THE PARABLE OF THE BUILDERS & THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER: TAKE HEED HOW YOU HEAR

INTRODUCTION

When Jesus teaches a parable, he is not opening up “Chicken Soup for the Soul” or a fortune cookie but a window to the hidden
heavenlies. He is revealing a glimpse of eternity crashing into time, a flash photo of his own wisdom brought to bear. The parables give
us a direct portal to the kingdom of God being done on earth as it is in heaven. “Indeed,” Edward Armstrong writes, “they are sparks
from that fire which our Lord brought to the earth.”

Because the real-life and common scenarios of the parables belie their otherworldly power, it is imperative that we continue to click
“refresh” on our familiarity with them…It’s possible for familiarity to breed apathy or numbness if we come to Jesus’s stories in
lackadaisical, unexpectant, unsubmissive ways. Instead, let us come again and again to the “old, old story” of Jesus and his love and
behold his power freshly, ever-newly.

Jared Wilson, The Storytelling God: Seeing the Glory of Jesus in His Parables

1. Examine and discuss if you have ever received words of Scripture simply as “feel-good” stories rather than the very
words of God with a message for you?

STUDY & DISCUSSION

In the parable of the sower, Jesus uses it to explain the overall purpose of his parables. The word parable from
the Greek means “to cast alongside,” and as seeds that are cast, the parables will change some and confound
others, based on the soil of our hearts – that is, how we hear and heed them.

Read Luke 6:46-49 and 8:4-15 together.

2. In the parable of the builders (Luke 6:46-49), what do you notice about the similarities between the men and their
houses? In the parable of the sower (Luke 8:4-15), what do you notice about the similarities between the soils? What is
Jesus teaching us through these similarities?

3. Let’s consider the heart of rocky soil. A person can “receive [the Word] with joy” and “believe for a while” before falling
away “in time of testing” (8:13). How is it that a person can show such short-lived joy and belief in the Word? How do life’s
trials (represented by a “flood” in 6:48) reveal the genuineness of one’s commitment to the Word of God?
4. Let’s consider the heart of thorny soil. What does it look like practically when people are “choked by the cares and
riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature” (8:14)? How can you know when appropriate earthly
responsibilities and enjoyments cross the line into harmful preoccupation?

5. Drawing from both parables, what are the tangible evidences of a heart of good soil? (Be as concrete as possible in
your descriptions.) How are you personally challenged by this profile?

APPLICATION & PRAYER

Divide into smaller groups (2-3) and discuss the following application questions.

Which of the four kinds of soil do you most identify with right now? Explain. (Don't be afraid to share if you believe it is the
good soil. Praise God for it!)

Prayer Points
 Pray that God the sower will cultivate in you a heart of good soil that holds fast to His Word and obeys through trials
and temptations.
 Pray that you will be able to put into action practices that orient your “loves” to God’s Word, leading to greater spiritual
fruitfulness in your life.
 Leaders’ Notes

2. In the parable of the builders (Luke 6:46-49), what do you notice about the similarities between the men and
their houses? In the parable of the sower (Luke 8:4-15), what do you notice about the similarities between the
soils? What is Jesus teaching us through these similarities?

In the parable of the builders (Luke 6:46-49), there is only one difference between the two men and the two houses: the
foundation. One digs deep and builds his house on a rock foundation and the other builds on no foundation whatsoever.
Jesus mentions no other difference. So the similarities we see are:

- Both men have the same desire: to build a home to live in. Some take this parable to say that one is building the
“house of God” and the other is building a house just for himself. But there is no mention of such. All are simply
seeking a lasting home to dwell in.
- From all outward appearances, the two houses look the same before the flood comes, as you cannot see the
foundations. They are two similar homes built in the same location (the flood that comes later causes the stream
to break against both houses.)
- Both houses are hit by the flood. Regardless of one’s faith, everyone is subject to life’s storms and sufferings. No
one is immune.

In the parable of the sower (Luke 8:4-15), we also see similarities between the different types of soil:

- The seed is sown on all the types of soil. Many different types of people hear the Word of God.
- Besides the hard path, the seed sprouts and grows up (at least for a time) in the other soils. There are many who
seem to believe in the Word of God.

The lesson in these similarities for us is this: from outward appearances, the person who is truly a disciple of Jesus
and the person who is not can look just the same. That’s a scary thing. From the outside, it is hard to tell within the
church who is truly of the kingdom of God and who is not. People attending and active in the church all seem to be
following Jesus, hearing and receiving his word. They can “talk the talk” and to an extent even appear to “walk to walk.”
But we cannot see what people’s foundations are, the type of soil their hearts really represent. The sobering reality is that
there are those within the church who seem to be following Jesus but are self-deceived, as depicted in Luke 6:46 (Why do
you call me, “Lord, Lord,” and not do what I tell you?). This should soberly cause us to, “Examine yourselves, to see
whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—
unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” (2 Corinthians 13:5).

3. Let’s consider the heart of rocky soil. A person can “receive [the Word] with joy” and “believe for a while”
before falling away “in time of testing” (8:13). How is it that a person can show such short-lived joy and belief in
the Word? How do life’s trials (represented by a “flood” in 6:48) reveal the genuineness of one’s commitment to
the Word of God?

How is it that a person who is not truly a disciple of Jesus Christ (whose faith endures to the end) can look so much like a
Christian from outward appearance? From the parable of the builders, how can a person build a whole house that looks
just fine and yet be so deceived building it on the wrong foundation? From the parable of the sower, how can a person
show joy and belief in the Word for a time?

