The preparation of the sower

C. The preparation of the sower

1. Must have good seed

Matt. 13:24
Notice the sower was sowing good seed. If we are to know anything about what type of seed is good we must know how to tell its quality.

2. Must know his seed

Matt. 13:37
Here we see and recognized seal of approval, the Son of man.

3. Must prepare his seed.

Matt. 17:21
Preparation of the seed many times comes by prayer and fasting.

Acts 27:33
The results of a good seed many times come with much trouble and strife.


Ill. Prayer is the bow, the promise is the arrow: faith is the hand which draws the bow, and sends the arrow with the heart’s message to heaven. The bow without the arrow is of no use; and the arrow without the bow is of little worth; and both, without the strength of the hand, to no purpose. Neither the promise without prayer, nor prayer without the promise, nor both without faith, avail the Christian any thing. What was said of the Israelites, “They could not enter in, because of unbelief,” the same may be said of many of our prayers: they cannot enter heaven, because they are not put up in faith. (6000 Sermon Illustrations pg. 512)


4. Must prepare the ground.

Prov. 18:24
Show yourself friendly; you will be surprised by what you may receive.

Luke 10:33-34
Have compassion on those around you. Some may be hurting on the inside and not showing on the outside. Only God knows the heart of a person.


Luke 15:20
Have compassion on those we love, no matter what failures were committed in their lives.

I Peter 3:8
We should have compassion on our brothers and sisters in the Lord. This will generate blessings from God.


Ill. A pious man of rank was in the habit of associating intimately with pious poor people. A worldly friend of his rallied him on the subject of his associates, and expressed his surprise. The noble Christian man replied, that, as he could hardly hope to enjoy so elevated a rank as they in a future world, he knew not why he should despise them in the present. (6000 Sermon Illustrations pg. 70)

Making the Port of Heaven

Amos 4:12
Prepare to meet your God of Israel.

The steamship London sank off the Land' s End in the English Channel on January 11, 1866 amid a terrible storm. Only one lifeboat was launched before the great ship sank, and only three passengers survived. Among the dead was Daniel Draper, a Wesleyan Methodist preacher. In the hours before the ship was lost. He reportedly went from person to person evangelizing the passengers and crew, and he led virtually the whole ship to faith in Christ. The last words, anyone heard him utter were "Those of you who are not converted. Now is the time, not a moment to be lost, for a few minutes we shall all be in the presence of the judge."

Our world is a storm and many are sinking in life's alarms. Revelation 20 vividly describes the coming judgment of the great White throne of God at the end of history. If you don't know Christ as your Savior there's not a moment to be lost. Prepare to meet God by confessing Christ as Lord of your life today.

The captain tells us there is no hope: that we must all parish, but I tell you there is hope for all. Although we must die, and you shall never again see land. We may all make the Port of Heaven.
Daniel Draper, above the London

From: Turning Point online Devotional.
June 24, 2010

Gratitude Attitude

Assume you are a Christian who lives in a politically and spiritually repressive country. You learn one day that all who refuse to renounce their faith in God will be killed. What would you do? Would your activities on that day be any different than the day before? Would your activities include prayers of thanks to God?

If you were the Old Testament prophet, Daniel, nothing would change. After learning that the King of Babylon had signed a decree stipulating that anyone caught praying to another God would be thrown in the lion's den, Daniel went home and did what he normally did three times each day: He prayed and gave thanks to God--thanks that he was now a wanted man? Not likely. Daniel's gratitude was based on knowing that God is sovereign over all things; that God knew his life would be threatened long before Daniel knew it; that he could entrust his future to God without fear of the outcome.

If gratitude and thanks to God are part of your daily pattern of life, then no unforeseen circumstance can create fear.

It is only with gratitude that life becomes rich.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Facing Death

What’s on the Other Side?

A sick man turned to his doctor as he was preparing to
Leave the examination room and said, 'Doctor, I am afraid to die.
Tell me what lies on the other side.'
Very quietly, the doctor said, 'I don't know..'
'You don't know? You're, a Christian man,
and you don't know what's on the other side?'
The doctor was holding the handle of the door;
On the other side came a sound of scratching and whining,
And as he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room
And leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.
Turning to the patient, the doctor said,
'Did you notice my dog?
He's never been in this room before.
He didn't know what was inside.
He knew nothing except that his master was here,
And when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.
I know little of what is on the other side of death,
But I do know one thing... I know my Master is there and that is enough.'

Sent to me by a friend. A thoughtful way to look at death for a child of God.

May God Bless You.