This is a copy of my talk given at Ayia Kyriaki and Saint Stephen’s in the Anglican Church of Paphos on Sunday 16 June 2024. The Bible Reading was Mark 4:26-34.

Prayer

Heavenly Father
I thank You for Your word
By the power of the Holy Spirit
May You speak to my heart
And change my life
In the precious name of Jesus I pray
Amen.

Introduction

When you look at your life today, what’s different compared to your life a year ago, three, five, twenty years ago? I’m not asking about circumstances or events. I’m asking about you. In what ways have you changed? Have your values, morals or ethics changed, you know, the things that guide and direct your life? Are your priorities different? Has your spirituality changed? What troubles your soul and breaks your heart these days? Are you loving in a new way? What seeds have germinated and taken root in your life? Where is spiritual growth taking place and what does that look like? And how did any of that happen?

When I look back on my life, I can see changes for the better. For example, I’m not as impulsive as I once was. I’m a bit more measured as I’ve grown older.  I celebrated my 62nd birthday the other day (I still feel 26) I wish I knew then what I know now! Experience is a wonderful thing (so is hindsight). My prayer life today is very different from a few years ago and I’m not really sure when or how it changed but I know it has. Though I think twice weekly Zoom prayer helps as does the WhatsApp Prayer group. My passion for God’s word and for people to come to know Jesus for themselves has grown in ways I can’t explain. 

My guess is that each of you could say similar things about aspects of your life. And that is not to suggest that any of our lives have been a straight line of progression. We all know better than that. That’s not how growth works.

And we see some stories about growth in Mark 4. Jesus used parables to explain the kingdom of God in terms that we, the disciples, and his audience could understand. In this parable Jesus is using images from gardening to talk about your life and my life. His parable is a metaphor for the way God works in our lives.

There are actually two stories about seeds in Mark 4, but the Lectionary, for some reason, leaves out vs1-20 – but that sets the scene for what we read in verses 26-34. So, a quick summary of those early verses.

The Sower and the Soils

The first parable of the Sower and the Soils helped the disciples understand why Jesus was not impressed by the large crowds that followed Him. He knew that most of them would never produce fruit because he knew his  teaching was like seed falling into poor soil. The seed represents God’s Word (Luke 8:11) and the Sower is the servant of God who shares that Word with others (see 1 Cor 3: 5-9).

The human heart is like soil and here we find four kinds of hearts which respond to God’s message in four different ways.

  1. The hard heart (Mark 4:4, 15) This heart resists the Word of God and makes it easy for Satan (the birds) to snatch it away. Soil becomes hard when too many feet tread on it. Those who recklessly ‘open their hearts” to all kinds of influences are in danger of developing hard hearts (see Prov. 4:23) to the Word of God. 
  1. The shallow heart (5-6, 16-17) This heart is like thin soil set on a rock and since there is no depth, whatever is planted cannot last because it has no roots. This represents the ‘emotional hearer’ who joyfully accepts God’s Word but doesn’t really understand the price that must be paid to become a follower of Jesus. There may be great enthusiasm for several days or weeks; but when persecution and difficulties begin, the enthusiasm wanes and the joy disappears.
  1. The crowded heart (7, 18-19). This heart represents the person who receives the Word but does not truly repent and remove the ‘weeds’ out of his or her heart. This hearer has too many different kinds of ‘seeds’ growing in the soil – worldly cares, a desire for riches, a lust for things – and the good seed of the Word has no room in which to grow. To change the image slightly, this person wants to walk the ‘broad way’ and the ‘narrow way’ at the same time (Matt. 7:13-14) and it cannot be done.
  1. The fruitful heart (8, 20). This heart represents the true believer, because fruit – a changed life – is the evidence of a life touched by God (2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 5:19-23). Not all believers are equally productive; but from every Christian’s life, there should be some evidence of spiritual fruit. The fruit of the Spirit, as described in Galatians 5:22-23. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-control.

Do you exhibit these in your life? They could be summed up in the word Grace. How gracious are you to other people? Do people see the fruit of the Spirit in your life?

