BE A SOWER

THE DAILY FOUNTAIN DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE OF THE CHURCH OF NIGERIA (ANGLICAN COMMUNION)

DATE: THURSDAY, 19TH JANUARY, 2023 

TOPIC: BE A SOWER

TEXT: MATTHEW 13:1-17(AMP)

1. That same day Jesus went out of the house and was sitting beside the sea.

2. But such great crowds gathered about Him that He got into a boat and remained sitting there, while all the throng stood on the shore.

3. And He told them many things in parables (stories by way of illustration and comparison), saying, A sower went out to sow.

4. And as he sowed, some seeds fell by the roadside, and the birds came and ate them up.

5. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they had not much soil; and at once they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil.

6. But when the sun rose, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they dried up and withered away.

7. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them out.

8. Other seeds fell on good soil, and yielded grain--some a hundred times as much as was sown, some sixty times as much, and some thirty.

9. He who has ears [to hear], let him be listening and let him consider and perceive and comprehend by hearing.

10. Then the disciples came to Him and said, Why do You speak to them in parables?

11. And He replied to them, To you it has been given to know the secrets and mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

12. For whoever has [spiritual knowledge], to him will more be given and he will be furnished richly so that he will have abundance; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

13. This is the reason that I speak to them in parables: because having the power of seeing, they do not see; and having the power of hearing, they do not hear, nor do they grasp and understand.

14. In them indeed is the process of fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah, which says: You shall indeed hear and hear but never grasp and understand; and you shall indeed look and look but never see and perceive.

15. For this nation's heart has grown gross (fat and dull), and their ears heavy and difficult of hearing, and their eyes they have tightly closed, lest they see and perceive with their eyes, and hear and comprehend the sense with their ears, and grasp and understand with their heart, and turn and I should heal them. [Isa. 6:9, 10.]

16. But blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) are your eyes because they do see, and your ears because they do hear.

17. Truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous men [men who were upright and in right standing with God] yearned to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.

MESSAGE: 

In today's passage, a Sower scatters seeds on different grounds which represent different types of the human hearts and dispositions. The seeds (word of God) which fell on the way side were eaten by birds; those that fell on stony ground did not have enough soil, so they were scorched and withered. Those which fell among thorns were choked and died while those which fell on good ground yielded good harvests. Proverbs 4:23 enjoins us to guard our hearts with all diligence because out of it flows the issues of life. If you hear beautiful words of God and still associate with drunkards and the sexually-immoral or with hard-hearted people, the word will not bear fruit. If you want to be rich and associate with fraudsters, ritual killers and the corrupt, soon you will be choked, and the word of God in you will die. If you want to retain every word of God you read and hear, please separate yourself from those who can influence you negatively. Please think on things that are truthful, honest, just, virtuous, pure, lovely and worthy of praise (Phil, 4:8). Mediate on these things daily and preach the gospel today.

PRAYER: 

God have mercy upon me, and incline my heart to keep Your words.