Meditation on Luke 8:15
“As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word,
hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.”
Luke 8:15
This verse is part of Jesus’ parable of the sower. In this parable, he says that whenever the seed of the word of God is sown, one of four things happens. Sometimes the word is sown and the devil comes in and takes it away so that a person may not believe (8:12). Sometimes the word is sown in rocky ground and though people receive it with joy they fall away eventually when their faith is tested (v. 13). Sometimes the word is sown among thorns and starts to grow but is choked out “by the cares and riches and pleasures of life” (v. 14). And sometimes the word is sown and finds good soil and takes root in a person’s heart through faith and grows and bears fruit (v. 15).
At the end of the parable, Jesus says that the seed that finds good soil grows and “bears fruit with patience” (v. 15). The word is heard, accepted, and held fast in “an honest and good heart” and then starts to grow and when it grows one of its fruits is patience. Why does Jesus specifically mention patience (or “perseverance” in the NIV) as a fruit of faith in a heart that’s received Jesus’ word?
There may be other reasons why Jesus mentions patience (eg. patience is part of the fruit of the Spirit, Gal. 5:22), but in the context of this parable the reason seems to be that persevering faith is a sign of saving faith. Two of the four soils that the word is sown in does not produce fruit because the person does not persevere.
The person described as the rocky soil receives the gospel with joy and believes for a while, but when they are tested they “fall away” (v. 13). The reason they are not saved is because they do not endure the things that test their faith. Rather than patiently persevering, they fall away when things get hard.
Then there is the person described as the thorny soil (v. 14). They hear the word but the glitz and glamour of the world chokes out the word so that it’s fruit “does not mature.” The allurements of the world become more attractive than following Jesus, so they stop following Jesus and start following their lust for riches and pleasures of this world. Instead of patiently persevering in their faith, they fall away from Jesus when better options appear.
With the little phrase “bear fruit with patience” Jesus is helping us see what saving faith looks like. Those who genuinely receive his word are known by their patience. Followers of Jesus are patient people.
This truth has many applications for us. Let me give you several. First, it means that followers of Jesus patiently endure trials. When difficult things are happening at home, work, or church, Jesus’ followers do not give up and walk away. Rather, they lean into him and keep trusting that he’s good and that he knows what he’s doing.
Second, it means that followers of Jesus can expect their faith to be tested. Spiritual tests are not punishments from the Lord, but opportunities for us to see where we’re at. They are gauges of our progress. Tests can be scary but also encouraging if we see them as an opportunity to see how far we’ve come. If your heart is good soil, you will patiently endure every hard and scary test the Lord sends your way.
Third, followers of Jesus are not easily sidetracked by the attractive things of this world. We understand that riches can be deceitful and that our desires are disordered because of sin (Mk. 4:18-19), so we persevere through temptations to follow our hearts and keep testing our desires by Scripture and through prayer and godly counsel.
And fourth, the genuineness of our faith is proven when we make it to the end of our lives still trusting and treasuring Jesus above everything else. “The one who endures to the end will be saved” (Mt. 10:22, 24:13). The fruit of persevering faith through all of life’s trials and temptations is evidence that our hearts are good soil and have truly received the seed of God’s word. Jesus’ followers “bear fruit with patience.” Does this describe you?
Persevering in Faith, With You,
Pastor John