Isaiah 55:6-12 (NIV translation)
Seeking and
knowing God
6 Seek the LORD
while he may be found; call on him while he is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake
their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD,
and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
8 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,"
declares the LORD. 9 "As the heavens are higher than
the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your
thoughts.
10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.12 You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands."
Some questions for reflection
Luke 8:8-15 (RSV translation)
Scattering
seeds among thorns and rocky ground
4 While a large crowd was gathering
and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable:
5 "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some
fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some
fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because
they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with
it and choked the plants.
8 Still other seed fell on good
soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more
than was sown."When he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears
to hear, let them hear."
Questions for reflection
Luke 8:11-15
11"This is the meaning of the parable:
The
seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear,
and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so
that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are
the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have
no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall
away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but
as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures,
and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those
with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering
produce a crop.
Luke tells us that when the
twelve disciples were along with Jesus, after the crowd had left, the disciples
then asked Jesus to give them the correct understand of the parable. This
is what we, too, must do each time we listen to one of Jesus’ parables.
We must ask the Lord to show us the meaning of his stories and teaching
and how we might apply the meaning to our own individual lives and the
daily circumstances and opportunities we encounter.
[Don
Schwager is the author of the Daily
Scripture Readings and Meditation and editor for Living
Bulwark.]
Scripture quotations from
Common Bible: Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1973, and
Ignatius Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright
2006, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of
the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.
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