Instant Jesus? - A Reflection on Luke 8:4-15

 


When a great crowd gathered and people from town after town came to him, he said in a parable: “A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell on the path and was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered for lack of moisture. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. Some fell into good soil, and when it grew, it produced a hundredfold.” As he said this, he called out, “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”                                                                                Then his disciples asked him what this parable meant.He said, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but to others I speak in parables, so that ‘looking they may not perceive, and listening they may not understand.’“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones on the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. The ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe only for a while and in a time of testing fall away. As for what fell among the thorns, these are the ones who hear; but as they go on their way, they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. But as for that in the good soil, these are the ones who, when they hear the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patient endurance.

A few years ago I was invited to preach a retreat in Calcutta — Kolkotta — and, as I often do, I stayed with the people who invited me. In this case, it was with priests. The parish priest was a wonderful man named Fr. Jose — he passed away last month; may his soul rest in peace. Fr. Jose used to make me a cup of coffee every morning. Although it was instant coffee, there was nothing instant about how he made it. He would mix the coffee and sugar together with a teaspoon of warm milk and stir it until it became a smooth paste. Only then, about five minutes later, would he add hot milk to it for a coffee that was simply awesome. You should try it.

 

So, what’s this gotta do with anything? Plenty, because you see, life’s like this. We can take the easy route, doing whatever takes minimum effort to achieve. Or we can invest some time and energy to make life more meaningful. Unfortunately, most of us couldn’t be bothered. Instant coffee serves the purpose, so why bother making it tastier. Not surprisingly this mentality has worked its way into our spiritual lives too, and all we want is instant stuff here too. Quick fixes. And many preachers are happy to cater to this because it translates into greater numbers, which in turn translates to greater earnings. 

 

But even those who aren’t mercenary like to play the numbers game. So everything is targeted at appealing to the masses. Consequently, preachers offer people instant healing, instant deliverance, and even instant salvation. There is no mention of discipleship. You may have heard of “altar calls” made by famous preachers at the end of their services and of the thousands of people who come forward to accept Christ.  But do they really accept Christ? They all come forward in response to an emotionally charged crusade, but a few days later Jesus is all but forgotten. 

 

In today’s parable we hear about four types of soil describing four types of hearts. Three of them are unresponsive to the seed being sowed, and although Jesus explained the reasons for this, there is another reason why some soil doesn’t bear a harvest. The seeds are fake. Preachers who preach a watered down gospel, or preach a Jesus other than the Jesus of the Scriptures, sow fake seeds. Paul wanted us to beware of them. “Such people”, he said, “are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:13-14).

 

If WE happen to be preachers of the good news, let us not be like them. Because, as Paul concludes, “their end will be what their actions deserve”. 

 

Watch a video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here: https://youtu.be/6-mZHriXhUw

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