Bart Johnson, Prisoner on Alabama’s Death Row
The Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood, Death Row Spiritual Advisor
The Parable of the Sower
That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore. Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”
The disciples came to him and asked, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”
He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables:
“Though seeing, they do not see;
though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:
“‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding;
you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
For 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.’
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.
“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no roots, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
Matthew 13:1-23
Shortcomings define us. Not necessarily because we are deficient. But because we are shaped by how we overcome deficiencies. We all make mistakes. We all fall short. We all fail. These are fundamental truths. At one time or another, we will be the seeds that fall in less-than-ideal spaces. Our response to such a juxtaposition is what defines us.
Sowing seed is an interesting metaphor. Consider that anybody can sow seed. In fact, it seems that we are made human by our seed sowing. We become something not based on where the seed lands…but in our ability to keep throwing seed out…to keep trying.
Seeds don’t just fall randomly. We throw them. Misconceptions lead to bad tosses. The parable is about being able to tell the difference between good tosses and bad ones. Sometimes we need to just go and pick the seed back up.
We keep our wisdom about us so that we might ascertain what is happening around us. You’ve got to take care of yourself. You’ve got to keep your mind right. You must keep your sight. We push back against anything that would cause us to be distracted or impaired. Faith is about being ready to grow and you can’t be ready to grow unless you keep yourself healthy and prepared for growth.
Good soil is a metaphor for good places. Who we are around matters. Where we are matters. When we are somewhere matters. What we are matters. Why we are where we are matters. Such statements could go on and on…but the point is that we help create the soil by being in it. We create spaces where we can love each other. We create good soil.
Love is about doing our best to make sure that we are always throwing good seeds into the good soil that we create. God has given us an endless supply of seeds…every moment is a chance to make good throws into good places.
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