The Growing Seeds

The reality, as Jesus describes it in the parable of the growing seed (Mark 4:26-34), is that every one of us has been seeded and something is growing within us.

I wonder, who has scattered seeds in your life? And what were those seeds? Who are the people that have loved and encouraged you, offered wisdom and guidance for your life, spoke difficult truths that changed your life? Who are the ones that gave you hope, stood by you, helped you find yourself? In what ways did he or she offer you a place to put down roots, find stability, and get your life in order? Who has awakened you and opened your eyes to see the world, others, and yourself differently? Who has inspired and mentored you? Who has brought from you more than you thought you had? In what ways did someone grow you up and call you into your better self? Those are seeds scattered in your life by someone.

I think of my Drama teacher who encouraged this shy, introvert young teen with a speech impediment to push myself out of my comfort zone. I think of my Rugby teacher who, despite my shy demeanour, saw a talent in me that he nurtured. I think of the conductors in the Brass Band I played in. My colleagues in the Building Trade and Prison Service. The list goes on.

Many people have influenced my Christian life over the years. I grew in faith because of the teaching of my Sunday school teachers and youth leaders. My pastor, Frank Oliver, when I was part of a ‘house’ church in Sunderland instilled in me a love for God’s word that I’ve never lost. I think of Paula’s dad, Peter Partington, an itinerant evangelist; Nigel Walker, the vicar at Saint Mary’s Upton on the Wirral who took me under his wing when I first joined the CofE; my tutors at Oak Hill Theological College; Peter Isherwood, my training incumbent, curates/vicars I’ve trained and ordinands I’ve mentored. Hugh Dibbens my spiritual director. I praise God for men and women who faithfully teach the Word of God – both lay and ordained – and so should you, in whichever form they come into your lives.

And what if you and I are to be seed scatterers in the lives of others, for the life of the world? Who have you offered encouragement and compassion to recently? When have you put another’s interest before your own?

When have you sat with someone in his or her grief and said, “I’m here for you?” When have you spoken out and worked for justice? What barren ground is waiting to be seeded and planted with your life, gifts, passions, presence, and concerns? Maybe it’s the barren ground of racism, violence, poverty. Maybe it’s the barren ground across which migrant families walk seeking a better life. Maybe it’s the barren ground of loneliness, fear, or despair. Maybe it’s the barren ground of grief, pain, or heartbreak. How might you scatter seeds in those places and a thousand others like them?

When have you shared with someone else the seed of the Word of God? In what ways are you doing that? If you had the cure for AIDS or Cancer you wouldn’t keep it to yourself would you?  You’d want to share that information so that as many people a possible could be cured. And we have something so much more valuable don’t we?

What is flourishing and blossoming in your life today? Where is there new growth? What does that growth look like? Is it in your Christian life, marriage, parenting? Maybe it’s your concern for what is happening in our world. Maybe there’s a growing compassion for the situation in Gaza or those affected by the wildfires this week or the plight of immigrants. Maybe you have a new vision for who you are and how you want to live your life. Maybe it’s a dream or vision for your life that is coming to fruition. Maybe your heart is softening and there’s a new tenderness in your relationships.

Conclusion

I’m well aware that I’m asking more questions than I’ve given answers today. Jesus’ parables don’t always offer answers, but they make us ask better, sometimes awkward, questions. They offer a different lens through which to see ourselves, others, and the world. We, like the disciples, are expected to bear fruit by spreading the seeds of the Good News of salvation and to nurture it as best we can.

Some homework for you. Why not think and pray about one person you’d love to come to know Jesus. Pray for them every day. Seek opportunities to show Christian love in practical ways. Ask the Lord to provide opportunities to talk with them. Pray that the seeds you sow will take root in fruitful hearts. Expect the Lord to honour your work of seed sowing. And remember, good things grow from small seeds.

COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER The text contained in this sermon is solely owned by its author, Revd Paul A. Carr. The reproduction, or distribution of this message, or any portion of it, should include the author’s name.