Although the Parable of the Sower offers many lessons, hidden within this passage is also some important perspective that can offer great insight and comfort to pastors.

In this familiar story, a farmer plants his seed. Some of the seed fell along the path and was trampled by foot and eaten by birds. Other seed fell on the rocky ground, unable to take root. Still, other seed fell among thorns, which choked out the plants. And finally, some seed fell on good soil. It yielded a great crop 100 times more than what the farmer had sown (Luke 8:5–8).

While the seed represents the Word of God, the soil represents the heart of man and his responsiveness to God’s Word. Interestingly, these four types of soil point to four types of hearts.

The path is the deceived heart where “the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved” (Luke 8:12). The rocky soil is the distracted heart. This hearer receives the message with joy, “but in the time of testing they fall away” (Luke 8:13).

Meanwhile, the thorny soil is the disillusioned heart. The recipient does not mature because God’s word is “choked by life’s worries, riches, and pleasures” (Luke 8:14). The lure of worries, wealth, and wants overtakes the hunger for spiritual growth.

Finally, the good soil is the devoted heart. Luke 8:15 says, “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.”

This passage has great application for every believer, but a closer look also reveals four important lessons to pastors.

Nourishment: Grow Your Heart in God’s Word

Ministry is difficult, and it doesn’t take long for the heart to become discouraged, even jaded, by hurts and hardships. While we spend much of our time teaching and encouraging the hearts of others, we must intentionally nourish our own hearts with God’s Word.

Jesus said, we must “hear” the word, “retain” the word, and persevere if we want to produce a crop (Luke 8:15). We must dig beneath the surface and allow the truth of the Word to penetrate our hearts.

Your heart is like an airline hub. Major cities like New York, Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta, and Los Angeles serve as major hubs for airlines. These hubs are where connections take place, transaction points between one airport and another.

If you want to travel from Austin, Texas, to Nashville, Tennessee, you might first fly to Dallas. your transaction hub. But sometimes flights get diverted, ending up at airports they didn’t originally intend to go (perhaps because of weather or some other unforeseen event).

What’s my point? Your heart is like an airline hub: everything you experience — tests, trials, setbacks, frustrations, pain — fly into your heart. Within your heart, a transaction takes place (a response to your circumstances), and that response can lead you to a destination you never intended to go.

This is why it’s so important to nourish your own heart with God’s Word. When tests and trials come, a malnourished heart will divert you to a destination with unintended consequences. But when our hearts are like the good soil — a place that fosters and cultivates spiritual nourishment — God’s Word will take root and lead us into spiritual maturity.

Perspective: Realize Every Heart Sits in Your Services

Jesus preached the gospel to thousands of people, but it’s important to remember every person He taught was not the same. He wasn’t preaching to thousands of “devoted hearts.” Instead, Jesus was ministering to all four hearts — the deceived, distracted, disillusioned, and devoted.

Whether the path, rocky soil, thorny soil, or good soil, Jesus distributed seed everywhere He went. Jesus regularly encountered each type of heart, and He freely distributed seed to all.

The same should be true for pastors as we stand up to preach. If your church is reaching people, a diverse mix of hearts will sit in your services each week. Again, deceived, distracted, disillusioned, and devoted hearts will gather in the same place to hear God’s Word.

Don’t grow weary in well-doing. You may not see it yet, but the harvest is coming.

Welcome them. Love them. And passionately communicate the hope of the gospel to all of them.

Faithfulness: Sow God’s Word Even When the Results Feel Limited

It can be frustrating when people don’t respond to God’s Word the way we hoped. If the four types of people were evenly represented in our services (which they are not), that would mean only 25% have devoted hearts. That might sound disheartening, but keep in mind that the same was true for Jesus. How did He respond? Jesus kept faithfully sowing the seed.

William Barclay observed, “Every farmer knows that some of his seed will be lost; it cannot all grow. But that does not discourage him or make him stop sowing because he knows that in spite of all the harvest is sure. I know we have our setbacks and our discouragements; I know we have our enemies and our opponents; but, never despair, in the end the harvest is sure.”

The sower always remains hopeful, recognizing the deceived, distracted, or disillusioned heart can still be transformed by the power of the gospel. But when you find yourself disheartened or discouraged because the results are not what you had hoped for, faithfully sow God’s Word.

Again, Luke 8:15 says, “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” (emphasis added).

Healthy and bountiful crops don’t spring up overnight. They require perseverance and patience. Don’t grow weary in well-doing. You may not see it yet, but the harvest is coming.

Intentionality: Create “Good Soil” Environments

Much of our seed scattering happens in larger groups as we preach the gospel. This is good and necessary. It is where the work of seed scattering begins, but it doesn’t have to be where it ends.

We should also explore how to create “good soil” environments. In other words, what can you do to create space for intentional disciple-making (one-on-one, in small groups, or in mentoring moments)?

Engaging people in these environments fosters hearts that become like good soil where the truth of God’s Word can take root. Author Tim Elmore observed, “More time with fewer people equals greater kingdom impact.”

Radical Mentoring founder Regi Campbell discovered this principle firsthand, and before his death in 2020, he modeled its impact so powerfully. Beginning in 2000, Regi invested in a small group of men each month. He would invite these men on a yearlong mentoring journey where each month they read a book, memorized Scripture, prayed together, and held one another accountable.

After hosting these groups for eight years, Reggie made this observation: “In the past eight years, I’ve intentionally mentored 64 guys. Most report that they have a deeper, more meaningful walk with Jesus than they did before the next generation mentoring experience. They are disciples ... learners and followers of Jesus. To my knowledge none have fallen away. All are still married. All are involved in a church. All are attempting to raise their kids in the faith. And from what I can tell, they are, to varying degrees, walking with God.”

What was Regi doing each year? He was creating an environment where good soil was cultivated so God’s transforming work could take root in the hearts of a small group of men.

Similarly, while pastors should scatter the seed broad and wide, we must also look for intentional ways to create “good soil” environments. This is often time intensive, and it rarely manifests in the limelight, but the impact can be deeper and longer lasting.

As you pastor the congregation God has entrusted to your care, nourish your own heart, maintain the right perspective on the diversity of the hearts sitting in your congregation, be faithful as you scatter the seed, and look for intentional ways to create “good soil” environments.

These simple steps will keep God’s Word alive in your own heart and at work in the hearts of the people you serve.