Spiritual Gardening

Homiletical Idea: Each of us who serve Christ is called to sow the seed of hope that are found with the gospel of Jesus Christ. As we go about this often toilsome task, we should realize that the seeds we cast out will not always find the best soil. Because of this we must be willing to sow even more seeds to make up for the ones that fall upon poor or rocky soil. Jesus will bring the harvest, but He longs to have us sow the seeds of hope.

Dangerous Field

I had the privilege of serving as a colporteur, or literature evangelist, for about 2 and half years in the Carolina Conference. During that time I experienced many highs and lows. The highs of course come when people are seeking the Lord and they decide to accept the literature that you offer. Other great times include seeing the tears roll down someone's cheeks because you cared enough to pray with them even though they could not afford the books.

On several occasions I had people tell me that they had prayed that morning that the Lord would send someone by their house to comfort them. One lady even prayed that day that the Lord would send someone to help her get rid of some Jehovah's Witnesses that would not leave her alone. I showed up and about fifteen minutes later the JWs came by. I was able to talk with them for the lady and very firmly but kindly ask them to not come by again. They were not too happy but they left.

Although a lot of people were happy to see me and spend some time allowing me to show my books, not everyone I encountered was so thrilled at my arrival. One day I was working in Salisbury, NC. A lady had sent in a card requesting information for the books. I called on her at her home only to find that she was not there. However, her husband was there and he had no idea that his wife had sent the card. It became apparent to me rather quickly that he had no interest in spiritual things.

He was preparing a meal of some sort and by the looks of the empty beer cans lying on the counter and his slightly slurred speech I think he was somewhat intoxicated. I tried to explain to him that his wife had sent us the card and I just wanted to see what all she was interested in. The more I talked the more irritated he became. When I sensed this I told him I was sorry I had bothered him and that I would just stop back by later on when his wife would be home.

At that point he picked up the knife he was chopping vegetables with and he headed toward the screen door where I was standing. He began to say very loudly that she was not home he did not know why I did not get that and that I needed to understand. I tried to tell him I was sorry and that I would gladly leave. By this time he was not interested in anything I said as he quickened his pace toward the door. I quickly decided negotiations with a drunken man angrily carrying a large chef's knife were not going to be very successful so I turned to walk briskly to my car and left.

Decision Time

When I left that home my heart was beating fast and my mind was spinning. I praised the Lord that I did not incur any injuries, but I was saddened that it had to work out that way. Each lead that came in was precious to me and I hated that I had not had the opportunity to share Jesus with that family. The more I thought about all of it the more I came to realize that I had done my best and I had to leave the rest with the Lord. By that time in my colporteuring work I had been rejected many, many times. But it was not me that people had rejected, it was God. It was Jesus and a chance to know Him deeper through the message of the Seventh-day Adventist church. My job was to sow seeds friends. It was and is Jesus' job to water those seeds and bring them to harvest.

Once I had that concept down pat it made my life as a worker for Christ much easier because I learned to not take rejection personally, but to give it to God and move on.

Homes of Hope

Last Sabbath we had an afternoon presentation where the concept of "Homes of Hope" was presented. For those who did not or could not stay, Homes of Hope is a small groups ministry that uses the health message to build bridges with our non-Adventist friends and family with whom hopefully we will be able to share the gospel. "Homes of Hope" accomplishes this by distributing free, heath-based magazines to about 10 of your friends, neighbors, or family members.

After passing out eight issues of the free Balance magazines you then invite them to come to an eight night weekly presentation in your home. During the home meetings that follow you show or present materials that deal with various health and lifestyle issues or concerns. The presentation materials are very professionally presented and are part of a larger 21 part health program called Win! Wellness. Only eight of the topics are presented in the home, but during that time several spiritual concepts will also be introduced so as to create a desire in those who attend our meetings for further follow-up.

Personal Investment in Evangelism

The thing that excites me the most about "Homes of Hope" is that the approach is so easy. You do not have to be a medical expert to host the program or present it, and it gives each person in the congregation the opportunity to do evangelism. Is it going to require some effort to hand out the magazines? Sure it is. Is it going to strike fear in the heart of some who step out of the comfort zone to broach spiritual topics with their friends and family? It certainly may, but I want to encourage each of you and remind you that it is not you that people reject if they do not come through and attend the meetings. If they turn you down they are really turning God down. So do not be discouraged. Take heart in knowing that Jesus too was rejected. If He could not win every heart then who can?

Transition to the Text

I also want us to realize some other things as it relates to sowing seeds for the kingdom of God. Jesus gave the parable of the sower so that we could be better informed as to why some never come through with a decision for Jesus or if they do come through they may not stick around. Let us look together at Matthew 13.

