The multitudes of every city came out to Jesus and He preached to them all. He knew that some weren't listening. He knew that some would believe for awhile and fall away. He knew that for some the cares of this life would prove too much.
But that's not the strange thing. No, the strange thing is that our Lord's Word doesn't always take root, even when the Lord Himself is preaching it.
The Lord preaches and all the multitude hears, but some close their hearts to what Jesus is saying. And the devil is prowling about watching for the seed their hearts are keeping out. He snatches it away and focuses their attention on other things. He encourages them as their minds wander to this and that. He wants them to do anything but delight in the Law of the Lord and meditate upon it day and night.
For some, the Lord preaches, and they listen intently. Things look good in the beginning. The Word sprouts and grows quickly. The person receives it with great joy and they come back for more. But feelings are a fickle master, and they can change as easily as the wind. The emotion fades, and if that's what the person is after, they will stray from the Word and will not listen to it anymore. For these, when joy is replaced with suffering, faith withers under the scorching pain that inevitably comes along.
For some, the Lord preaches, the people hear, and the faith comes. And these have guarded against the devil's initial schemes. They do not depend on emotion to sustain them. They return and hear the Word again and again. But over time, things change. Faith becomes a matter of routine and is pushed down amongst the rest of the things they face in the daily grind. They've gotta work hard and pay the bills. They've got to spend quality time with my family. They've got to make sure they've got enough saved for retirement. Responsibilities become a smorgasbord of idols, and Jesus is on the shelf with the rest of them.
Jesus is sowing the seed. The creator of the universe is proclaiming His holy word. And what has happened so far? Nothing. A few hearts changed for awhile, but nothing permanent. If the Lord's word is a numbers game, so far Jesus is batting zero.
But how can this be? Isaiah seems pretty clear. "My word shall not return to Me void, But shall accomplish what I please, And shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it."
We might be tempted to say that God isn't that powerful. If God's purposes can be thwarted that easily, then is He really worthy of the name? He sends forth His word and sinful human beings frustrate it. What kind of God is that?
"The seed is the word," says our Lord, and Jesus will scatter that seed as far and as wide as His voice will carry. He will proclaim it to all the multitudes, and He will not worry about the results. He will freely admit that some, after they hear it, will reject it in various ways. But the Lord Christ will not return to His Father empty. He will accomplish the purpose for which He was sent.
Our Lord has revealed that purpose already in Luke's Gospel, and it is accomplished even as He admits the curious ineffectiveness of His preaching. Jesus says, "must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose."
But still, why does the preaching fail? Why are all not converted? This parable gives us a hard saying. We don't want to believe that the Lord's Words can fail. We don't even want to think about it. But such is the gravity of our sin.
He that has ears to hear let him hear. Let not your sin clog your ears. Let not the cares of this life not choke your faith. Let not your joy be the means by which your life is sustained. All hear the word, but most let their sin destroy the seed that is sown. Our sin is great, and Christ will allow us to turn Him aside if we want to.
But the Word is indeed greater.
God spoke His Word, and the universe came to be. God spoke His Word, and Egypt and all her gods were vanquished. God spoke His Word and sweet comfort came to His people in Babylon.
And, finally, in the fullness of time, the Father planted His seed in the ear of a virgin, and Christ took flesh from the womb of His mother Mary.
The Word has come forth, and He has not returned empty. He has gone throughout Judea and He has sown the seed of His Word. Good soil and bad, He cares only that the good news is proclaimed to all. That is His purpose. Jesus is all about lost causes.
You languished in the sin you inherited from Adam. Your face lay in the dust of death. You were lost. Lost for all eternity and without hope of saving yourself.
Jesus took up your lost cause, bore it in His flesh, and died in your place on the cross. After three days, He rose from the dead, and He preached some more. The Risen Lord, the death of death, the destroyer of the grave, continued to preach to all who came.
And staring in the eyes of the Risen Lord of Life some believed and some didn't. But you are the good soil. You have heard the Word of God and kept it.
The seed sown in you in your Baptism has endured. The power of the evil one is vanquished. You are untouchable, and simple water has undone all the might of hell. You are begotten of the Father through water and word.
As you receive the gifts that your Lord gives you, gifts of water and blood and body, the sin that would stop up your ears is forgiven, removed, and forgotten forever.
There are not just three kinds of soil, and the preaching of our Lord does not always fail. It has not failed in you. The seed planted in your baptism is nourished as you hear the Word that is preached from this pulpit and as you receive the Life that comes from this altar.
The seed is the Word, and He is good.
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.