“Take heed how you hear”

At the conclusion of the parable of the sower in Luke 8:18 Jesus says, “take heed how you hear” thus making the point that those represented by the four different kinds of soil in the parable are responsible for the condition of their own hearts. In the case of the “wayside soil” it represents one who has no desire to hear or understand the word of God. Satan, represented by the birds in the parable, helps them in their efforts to keep God’s word from making any impression on their heart. It is important to note that Satan cannot, “take away the word out of their hearts,” without their consent. James 4:7 tells us that if we resist the devil he will flee from us.

The stony soil represents those who have a purely emotional response to the gospel. Without the firm foundation that a reasoned knowledge of God’s word gives, they cannot withstand the trials and persecutions of life.

The thorny soil represents those who are so preoccupied with the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches and the pleasures of life that they have no time or energy left to do God’s will. They are the ones the Apostle Peter had reference to in 2 Peter 1:9 as, “shortsighted, even to blindness, and who have forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins”.

The good ground represents those who not only hear and understand the word but also put it into practice in their lives and “bear fruit”. We are each responsible for the condition of our own heart and we should each, individually, examine our own hearts to see which “soil” we are and “take heed how we hear”.