Seeds Of Love - Parables

The Parable of the Sower ¹That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. ²Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. ³Then he told them many things in parables, saying: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. ⁴As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. ⁵Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. ⁶But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. ⁷Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. ⁸Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop--a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. ⁹He who has ears, let him hear." ¹⁰The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to the people in parables?" ¹¹He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. ¹²Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. ¹³This is why I speak to them in parables: "Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. ¹⁴In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: " 'You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. ¹⁵For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.' ¹⁶But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. ¹⁷For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. ¹⁸"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: ¹⁹When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. ²⁰The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. ²¹But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. ²²The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. ²³But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."

So popular was Jesus that crowds of people thronged to see Him and to listen to His words. So that all could hear and see Him clearly, Jesus got into a boat and had it pushed a little way out from the shoreline. The people gathered by the waterside had come from all around and were well acquainted with the farming methods of the day. Many of those gathered there would themselves have broadcast seeds in the manner of the sower in the parable. But did they understand that they were the soil, and that the sower was Christ in the boat throwing good seed amongst them? Seeds capable of bringing forth growth in their lives. Seed that could multiply over and over again. Jesus spoke of 4 types of soil. 1 - Hard ground. 2 - Shallow soil on rocky places. 3 - Soil with thorns and weeds. 4 - Good soil. Which type of soil are you? Ask God to:- Reveal to you the true state of your own heart. Not let life harden your heart. Protecting you from developing a heart of stone. To make you receptive, by giving you a desire to see and hear Spiritual truths. Help you to cling to Him in times of trouble. To strengthen you by giving you courage and depth in your character. Help you to truly cherish what is most valuable in life. So that you can see what is most beautiful and lasting. Remember that:- Where your heart is there shall you shall find your treasure.

tips on how to look at the picture If you see nothing, click on the picture to see what you should be seeing	Some things can only be seen when viewed in the right way. Sometimes we need to learn how to look. The magic eye picture to the left needs to be looked at in a particular way and once mastered pictures of this kind get easier to see. Unfortunately some just never learn how to look and miss out. Men tend to intellectualise and forget to look with their heart. Many hearts have become dry places. Dry hard hearts are incapable of seeing Christ. If you wish to know Jesus ask God to soften your heart. Anyone who truly wants to see Jesus will seek Him out. Jesus said: seek and ye shall find. . . Matthew 7: 7