Matthew 13:20-21 The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away.
Emotions are tricky things. Every evangelist is delighted when someone receives the Gospel with joy, but Jesus here explicitly says that such people may possibly produce no fruit. I find it very interesting that Jesus specifies they lack roots “within themselves.” (as the ESV and the Japanese express it). We may think of roots as external, but if you think about it, they are very internal, hidden and not exposed. We speak of “shallow” people in other contexts as well. Roots are serious business! We’ve all seen pictures after storms of huge trees that have flipped over, and sometimes the root mass is shockingly shallow. There are lots of Christians like that, too. We need to be the kind of person who digs into the things of God, not just delighting in them but sinking roots into them, absorbing the nourishment we can get no other way. When we are that way, no storm of life can uproot us! It’s also important to consider what Jesus says here about “the word.” The things of God in general are very good and beneficial, but there’s no substitute for getting into the Bible and letting the Bible get into us. Spiritual enthusiasm without secure Biblical roots is a recipe for heresy. All of this is not to say that enthusiasm and joy are bad by any means, but it is to say that we must not be satisfied with emotions, because they are passing. Considering some emotions, thank God they are passing! We need to be rooted and grounded in God’s truth, and rejoice in His grace that allows us to be that way.
Just recently I was asked, during telephone counseling, whether a Christian who commits suicide goes to hell. I think the person who asked was considering it, actually. I responded that suicide is the ultimately self-centered act, discounting all impact on other people and not allowing God to provide His answers to whatever situation is being faced. I know, because I attempted suicide once when I was in college. That was only months before I met my wife, and I shudder to think of the loss if I had succeeded. Ministering in Japan, I don’t encounter very many people who “receive the Word with joy,” so when it happens I am delighted. However, I’ve got to be very careful to help such people cultivate the roots they need to stay firm in the storms of life. I have known people whom I thought were completely secure in their faith be pulled aside into heresy because of emotions, choosing “kindness” over the truth of God. That’s tragic! I’m not to be satisfied with my own roots, but seek to nurture all the believers in my care to plant their roots firmly. Those in this flock run quite a gamut! Some, I have absolute confidence in, but others, I feel like I need to keep nudging them. I need to entrust them all to God, and be faithful to interact with them as He directs, not necessarily with blanket policies but with individual discernment and care, so that the Body of Christ may be built up.
Father, thank You for this reminder. You never said that being a pastor would be easy! Thank You for the conversation You directed yesterday with my successor in this congregation, and for her response. Thank You for her deep roots. I do pray that You would give her great assurance and peace as she follows You, knowing that there is indeed no way she can do it on her own, but no way You can fail if she will be submitted to You. Thank You. Hallelujah!
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