The Word Goes Forth: Reflections on the Readings for the Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A

If you haven’t already read the readings you can find them here.

Isaiah 55:10-11
Psalm 65
Romans 8:18-23
Matthew 13:1-23

The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible (ICSB) notes that “God’s word is the instrument of his will. Once spoken it never fails to achieve his purpose of bringing life to the world.” This thought is reflected both in Genesis chapter one (“In the beginning ... And God said ...”) as well as the beginning of St. John’s gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be.” (John 1:1-3)

Today we read an excerpt from the prophet Isaiah which extols the power of the Word of God. Of course we recognize that this points directly to Jesus, the Word incarnate. The entire chapter is well worth reading (it’s not very long, only 13 verses) and is a call to conversion to God and the joy and peace which comes from recognizing His power and following His commandments. It also points to Jesus in many ways, right from the beginning where it tells those who thirst to “come to the waters.” Recall Jesus encounter with the woman at the well and His telling her that He is a fount of “living water.”

It also tells us to “seek the Lord while he may be found,” something that should be foremost in our lives. Additionally, Isaiah notes something many of us have difficulty accepting; that God’s thoughts and ways are higher than ours and thus beyond our complete comprehension. Furthermore, that God is unchanging is reflected in the closing line, “This shall be to the LORD’s renown, as an everlasting sign that shall not fail.” As the prophet Malachi told us, “For I, the Lord, do not change.” (Malachi 3:6)

The responsorial psalm connects the first reading with the gospel selection. Using a phrase from Luke, “The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest,” it connects the thought of Jesus’ parable of the Sower with the work of God to produce a bountiful harvest. Man may scatter the seeds and tend the ground, but it is the work of God that produces the bountiful harvest. And so it is with the supernatural seeds of the Word of God that produces a bountiful harvest in those who respond to it properly.

The reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us that, as Jesus told us on several occasions, living in this world will involve suffering. We don’t like that message because at times it can be painful or at least uncomfortable. But he reminds us that there is a reward at the end of this, provided we accept these as a means to an end.

Thomas A’ Kempis put it this way, “... the sufferings of this life are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come.” (Imitation of Christ)

As St. Paul says, this will give us a “share in the glorious freedom of the children of God.” For this we need to wait patiently to “wait ... the redemption of our bodies.” Thus we have the firstfruits of the Spirit.

Matthew tells us the parable of the sower. The bare bones of this parable are in the “shorter version,” which many parishes will opt for as it takes less time to read. However, I timed reading the whole selection and it took less than three minutes while the shorter version took about one minute. Is it not worth two additional minutes to hear the Word of God, especially the explanation of the parable which has many lessons for us?

The parable in its simplest form tells us we should strive to be the good soil so that we may bear great fruit in response to the Word of God. However, without the whole selection we don’t understand the differences between the different soils and how the effects of the world, the devil and the hardness of our hearts can keep us from responding to God. If we don’t know the pitfalls it’s difficult to avoid them or guard against them.

Jesus also explains why He speaks to the crowd in parables. It all comes down to the openness or hardness of their hearts. If their hearts are hard, the Word (the seed) goes in one ear and out the other. If their hearts are open to conversion, they will hear and see and strive to understand and thus be edified by the experience. It’s the same lesson for us. If we are reluctant to open our hearts to Scripture, whether at Mass or at home or in the presence of Jesus in the tabernacle (or, even better, at adoration), our spiritual lives will be stunted. The probabilities of our conversion decrease. “Jesus calls to conversion.” (CCC 1427)

In the explanation of the parable, Jesus tells His disciples that if they hear with their ears and see with their eyes, they will be converted and He will heal them. We all need healing. This is the core of His ministry, sent by the Father, to heal the broken world and our broken natures, “achieving the end for which I [the Father] sent it [Him].”

Nevertheless, Jesus points out the various failings of our broken natures and how that prevents growing close to Him and bearing good fruit. Recall in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) when warning about wolves in sheep’s clothing Jesus told us, “You will know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:16, RSV-2CE)

In the detailed explanation Jesus tells us that the path is hard ground and those who refuse to listen also refuse to understand and so are susceptible to the devil, represented by the attacking birds. Pope St. Paul VI said in a homily once, “The evil which exists in the world is the result and the effect of an attack on society by a dark and hostile agent, the devil. Evil is not only a privation but a living, spiritual corrupt and corrupting being. A terrible reality, mysterious and frightening. The testimony of both Bible and Church tells us that people refuse to acknowledge his existence, … or is explained away as a pseudo-reality, …”

The rocky ground represents those who have no depth to their faith and so their joy on hearing the Word lasts only a short time. When their faith is challenged they are easily dissuaded. “When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away.”

The thorny ground represents the world. The weeds and thorns represent the desires of the world which distract us from God and, in this case, prevent us from being fruitful followers of the Word. The ICSB notes, “Fruit is a common biblical image for the good works and faithfulness that flow from God’s grace.”

The fruitfulness of the good soil is the result of paying attention to the Word of the Lord and working to understand it. This usually involves more than weekly attendance at Mass. It means spending time with Scripture. It can include reading reflections such as these (and others). Spending time with Jesus (the Word) results in closeness and understanding, as one would have from spending time with a friend. I’ve mentioned before that even secular researchers find that those who practice their faith are happier (joyful), more stable, and more engaged in life than those who do not. You can’t really be fruitful if you are not engaged. Being fruitful requires effort, just like advancing in your job or profession requires effort. Only here it’s your spiritual life that is at stake.

If we want to be followers of Jesus, we need to be bearing (spiritual) fruit a hundred-, sixty-, or thirty-fold. We do this by proper response to the Word that goes forth from God.