What Do You Hear?
Luke 8:1-21 NLT
Jamie Maciejewski
March 1,2026
This morning's readings pick up where we left off last week, when Pastor Don shared the story of the woman
who washed Jesus' feet with her tears, dried them with her hair, and poured out every last drop of the
expensive jar of perfume that supported her in her trade. lt's fitting then, that today's passage opens with a
description of several more women whose devotion to Jesus is also costly. They accompany Jesus on his
travels, spending their own resources to support him and the twelve disciples.
Luke tells the stories of all these women in the lead-up to our parable to give us living examples of hearts that
are "good soil." He paints pictures of Christ followers with soft and responsive hearts, who hear God's word
and are changed. Pastor Don calls today's parable the "Parable of the Soils." ln it, Jesus helps us understand
what it takes to live a life that isn't just informed by what Jesus says. lt is transformed.
ln the Parable of the Soils, Jesus pictures four different conditions of the heart. Only one results in a healthy
garden.
The first soil is so trampled down from wear and busyness that the seeds and water can't penetrate before the
birds gobble them up. These hearts are compacted and worn. They never move out of the busy hustle of life
and so have become hard and unresponsive. I picture the ground around a Habitat house under construction.
Workers in boots constantly tramp across it, machinery drives back and forth. The ground is pounded down
hard. Converting that to garden dirt where you can grow things takes work.
The second soil is full of rocks. There's just enough dirt for the seeds to begin to grow. But when the summer
sun beats down, the roots get hot and the plants shrivel up. A few years ago, we had a path of crushed rock in
front of our house. I don't recommend it. The rock spilled out of the path and made planting on either side of
it difficult. Digging a hole required a pick. Until we got the rocks out of the dirt, only weeds thrived there. Jesus
says this kind of soil is like people who start off with great enthusiasm but flag when they face hard times.
The third soil is full of thistles and blackberries. The seeds start to grow, but the pricker bushes are bullies, so
the little guys throw in the towel almost before they try. Jesus names three kinds of pricker bushes that grow in
our hearts: the cares of life, money, and pleasure. The cares of life can suck up our energy and keep us from
trusting God. Money and pleasure can co-opt our affection for God.
The fourth soil is dark, rich hummus. The water can get all the way down to coax the roots to grow deep, away
from the scorching summer sun. A garden grown in good soilyields a bumper crop. lt's interestingthat good
soil is not just a thing you have or don't have. Good soil, as any farmer or gardener will tell you, can be
achieved with hard work. You've got to pull the weeds, remove the rocks, and break up the hard places by
adding compost and letting air get in.
The difference between these four kinds of hearts is not exposure to God's word. All four hear. Every one of
them. They all participate in Bible studies and go to church regularly. The difference is this:The first three hear
but they don't listen. The fourth kind of heart listens. lt "hears God's word, clings to it, and patiently produces
a huge harvest." (8:15) As any parent can tell you, there's a big difference between hearing and listening.
I. Jesusiwords are not theoretical; they will change my life and yours if we grab on and cultivate and live them.
Jesus says it will take patience for the words to bear fruit. Just studying the Bible doesn't produce this mature
fruit; we need to live it. Discipleship is the long road. This is cross country running, not the hundred-yard dash
When we read God's word together each week and Pastor Don preaches from it, what do we do with it? Or
what about when we read the Bible, or attend a Bible study? Do we add more knowledge to our already full
cupboard? When Jesus shifts metaphors from soil to lamps, he's teaching his followers not to just tuck
knowledge away. When we hear God's word, it should come out into the open. The fruits of our obedience
should be visible.
ln the OT book of the prophet Ezekiel, we find God giving Ezekiel a message for the lsraelites. And then God
shares something personal and profound with Ezekiel:
"My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to hear your words, but they do not put
them into practice... lndeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a
beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into
practice." (Ezek 33:31-32 NLT)
God doesn't want us just to hear his words; he wants us to really listen and respond.
Let's talk about how we can cultivate God-responsive hearts. How do we address our soil? What is the
gardening work we can do that willturn us from hearers to listeners?
The very first step is to ask God's Holy Spirit for help. Help me listen to you God. "Speak, Lord; your servant is
listening." That's a prayer that Samuel's spiritual mentor taught him when he was a little boy, before Samuel
even knew God.
Asking God for help to convert heavily trafficked and hard packed heart-soil is wise. Be patient; it takes time. lf
your heart has been feeling hard lately, ask God to soften you. Do you hear something on Sunday that catches
your attention? Don't ignore even the smallest seed that lands. Take a small action to nurture it. Ask God to
show you what to do with it. Take some quiet space - move the seed out of the path so the birds don't eat it
up. Write it down and read it several times over the coming days. Ask the Holy Spirit for help. lf you feel a
nudge, don't ignore it. We are learning to listen to God, not just hear him. We need his help to soften soil that
is overly compacted, but that requires action on our parts. "Speak, Lord; your servant is listening."
How else can we cultivate our hearts? The text says Jesus wants "honest, good-hearted people who hear God's
word, cling to it, and patiently produce a huge harvest." (8:L5)
How can we cling to God's word? ls the picture like hanging onto the mast of a boat in a windstorm? Maybe. I
think it's more like holding something in your hand so you don't lose it. Do you ever have a great "aha"
moment during the sermon? Or maybe you are reading something in the Bible during the time you've set aside
to be with God, and it makes an impression. Or maybe someone says something that clicks and you feel like
God has just given you a fresh understanding. The question is, How do we not lose hold of that word? How do
you "cling"?
For me, it really helps to write it down. Some of you like to take a printed copy of the sermon home. They are
2,.
on the back shell there for the taking. I know, because l've heard it from at least a couple of you, that you
reread it later to remind yourself of the "aha" and let the roots grow deeper.
Here's something ldo, at least on the good morningsl lsit with my Bible and praythe Samuel prayer: "Speak,
Lord; your servant is listening." lt's a prayer that helps get my heart ready to hear from God. And then I read.
Slowly. To let it sink in. When I hear something that seems important or catches my attention, I write it down
There's an ancient Christian practice called lectio divina. lt's Latin for "divine reading." When I asked Copilot,
"What is lectio divina," here's what I got:
Lectio divina is a slow, prayerful way of reading Scripture that comes from early Christian monastic
tradition. lts purpose is less about studying the text and more about letting it shape your inner life and
your relationship with God. Lectio divina treats Scripture not just as information but as a place of
encounter-listening for a word, phrase, or insight that speaks personally to you.
The point is to let the words go deep, to "cling" to them, as Jesus says.
But there is more than this deep listening. There is doing. The text this morning ends with an encounter Jesus
almost has with his mother and brothers. They come to see him, but it's too crowded for them to get in the
door, so they send wor,d that they are there. Jesus replies, "My mother and my brothers are allthose who hear
God's word and obey it."
Here's the important thing: Jesus'family are those who patiently cultivate God-responsive hearts, who hear
the word of God and do it.
Building healthy, fertile garden soil takes work. lt doesn't come overnight. Breaking down the hard soil, picking
out stones, removing thorns. The Christian life is not for the faint of heart. lt takes endurance. We have high
moments, and then the high moment fades and we are back to ordinary life. lt takes spiritual practices that
help us go the distance, even in the mundane stretches. lt takes honesty. We will get off track, make mistakes,
forget. We need honesty with ourselves, with God, and with our spiritual companions. (We might as well, since
"allthat is secret will eventually be brought into the open...and made known to all." 8:L7)
I won't tellyou this Christian life is easy. But God is good, and being part of Jesus'family is so worth it. Let's be
those who patiently cultivate God-responsive hearts, who hear the word of God and do it.