If a farmer went out to sow seed in his field, do you think that he would scatter his seed not just in his plowed field, but also in the bushes and vines, in the middle of the road, and in the rocks beside the road?
Absolutely not. Seed is precious and expensive. A farmer would not sow his seed where he does not expect it to germinate, grow, and mature with grain or fruit. Yet, in Jesus’ Parable of the Sower, the farmer does just that.
No farmer today would be so wasteful and extravagant, nor would any farmer have done that in Jesus’ day. Seeds have always been a precious commodity. Yet, the farmer in Jesus’ story sows his seed in the road, among the rocks, in the thistles and vines, as well as in the plowed field of good soil (Matthew 13:1-9).
Who would be so extravagant as to sow seed like that? God does. There are about 1,000 seeds in a single watermelon. That’s a lot of seeds. The optic nerve has millions of fibers, so many that you can lose over half of them through glaucoma and never know it. Our bodies are over-engineered by an extravagant Father.
Jesus sowed extravagantly when he walked the earth. When Jesus changed water into wine at a wedding feast, he did not make just a few bottles of wine to meet the immediate need, he made around 180 gallons of wine (John 2:1-11).
When he fed 5,000 families with five little fish and a couple of biscuits, he did not make just enough for the crowd, there were twelve basketfuls left over, which was one big basket for every disciple (Matthew 14:20).
When there was a miraculous catch of fish, it was always a huge net-breaking, boat-sinking load (e.g., Luke 5:1-11).
When he healed, he did not just heal one or two people as a sign of his role, he healed everyone who came to him (Matthew 14:36).
Jesus sowed seeds generously in the fertile fields of those who became his disciples. But he did not stop there. He sowed seeds of compassion among folks labeled as sinners and outcasts who had lots of brambles and choking vines in their lives.
Many of those seeds bore fruit. He sowed seeds in the rocky soil of the wealthy and elite of society. He went to dinner parties at their homes and honored them with his presence.
One wealthy young man went to Jesus wanting to know what he needed to do to inherit eternal life and Jesus “looked at him carefully and loved him,” even though the man failed to become his disciple (Mark 10:21).
He even sowed seed in the lives of the rock-hard hearts of the Sadducees, Pharisees, and the Jewish leaders, like the time he spent an evening with Nicodemus (John 3). The harvest was scarce, but at least a few of them believed and became secret followers of Jesus.
Jesus sowed the seeds of his love and his message of salvation in everyone he met, even those who seemed unlikely to respond. You and I should do the same. We do not have the ability to judge the hearts and receptivity of people who might respond to Jesus. Those we consider to be the least likely to respond might be the very ones who come to faith and become followers of Jesus.
Consider Saul of Tarsus. He was a Pharisee and on track to become a member of the Sanhedrin. He was the orchestrator and enactor of the first systematic persecution of the church. He murdered and imprisoned many. His heart was as hard as the pavement in the middle of the road. Yet, the resurrected Christ appeared to him, knocking him off his horse.
The many seeds planted in his life by Christians and the inner witness of the Holy Spirit finally germinated and began to grow. He became the greatest missionary of the church. Whether peoples’ hearts appear receptive or as hard as stone, they need to have God’s seeds planted in the soil of their lives.
We do not have to be selective about whose lives we sow seeds of love and the Gospel message in, we just have to be extravagant and intentional farmers who are sowing seeds everywhere.
We sow seeds into the lives of our family members, our friends, and our enemies. We visit the sick and those in prison and sew seeds. We love both the lovable and those who have the receptivity of prickly pears.
We take the risk of rejection and persecution, and we keep on sowing seeds for Jesus, and extravagantly so.
Dr. Dan Darby is a retired United Methodist pastor.
