But when we look at how “growth” is often measured in today’s church culture, it’s easy to assume that the key to advancing God’s kingdom lies in our ability to communicate skillfully, plan engaging events, market strategically, and draw large crowds to hear a gifted speaker.
Jesus, however, gives us a very different picture of how His kingdom grows.
God's Kingdom Grows Through Faithful Sowing
In Matthew 13, Jesus tells a story about a farmer scattering seed. The seed represents God’s Word, and the different types of soil symbolize the condition of people’s hearts as they hear it.
The point is simple yet profound: when the Word of God’s kingdom takes root in receptive hearts, lasting transformation happens. Kingdom growth doesn’t come from clever strategies or impressive communication—it comes from the faithful sowing of God’s Word and the Spirit’s work in human hearts.
Jesus’ teaching reveals at least three important truths about how the kingdom grows.
1. God’s Word Is the Source of Growth—Not Our Skill
The seed—not the sower—contains the power of life.
We often celebrate gifted speakers or dynamic leaders who can draw a crowd and stir emotion. But the Apostle Paul deliberately avoided relying on human eloquence or entertainment value. He spoke plainly so that faith would rest not on human wisdom but on God’s power (1 Corinthians 2:1–5; 1 Thessalonians 2:13).
In the same way, genuine growth comes when the Word of God works in receptive hearts—not when people are impressed by the messenger.
2. The Goal Is Maturity, Not Immediate Response
Jesus never measured success by how many people gathered around Him.
In John 6, after feeding the five thousand, the crowds wanted to follow Him—but when He began to teach about what it really meant to follow, many turned away. Jesus wasn’t trying to attract or keep an audience; He was forming mature, fruit-bearing disciples.
Paul shared the same mindset. Both Jesus and Paul trusted that the kingdom advances through patient, Spirit-led sowing of the Word over time—not through quick results or visible crowds.
3. Growth Depends on the Heart’s Receptivity
The condition of the soil—people’s hearts—is beyond our control.
That’s why we often turn to things we can control: buildings, programs, events, and marketing strategies. It’s easier to organize activities than to engage in the slow, relational work of teaching and applying God’s Word in people’s lives.
But true, lasting kingdom growth comes only when the seed of God’s Word takes root and bears fruit. As lives are transformed, others are drawn to Jesus—not by our attractional methods, but by the visible power of the Spirit at work in ordinary people.
Farming the Field
Sowing happens out in the field.
When Jesus told His disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19), the word “go” can also be understood as “as you go.” The idea isn’t just about leaving home for faraway lands—it’s about making disciples as you go about daily life: in your work, your neighborhood, your home, and your routines.
This echoes Moses’ instructions to parents in Deuteronomy 6:6–7:
“These words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
Disciple-making and sowing God’s Word were never meant to be limited to formal gatherings or church buildings. God’s design has always been for His Word to be shared naturally—through conversations, relationships, and in the ordinary rhythms of life.
The field where we sow the Word isn’t limited to a pulpit or a classroom—it’s the world we live in every day. Every follower of Jesus is called to be a faithful sower, scattering the seed of the Word in their own circles of influence.
God’s Vision for His Church
This everyday sowing aligns perfectly with Paul’s description of the church in Ephesians 4.
There, Paul explains that Christ gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers “to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12). In other words, leaders are not meant to do all the ministry or focus primarily on being teachers of the Word to the masses. Their calling is to train and equip the whole body so that every believer learns to “speak the truth in love”.
This is the picture of a mature, multiplying church—one where each member faithfully sows God’s Word in the places where they live, work, and serve.
When the whole body of Christ learns to share and apply the Word in ordinary life, the kingdom advances in extraordinary ways. Leaders still have a vital role, but not as performers on a stage; they are equippers in a movement, helping God’s people become everyday teachers and disciple-makers in the world.
Faithful Sowing in Ordinary Places
When we picture the kingdom advancing, we might imagine massive gatherings or fast-growing ministries. Sometimes the Spirit moves and draws large crowds, but that's not the primary model Jesus gives us. Jesus invites us to see the kingdom growing quietly, steadily, and often unnoticed—like yeast working its way through dough.
Every conversation about faith, every time we open Scripture with a friend, every prayer over a child, every word of encouragement rooted in God’s word—these are moments of faithful sowing.
Faithful sowing is the way of Jesus.
When every believer learns to speak the truth in love, sowing God’s Word faithfully in the ordinary places of life, the church becomes what it was always meant to be—a living, growing, united body through which Christ proclaims his word and fills the world with His presence and power.
Reflect and Respond
- What are some simple, everyday ways you can sow God’s Word into the lives of those around you?
- How can we shift our church culture from human strategies for attracting crowds to faithfully sowing the Word of God in people’s hearts?
- In what ways might we limit the spread of God’s Word by relying too heavily on one person preaching to a gathered crowd?
- What would change if we focused more on equipping every believer to sow the Word in daily life?
Prayer: Make us diligent sowers of your Word "as we go," trusting your Spirit to prepare the soil and produce lasting fruit. Amen.
Comments