**Read Matthew 13:1-9**

Soil Analysis

Let's notice some of what is going on here. We have four different scenarios about where the seeds fell. We have four different reactions, and we have four different outcomes.

Soil Type 1: The Roadside

In soil category 1 we find that some of the seed fell beside the road. What are some characteristics of a road? Roads are almost always the most hard packed of paths. Most likely the road Christ is referring to is the path that would have been around the edge of the field. The path would have been well-worn and packed down solid. Making it impossible for the seed to germinate and mature. As the seeds lye there they are snatched away by the birds that come along.

To find the interpretive key for this seed type we must look further down in Matthew 13. Look at verse 19. We find that the seeds sown on the roadside are really those who hear the Word of God but they do not understand it. Because they lack understanding the wicked one comes along and snatches away the truth they have heard. I want you all to realize today that there are going to be people who just do not get it. There are thousands if not millions of reasons why they don't get it. It could be the hardness of their heart. It could be because they treasure error over truth. It may be that they were raised in another faith group and they may need more time to get beyond some of the teachings of that group that may not be rooted in the Bible.

When they hear the truth from God's word they reject it for one reason or another and then their opportunity is then stolen away by the enemy of our souls; Satan. If you run into people who do not understand do not give up on them. Pray earnestly that they will understand and that they will have another chance to hear the truth. We must accept that the Holy Spirit is moving upon the hearts and minds of people and He will continue to do so until the one whom Christ seeks fully rejects the Spirit's promptings.

Soil Type 2: The Rocky Way

With these seeds we see that they fell upon stony or rocky ground. You need to realize a little about the soil in Palestine; most likely Jesus referred to the ground of the region in which He conducted His ministry. Obviously right? Well the soil there is quite shallow in many areas. There is actually a thin layer of soil resting upon hard, rocky ground. When the seeds are sown they have enough soil to germinate but they cannot drive their roots deep because there is not enough soil to do so.

Our interpretive key for this one comes in Matthew 13 also. Verse 20 breaks things down for us a bit further. We see that initially the one who received the seed accepted it with great joy and zeal but when hardships arose because of their new-found faith they withered quickly. This speaks volumes of the fact that their hearts remain selfish after hearing the word of truth. Instead of taking time to invest themselves fully in the truth they stand cautiously back and remain somewhat disconnected. So that when persecution comes against them from their friends or family they quickly turn aside from what they recently professed to accept.

We have to encourage people to completely come to Jesus. We have to give testimony about how the Lord has blessed us when we stepped out in faith and followed Him. We have to model an unselfish life to the world around us or else they will not see an example worthy of duplication.

I believe that when we model self sacrifice to others it will encourage them to have the faith to do the same. It is not us they are following mind you, but our example will give credence to the words of Christ lived out in the lives of His followers.

Soil Type 3: Among the Thorns

Our next type of soil has some interesting characteristics too. We see that the seeds fall among the thorns, and when the seed germinates and begins to grow the thorns also come up and choke out the seed of Christ. Any of you who do gardening know about the thorns or the weeds. Do you want the thorns or weeds to grow among your plants? No, you pull out the bad to save the good. You may have to spend hours or days or weeks keeping the life sucking weeds out of your garden. Some even spray chemicals to inhibit or eliminate unwanted weed growth.

Let's look at our explanation from Jesus. It comes in verse 22. Jesus says that this type of seed represents those who hear the Word of God, but they allow the worries of this world and the deceitfulness of wealth to choke out the significance of God's word and the new believer then becomes unfruitful for the Lord.

Have you ever met a worry wart? I have. Incessant worriers fail to realize that they are not in control of everything in this life. They tend to think that unless they do something it will not get done or at the very least it will not be done right. I have found that worriers also like to worry about past failures or projects. They may even spend vast amounts of time over analyzing things. They may even end up spending the majority of their mental energy on things totally out of their control.

The other side of this has to do with money. One of Satan's most effective traps is in making people believe that money is the solution to all of life's problems. They get trapped into thinking that true security comes from having enough money. Yes, we all need money for things in this life, but I believe that Jesus wants us to view money as a vehicle for the accomplishment of His work and will in our life. Money in and of itself is not inherently evil. Many even misquote the Bible and say that money is the root of all evil. The Bible does not say that. In 1 Timothy 6:10 it says that the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil. As long as you do not love money and place its value above a relationship with God then there is no issue with having money. But when you have a heart like that of the rich young ruler who valued his wealth and possessions above following Christ then I would strongly encourage you to evaluate where you want to spend eternity. Do you want to be with Jesus and enjoy eternal life or do you want to be destroyed in the lake of fire prepared for the Devil and his angels where all of the wealth of this earth will be consumed with fire? Those are the only two options friends.

