Hello friends,
Today, let’s take a look at one of the three types of soils where the word is sown:
“And these are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown: when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them.”
— Mark 4:15
Jesus echoes this first type of soil in the parable:
“Listen to this! Behold, the sower went out to sow; and as he was sowing, some seed fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate it up.”
— Mark 4:3-4
Here, Satan is represented by the birds. The word is sown into the soil beside the road, and Satan comes to take it away.
In Matthew’s account, we see a similar statement about Satan snatching away the word:
“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.”
— Matthew 13:19
However, Matthew provides more detail. He adds that the person represented by the soil beside the road hears the word but does not understand it. This lack of understanding allows the evil one to snatch away the word.
Something important to note here is that the seed never had a chance to penetrate the surface of the soil. Mark emphasizes that this happened “immediately.” As soon as the seed landed beside the road, Satan came and snatched it away. For these people, there was never a chance for success—the word never even touched the surface of their hearts.
The people referred to here are those who are so darkened in their understanding that, upon hearing the word, they lack the capacity to truly receive it. In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul speaks of those whose understanding is darkened:
“So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind, being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.”
— Ephesians 4:17-18
A darkened mind accompanies a hardened heart. Even when the truth is shared with such a person, it doesn’t penetrate—it literally falls on deaf ears.
A case could be made that a significant number of the Pharisees fit this description. Despite knowing about the coming Messiah and witnessing the signs and wonders He performed, their hearts were hardened.
“But though He had done so many signs before them, they still were not believing in Him, so that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spoke: ‘Lord, who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’ For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, ‘He has blinded their eyes and He hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes and understand with their heart, and return, and I heal them.’”
— John 12:37-40
As believers, we need to understand that in the world, there will be those whose minds are darkened—people who immediately shut down when they hear anything about the gospel. They have hardened hearts and are unwilling to accept it.
Nevertheless, we should not assume this about anyone. Our task is to preach the gospel to every creature. There’s no way to tell by someone’s appearance or their initial response to the gospel. The Bible tells us about people who were radically transformed from denying the gospel. One such person was Saul of Tarsus, who became the great apostle Paul.
“For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.”
— Galatians 1:13“But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood.”
— Galatians 1:15-16
There is a great danger in assuming that, because of someone’s behavior, they are beyond redemption. Sometimes, we hold ourselves in higher esteem, thinking that being born again makes us better than others. This is a gross error. Before our hearts were converted to the gospel, we acted much like those we might now look down upon. The story of Jonah highlights this mistake. Jonah looked at the people of Nineveh and considered them undeserving of mercy. But this was not God’s plan:
“When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it. But it greatly displeased Jonah, and he became angry.”
— Jonah 3:10-4:1
We should never dismiss anyone from the mercy of the gospel based on their current lifestyle. We must remember that great mercy was shown to us, not because we were good, but because we were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God through the sanctifying work of the Spirit for obedience to Christ.
It is safe to assume that as long as someone still has breath in their lungs, they are qualified to hear the gospel and, according to God’s divine will, be granted repentance and turn to Christ.
Our task is similar to the one given to Ezekiel: to warn people, regardless of who they are.
“But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life.”
— Ezekiel 33:9
I pray that this word helps us not show partiality in preaching the gospel.
Let us never give up on anyone when it comes to sharing the truth to them.
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