Friends,
our Gospel for today is the parable of the sower and the seed. It has
to do with the growth and development of the kingdom of God. We hear
that Jesus began to teach by the sea and that a very large crowd
gathered around him. This is Jesus speaking to the whole world.
He
then presents
the parable of the sower: A sower goes out to sow, and as he sows, some
of the seed falls on the path, where the birds eat it up; some falls on
rocky ground, where it is scorched in the sun; some falls among thorns,
where its life is choked off; and some falls on rich soil, where it
bears fruit—thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
Keep in mind that Jesus himself, in person, is the seed sown. Jesus is the Logos that
wants to take root in us. This seed is sown far and wide, through all
sorts of means, but in you, let the seed be sown deep, where it can’t be
stolen, scorched, or choked.
Wednesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 319
Every priest stands daily at his ministry,
offering frequently those same sacrifices
that can never take away sins.
But this one offered one sacrifice for sins,
and took his seat forever at the right hand of God;
now he waits until his enemies are made his footstool.
For by one offering he has made perfect forever
those who are being consecrated.
The Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying:
This is the covenant I will establish with them
after those days, says the Lord:
"I will put my laws in their hearts,
and I will write them upon their minds,"he also says:
Their sins and their evildoing
I will remember no more.Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer offering for sin.
On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea.
A very large crowd gathered around him
so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down.
And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land.
And he taught them at length in parables,
and in the course of his instruction he said to them,
"Hear this! A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path,
and the birds came and ate it up.
Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil.
It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep.
And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it
and it produced no grain.
And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit.
It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold."
He added, "Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear."
And when he was alone,
those present along with the Twelve
questioned him about the parables.
He answered them,
"The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been granted to you.
But to those outside everything comes in parables, so that
they may look and see but not perceive,
and hear and listen but not understand,
in order that they may not be converted and be forgiven."Jesus said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?
Then how will you understand any of the parables?
The sower sows the word.
These are the ones on the path where the word is sown.
As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once
and takes away the word sown in them.
And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who,
when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy.
But they have no roots; they last only for a time.
Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word,
they quickly fall away.
Those sown among thorns are another sort.
They are the people who hear the word,
but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches,
and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word,
and it bears no fruit.
But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it
and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold."
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