Gospel: Mt 13:18-23 [or Mt 13:16-17]
JESUS said to his disciples: “Hear the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the Kingdom without understanding it, and the Evil One comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy. But he has no root and lasts only for a time. When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away. The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.”
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Even if the seeds thrown on the footpath, on rocky ground, and on thorny soil fail to produce, the ones sown on good soil will bring a bumper harvest of thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold.
As a good storyteller, Jesus succeeds in catching the attention of his listeners who belong largely to a farming population. They themselves know that the harvest that Jesus illustrates amounts to a bonanza. What Jesus stresses here is the possible spiritual growth of one who allows oneself to be nourished by the Word of God.
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SOURCE: “365 Days with the Lord,” ST PAULS, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 895-9701; Fax 895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.
