My husband and I have been studying on the Holy Communion. We started this a few years ago, while we were still in Alaska, took a break and have picked it back up. While I’m not ready to share some of the things I’ve been learning, I can’t seem to escape the desire to share one specific part that has made an impression on me more than some of the other points. I was trying to focus on what to write about this week and I kept coming back to this one part, so I hope that you’ll bear with me.
You may have heard some of the religious speak of planting seeds. We have seeds planted in us every single day. Seeds of suggestion if you will. I can’t help but think of the television commercials that would show the big, juicy cheeseburgers or steaks, some hot, crispy fries, and some rich, decadent chocolate fudge cake. Are you hungry? Are you craving anything? Sometimes all I have to say to my husband is one word and he’s hooked on the craving: cookies. Or, dare I say, Reese’s. For me, I hear the word pastry and I’m ready for an apple fritter or a cinnamon roll.
We all have those seeds tossed at us throughout our day. Some of us allow those seeds to take root and we change our dinner menu to steaks, or we run through the drive-thru for fries instead of eating our lunch from home. There are times I’ll see a recipe online for a dessert and I’ll suddenly have a craving for it even though it wasn’t even in my head to have anything sweet! And does anyone else out there get a hankering for a cup of coffee when they get a whiff of it or see coffee beans on commercials? These seeds of suggestion can be delicious and can be a bit annoying if I’m being honest. But that’s just one type of seed. God’s Word is also a type of seed.
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth, and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so shall My word be which goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11 NASB
Every time we read the Word of God and hear someone read the Word aloud, we are allowing seeds to be planted into our heart’s soil. But what kind of soil is receiving the seed?
And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, “Behold, the sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up. And others fell upon the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out. And others fell on the good soil, and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” Matthew 13:3-8 NASB
I’ve heard so many lessons on the types of soils! Roady, rocky, thorny, and good. And every sermon was about looking at myself to determine what kind of soil I was. I’m now going to flip this a bit, because sometimes seeds need flipping – and maybe at times, the soils. Jesus, in Matthew 13:3-8, used a parable to teach us about the Word of God and used the imagery of agriculture because He knew it would make sense to His audience. What His audience may not have realized is that Jesus is the Word of God. Jesus is the seed – kind of.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1 NASB
Before my husband and I had our first baby together, I went through two miscarriages, one right after the other. The second loss was a double blow – we lost twins. I was a baby in my faith in that I had only started learning of God being a good God, a good Father about three years before the miscarriages. I was newly married, we were trying for a baby, and I was absolutely shocked when I miscarried – and then almost destroyed when I miscarried again. Looking back, I know that I wasn’t sowing my seeds in the right soil. I’m not even sure I had the right seeds.
There’s a story in Matthew that I can relate to (one of several). Jesus’ disciples were presented with a son who was demon-possessed, but they were unable to help him. This was brought to Jesus’ attention who then cast the demon out. His disciples spoke with Jesus privately and asked Him why they were unable to cast the demon out. On first read through, I felt discouraged at Jesus’ response, but now that I have studied it out, I’ve come to love it:
And He said to them, “Because of the littleness of your faith (#3640 – lacking confidence in Christ); for truly I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it shall move; and nothing shall be impossible to you.” Matthew 17:20 NASB
Again, he uses agriculture to explain things to them. This time it’s a type of seed – the seed of faith.
And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, yet when it is sown, grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade.” Mark 4:30-32 NASB
I hope you’re following this: our faith and the kingdom of heaven are both found in a mustard seed! I understood this when I went through the miscarriages, but I was missing a vital piece in the agricultural process. Most messages on communion would have us examining ourselves, the soil of our heart, soul, mind, etc. We would try to discern our worthiness before approaching the table. Is our soil roady, rocky, thorny, or good? It wasn’t until we started studying the Holy Communion that this imagery stuck. The seed found good soil at last.
“The plowers plowed upon my back; they lengthened their furrows.” Psalm 129:3 NASB
Furrows, a trench or groove made by a plow, are made so the seeds can be planted in them. In this passage, David gives us a picture of the scourging that Jesus would go through (Isaiah 53:5, Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15, and John 19:1). He could have just stated that they beat Jesus or that they scourged Him, but no – they plowed His back. Seems to me that there was soil being prepared for something.
We’re to put our mustard-seed-sized faith in Jesus, in the plowed furrows in His back. Our faith, our confidence in Christ, is to be planted in Christ! What kind of soil do you think I’ll find in Him? When we approach the Lord’s table for communion, we aren’t to examine our worthiness, but whether or not we’ve placed our faith in Him. We aren’t to keep a record of what God says He’ll remember no more (Jeremiah 31:34 and Isaiah 43:25). We shouldn’t try to keep hold of what He removed as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). When we examine ourselves, we’re to be looking at the finished work of our Lord Jesus.
When we pray, let’s plant our seeds of faith in the soil of Jesus. His soil is the richest soil that we could never have on our own. Can we trust Him with our cares and worries, our hopes and dreams? Let’s plant the right seeds in the right soil – Jesus.
Cast your burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. Psalm 55:22 NASB
For as many as may be the promises of God, in Him they are yes; wherefore also by Him is our Amen to the glory of God through us. II Corinthians 1:20 NASB