Gospel: Mark 4:1-20

 

Sitting in the boat, Jesus taught the crowds. Jesus had not frequented the superior school of Jerusalem. He had come from the country side, from Nazareth. He was a craftsman and a country man. Without asking permission from the authorities, He began to teach the people. He spoke in a very different way. People liked to listen to Him.

 

He uses the known and visible things of life to explain the mysteries of the Kingdom.

 

The parable of the sower is a picture of the life of the farmer. At that time it was not easy to get a livelihood from agriculture. The land was full of stones. There were many bushes, little rain and much sun. People, in order to take a shortcut,  passed through the fields and stepped on the plants. But in spite of that, every year, the farmer sowed and planted, trusting in the force of the seed. 

 

Jesus begins the parable saying, “Listen!”. At the end, He says, “he who has ears to listen, let him listen!” The way to understand the parable is by listening and thinking, “trying to understand!” The parable does not give us everything ready made, but induces those who listen to think and discover. It is not a doctrine that arrives ready made. The parable does not give bottled water, but rather, leads one to the fountain or source. The parable affects the people and moves them to listen and to think about life. 

 

The parable reveals and hides at the same time! It reveals to “those who are inside,” who accept Jesus, the Messiah, the Servant. It hides for those who insist on considering Him the glorious king. They understand the images of the parable, but they do not grasp the significance.