Matthew 13:1–9, 18–23: The Parable of the Four Soils
Introduction
In Matthew 13, Jesus offers one of his most comprehensive sections of teaching on the nature of the kingdom of heaven. In his wisdom, however, our Lord did not distill his message into a tidy treatise of systematic theology. To be sure, the theology of this chapter is robust; however, Jesus presents his theology in the vivid language of parables. Using illustrations from the most ordinary scenes of life, Jesus draws out extraordinary spiritual truth. In Matthew 13:1–9, Jesus begins by offering an explanation for the different responses of people to the gospel of his kingdom. Through this, Jesus pleads with his original hearers and those of us reading his words today: hear and understand the word of the kingdom.
Discussion Questions
1. How does Jesus’ teaching about the kingdom relate to Jesus’ teaching about spiritual warfare in the previous chapter? What is a parable? Why does Jesus use parables to teach about the kingdom? How should we interpret parables? In the parable of the sower/four soils, what is Jesus teaching when he warns about the hard soil? What would an unyielding heart look like? What ways might the evil one use to snatch away the word from your heart?
2. What does Jesus mean when he warns about the rocky soil of the unrooted heart? How does the growth of the plant in the rocky soil contrast with the lack of growth in the hard soil? What kind of a situation is Jesus describing by this “immediately…with joy” (v. 20) response? Why does this kind of heart ultimately fall away? How, then, is the unrooted heart similar to the unyielding heart in the end? What external pressures threaten your own faith?
3. What does Jesus mean when he warns about the thorny soil of the uncommitted heart? How is the growth of this plant in thorny soil similar to and different from the seeds scattered on the hard soil? How is it similar to and different from the growth of the plant in the rocky soil? What kind of internal desires seek to lead you away from your faith? What spiritual resources does Christ give us to put our old desires to death and to cultivate new desires for him?
4. What does Jesus mean when he speaks about the good soil of the unencumbered heart? What is similar in the good soil to the other soils? What is different? Why does the good soil produce fruit when the other soils could not? What is the spiritual significance of the good soil? How might we seek for our own hearts to be characterized as good soil? What is the main application that you take away from this passage as you think about the condition of your own heart?
