To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables

 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 the 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 in the city who was a sinner, when she 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 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.  These women noted by Luke were faithful to Christ to the end (23:49, 55).  They were the first to proclaim the news of His Resurrection (24:1-10).  My study bible also reminds us that in the Scriptures, the number seven often symbolizes totality and completeness, indicating here that Mary called Magdalene had been thoroughly given over to darkness before her healing by Christ.  These women did not only support Christ alone, but His entire ministry.

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!"   Jesus introduces teaching in parables here at this point in Luke's Gospel.  The parable of the Sower is also the first parable introduced in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark (Matthew 13:1-23, Mark 4:1-20).  The teaching in parables indicates a kind of turning point in Jesus' ministry.  It tells us now that great multitudes are following Him, and that includes those who are not disciples and also who will reject Him.  We have just read about a woman, a notorious sinner, who was forgiven and is clearly devoted to Him (see yesterday's reading, above).  But this level of discipleship also demands a level of faith, or perhaps we should say spiritual hearing, that others will not find.   Parable ask of us to be capable of truly hearing, and reach us on whatever level we can (or cannot) understand.  And they serve to draw us into the Kingdom, to find more, to open up mystery.  The parable of the Sower is, of course, the parable that teaches us about Christ Himself, and His work of the Kingdom in the world, and the seeds He is planting.  he fulfills the prophecy in Isaiah 55:10-13.

 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 the 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."   Mysteries are not obscure intellectual concepts, says my study bible, but rather they are the presence of the Kingdom of God which cannot be defined.  A person's unwillingness to understand or receive Christ's parables is due to a rejection of 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 not only have been to "no advantage for them, but an even greater condemnation."   My study bible notes also that while some might teach a person is permanently saved at the moment of the profession of faith -- a view not held by the historical the Church -- the teaching of Jesus is clear that it is possible to believe for a while and then fall away.

"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."  My study bible emphasizes the teaching in the words here, especially "with patience."  This is no one-time "hallelujah, I'm saved" kind of commitment.  This is something that endures within us, that is not battered away by time or the other concerns of the world.  It dwells within us like a seed planted deep.  We may see its fruit at times, we may not see what seems like anything of progress at all at times.  We may forget it's even within us at other times.  But to hear the word with a noble and good heart, to keep it and bear fruit with patience is to live a life of true faith.  That is a faith that we turn to when we need to make choices and decisions, when we need help, when we need something to rely on.  It is a faith we turn to when we look for direction, and when we look for love.  It is a faith that calls us in the heart.  In it there is a depth of longing.  We note that in Christ's explanation to His disciples there is a list of things about the world that can take away the seed and uproot the word in the heart.  There's the devil that takes away the word before it can take root.  There are temptations.  There are the cares, riches, and pleasures of life.  All of these things are present with us all the time.  The road of faith isn't meant to be one of pure ease.  It is, rather, one in which we face all kinds of obstacles to that faith and in which we may struggle with those obstacles.  Thus, the need for patience.  Toward the end of His ministry, Jesus will speak more to His disciples of the simple need for endurance and watchfulness.  Faith isn't a one-time goal we take care of and then we're done with it.  It is, rather, something that comes to us repeatedly throughout life, asking us to question what we're hearing or thinking or receiving.  It reminds us that there's a way to live in God's love, a way to find what it is we're looking for at the root of identity.  Every moment, we're a new person, and time does not stand still for us in the sense that life goes on to ask of us new things, new questions, present us with changed situations and circumstances.  But that which takes root and grows asks of us to turn back to it through all these things, to do the work of struggle and discernment and bearing fruit with patience, to be that good soil that allows the Kingdom to be harbored and nurtured within us and in our lives, so that we will always be those who have ears to hear.  At each new turn in our lives we may find that the same word gives us new insights, and new fruit, and new choices.  Thus, the mysteries of the Kingdom unfold, expand, invite us further.  This is the work of patience and endurance for all of us.

Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow

And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching: "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed that some seed fell by the wayside, and the birds of the air came and devoured it. Some fell on stony ground where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred." And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him him hear!"

But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. And he said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that

'Seeing they may see and not perceive,

And hearing they may hear and not understand;

Lest they should turn,

And their sins be forgiven them.'"

And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble. Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

- Mark 4:1-20

In yesterday's reading, we learned of the conflicts surrounding Jesus' ministry. Jesus is surrounded, mobbed, by those who wish to follow Him, especially for healing. But His family, His relatives, having heard about this, say, "He is out of His mind," and they seek to find Him. The scribes who come from Jerusalem claim that He has Beelzebub -- that by the ruler of the demons He casts out demons. But Jesus replied in parables: "How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. . . . And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house." He then warns everybody that blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven, although all manner of other sin will be. Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You." But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. Again, Mark repeats the scenes by the sea, of great multitudes coming to Jesus. This time, He must get into a boat to teach. We recall, from Monday's reading, how He had to keep a boat ready when teaching at the sea, in case He should be crushed by the crowds. Here, we presume, the multitude has even grown, and seeks Him more vehemently.

Then He taught them many things by parables . . . In yesterday's reading, Mark gave us the first of Jesus' parables introduced into his Gospel -- the teaching of a house divided against itself. Parables were common in the spiritual history of Judaism already before Jesus' time and the Old Testament records them. A parable, my study bible teaches, is a story in "word-pictures, revealing spiritual truth. The Hebrew and Aramaic words for parable also mean 'allegory,' 'riddle,' or 'proverb.'" They give vivid illustrations from daily life so that we get glimpses of truth, depending on our faith, our capacity. My study bible says, "Parables give us glimpses of Him whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways" (Is. 55:8,9).

