Sexagesima (LK 8:4–15)

Immanuel Lutheran Church—Bremen, KS || AUDIO
Bethlehem Lutheran Church—Bremen, KS || AUDIO

INI + AMEN.

What sort of crazy sower is Jesus talking about? The modern day version of this parable would be: a farmer went out to plant, and he used his planter on the road, on the rocky parts of his field, among the ditches and easements, and eventually he used it on the best parts of his fields. No self-respecting farmer would do that. Even non-farmers know you don’t sow seed that way! But that’s how and where the seed is sown in the parable that Jesus tells.

All eyes off the soils! All eyes, all ears on the Sower, on His Seed. It’s then and only then that we will understand what the Lord’s talking about. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” For “to you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God.”

((2. All seed needs a sower.))

When your ears are focused on the Lord Jesus, then you can see the gift of the parable. You need to be focused on Him because He is the Sower. He sows the Seed, which is “the Word of God.” He preaches the Gospel of the Kingdom. He preaches that He would suffer and die for the sins of His people, the sins of the World. He preaches that “unless a seed dies it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” And so He preaches that He would also rise from the dead on the third day. He did it all for all, for you, too.

He wants His Gospel delivered, preached; He wants this seed sown. Just like seed is sown, no matter where it falls, and every seed needs its sower, so also Jesus is the Preacher, the Sower. And so, He delivers the Gospel to the crowds: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” The seed is sown. Graciously sown. Into ears it is sown. To one and all it is sown. It is “path, rocks, thorns, and field” sown. “The Sower sows; His reckless love Scatters abroad the goodly seed, Intent alone that all may have The wholesome loaves that all men need.”

He wants His Gospel delivered, preached; He wants this seed sown. So, He sends out more sowers. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Only one way for the Gospel, one way for the seed to be sown, you’ve got to have sowers. So He calls and ordains more sowers. Right now, the seed’s being sown into your ears. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” In fact, whoever speaks of Jesus’ death and resurrection, in that moment, is sower. Doesn’t matter into whose ears it will be sown, the sower just sows. “The Harvest Lord Who gave the sower seed to sow Will watch and tend His planted Word.”

((1. The Seed will produce fruit))

The sown seed will produce. It must. It can’t not. The Lord’s Word isn’t some lifeless thing. The Gospel, the message that Jesus died and rose for you, has power. It can’t not produce fruit. “My Word shall not return to me void,” declares the Lord Jesus.

We don’t trust that. We think we’ve got to do something to add to the Word. We really don’t think that a preaching and teaching completely cross and empty tomb focused will have any affect. It needs more…something. We’ll try to make it more attractive, or we’ll try and say that the Gospel is too sweet, too good, too Gospelly. That if you don’t do A, B, and C to make it attractive, or put X, Y, and Z limits on it that people won’t be interested in it or they’ll just abuse it.

But does the Lord say, “My Word shall not return to me void,” or not? The Word will produce fruit; it can’t not. It’ll even produce among rocks and thorns. It would even produce on the path, too! Why else would the devil come? The devil wants to take away the Gospel. The devil knows that the simple message of Jesus dying and rising for you and your sins is “the power of God unto salvation.” He knows what Baptism does. He knows what the Absolution does. He knows what Preaching does. He knows what the Bible does. He knows what the Supper of Jesus’ body and blood does. So He would try and take all that from you, limit how you receive it. He knows that Jesus’ Gospel seed will change you. As the Lord says, “Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle.”

All eyes off the fruit, too. Just like farmers plant and leave the rest to the Lord. So it is with the Word. The fruit of the Word and the changing of soils areall the Lord’s doing. The fruit will come. It must. It will come “where and when it pleases God in those who hear the Gospel.” The message that “God justifies those who believe that they are received into grace for Christ’s sake. This happens not through our own merits, but for Christ’s sake.” He is the Lord of the Harvest, not us. All we know is that His Gospel, His Gifts, His body and blood will produce fruit, faith in Him, but also true charity for one another. JESUS’ SOWN SEED PRODUCES FRUIT.

JESUS’ SOWN SEED PRODUCES FRUIT. It really does. It can’t not. For it to be “sown seed,” it needs a sower. That’s Jesus. That’s me, too. Even everyone who says: “Jesus shed His blood and died and rose for you.” That message has power. That Gospel gives life, produces fruit. Again and again and again Jesus sows. Here, there, and everywhere Jesus sows it. He fonts it, bibles it, evangelizes it, pastors it, bodies and bloods it. There in those ways He sows His seed into ears and lives. Yours today. Those around us every day.

Seems pretty crazy. But whenever and wherever Jesus’ death and resurrection are delivered, there will be fruit. In His good time. The Lord’s fruit: faith in Him, fervent charity for those around us. JESUS’ SOWN SEED PRODUCES FRUIT. He died and rose, of course it does! “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

INI + AMEN.