I love watching people walk into this sanctuary for the first time. They talk about its intimacy and beauty. They look up at the dome, and at the dark wood, and at all of the stained class in this room. Soon their eyes will focus on the big windows, the ones with Jesus as the Good Shepherd on the Broad Street side, and the one of the Parable of the Sower on the 21st Street side. The windows are stunning, and in the afternoon, if the light is just right, these windows are glorious. My favorite of the two is the window that depicts the story of seed and soil.

Every spring we are among the gardeners who make several trips to one of the local home improvement stores to buy gardening soil. We do not buy dirt. And after reading these definitions of dirt, I understand why. Dirt is defined as "any foul or filthy substance such as mud, grime, dust; then it is described as loose soil or earth; and finally, dirt is described as something or someone vile, mean, or worthless." We do not buy dirt, we buy soil.

Soil is defined, in one set of definitions as "that portion of the earth’s surface consisting of disintegrated rock or humus – the organic ingredients produced by decomposed vegetable or animal matter that are essential for the earth’s fertility; soil provides the opportunity for growth or development". (Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary).

We do not buy dirt. We buy soil.

Jesus describes what happens to the seeds and invites us to discover the kind of soil we are. "Some seeds never did make it to the soil. Other seeds fell on dirt filled with rocks and junk, and never became strong enough to take root and grow.

"Some seeds were planted among the thorns. They began to grow, but they were quickly pricked and choked by the sharpness around them. They started out well, but could find no room to grow. Then there are the seeds that found their way to good nutrient, rich soil and they grew. A normal harvest would yield ten fold. A fifteen-fold harvest would be exceptional. But a yield one hundred, or sixty, or thirty would be miraculous" (from a sermon I preached on this text 7-14-02).

It is not my intent to give a botany or farming lesson this morning. Nor was it the intent of Jesus that day the crowd gathered on the beach to hear him. Jesus was a story teller. When he wanted to talk about forgiveness, or salvation, or justice, or compassion he would tell a story. I believe he talked about a sower and seeds to remind us that we are soil in which the word of God. The church of Jesus Christ is the work of God, the trust of God, and the hope of God.

In his day, "Sowing was a stock metaphor for teaching and preaching, as was harvest for the time when the kingdom of God would be fulfilled, it was a way of talking about the final judgment of God" (New Interpreter’s Bible, volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995, p.303). That is the message in the window.

Jesus tells the story of a sower who goes out and broadcasts seed. To broadcast is to make something widely known. In our day, broadcasting involves sending information in words and images through television, radio, print, or streaming on the internet.

In the times of Jesus, "broadcasting involved taking a handful of seed and casting it broadly in a field. Walking paths crisscrossed the fields, and were packed hard by many feet. Some of the land was soil covering a stone base. The rock would absorb heat during the day, releasing heat to the seed during the night, causing the seed to spring up quickly (v.5). Thorns would lie along the sides of the fields, and weed filled seeds would blow onto freshly plowed ground, invisible to the sower, but ready to sprout and to choke out good seed" (www.lectionary.org/English/matthew, p. 3).

A good harvest can come in many ways, and we will hear this story of sower and seed and harvest in different ways today. But each time we hear it, we are reminded that we want to be the best soil we can be so that we can produce a harvest that knows God as creator and source of hope, Jesus as the source of our salvation, and the Holy Spirit as the breath of God that gives life to our spirits. It is that life that will help us to better know God, build relationships, and do justice.

"That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables saying":

A plot of soil was enjoying the warmth of a spring day when suddenly it felt the pelting of seeds being thrown on it. Some seeds missed the soil entirely, "whew glad I don’t have to deal all those new seeds, let the stray birds eat them." Some seeds fell into equal amounts of gravel and soil, the soil said, "let the rocks and stones cry out for the seeds." Some seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns said, "new seeds, I’ll make room. Oh no! the seeds are already entangled in the thorns. And some seeds found a nurturing place and rooted deeply, and yielded a great harvest. Let anyone with ears listen!

Consider and pray that we might receive like good ground the seeds the Holy Spirit plants in us.

"Each of us has some of each kind of soil in us. Jesus knew that. In fact, one of the reasons Jesus tells this parable is because he knows that the ‘human heart may be stony or thorny of receptive, and will respond to the grace of God accordingly. But the seed has within it the power of new and rejuvenating life, so in the end the harvest is assured’" (Texts for Preaching – Year A. Westminster John Knox Press, 1995, p.397).

"That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying":

A family set out to find a congregation in which to worship and work, and deepen their spiritual life. The first church they went to had a sign on the door that said, "no sinners allowed", so they left. The second church they visited was lively and the music was great; the sermon was good, but no one said anything to them before, during, or after the service, so they left. In the third church, the family accepted an invitation to go to lunch with a group of church members. The food was good, the conversation was delightful; that is, until another group of church members came into the restaurant. Then they whispered to the family, "stay away from them, we may attend the same church, but they have issues you don’t even want to know about." They did not return to that congregation.

And in the fourth church, they visited, the worship was meaningful, the people were welcoming, the commitment to prayer, outreach, spiritual formation, and stewardship were exciting and contagious, and they found there a church home and a place for their gifts to flourish to the glory of God. They have been there for years now, and are leaders in the congregation. Let anyone with ears, listen.

Building relationships and doing justice means that we take the time to notice the stranger among us and that we will extend a hand of Christian welcome to them. It means that we will care for one another in all of those moments of celebration and sorrow; that we will agree more often than not, and that we will remain agreeable even when we disagree. It means letting go of whatever it is that holds us back, so that we are free and open to those whom God is sending to us.

Consider and pray for those visitors and guests who believe that our house of worship might be their spiritual home because they see in us a community transformed and renewed, and they want to be part of it.

In 1994, a few years after his time as a political prisoner came to an end, Nelson Mandela became the President of South Africa. In his inaugural speech, he encouraged his fellow citizens, and the words he spoke then, encourage us today to be the rich productive soil God intends for us to be.

He said: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. "We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. "We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us. It is not just in some of us, it is in everyone. As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. "As we are liberated from our fear, our presence automatically liberates others" (Nelson Mandela, 1994).

We are not dirt. We are God’s good soil, nurtured by the unrelenting love of Jesus Christ, living to be the rich harvest faith in him produces. Some of the harvest can be fully seen; some of it is emerging, and some of it is yet under the surface, eagerly waiting for its time to break through. So let’s continue to let God water and feed us with all that we need to yield thirty, sixty, and a hundred times what we think we can.

"That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying":

The leaders of a congregation began to discern a need for transformation and renewal. But some in the congregation said, "we are fine just the way we are. Some said, "that’s a great idea. But can we really do this?" But enough people said, "let’s open ourselves, heart, mind, and soul to the work of the Holy Spirit among us. Let’s see what God will do when we make ourselves available to each other and to God. Let’s get started.

And as they worked they discovered again their sense of purpose and mission. They were more deeply spiritually grounded than they had been, they were able to discover and use their gifts to build up the church, reach out beyond the walls of the church, spread their table wide so that all who entered felt welcomed and they developed an attitude of abundance, replacing their attitude of scarcity. They began to live the good news of Jesus Christ

Let anyone with ears listen!

That is the message in the window. Thanks be to God, amen.