Fruitful Seed and Fertile Soil
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A (16/07/2023)
(Isaiah 55:10-11; Psalm 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14; Romans 8:18-23; Matthew 13:1-23 or 13:1-9)
Fr Samuel Odeh
“As for what was sown on good soil, this is he who hears the word and understands it; he indeed bears fruit, and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty” (Matthew 13:23).
The seed is the word of the kingdom and our hearts and our dispositions are the soil. We are tremendously blessed to have received the revealed word of God but we do not always hear, listen, understand nor put that word into practice in our lives. While the word of God continues to remain “alive and active,” we are not always “good soil” and are not always obedient to the will of God. Why are we not always the kind of people the word of God requires us to be? How can the word of God bear fruit in us and in our lives?
In the first reading from the prophet Isaiah God says of the word that goes forth from him that “it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11). In other words, the word of God is by its very nature a fruit-bearing seed that does not change, enduring forever. Everyone who hears the word of God should find it attractive. Every believer should develop an attachment to the sacred texts of the holy scriptures because of the life-changing power contained in the word of God.
In the second reading, St Paul reminds the Christians of Rome that in the hands of God, they are a work in progress, both in their natural selves as members of God’s creation and as those “who have the first fruits of the Spirit”. All obstacles that would keep the word of God from bearing fruit in our lives shall be completely overcome when we “obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God” and “our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies”. Right now God is gradually making us more of the persons he wants us to become.
In today’s gospel reading Jesus names some of the obstacles that believers encounter when they hear the word of God which prevent it from bearing fruit in their lives. The different types of soil represent the different states of mind and hearts of each individual that hears the word of the kingdom of heaven. Some hear the word but because they do not understand it they are unable to walk its talk, so the evil one comes and snatches away what is planted in their hearts. In their case, the word of God is like a seed planted along the path. Some others hear the word of God and immediately receive it with joy, but like seeds that fell on rocky ground with little soil, the word does not take root in them. The seed in them becomes a plant that grows for a short time but dies off as soon as suffering and persecution that challenge fidelity to the word arise in their lives. For some the day-to-day worries of life and the pursuit of riches choke the life out of the word of God which they did receive at first and so do not bear fruit. Here the word of God is a seed planted among thorns.
Fertile soil for the seed that is word of God is made available only if there is understanding when we hear the word of God. Every Christian believer will face challenges to the important and primary place that the word of God should have in their lives. Understanding the word of God which we welcome so delightfully is the first path to living a “fruit-bearing” life. We must listen to the word of God with the ears of our hearts, that is with our desires and feelings. We must frequently spend time thinking, reflecting, and praying with the words of Scripture. We must enthrone the Holy Word in our hearts and our daily lives and like Jesus who though Son of God, had to learn obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8), let us allow the Cross of Christ to lead us in our dealings with the ups and downs of this earthly life. Let us also avail ourselves of the supernatural life of Christ present in the sacramental life of the Church. If we constantly do these things, the word of God shall take root in our lives and the Spirit of Christ will grant us increase. May the Lord bless his words in our hearts, amen.
