Dirt People - Gen. 46-48 & Matt. 13:1-30

Sorry I missed yesterday...we've been a little sick... And although I don't have much of a voice, I can still type - so I'm back!

Well, today's OT reading brings somewhat of a finale to Joseph and his father Jacob's saga. Joseph finally reveals his true identity to his brothers and has them and his father move to Goshen, in Egypt where there is fertile land. Jacob gets to live there for 17 years before he says his final words and blesses Joseph's sons. And wouldn't you know it old Jacob still has some tricks up his sleeve as he crosses his arms and gives a "backwards" blessing to Joseph's sons blessing the younger over the older (sound familiar?).

But what I want to focus on today is Matthew 13. This is where we find Jesus' parable of the four soils. It's a story we've heard over and over, but so important and telling in our own lives and the lives around us. Jesus explains that someone spreading seed spreads it all over - on a walking path, on some rocky soil, among thorns, and on good soil. We are to understand that the seed spread is symbolic of the good news of Jesus being shared and the response of the soil is symbolic of people's different responses to that good news.

One thing that's interesting is that the seed is spread all over! If you know anything about farming, this is not how you do it. This would be a waste of seed. But it works differently with the kingdom of God. We are to spread the good news of Jesus everywhere and let God take care of the harvest.

But most important is for us to note the types of soil and the comparisons Jesus gives in his explanation of this story to his disciples:

-Walking path = people who don't understand the message
-Rocky soil = people who recieve the message but then give up when tough times come
-Thorny soil = people who worry too much about life or are too focused on money
-good soil = people who receive the message and spread their seed elsewhere

I wonder....which soil are you?