A Story for the Hard of Listening

In this message centering on the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13:1–23, Chuck Swindoll addresses the vital connection between the condition of a person’s heart and their ability to receive spiritual truth. Swindoll sets the scene by reviewing the “nonstop,” exhausting day Jesus experienced in Matthew 12, characterized by conflict with Pharisees and the demands of crushing crowds [8–9]. Seeking respite by the sea, Jesus is again surrounded by the multitudes, prompting Him to shift His teaching style from direct instruction to parables—stories designed to reveal truth to the receptive while concealing it from the unresponsive.

Swindoll details the four types of soil in Jesus’ story, which represent four distinct conditions of the human heart. First is the hard heart (the footpath), where truth sits on the surface and is quickly snatched away by the Evil One. Second is the shallow heart (rocky soil), characterized by emotional bursts of joy that lack deep roots, leading to failure when difficulties arise. Third is the crowded heart (thorny soil), where the worries of life and the “lure of wealth” choke out spiritual growth. Finally, there is the healthy heart (good soil), which hears, understands, and produces a harvest [25–29].

The message concludes with a challenge to self-examination. Swindoll employs a nursery rhyme about a pussycat visiting the Queen to illustrate that “who you are determines what you listen to, and what you listen to determines how you respond.” He urges listeners to cultivate the “luxury of leisure” needed to let God’s Word soak in, warning that a crowded or hard heart will eventually face a day when spiritual depth is desperately needed [28, 30–31].

Message Key Facts:

• The Privilege of the Bible: Swindoll opens by contrasting the abundance of Bibles in free countries with believers in restricted nations who clamor for even a cardboard box that once held Bibles. He reminds listeners that the Word is “alive and active” and able to pierce the soul [1–2].
• The Shift to Parables: In Matthew 13, Jesus changes His approach to speak in riddles or parables. Swindoll explains that the Greek word parabole comes from para (alongside) and ballo (to throw/place). A parable places a familiar story alongside an unfamiliar truth for comparison.
• Jesus’ Exhausting Schedule: Swindoll highlights the context of Matthew 12, noting that Jesus had been accused by Pharisees, threatened with death, and surrounded by crowds, which explains why He sought rest by the lake in Matthew 13:1 [8–10].
• The “Kawaii” Fishing Trip: Swindoll shares a humorous personal story about trying to escape the demands of ministry on a Hawaiian vacation. While fishing early in the morning, he and his sons were met by a crowd of people with Bibles who wanted him to teach, illustrating the relentless nature of crowds that Jesus also faced [11–12].
• The Four Heart Conditions: Swindoll renames the soils to describe the listener’s inner life:
  • The Footpath: The Hard Heart. Closed minded, blind to truth, and unteachable.
  • The Rocky Soil: The Shallow Heart. Quick to start, emotional, but lacks follow-through when problems hit.
  • The Thorny Soil: The Crowded Heart. Preoccupied with business, wealth, and activities; no time for eternal priorities.
  • The Good Soil: The Healthy Heart. Receptive and productive.
• The “Pecos” Detour: Illustrating the “footpath” or hard ground, Swindoll recounts a driving mishap in Pecos, Texas, where he drove off the road into a cotton field while his wife slept, noting that driving where one shouldn’t creates a hard, beaten path [17–18].
• The “Pussycat” Principle: Using the rhyme “Pussycat, Pussycat, where have you been?”, Swindoll points out that the cat ignored the Queen and the palace to find a mouse because it was a cat. He applies this to humanity: “Who you are determines what you see… and what you listen to” [30–31].
• The Luxury of Leisure: Quoting his mentor Howard Hendricks, Swindoll notes, “You cannot turn out a man of God without the luxury of leisure.” Spiritual depth requires quiet time to absorb truth, which opposes the “crowded heart”.

Message References:

• Matthew 13:1–23: The Parable of the Sower (or Farmer Planting Seeds) and Jesus’ explanation of it.
• Matthew 12:14: The Pharisees call a meeting to find a way to kill Jesus.
• Matthew 13:9: “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand”.
• Isaiah 6:9–10: (Referenced in Matt 13:14–15) The prophecy regarding people who look but do not see, and hear but do not understand.
• Mark 4:19: A parallel passage mentioning “the deceitfulness of riches” and the “lust of other things”.

Message Speaker:

Pastor Chuck Swindoll