John 12:23-26
The Growth of the Greatest Wheat Seed
23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
John 14:19
Because Jesus Lives, We Can Live
19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.
Mark 4:30-32
30 Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.”
John 4:34-38
One Sows and Another May Reap
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
1 Corinthians 3:5-8
Planting Seeds of Faith
5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
Ecclesiastes 11:6
Sow Seeds of Faith in the Morning and Evening
6 Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.
1 Peter 3:15-16
Be Prepared for the Planting of Seeds
15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,16 keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.
John 14:15-18
Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
Matthew 28:16-20
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
A seed is something that is planted and will grow if provided the proper environment and nourishment...
Our purpose on earth may be to plant seeds of faith for other people and be Disciples for Jesus...In His Great Commission He told His Disciples to make disciples of all nations...And He knew how long each of His Original Disciples would be on earth...The Original Disciples departed earth and their immediate disciples followed them...Jesus wants the people of all nations to be His disciples...There are no boundaries for Him...He wanted these planted seeds of faith by His disciples to bear fruit for future believers and to have more and more future believers hear and know about Him and the Good News...
A seed starts its growth from the the first day it is planted into the ground...These small seeds can turn into large plants...But young plants, like the newly planted mustard seed, on their first day of pushing through the earth are most of the time tiny, weak, and feeble...And they start from small seeds...After the seeds have pushed through the earth, with the help of water and sun, they start to grow...So, let us remember, that seeds need help to grow...When the seeds start growing into plants, they can grow stronger and mature better with the help of fertilizers and cultivation...Some of the strongest and healthiest plants grown need this type of nurturing...And this planting and nurturing is and can be shared...As St. Paul says the one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor...For we are each co-workers in God’s service; we are children of God, God’s disciples to find others to be new disciples....We are His helpers, His planters and cultivators for spreading His Word and planting these seeds of faith...Each of us can help these faith seeds grow...
Faith starts with a planting of sorts...Seeds can start from many places...Hearing someone talk of God or about Jesus maybe a seed...Another seed might be you as a Christian acting and behaving in a Christian way as others or someone watches...Another seed might start from one reading something that they connect with God...A seed may start from seeing something in nature that you think that could have only come from One Place and One Great Designer...Maybe our indwelt Holy Spirit is seeking the Truth and we link something we feel, see, hear, or think to the power of something Supreme -and thus a seed gets planted...Maybe we see something or hear something that is Spiritual from someone and a seed starts to grow...
Growth of faith is like the seed...Faith can be weak and feeble at its start...It can be sprinkled with doubts...But faith can grow...And some believers and some non-believers may need some cultivation...Some may need encouragement, some may need to see an act from a fellow believer, while others may just need a timely word from a believer...Others may see our passion in Jesus at work, or at a meeting, or at a get together -and see our compassion for life, and realize it is coming from Someone or Something...These sprinklings help some people overcome some doubts, but these seeds may take months or years before, there is any growth at all in another one's faith...Solomon tells us to sow seeds of faith, all the time...Acts of righteousness and being good is not for just done at one time of the day -so when the opportunity arises to sow a seed, let us be prepared and to act on it...And we are to do these things with gentleness and respect -and not being pushy and bulling our way around the subject of the Spiritual...When a seed has been planted, and with the help of the Holy Spirit and trusting in the LORD, a mustard seed may start its growth...
Seeds must be planted, cultivated, and watered to grow into large plants, if birds are going to be able to perch in their shade...Jesus in His parable of the Wheat Seed...He said He was the Seed that must fall to the ground and die -if He was going to produce many seeds...While living and still on earth, He was only One Seed...He would remain only a Single Seed, while He on earth and until His death...But after His death many seeds would be produced...Because He would live and still be alive after His death, we can live after our own death...He is the Seed who sprouted into a large plant and produced much and plentiful fruit...Others would see what happened to Him after His death and get an inkling of understanding His teachings on eternal life and the eternities...
The Greatest Teacher and Cultivator of all time is the Son of God...Jesus is the Greatest Gardener of Faith...Jesus is the Greatest of all of those, who have planted seeds of faith in others...And in His Great Commission He asks us to spread His Word to others...His being lifted up on the cross, then falling to the ground, dying, and resurrecting was the greatest of all the faith seeds, and has produced many, many, many plants...