Wisdom is the Root ~ Wealth is the Fruit
I once heard the saying, “No root, no fruit.” It’s true, especially where God is concerned. Dirt that lacks nutrients, whether natural earth or spiritual soil, stunts root growth. Here, we’ll look at the spiritual stuff. Jesus addressed spiritual seeds, sowers, and receivers in Matthew 13:19 and 18-23. The “seed” is an introduction to God’s kingdom made by a sower — e.g., teacher, evangelist, or disciple-maker; the soil is the recipient. Depending on the sower and receiver, the result can be spiritual fruit or fuel for the burn pile (John 15:4-6). In Matthew 13, Jesus offered examples of the different seed recipients and their conditions to illustrate growth opportunities and outcomes. I’ll present each scenario one at a time. Roadside (13:4 and 19) “When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.” A lack of wisdom hides God’s kingdom; erroneous church leaders and teachers can be at fault. Flawed or incomplete evangelism, encouraging someone to enter a one-sided selfish relationship with God without understanding the terms and conditions, is also at fault. The cure? Find a mature Christ-follower and imitate what you see and hear. Rocks (13:5-6 and 20-21) “… this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary…” This person understands at least the appealing parts of Christianity and perhaps entered it emotionally. Once the feelings are gone, so is any motivation for growth. As with the roadside receiver, causes include bad teaching, inadequate evangelism and the absence of discipleship. Thorns (13:7 and 22) “… this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” This person probably understands the Kingdom but chooses self-centeredness, where the “lust of the flesh and eyes” rules over all else (1 John 2:15-17).