Why
is it that some people believe in God and take the practice of their
faith seriously and others don’t? How is it that some people
are converted and others aren’t? I often think of when I came
back to my faith at the age of 19 yet many of my friends did not?
For all the people who preach the Gospel and even for all the
miracles that happen around us—and there are many—very few seem
to be converted.
Another
question is why did so many people listen to Jesus when he preached?
Nobody knew who he was and he had no education to boast about.
Yet he gathered a huge following of people wherever he went.
You could say it was because he was the Son of God. Yes, but
nobody knew that at the time. I think it was because he was
preaching the truth and peoples’ spirits recognized this, because
all of us are searching for the truth; the truth about God and the
truth about our life. The truth is attractive to us and it pierces
right to the heart, so that when we hear it we want to hear more of
it, even though it may be difficult or painful for us to hear.
Our faith is about a search for this truth, which has been revealed
to us by Jesus. That’s why we keep struggling with it,
even though it often feels up hill at the best of times. But
it’s too important to ignore, and deep down we all know that.
The
way Jesus taught the people through parables—apart from being a
very effective way of teaching—is also wonderful because it means
that we can find the truth of the teaching if we are searching for
it, but equally we won’t see it if we are not looking. It
requires a certain openness of heart. Parables don’t just
present us with a truth, but they invite us to search for one.
This in itself is a reminder of the respect that God has for our
freedom. God won’t force anything on us, not even the truth.
In
this parable Jesus is teaching us two things about religion.
First of all that it is a part of life that some people will hear
about God and ignore it, or become preoccupied with something else,
or not like the idea that it means you might have to suffer for it.
Only a few will actually hear it and really grow because of it, as
God intended. Those who do are generally in the minority.
Also, the fruit that comes from the rich soil doesn’t
just happen by itself. It is not just fate whether we will be
open to believe or not; we have a part to play in it. Rich soil
only comes about with hard work and a lot of care. Preparing
the ground, getting rid of the weeds and stones. So if the word
of God is to grow in us, we have to make some effort to be ready for
it and to help it to grow. What does this mean in practical
terms? It means that if we want our faith to grow, we need to
give it time, and to make certain sacrifices so that it will
blossom. We need to feed ourselves with the right material: the
word of God and not just the ideas of our society. The word of
God is what will bring us life in a way that nothing else will.
Jesus
says, ‘Try to enter by the narrow gate. For the road that
leads to hell is wide and spacious, but the road that leads to
life is narrow.’ It is not the most attractive road, but it is the most worthwhile one.
The
parable also tells us that God is generous in the way that He scatters the seed. Seed is thrown everywhere in order to give us
every chance to grow. The Lord is constantly throwing out seed on
the ground, as it were. God continually invites us to follow
him, no matter what stage of life we’re at, so it’s never too
late to start again. And He will continue to call to us to
follow the path until we die. The invitation is
always there for us.
Finally,
in the first reading from Isaiah, the Lord says that his word will
not return to him without bringing about his will. So even
though we will always live with the mystery of why many people believe
but so many more don’t, all of this also seems to play its part.
In God’s plan, everything fits together and we will see that when
we die ourselves. Everything will make sense. For now the
Lord calls us to persevere and be faithful as best we can.
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