Like the sower, the preacher must be diligent. He must spare no pains. He must use every possible means to make his work 2:»i'0sper. He must patiently '^ sow be- side all waters/' and " sow in hope." He must be " in- stant in season and out of season." He must not be deterred by difficulties and discouragements. " He that observeth the wind shall not sow." No doubt his success does not entirely depend upon his labor and diligence. But without labor and diligence success will seldom be obtained. (Isai. xxxii. 20. 2 Tim. iv. 2. Eccles. xi. 4.)
Like the sower, the preacher cannot give life. He can scatter the seed committed to his charge, but cannot command it to grow. He may offer the. word of truth to a people, but he cannot make them receive it and bear fruit. To give life is God's sovereign prerogative. " It is the Spirit that quickeneth." God alone can " give the increase." (John vi. 63. 1 Cor. iii. T.)
Let these things sink down into our hearts. It is no light thing to be a real minister of God's Word. To be an idle, formal workman in the Church is an easy busi- ness. To be a faithful sower is very hard. Preachers ought to be specially remembered in our prayers.
In the next place, let us learn from this passage, that there are various loays of hearing the word of God without benefit.
We may listen to a sermon with a heart like the hard "way side," careless, thoughtless, and unconcerned. Christ crucified may be affectionately set before us, and we may hear of His sufferings with utter indifference, as a subject in which we have no interest. Fast as the words fall on our ears, the devil may pluck them away, and we may
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go home as if we had not heard a sermon at aU. Alas ! there are many such hearers 1 It is as true of them as of the idols of old, " eyes have they, but they see not ; they have ears, but they hear not." (Psal. cxxxv. 16, IT.) Truth seems to have no more effect on their hearts than water on a stone.
\Ye may listen to a sermon with pleasure, while the impression produced on us is only temporary and short- lived. Our hearts, like the '^ stony ground/' may yield a l^lentiful crop of warm feelings and good resolutions. But all this time there may be no deeply-rooted work in our souls, and the first cold blast of opposition or tempta- tion may cause our seeming religion to wither away. Alas ! there are many such hearers 1 The mere love of sermons is no sign of grace. Thousands of baptized people are like the Jews of Ezekiel's day : " Thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument : for they hear thy words, but they do them not.'' (Ezek. xxxiii. 32.)
We may listen to a sermon, and approve of every word it contains, and yet get no good from it, in conse- quence of the absorbing influence of this world. Our hearts, like the ^' thorny ground," may be choked with a rank crop of cares, pleasures, and worldly plans. We may really like the Gospel, and wish to obey it, and yet insensibly give it no chance of bearing fruit, by allowing other things to fill a place in our affections, and in- sensibly to fill our whole hearts. Alas ! there are many such hearers ! They know the truth well. They hope one day to be decided Christians. But they never come