Sadly Christians get sucked into this worry and wealth lifestyle and they miss out on the joy that comes from serving the living God. Watch out for this in your life and the lives of your brothers and sisters in Christ.

Soil Type 4: The Good Soil

We now come to our fourth and final soil type. In this category we find the fulfillment of Jesus' desires. We find the culmination of events that leads one to the kingdom of God. We find those who will ultimately spend eternity with God.

Jesus says to us that some of the seeds fell upon good soil. And after being in that good soil they brought forth a harvest in some degree or another. We have further thoughts on this in verse 23 Jesus tells us that good soil represents those who hear and understand what they hear. Not only that they nurture what they have until it brings forth fruit in their life. This means that they allow the word of God to change them and mold them into what God would have them to be. I have been in churches where you see people who refuse to grow beyond what they originally accepted to come into the church. That leads to becoming stagnant and growth cannot occur.

If we want to truly see the fulfillment of the good soil then we have to allow some aeration to occur. When the ground is aerated or tilled the soil is turned over and broken up so that it is oxygenated and soft. In soft well oxygenated soil plants can flourish and water can trickle down to the roots. And the roots will be able to extend and reach out and give us a firm foundation. We need those roots. We need spiritual depth of understanding in order to survive the whiles of the Devil.

There is another aspect of bearing fruit. To bear fruit also means to perpetuate the seeds that were sown in us. We need to take the seeds that grow in us and sow some too. We have to be willing to duplicate ourselves. Not that we need more Pastor Bentleys running around, but we need to sow the seeds of the gospel of Jesus Christ so that others can be established in Him too. Many of us have this vision of sowing seeds for Jesus; sadly others do not. Many in a church will work diligently to share Jesus with others while others may just sit back and wait for someone else to do it.

Various Gifts

I fully recognize that not everyone is called to be a pastor or an evangelist or a teacher. I know that there is an array of spiritual gifts and we all have a somewhat different mix of gifts. So that means that we are going to have various approaches to sharing Jesus with others. That's fine as long as you share Him with others. I think as time grows shorter and shorter we must all take it upon ourselves to do evangelism in some form or fashion. I think "Homes of Hope" is an excellent way for us to take ownership in evangelism. It is one of the simplest methods for small groups that I have ever seen. It is not easy in the sense that you do not have to do anything. You have to have some dedication to hand out the magazines and then invite people to your home for the eight weekly presentations, but in the grand scheme of evangelism this is actually quite simple.

I would encourage each of you to consider how God can use you in being a part of "Homes of Hope" in our church family. You may only be able to be part of group at someone else's home. You may want to open your home for a group to meet. You may want to volunteer to be a part of the prayer team that will lift up or groups on a regular basis. If you are not sure how you can help talk to me or a member of our outreach team. We will get you plugged into helping out.

Soil Considerations

I want you to notice something about these various soil types that we have discussed today. Three out of four actually came to the church in some manner. The rocky, the thorny and the good soil all represent people who initially grabbed hold of God's word and ran with it, but because of the things that we discussed earlier two out of the three ended up leaving the church.

I want to encourage each of you this morning. I want you to consider the fact that because you are here this morning you each have the opportunity for your lives to become good soil if you are not there already. I am sure that as some of you have sit here while I shared with you today you may have questioned what type of soil your life contains. I implore you to not let Satan push you into the roadside, the stony ground, or the thorns. I implore you to commit to God just now to be good soil. Commit in your heart to allow the gentle hand of God to come along and break up the ground of your heart. Let Him nurture and water you with the life-giving water from His throne that takes away your thirst forever.

If you have been rocky and selfish ask the Lord to give you a caring giving heart that cares more for others than your own needs. If you have been consumed by a love of riches then pray to God and ask Him to give you a love for eternal things that will have lasting value. If you have been on the roadside where you lack understanding come to me or one of our elders and let us help you find the answers that you need.

Personal Soil Challenges

It is important to realize friends that as you attempt to share Jesus with the world around you, you will no doubt encounter people that fall into one of the four categories. I want to encourage you be patient, be kind, be gentle, be loving, and be willing to give of yourself in order to give someone else an opportunity to meet Jesus. You may be the only one who can reach a soul for Jesus. Don't let fear and lack of motivation rob you of the joy of leading someone to Jesus. It is the greatest joy you will ever experience. To see someone choose to follow Christ is an awesome experience and once you get a taste of that you will want to do it more and more.

By God's grace may each of us be used by Him to lead others to Christ.

**Appeal**