Breaking the Word

 When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after another journeying to him, he spoke in a parable. "A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and was trampled, and the birds of the sky ate it up. Some seed fell on rocky ground, and when it grew, it withered for lack of moisture.  Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked it. And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew, it produced fruit a hundredfold." After saying this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear."… (Lk 8:4-15)

The aim of this passage is to tell the listeners how they should hear the word of God and act on it. Word of God should be the guiding force of the life of the people. 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.'

The people are the soil on which the word of god is sown. The soil is not just passive to receive the word of god and produce its fruit. The soil has its conditions and influences from outside. They are the devil (evil force), trials, anxieties, riches and pleasures of life. All these conditions do not allow the word of God to have its effect on the lives of the people.

These conditions remove from man the following: faith, salvation, joy, perseverance, and maturity. So with out the word of god man ends up worse than what he began. Man’s goal in life is salvation, joy, maturity etc. All these will be worked out only through the word of God. 

Afterward he journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their resources. (Lk 8:1-3)

Jesus was an itinerant preacher. He never confined his preaching and ministry to a single place. When he finished his ministry in one place then that was the beginning of the ministry in another place. His work was not broken up into parts and pieces. It had one continuous progress. Places kept changing, people were different but preaching was the same. It was the good news of the kingdom.

He was not doing it all by himself. He was not all alone. He had people to accompany. Some of them he called. Some he chose. Others followed him. There was a sizable crowd to accompany him always. At times they themselves become preachers and continuers of the same ministry.

There were also women from Galilee who accompanied him on his journey. These women were sustaining him out of their means. The association of women with the ministry of Jesus is most unusual. The first-century Palestinian Judaism had a different attitude toward women. The more common attitude is expressed in John 4:27. (it was against speaking with women in public)