the 6th sunday after pentecost
the PRAYER. . .
Almighty God, we thank you for planting in us the seed of your word. By your Holy Spirit help us to receive it with joy, live according to it, and grow in faith and hope and love, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
the READING. . .
[Jesus spoke to the crowds saying:] “Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!”
the DEVOTION. . .
I’m a city boy. Grew up in the suburbs. And, truth be told, most of what I know about farming is what I picked up driving through it on the interstate. But I do know that the kind of soil a seed grows in is the least of its worries. There are so many other things that can go wrong. Things that threaten, that endanger, the harvest. Drought! Deluge! Bugs! Hail! Disease! Nothing’s certain, nothing’s sure, until the crops are, finally, in the barn. But the soil? We-e-e-e-ll …
You see, this week’s parable isn’t so much about soils, as it is seed! “The seed,” Jesus says, “is good! Trust it! Believe in it! It’ll do what it’s supposed to do! Even if some falls on the path, the seed is good! The seed is good, even if some falls in thin, rocky soil! Even when the soil is full of weeds! But it’s when it falls on good soil that you’ll see just how good that seed really is! Sprouting! Growing! Blossoming! Bearing more and more seeds just like it! A hundred times! Sixty times! Thirty times more!
And for the word of the kingdom … for the gospel of Jesus Christ … it’s just as true!
Bob Barndt, pastor