Listen to Sermon
Pastor Tom Johnson, July 16, 2017
This morning’s reading from Isaiah is about the precipitation of God’s Word into the world and upon the soil of our hearts and lives. His Word is like rain and snow that that comes from the sky above to the earth below. Rain, yes. But snow? Snow is still on the mountain peaks in mid-July in places like the Rocky Mountains. But I am still blown away by the beauty of the vegetation and flowers that grow at 14,000 feet right next to snow drifts and melting ice.
 |
| High altitude vegetation on Mt. Bierstadt, Colorado |
One farmer explained the benefits of snow. Snow falls and covers the ground. It melts and trickles slowly into the soil. The ground thaws and drinks in the water. The ground freezes again and the water turns to ice. Water expands as it changes from liquid to ice. The expanse works the soil to break it up and make it easier for seeds to take root, receive nutrients, and for the plant to break through the topsoil. It may look like nothing is happening beneath that expanse entombed in white powder. But snow, water, and ice are tilling the ground naturally and doing what would take hours of labor and machinery. It’s why farmers will not tell you to pray for rain or pray for sunshine. They tell you to pray for favorable weather. Favorable weather for farmers is just the right balance of healthy soil, moisture, and sunshine.
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”
And that is what God was teaching the Israelites in the desert with the Manna—the daily bread from heaven. He says in Deuteronomy (8:3), “He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” But the problem is we often neglect or doubt the ministry of the Word. And we can neglect this heavenly treasure in different ways. We can get so busy with work and play—feeding our mouths and stomachs—that we forget to feed our souls. That is the point of Jesus’ parable of the sower in our Gospel reading: that God works to plant the Word into our lives. And that he wants a bountiful harvest. But a lack of depth of knowledge or the troubles, anxieties, and seduction of this world threaten to rob us of the joy and peace that is ours in Christ. It is what I really like about our Scripture from Isaiah. He has every season in mind. Not just spring and summer but fall and winter: rain and snow! A sower of seed understand the seasonal nature of life.
There will be times of drought and days with gentle rain. There will be days when sunlight bathes crops activating photosynthesis and growth just as there will be days when ice and snow seem to seal the fields shut for weeks and months at a time. So are the seasons of farming and the seasons of life. So the Word of God works visibly and invisibly in our lives. So it seems like some days we observe and experience the Word’s dynamic photosynthesis. And other days it seems like nothing is happening beneath that cold, icy, and hard exterior. The Word of God will not return empty—his Word will accomplish that which He purposes—his Word shall succeed in the thing for which He sent it. So God has promised us in our text.
Just as rain and snow produce a yield of earthly fruit, so the Word of God will produce a yield of heavenly fruit—what Scripture calls the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23)—fruit we all desperately need. Isaiah mentions two of them: joy and peace! So be encouraged. God’s Word will fall upon the fields of our lives. Sometimes it fails gently and our parched soil drinks in. Sometimes it falls cold and heavy. But don’t lose heart. It will melt and trickle slowly into the ground. The earth will thaw and drink in the water. Do not be anxious when the ground freezes again and the water turns to ice. This is the normal Christian life. Water expands as it changes from liquid to ice. The expanse will work the soil and make it easier for the seed to take root, receive nutrients of the Spirit, and for the growth to break through the soil to the sunshine above. God sends the favorable weather. It may look like nothing is happening beneath that expanse of colorless snow and ice. But the rain and snow of God’s Word tills and feeds the ground. It shall succeed. God will accomplish his purpose. His Word will not return empty.
Almighty God, Your Word is cast
Like seed into the ground;
Now let the dew of heav’n descend
And righteous fruits abound.
Let not the world’s deceitful cares
The rising plant destroy,
But let it yield a hundredfold
The fruits of peace and joy.
(“Almighty God Your Word is Cast” LSB 577 vv. 1 & 3)
No comments:
Post a Comment