Luke 8:1–21
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3 Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,
“‘though seeing, they may not see;
though hearing, they may not understand.’
11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.
16 “No one lights a lamp and hides it in a clay jar or puts it under a bed. Instead, they put it on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light. 17 For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. 18 Therefore consider carefully how you listen. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they think they have will be taken from them.”
19 Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothersare standing outside, wanting to see you.”
21 He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”
Hearing God’s Word, and Putting it Into Practice
When I was asked to contribute to this devotional series, I chose this passage because of my interest in the Parable of the Sower. With that in mind, my first concern was how I could write a cohesive message that address all three major sections in this passage: the Parable of the Sower, A Lamp on a Stand, and Jesus’ Mother and Brothers. I was concerned that I may have to resort to skimming over the latter two sections, or even dismissing them entirely. But, as I read through and meditated on this passage, I realized that what I had initially taken to be three otherwise unrelated episodes demonstrate a clear progression toward a single, overarching point. Each section homes in on the central message, which culminates in the thesis statement of the passage: “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice” (8:21).
I’d like to approach this passage in reverse order, starting with Jesus’ mother and brothers, and working our way backwards through A Lamp on a Stand and the Parable of the Sower.
In Luke 8:19-21, we find Jesus being told that his mother and brothers are outside waiting to see him. My first thought when reading Jesus’ response to this message is that if my own family came to visit me and I disregarded them by saying the people with whom I was staying were my family, I’d soon receive a few passive aggressive messages in our family group chat. At best, Jesus appears to be dismissing his family and at worst, disowning them. If you’ve been following along with this devotional series, you’ll note that his family doesn’t seem to have done anything to warrant a cold shoulder.
So, what’s going on here? We find that there’s more to the story than what the author of the gospel of Luke reveals to us. For more context, we can look to Mark 3:20-21, which narrates the same event: “Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”
Jesus isn’t just blowing off his family without cause. Rather, Jesus is drawing a line in the sand; to be a part of Jesus’ mission is to be a part of his family—and vice versa. Being a disciple of Jesus means more than proximity to Jesus; it means obedience to Jesus.
Next, we’ll take a step backwards to the illustration of the lamp on the stand. In this metaphor, the lighting of a lamp represents someone’s heart receiving the teaching of Jesus. Jesus highlights how ironic it would be to then take your lamp and put it under a clay pot, which would hide the light. If you don’t allow a lamp to illuminate anything, the lamp is useless. In the same way, if we don't allow Jesus’ teaching to illuminate our lives, his teaching is useless. Again, we see Jesus illustrating two inseparable steps to receiving his teaching: 1) hear God’s word, and 2) put it into practice.
Jesus concludes this teaching by referencing a Hebrew maxim: “Whoever has will be given more and whoever does not have, whatever they think they have will be taken away from them” (8:18). In other words, the more we embrace and act upon God’s word, the more we grow in spiritual understanding and fruitfulness. But if we disregard it, even the little spiritual insight we have will fade away. Like in so many other places, Jesus is emphasizing how the importance of his message cannot be understated. C.S. Lewis, one of my favourite authors, puts it this way: “Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance, the only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” If you are receptive to the teaching of Jesus, you have everything you need, because you’ll inherit the kingdom of God. If you reject Jesus’ teaching, there’s nothing else in the world that matters. A lamp is made to carry a flame in the same way that we were made to carry God’s word in our hearts. To ignore the teaching of Jesus is to deny the very thing for which we were created.
Finally, we turn to the first—and longest—section of our passage. In verses 1–8, Jesus shares a parable with the crowd, providing its interpretation privately to his disciples in verses 11–15. In the two verses in between, Jesus explains why he speaks in parables.
The parable itself is straightforward. Jesus describes a farmer sowing seeds which land in four areas of his field: the road, the rocks, the weeds, and the good soil. Jesus then elaborates that the seed represents the word of God, while the various types of soil represent the state of the hearts of those who hear God’s word. I find it helpful to read the respective verses back-to-back with each other.
As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. / Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.
Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. / Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.
Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. / The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.
Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown. / But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.
When Jesus’ followers ask him why he teaches in parables, Jesus claims that the reason is so that “though seeing, they may not see; though hearing, they may not understand” (8:10). In another context, if you were to ask me why Jesus speaks in parables, I would say that he teaches with parables because they are an effective teaching tool. People will allow a story to ruminate in their minds, which allows its message to seep into their hearts. But here, Jesus appears to disagree. Jesus seems to be indicating that the reason he talks in parables is precisely so that fewer people will understand his teaching. As someone with a desire for everyone to know the good news of Jesus, I don’t love that Jesus says this. Why wouldn’t Jesus want to do everything he could to make sure that as many people as possible receive his message?
There are two things I find helpful here for understanding why Jesus responds this way. First of all, we should note that Jesus is quoting Isaiah in his response. Compared to the Gospel of Luke, the Gospel of Matthew takes a lot more care to highlight the relationship between the Old Testament. In Matthew’s version of this parable, Jesus explicitly cites that he speaks in parables so that this prophecy would be fulfilled. Interestingly, there are times where it seems prophecy predicts Jesus’ life and there are times when Jesus’ life fulfills prophecy. For instance, in Matthew 4, where he ministers in Zebulun and Naphtali, or in Matthew 21, where he enters Jerusalem on a donkey – both to fulfill even more prophecies found in Isaiah.
Even so, if this is the case, why would Jesus not want everyone to understand his teaching? One practical reason could be that Jesus is strategically managing his perceived threat level to the pharisees, scribes, and teachers of the law. Between his baptism and his crucifixion, Jesus’ ministry lasts approximately three years. All the while, Jesus grows into a greater and greater threat to the religious leaders of Israel, which is what leads them to prosecute him, resulting in his crucifixion. If Jesus were to teach plainly, he would bring down the judgement of the religious leaders, inevitably terminating his ministry. So, Jesus chooses to speak in a sort of “code,” allowing his followers to understand him without attracting the anger of the religious leaders, giving him more time to preach the gospel.
And yet, I still find myself uncomfortable with the thought that Jesus would choose to teach in parables if it means that fewer people might understand him. So now, I look back to a final reflection on the Parable of the Sower. My reflection is this: What kind of farmer sows his seed upon the road, the rocks, and the weeds? In Jesus’ time, most people had careers related to agriculture. To his original audience, the seeds of a crop are an extremely valuable resource. It seems the farmer was careless with his seeds; I would imagine he would take care to sow his seeds only where he knew they were likely to grow. Yet, this is what is revealed in God’s character. He is not careless, but care-full. God doesn’t seclude himself to those he knows will accept his message; he pours his heart out upon the path, the rocks, and the thorns. So, when Jesus tells us that not everyone will hear his message, it’s not because he’s silent, it’s because they’re not listening.
And so, this brings us to the line that resonates with me the most from the passage we have read: “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” The issue isn’t whether God is speaking—he always is. The real question is: Are we listening? God’s word is constantly being sown into our lives, but it’s up to us to open our eyes, tune our ears, and let his word grow within our hearts.
Reflection
1) How have you been hearing God’s word in your life?
2) What action do you think God might be leading you to take?
Author Bio
Gabe Lucente has been serving as the Hospitality Pastor at Sherwood Park Alliance Church since November 2021, where he is dedicated to helping people deepen their engagement with the local church. Originally from Calgary, Gabe and his wife, Ashley, are enjoying learning to love the Edmonton area. They have one son, Theo, born in April 2022, who keeps their lives interesting.
Luke and Acts taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®
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