable says a good bit about where to spread the seed and how important it is to prepare the soil. 

The Mustard Seed  

Mark 4:30-32(CEB)

³⁰ He continued, “What’s a good image for God’s kingdom? What parable can I use to explain it? ³¹ Consider a mustard seed. When scattered on the ground, it’s the smallest of all the seeds on the earth; ³² but when it’s planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all vegetable plants. It produces such large branches that the birds in the sky are able to nest in its shade.”

Here the kingdom of God is referred to in small seeds, and growth is not dependent on the sower. No matter what the sower is doing during the growing season, growth happens. When the grain is ripe, the sower is quickly back to work to harvest the grain. This is an important word to anyone involved in leadership or ministry. We do not bring the growth; God does. We also may not see the growth, but we are still called to prepare the soil and plant the seed.  

Think of the mustard seed when it grows into a tree. Scripture in Mark says the tree will house birds and provide shade. If you look at a picture of a mustard tree, you will often notice that it does not grow straight and tall, but rather is broad and bushy. It often appears that the branches are tangled with leaves that go every which way. If having faith like a mustard seed is enough, what does having faith like a mustard tree look like?  

When faith grows, God is working in individuals; and in the analogy of leaders as farmers, we better be ready to continue the important work of harvest and instruction. 

Consider 

• Who are the people called to be sowers? 
• What does it look like to do the work of planting? 
• How do we identify the soil? Or know when the soil is ready for planting?  
• What is it we are planting? 
• Who is responsible for the growth? 
• What does faith look like? Could it be that faith is messy? What examples of a messy faith do you know of?