SEEDS, PLANTS and SOULS

6 SOILS AND ROOTS

Now let's consider the soil,
and how its make-up
can effect the entry of roots, water, nutrients and air,
and hence the ability of the seed to germinate
and develop into a plant.

An ideal soil is deep, well drained, with a good texture
 which allows easy penetration of the roots
wherever they wish to go -
absorbing moisture, food and air,
but at the same time
providing a secure anchorage for the roots
to support the upper parts of the plant.
If the soil is hardened or indurated in any part,
this will prevent roots, moisture and air from entering.
But once these manage to penetrate,
the soil is rapidly made more permeable and useful.

Various factors cause a hard, impenetrable soil.
A soil may not even have formed
because of insufficient weathering of the parent rock.
If it has started to form,
there may only be a shallow layer,
perhaps because of lack of time,
or constant erosion due to steep slopes.
There may be parts of the parent material
that do not break down quickly, like boulders or stones.
Outside influences,
such as grazing cattle;
the constant passing of vehicles;
or certain chemical reactions caused by the climate -
all these may harden or indurate
the surface layer of the soil,
make it impenetrable,
and as a result adversely effect
the lower levels or horizons of the soil.

Remembering the parable of the sower,
Jesus explains that the seed is the word of God,
and the various sites or soils where the seeds fall
represent our spiritual selves and circumstances.
We can imagine
that the indurated or hardened parts of the soil
are those parts of our lives
where our belief cannot grow,
because we either consciously or unconsciously
won't let it.

The most extreme case is solid rock,
or soil that has been so severely compacted
as to be like rock,
such as the path in the parable.
A seed falling on this never gets a chance to germinate,
 and dries up and dies, or gets eaten by animals.
This type of ground is like a hardened atheist,
and in the parable the birds are the outside influences
that make sure the spiritual seed never gets a chance
even to germinate.

It is interesting to consider
what happens if a crack appears in this sort of ground,
 large enough for the seed to fall in
and get some protection.
Away from the birds and with some shade and moisture,
 the seed could well germinate and gain a foothold.
A root is incredibly strong in its ability
to force apart rock or concrete
using hydraulic pressure developed in the cells.
Given time,
even the most solid looking materials can crack up
and crumble away.

What of a spiritual parallel here?
It could suggest that even the most militant atheist
must close all chinks in his armour
if he wants to remain so.
Even the slightest belief or faith,
supported by the Holy Spirit,
can have immense power
and be capable of breaking down the most hardened heart.
 So let us not give up on people who are like that!

If a crack appears in ground
that is only hardened on the surface,
then a seed may be able to establish itself quite easily
if its roots get through to the softer lower horizons.
 Perhaps this represents the person who wants to believe,
 but can't.
The hardened exterior may be due to outside pressures
 such as opinions of friends,
an atheistic upbringing,
or a need to put on a macho front
which religious sentiments would destroy.
Cracks in this exterior
might allow a person's belief to develop very quickly.

The second type of ground in Jesus' parable
is one with a shallow soil on top of rock.
Such a soil may be quite fertile
and suitable for the germination of a seed,
much like the conditions one provides a seed
in a seed testing laboratory.
But it is only sufficient for a small seedling to form,
and further growth is retarded or stopped,
because a healthy root system
cannot develop and go deep,
where it would be protected from external influences.

As Jesus explains in the parable,
this ground is like someone who starts to have faith,
but does not allow it to develop,
and falls away for various reasons.
For example,
perhaps he (or she) finds that the demands of a full belief
 will change parts of their life
they would rather hang on to -
doing things their way rather than God's,
and so in those parts of their life
- the rocks -
their belief does not develop,
and growth is retarded.
The result is just like a plant
that has a shallow root system -
it cannot withstand prolonged drought or gales,
and wilts or is blown over and dies.

In the same way, our faith or belief, if shallow,
will fail us when confronted with external pressures
such as hardships
or adverse opinions of friends to our belief.
If these hardened parts of a person's heart
represent areas of their life
which cannot be influenced by their belief,
then the analogy can be extended
to cover boulders, stones and pebbles in the soil.
These represent things
- sometimes seemingly small -
such as those ideas, habits, actions or thoughts
which are against God's will,
but which we allow to occur or continue in our lives,
 stunting the development of our beliefs.

In the parable,
the last example of where seeds fall
is a good, deep and fertile soil
in which the seeds are able to germinate
and grow to full size easily.
This represents those people
who allow their faith to develop fully.
Perhaps we should remember, though,
that even the best of soils
have plenty of places where roots cannot grow -
there is always room
for a bit more cultivation and improvement.
Nobody, except Jesus, is perfect in this respect

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