Hearing the Word of God

Speaker: Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines

July 12, 2020

in Spritual Growth

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5th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Archbishop Loren Thomas Hines
July 12, 2020

Readings: Isaiah 55: 1- 5, 10-13
Romans 8: 9 -17
Matthew 13: 1 -9, 18 – 23

Scriptures should bring to us hope and faith. Christ encourages us to hear the gospel. He who has ears, let him hear. We see Christ leaving the synagogue at this time to bring the gospel out, and to teach people who are outside.

He gives a very good example about the Parable of the sower and the seed. His speech is meant to be understood and to receive a response. His Word is of the Kingdom and not of the world. We have to live the life of the kingdom. God sent His only Son who is the Seed to implant His life upon the kingdom. A seed may look dry on the outside, but inside it has the potential to produce and bear fruit.

Jesus chose to use the seed for His parable because people in those days were familiar with agriculture and would be able to relate to this easily. The Word is the kingdom. The kingdom functions by that Word. In the Old Testament, it was the Law. In the New Testament, it was the Word. The seed will grow if the soil is receptive. God made the soil potent and powerful. The soil is important and valuable because it is the soil that will bring forth fruit from the seed. If the seed is not planted in good soil, it will not produce and grow. If the ground has been prepared properly, it will yield a harvest.

If you have ears, listen. But sometimes we do not hear because our minds are elsewhere. Faith comes by hearing and hearing the Word of God. When the Word is received on soil which is receptive, it will produce. When seed falls on rocky soil, there will be hindrances because we did not allow the Word to bring forth a harvest. When seed falls on thorns, there are weeds which represent the deceptiveness of riches, and therefore are hindrances to growth. The seed implanted in us should not have hindrances so that we can grow. But our thoughts and imaginations are getting in the way. The weeds grow so fast that we pay more attention to the news around us. We need to stop and listen to what God has to say. The soil is the hearer and we need to listen to God’s Word.

Do we see a problem in every corner? Or do we see God’s greatness instead. The seeds are good and potent. The more we hear the more we will grow. The seed needs the soil to allow it to germinate. In the field, the light or the sun is needed so that the plants will be nourished. Light represents the Holy Spirit. We have to be patient for the harvest to come. It takes time for these things to yield a produce.

So there is the necessity of hearing and receiving. The soil should be prepared to receive the seed, expecting something good to happen. His Word will produce. In this Ordinary Time, It is time for us to prove what God says we can do and who we are in Him.