Alex was a poor Syrian farmer. All right, he's just officially become one. You see, he's recently inherited from their father a piece of land. As a youngster, along with his 2 brothers, he used to help his father during the busy summer harvest period. However, when it comes to real farming, he's really an amateur still. But Alex's determined to be a good farmer, just like his dad. "Son, you can do it! You shall be a greater farmer than I ever was." was his father's last words. One day, this flashback came upon him and he bought a packet of wheat seeds from the market.
Then, Alex went out to the fields to plant the seeds. He's never sow seeds before. A thought raced to his mind, "How difficult can this be anyway? It's just seeds." As he scattered it across his fields, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The plant sprang up quickly, but it soon wilted beneath the hot sun and died because the roots had no nourishment in the shallow soil. Other seeds fell among thorns that shot up and choked out the tender blades so that it produced no grain. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted.
Unlike animals, plants are limited in their ability to seek out favorable conditions for life and growth. Consequently, plants have evolved many ways to disperse and spread the population through their seeds. A seed must somehow "arrive" at a location and be there at a time favorable for germination and growth. Those properties or attributes that promote the movement of the next generation away from the parent plant may involve the fruit more so than the seeds themselves. The function of a seed typically is one of serving as a delaying mechanism: a way for the new generation to suspend its growth and allow time for dispersal to occur or to survive harsh, unfavorable conditions of cold or dryness or both. In many if not most cases each plant species achieves success in finding ideal locations for placement of its seeds through the basic approach of producing numerous seeds.
The farmer I talked about is a courier who brings God's message to others. The seed that fell on the hard path represents those who hear the message, but then Satan comes at once and takes it away from them. The rocky soil represents those who hear the message and receive it with joy. But like young plants in such soil, their roots don't go very deep. At first they get along fine, but they wilt as soon as they have problems or are persecuted because they believe the word. The thorny ground represents those who hear and accept the Good News, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the cares of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for nice things, so no crop is produced. But the good soil represents those who hear and accept God's message and produce a huge harvest – thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted.
Seed signifies the beginning of life. Ask a couple who has been trying to conceive for years what a seed means to them. HOPE. Simple as that.
PURPOSE:
to disperse and spread the population of the plant
KEY FACTORS:
ground/soil conditon, the amount of seeds scattered (dispersal method) and the care administered by the farmers.
As seen from the above parable from Mark 4:1-20, there are many, many obstacles (eg. birds and thorns) blocking or hindering the growth of the seed planted in the soil. Young plants whose roots doesn’t go very deep into the ground may also wilter and die under harsh conditions, of which the saplings have yet developed the ability to withstand.
Similarly, we are like “gardeners”, tending the plot of land scattered with seeds of Christ. We need to clear the weeds and chase away the rodents and pests that disrupt and eat away the life of the young saplings. The plot of land is huge… one cannot do this alone. Hence, by working in a team, a group of gardeners can give full atttention, tender, loving care of the growing crops. Alex and his brothers toil in the fields daily. When it’s time to reap what they have sowed, the farmers’ visages glowed with pride. Their sweat and efforts aren’t wasted. Behold! A handsome reward spreads out in the slanting rays of the setting sun in the horizon. They looked at the glorious, shimmering field of ripen grains in the sunset and they rejoiced. "Man, they looked like gold" Alex thought. Indeed, the fields of wheat seemed to be adorned in golden robes that evening.
At the end of the next few weeks of milling and threshing the raw wheat into chaffs and grains. Staring at the bales of wheat stalks and sacks of grains, hands on his hips, for the 1st time in his life, Alex beamed with tremendous satisfaction. The countless quarrels and conflicts they had at the dinner table and sleepless nights worrying over the growth of the crops, eg. the brand of pesticide used, fertilizers to nourish the plants, way to irrigate the crops, which and how much machinery to hire to thresh and pound the wheat, no. of workers to hire during the harvest period, the sellers at the market who will want to buy their grains, the early struggles to wake-up in the wee hours of the morning, the endless ploughing with the ox under the scorching sun, sweltering heat etc… ALL they’ve forgotten. WHY??
“Because the harvest has come….” (Mark 4:29) Alex believes a bountiful harvest awaits him. For the weather-beaten farmers, the result is worth everything more than the process. Even if their harvest fail to meet his expectations, if you asked them if he would start all over again next season. Without a hint of hesitation, “Yes I will try again.” came the prompt reply. Even if the success rate is 0.000001%, Alex will be willing to invest the long, tiring hours and start the whole process all over again. WHY? Becoz Alex believes what his father told him.
Someone once planted a seed in you. All because of one seed. All because someone believed in you. Wouldn’t you have done the same for someone else? God believes in you. There is such power in belief. You may save someone's life. Believe in them as God has believed in you. Could you take that belief that he has in you and pass it to someone else? Could you believe in someone? Well, you should. Coz someone else once did.
