Joy without Roots

“The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.” (Matthew 13:20-21)

This parable is repeated in Mark 4:16-17 and Luke 8:13. The Luke passage has ‘temptation’ instead of ‘affliction.’ This is of course the Parable of the Sower (and soils) but the focus of this quote is on the soil receiving the Word with joy. The Word is preached and there is a joyful response. All good so far. But there is no root so the joy is temporary. It takes only a little trouble, a bit of persecution and the previous joyful receiver of good news is not seen. He has disappeared, like tumbleweed, with no root to keep him in joyfully in place.

This is of course why many people are skeptical of mass evangelism. Many ‘walk forward,’ in joy, to receive the good news. But it doesn’t last. Evangelists know this to be the case, as the sower knew not all his seed would land in well-tilled soil. That does not mean seeds shouldn’t be sown far and wide and that mass evangelism is by nature bad.

As children of the Light, instead of distaining this type of evangelism, we should work on preparing the soil around us, removing rocks, thistles, and any other hindrance to the Gospel.

Heather Jean Torosyan