Luke 8:4–15 (EHV)
4As a large crowd was gathering and people from one town after another were
making their way to him, he spoke using a parable. 5“A sower went out to sow his seed.
As he sowed, some fell along the path. It was trampled, and the birds of the sky
devoured it. 6Other seed fell on rocky ground. As soon as it grew, it withered away,
because it had no moisture. 7Other seed fell among thorns. The thorns grew up with it
and choked it. 8Other seed fell into good soil. It grew and produced fruit—one hundred
times as much as was sown.” As he said these things, he called out, “Whoever has ears
to hear, let him hear!”
9His disciples asked him, “What does this parable mean?”
10He said, ![]()
“To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God,
but to the rest I speak in parables so that ‘even though they see, they may not see, and
even though they hear, they may not understand.’ ![]()
11This is the meaning of the parable:
The seed is the word of God. 12Those along the path are the ones who hear it, but then
the Devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts to keep them from believing
and being saved. 13Those on the rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear,
receive the word with joy, but they have no root. So they believe for a while, but then fall
away in a time of testing. 14The seeds that fell into the thorns are the ones who hear the
word, but as they go on their way they are choked by the worries, riches, and pleasures
of life, so they do not mature. ![]()
15And the seeds in the good ground are the ones who
hear the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it tightly, and produce fruit as
they patiently endure.
Dear fellow redeemed: There are two main things in our text for today. First there is a
parable with its explanation. Next there is Jesus’ comment on why He chooses to speak in
parables. They go together. If we understand how blessed we are to know the secret things of
the kingdom of God, then hopefully we will so treasure God’s word that it takes such deep root
in our hearts that it will withstand the heat of temptation and escape the weeds of mundane
distractions.
So we have
TWO REASONS TO TREASURE GOD’S WORD
I. The Light that Jesus Brings to It
II. The Salvation that Jesus Brings through It
I. The Light that Jesus Brings to It
The first reason to treasure God’s word is that it is, well, a treasure. It is something of
great value, and it is rare. Even though you can find a copy in practically every library in the
country and in nearly every motel room in the country, the fact is that God’s word is rarely read,
rarely believed, and rarely understood in the sense of taking it in to heart and mind.
Something terrible things happens when people don’t treasure God’s word, and don’t
believe it.
They lose it.
This is not a new thing that Jesus is talking about. It has always been so. Consider the
prophet Amos: “Look, the days are coming, declares the Lord God, when I will send a
2
famine into the land— not a famine of bread nor a thirst for water, but rather a famine of
hearing the words of the Lord.” (Amos 8:11, EHV)
This is a consequence, the Lord told Amos, of the people’s indifference to the word of
God.
Isaiah delivered the same message, and Jesus here quotes part of it, ‘even though
they see, they may not see, and even though they hear, they may not understand.’
Even though Jesus spoke clearly it made no sense to many because they had thrown
away the key, namely Jesus. As a result, they could make no sense of even the very heart of
Christianity, the doctrine of Justification by God’s grace through faith in our redeemer, Jesus
Christ.
The Bible clearly teaches that God is absolutely fair and just, giving everyone just what
they deserve. But the Bible also clearly teaches that God loves the whole world and wants all
to be saved. What is the key to this paradox? Jesus! The justice of God falls on our
substitute, Jesus, so that God’s love may be given to us!
Jesus is the key to this parable also, but without faith in Christ, people just won’t “get it;”
people won’t “get” this or any other parable. However, in knowing Christ, “To you it has been
given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God ….” That surely ought to gladden our
hearts, for through the revelation of God’s word we don’t just guess that there is a god, we
know the God who is really there. We don’t just agonize over whether there is any remedy for
sin, or whether death will swallow us up in eternal despair. Instead we live in joy, and the
certain hope, looking forward to an eternity in the joy, peace, beauty, pleasure, and fullness of
heaven.
There is danger when someone confuses knowing about the word with knowing Christ
and believing His word. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the
kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
(Matthew 7:21, EHV)
Without faith, just owning one of these Bibles doesn’t mean anything, but knowing
Christ is to have the light that illumines the word and make it understandable.
So, we treasure Scripture for the light that Jesus brings to it, but also for …
II. The Salvation that Jesus Brings through It
We enter this kingdom, this salvation, through faith that God Himself creates in us by
His Spirit. Is that reason enough to treasure God’s word – that God gives you forgiveness, life,
salvation, His son, and heaven itself through it? HUH? Is that reason enough? I hope so!
But sadly, this parable is largely about those who do not treasure the word.
There are those who never “understand” it in the sense of taking it to heart and believing it,
and so never treasure it: 11This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of
God. 12Those along the path are the ones who hear it, but then the Devil comes and
takes away the word from their hearts to keep them from believing and being saved. The
way the devil “takes away the word” is left open, because there are countless ways to excuse
the unbelief into which we are all born.
Sinful humanity doesn’t like being told that its sin damns. Proud humanity doesn’t like
being told that we need forgiveness and a Savior. Intellectually egotistical humanity doesn’t
like being told that there is more to this world that just matter + energy, and a material cause
for everything.
People whose life is a mess because of their sinful decisions will nevertheless find fault
with this word of God, Who in love has given us His commands as a perfect guide, and to
show us that the problem in life is ours – our sin – and the solution is His – our Savior.
What could be more tragic than God’s word never entering a person’s heart? Sad to
say there is more. There are those who hear and believe and treasure the word in joy.
13Those on the rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear, receive the word with
joy, but they have no root. So they believe for a while, but then fall away in a time of
testing. They KNOW what is at stake! But they do not make the word part of their lives so that
it grows deep into their hearts. They may be thrilled to hear the message of the gospel, to be
free from theirs sins and have the hope of everlasting life. But they go to school and soak up
the culture and get steeped in the materialistic worldview, and fall away.
And finally, there at those who lose their faith because their word is displaced by other
things that are important, but less important – the worries, riches, and pleasures of life.
You know, helium is not a poisonous gas. But if this building were filled with helium so
that it pushed all the oxygen out, we would all suffocate. So it is with those who have let the
worries, riches, and pleasures of life push the word from their lives and heart.
But many do treasure it: 15And the seeds in the good ground are the ones who hear
the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it tightly, and produce fruit as they
patiently endure. Heaven will be filled with just such people – those who hear God’s word,
believe it, treasure it for its message of Christ our Savior, and persevere – who endure
everything rather than fall away from the word.
Their hope is in Christ, speaking through the word, and not in their own work of
enduring or being faithful. Their spiritual life may be as dry as old husks. They may not “feel”
the grace of God. They may find it hard to bring their tired minds and bodies to the task. They
may be hounded on very side by doubts, by persecutors, by those who question what they
believe. But because Jesus promises, “If you remain in my word, you are really my
disciples. You will also know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”” (John 8:31–32,
EHV) they continue, trusting in this word to feed their soul. And it does.
These are those who live and die knowing Christ in a personal way and find death to be
the door to everlasting life. These are those who know of a love that passes all human
understanding. These are those who look at the trouble that is in the world and can say, “My
Savior spoke of this, this is as He said it would be,” and know that the same truthful Savior has
promised to live with us through the troubles of life and deliver us at the last. Psalm 23:6
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
For all of these reasons, I plead with you, to treasure God’s word, His promises.
Treasure it for the sake of Christ, who is the key to it all, and for the sake of Christ who brings
and gives salvation through it. AMEN.