. . . and said to them in His teaching: "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. And it happened, as he sowed that some seed fell by the wayside, and the birds of the air came and devoured it. Some fell on stony ground where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred." And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him him hear!" As in Matthew's Gospel, the first parable we're given by Jesus is a kind of parable of parables. We get the elements of our world that would be common then to those listening: seed, scattering the seed, good ground, earth, the birds, the hot sun, waiting on a good or poor crop. We can picture Jesus sitting in the boat, talking to this crowd, with the sun shining down, the birds flying, the wind blowing that may scatter seeds, the sandy soil of the beach, even the thorny plants in this environment. It's as if, for this massive crowd, He is trying to communicate something specifically because the crowds have now grown so big. "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" He wants to pull those out of the crowd who can truly hear. In that sense, Jesus' "seeds" contained in the parable are themselves destined for the "ground" in His audience. It's a parable within a parable; He's teaching them His own effort to communicate -- and yet it's not all up to Him.

But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. And he said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God . . . " My study bible points out: "The mystery is the reality of the presence of the Kingdom itself, revealed in Jesus and perceived by faith." Here is the element of the mystical introduced. Parables are not simply a matter of clear interpretation, but designed to draw us into a place where our spiritual "ears" are tuned, honed, refined, to hear. How can we receive this mystery?

" . . . but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that 'seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand; lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them.'" There is a deliberate way, here, that things are not simply handed to the crowds. It is akin, in some sense, to Jesus' teaching to His disciples that they should not cast their pearls before swine. But here the teaching delves deeper into the subtleties of this mystery of the kingdom. For those who are not prepared to receive, the mysteries remain just that, a mystery. Those who will repent and be called into the Kingdom are those for whom the ground of the heart is truly ready and receptive. The quotation comes from Isaiah, but also Jesus' words are echoed throughout Old Testament Scripture.

And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble." The interesting thing here is that even the disciples must work ask, seek to understand this parable. But they have been called, and clearly they thirst for what is contained in the teaching. The Sower is Christ Himself, sowing the word. Those who are not disciple material immediately lose the word to the adversary of this world -- the word has fallen by the wayside. A stony heart may hear the "good news" of the Gospel with gladness, but its truth isn't deeply rooted in the heart, and this doesn't last. When adversarial conditions arise, persecution or tribulation "for the word's sake," immediately they stumble. This ground of the heart, therefore, teaches us about love. Discipleship, that which will not trample the pearls, that which sticks through difficulty, even persecution, is rooted in a relationship of love.

"Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful." It's interesting how these conditions for the seeds of the word come to us in stages. Here, the thorns of the world, those things that may prick our hearts and plague us with pain, are the cares of the world, including "the deceitfulness of riches" and "the desires for other things." What we see is the competing reality of the ways of the world. The word is given out for free, yet it is the deepest and dearest treasure. The things of the world, the cares of the world, are from a mindset taught by the world: that everything is to acquire, a material good, a competition for something scarce, something to chase after -- and these concerns, if we let them get out of the perspective of faith, can choke the word within us, crowd it out. It is a question, it seems to me, of what comes first -- what we allow to be our whole lives. And, it seems to me, we can approach spirituality wrongly as something to be acquired like a worldly good possessed, or a frantic list of works, like a resume that is built up in our own image. Ironically, it is these who become unfruitful.

"But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred." In yesterday's reading, Jesus asked, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother." Let us put the two together, and come to understand what it is to bear fruit. The mysteries of the kingdom, revealed through the word, must fall on the good ground of the heart to bear fruit. That is the part of us with spiritual perception, with "ears to hear." In contrast to the cares of the world, it is all about receiving. In so doing, in seeking to know and do the will of God, we become fruitful -- a part of the abundance of the "family" of Jesus, His mother, sister, brother. Think of crops springing up and yielding and growing, expanding in fruit -- and the image of a "family tree." There are all levels of fruit that belong to this tree. Each member may bear his or her own "children" for this harvest. Note that there is no competition among them.

My study bible has a note that says that here, Jesus refers to "hardness of heart as the cause of lack of understanding. Jesus is not disclosing truth to some while hiding it from others. He proclaims the Good News of the Kingdom openly to all, but only those who repent and believe can perceive the power of the Kingdom in Him and in their lives." It also notes, "The gospel of God's Kingdom is powerful but our heart response determines its fruitfulness in our lives." So let us think about fruitfulness, and what it is to be fruitful. Certainly fruit has to do with a call, with a response to the seed planted by the word, and with following, in repentance, where that leads us. Jesus' teachings today, and Mark's portrayal of His interaction with the disciples, teach us also something about time. Time is necessary for the harvest of fruits, as well as care, the tending of the vines or crops, the care of the soil, the nurturing of the good ground for a fruitful harvest. We don't know what those fruits may look like, but we know who are Jesus' mother and brother and sister. Let us tend to the good ground of our hearts, the nurturing and the valuing of the word there, the repentance that Jesus notes to His disciples. We turn and turn again to the word, to our "daily bread" of spiritual food, to that which nourishes, feeds, and leavens the whole. The care of the heart is for good fruit, and this is a lifelong task. It takes root, and spreads, and only the Father may know the full outcome. Can you have the faith to allow this to proceed in you? Or do the cares of the world choke its power, crowd out the time, and takes its true care away?