There are many benefits and blessings to being part of the church and being involved with Christianity. Everyone wants to
get to heaven, be saved, have their consciences clear, have purpose in their lives, not be lonely, be active and busy, be
moral and good, be respected, “experience” God, and so on. People might get so involved as to serve the church in
different capacities, and even be leaders in the church. But it is possible to come to God for the blessings and benefits He
brings, rather than for God Himself. It is possible to “experience” God and not be truly grounded on God’s Word. It is
possible to be moved emotionally during worship and prayer, but not truly obey the Word in one’s daily life. It is possible to
delight in parts of the Word such as God’s promises, but not be truly committed to all that the Word has to say.

The flood symbolizes the hardships that come to all of us. Every single one of us will face tests and trials in our lives that
can really show what foundation we are on. Every one of us will face hardships and difficulties that will test our faith and
demonstrate the substance of it. It is when these floods come that you know whether you are truly in love with God and
his Word, or just in the things surrounding Him. If you are stripped of God’s gifts, of the benefits that come from being in a
church community, of uplifting one-off spiritual experiences, what is the substance of your faith? Are you still committed to
trust and obey no matter what? This is what life’s trials can reveal.

This is the difference highlighted in the parable of the builders. The difference between the two men is essentially this: the
one heeds instruction carefully and the other does not. Jesus says that the man building on the rock is the one who
“comes to me and hears my words and does them” (6:46). The other who builds on no foundation “hears and does not do
them” (6:49). He is the one who is ever hearing but never really heeding and doing. When building his house, this guy
doesn’t heed the most important instruction of all in construction: build on a solid foundation! He is the kind of guy who
does things his way, doesn’t follow instructions carefully, perhaps takes short cuts here and there, does ultimately what
suits him. He may hear what other people are telling him to do, but he doesn’t really listen to them. He has selective
hearing, he’ll listen to only what he wants. But he won’t heed necessary instructions carefully, and thus do a foolish thing
like build on no foundation. Such a person will eventually be exposed.

4. Let’s consider the heart of thorny soil. What does it look like practically when people are “choked by the cares
and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature” (8:14)? How can you know when appropriate
earthly responsibilities and enjoyments cross the line into harmful preoccupation?

For those of thorny soil, their responsibilities, wealth, and pleasures eat away at a commitment to the Word. The values
and things of the world become the real priorities, and fruitfulness for God’s kingdom shrivels. They may continue to do
spiritual things outwardly, but their hearts drift further and further away from the Lord.

You can know when earthly responsibilities and enjoyments cross the line by a decrease in appetite for and delight in
God’s Word. As John Piper wrote, “If you don't feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not
because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your
soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.” When there is little room for God’s Word in your heart,
it is a telltale sign that the things of the world are choking you.

Another way to know practically is to look at the way you spend your time, energy, and money. What are your spiritual and
physical resources devoted to? What gets the firstfruits and what gets the leftovers? One cannot serve both God and the
world. You will be devoted to the one and cast off the other. If you are not sensing spiritual fruitfulness in your life, it is
because another idol has taken root in your heart, is being fed and growing thorns that choke out healthy growth.

5. Drawing from both parables, what are the tangible evidences of a heart of good soil? (Be as concrete as
possible in your descriptions.) How are you personally challenged by this profile?

The Christian, the true disciple of Jesus Christ and kingdom citizen is the one who comes to Jesus, believes all his words,
and does them.

From the parable of the builders, the person who builds on the rock heeds and follows instruction carefully, to the very last
word. The true disciple of Christ is marked by a pattern of actually doing all that God says. The false person may sing and
praise, pray, do things for God, but when it comes to heeding and doing every word of God, he is not ultimately interested.
He has selective hearing, neglecting those commands he doesn’t feel like doing. The Christian is not selective with the
Word of God; whatever it says, he hears it and seeks to put it into practice. This is not to say it all comes easily, without a
struggle. But the attitude is to heed God’s word above all else and to follow fully as best as able, an imperfect-but-
progressing obedience in all areas of life.

From the parable of the sower, the good soil is marked by those who “hold [the Word] fast in an honest and good heart”
(8:15), meaning, a commitment to the Word that endures and strengthens through trials and withstands temptations. And
of course, the good soil “bears fruit with patience” (8:15). That is, over the course of time in due season, there is growing
fruitfulness in character (Galatians 5:22 – “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience…”) that blesses and
nourishes others.

Lastly, we need to emphasize that Jesus does not mean that we earn the right to be kingdom citizens by doing God’s
Word. This is anti-gospel! No one is good and no one by good works can earn God’s love and favor. We believe a person
will freely be accepted and forgiven and brought into the kingdom if they believe in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And if you are truly a child of God by faith in Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit in you, the promise that you already belong to
the kingdom and are secure forever! Jesus is the one who sets us on the firm foundation. On Christ the solid rock we
stand. But the outward sign and evidence that the Holy Spirit is in you is that you heed and do the Word of God.
And Jesus does not mean his disciples are perfect. By no means! We still struggle with temptation and sin. The key is
ongoing desire and repentance. Do you desire to obey all the word of God, even when it hurts and is hard? For the true
disciple, when we are rebuked and called to change our ways, we repent and turn to God and depend upon his help to
change, because it is our desire to do his will. When it is hard, we come to the Lord humble and broken asking for his
grace and power to help us obey. The false person will not repent or cling onto God’s grace to change.

So in a nutshell, how do you know you are a Christian? How can you know you’re not self-deceived? By your commitment
to the Word of God. Do you get hardened by it, ignore it, turn away from it, see it as unimportant, see it as optional, heed it
only when you want to? Or does it delight you, refresh you, encourage you, rebuke you, correct you, sober you, humble
you, change you? Take heed how you hear.