A sower went out to sow his seed

 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.

And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:
"A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things he cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that

'Seeing they may not see,
And hearing they may not understand.'

"Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience."

- Luke 8:1-15

 Yesterday we read that one of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him.  And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat.  And behold, a woman of the city who was a sinner, when he knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.  Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, "This Man, if He were a prophet, would know what who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you."  So he said, "Teacher, say it."  "There was a certain creditor who had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.  Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?"  Simon answered and said, "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."  And He said to him, "You have rightly judged."  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?  I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head.  You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.  You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.  Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.  But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little."  Then He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."  And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"  Then He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace."

Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.  My study bible notes for us that these women were faithful to Christ to the end (23:49, 55), and that they were the first to receive and to proclaim the news of His Resurrection (24:1-10).  In Scripture, the number seven often symbolizes totality and completeness, indicating to us that Mary called Magdalene had been fully given over to darkness before she was healed.  We note these women's essential support for Jesus' ministry; as these were women who provided for Him from their substance.

And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  "A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things he cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  At this stage, the crowds to whom Jesus speaks have grown large and varied enough -- with many drawn for healings -- so that He begins to speak in parables.  As in Matthew's Gospel, the first parable Jesus gives is the parable of the Sower.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear! is a call toward those with spiritual desire for learning, discipleship. 

Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that 'Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'"  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 6:9, giving us a hint about the purpose of speaking in parables in the first place.  As in the earlier quotation, He who has ears to hear, let him hear!, this is an indication that Christ is looking for those who desire the mysteries of the Kingdom, who have spiritual eyes and ears, and are not blind and deaf to the matters He brings into the world, which are meant for spiritual healing for those who truly desire it.   My study bible explains that mysteries are not obscure intellectual concepts, but rather the presence of the Kingdom of God which cannot be defined.  A person who is unwilling to understand the parables of Christ is rejecting His Kingdom.   St. John Chrysostom comments, "If the blindness were natural, it would have been proper for God to open their eyes; but because it was a voluntary and self-chosen blindness, He does not overthrow their free will."  To do so would have been not only "no advantage for them, but an even greater condemnation."

"Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience."  Christ speaks of Himself as the sower in the parable.  My study bible calls this image of Jesus that of the fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 55:10-13.  We note how the development of belonging and participation in the Kingdom is couched in time and process; Jesus does not speak of a one-time confession of faith conferring the fullness of salvation, but of a lifetime of development and deepening understanding and growth through patience.  This is the historical viewpoint of the Church, as it is possible to believe for a while and then fall away.

What does it mean to grow in faith?  That is, to hear the word with a noble and good heart, and to keep it and bear fruit with patience?  We might assume that being a follower or disciple of Christ simply means doing the things we learn about in the Gospels, the things He teaches, thinking a particular way, but our faith is not merely an abstraction of principles or values.  It is, rather, a participation in something, a lived dynamic of growth which is both internal and external, and depends as well on our own capacity for receiving more.  This is the way the "mysteries" of the Kingdom work.  It is about the development of our capacity for participation in spiritual life, and a growing devotion of our lives to deeper dependence upon God.  That is, a growth of faith.  It is surprising to some to think of faith as a dynamic structure, something that expands and grows, opens itself up to challenges and struggles, new questions, reorientation -- as well as a constant practice of repentance.  In this sense, repentance is also about growth, a reorientation of identity (that is, who we think we are) and also essentially a reorientation of our own ways of thinking.  We might uphold something as true and good for most of our lives, but will be led into a situation of testing in which we need to develop a different discernment, and a new way of knowing our Lord and following Him in discipleship.  Tests will come in the form of the metaphorical thorns which Christ speaks of in the parable, the cares, riches and pleasures of life that distract and tempt away from faith.  They come in the form of myriad times of temptation, depending upon our own vulnerabilities, and they come in the form of the devil and the chaos and pain of evil that snatches away the word in our heart with bitterness or disillusion and disappointment, unmet and unwise expectations.   And our failings come because we forget about the living water -- that is the Holy Spirit -- that nurtures and grows us, and that we're not really supposed to do all of this by ourselves and without grace!  Shortcuts to our faith don't really exist.  Faith as a dynamic structure means a way through life that will illumine to ourselves our own ways of thinking that need change, adjustment, and a better way through life than the one we thought we knew.  But Christ is with us, and so is His Helper, the Holy Spirit, and myriads of angels helping our faith, with a Church of two thousand years of tradition and saints and wisdom to draw upon.  Yet, the life we need to pursue demands patience to bear fruit, in a world filled with easy promises of benefit, simplistic sales pitches for returns on our investment, phony scams designed to steer us away from the true work of faith.  Let us consider the long road and struggle conveyed in the parable.  Jesus doesn't shy away from saying it might be a tough road, or that we might face the ills of the world in pursuing our faith.  But He's the One who tells us the truth, who offers us real discipleship and not quick shortcuts, who went through the deepest struggle Himself as one of us so that we may follow.  All the men and women that we read about in the Gospels, including those in today's reading, will evolve and grow within their faith.  One will end in betrayal (Judas).  Let us put our trust in Him, and invest in this good road for the long haul, the worthy struggle ahead -- for nothing of value comes without a challenge that draws us into more than we thought we could produce, a greater demand for truth and faith, and the wisdom resulting from the effort to hear and see what He offers.  At this stage, let us pause and remember the women mentioned at the top of the reading.  Pause and think about all they went through and witnessed, and what it took to stick with Christ, to support Him, what courage and service and faith they had!  Through thick and thin, they did it all, and carried the Church on their backs, through their service and dedication, and even via their own funds.  Without them, we wouldn't have the Church.  Let us not forget, when thinking about the road of faith, that the woman whose life was so dark she had seven demons cast out of her eventually went on to be titled "Apostle to the Apostles," and was the first to bear the good news of Resurrection.  Now that is something, indeed, to ponder, a model truly for us all.