How Healthy is America’s Soil?
A Sermon After the 2024 United States Presidential Election
November 10, 2024
Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, Year B
St. Stephen’s UMC, Burke, VA
Matthew 13:3–9 (NRSVUE)*
*A Sermon Series on Thanksgiving
I spent extra time raking leaves last week, just to distract myself from both the noise of the media and my own thoughts. It was that kind of week. I needed a way to clear my mind.
So, I raked throughout the week, only to realize that the satisfaction from raking lasts only a few hours. Each time I stepped outside, I was greeted by a yard blanketed in leaves. What a joy to have a yard surrounded by trees.
“Why do we have to rake the leaves?” my oldest daughter asked. I told her it was to prepare for the winter snow. I thought it was a good enough answer to get her excited about yard work. Then, a couple hours later, I found myself googling the same question, only to discover there is an ongoing debate about whether to leave the leaves or rake them up.
I didn’t dig too deep into it, but it seems like both arguments focus on the health of the lawn. One side argues that decomposed leaves provide nutrients to the soil and the grass, while the other side argues that a thick layer of leaves can damage the soil and the grass by blocking sunlight, trapping moisture, and limiting airflow. In either case, it comes down to one thing: the health of the soil.
For the remainder of this month, we’ll be exploring a sermon series focused on the agricultural cycle. Thanksgiving reminds us of the unique seasons of planting, growing, and harvesting. In a similar way, our faith has its own rhythms and seasons, each with a distinct purpose, preparing us for different stages of growth and transformation.
So, we begin this three-week sermon series with the theme of planting, as we reflect together on the Parable of the Sower. The concern here is the health of the soil, the health of our heart.
Jesus describes four types of soil in this parable, each representing a different way of receiving the word of the kingdom. And he kindly explains each type in verses 18–23.
The first type is the path. Seeds scattered on the path are prevented from embedding in the ground, making them easy for birds to snatch away. This hardened path symbolizes a closed heart. When our hearts are hardened, we cannot receive or understand the word of the kingdom, leaving it vulnerable to being taken away by the evil one.
The second type is rocky ground. With little soil, seeds sown here sprout quickly but wither just as fast under the sun’s heat. This rocky ground represents a heart lacking depth. We may receive the word of the kingdom with initial joy, but without deep roots, our faith cannot endure when challenges arise. We’re quick to celebrate God’s word when life is smooth, yet just as quick to question God’s presence in hardship.
The third type of soil is thorny ground, where thorns grow intertwined with the plants, often overtaking them. These thorns, Jesus tells us, represent the lure of wealth and the cares of the world produced by wealth. Wealth, with its promises and distractions, chokes the life out of the seeds planted in our hearts, draining our imagination for the kingdom of heaven. And without that imagination, all that remains is sentimentality. A feel-good religion that sees faith as a leisurely activity bears no fruit and yields no harvest.
The fourth type of soil is good soil. It is in this rich, fertile soil that seeds take root and bring forth grain. Good soil represents hearts that not only hear and understand the word of the kingdom but also produce a harvest beyond our imagination. The varying results of hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold aren’t the focus; what matters is that the soil is healthy enough to sustain a harvest. Good soil allows seeds to extend roots, grow, and transform — just as our hearts, when receptive, allow the word of the kingdom to lead us toward repentance, transformation, and new life.
Perhaps today’s parable invites us to reflect on the condition of our hearts and the health of the soil upon which we stand. And the surest way to judge the soil’s condition is by examining what the seeds have produced.
The seeds represent “the word of the kingdom” (v. 19), and as they grow, they become visible witnesses that embody kingdom values in our lives. Matthew’s Gospel gives us glimpses of these kingdom values through various parables: the parable of the wheat and tares (13:24–30) highlights patience; the parable of the lost sheep (18:12–14) emphasizes compassion for the lost; the parable of the unmerciful servant (18:21–35) underscores forgiveness and mercy; the parable of the workers in the vineyard (20:1–16) teaches generosity; the parable of the ten virgins (25:1–13) encourages vigilance and readiness; and the parable of the sheep and the goats (25:31–46) calls us to care for the least of these.
These kingdom values are also reflected in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (5:3–12), where he describes the kingdom of heaven as belonging to the poor in spirit, the meek, the merciful, and those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. Humility, mercy, and a deep longing for God are the qualities that characterize those who belong to God’s kingdom.
In this sense, Galatians capture this well:
[T]he fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (5:22–23).
These are the fruits that good soil produces. But consider this — unlike wealth, these fruits hold little value in isolation and lose their meaning if kept to oneself. Their true worth is realized only when they are shared generously within a community, where we interact and care for one another with compassion. Thus, the harvest of the kingdom’s seeds is a beloved community, where we link arms with the Triune God in unity and harmony, living out the life of faith and obedience defined by Jesus.
If this fruit of the Spirit, which reveals the kingdom of heaven, is what we seek, then what is our assessment of the soil’s health?
What am I bearing?
What are we harvesting?
What kind of soil is my heart?
What type of soil does our church stand on here in America?
The good news of the Parable of the Sower is that the sower scatters seeds on all types of soil, regardless of their visible condition. The sower’s actions may appear wasteful from our human perspective of scarcity, yet from the kingdom perspective of abundance, this is profound generosity. The sower spreads seeds over all soils without judgment, just as God freely gifts the word of the kingdom to all hearts, regardless of their condition. Whether our hearts today are hardened, rocky, or covered with thorns, our gracious God does not withhold the seeds of the kingdom. The overwhelming, never-ending, and boundless love of God continues to be poured into our lives, offering us the hope of the kingdom — not as a distant dream, but as a present reality in which we are invited to participate now.
But here is the challenge: those who eventually respond to the word of the kingdom bear fruit and yield a harvest. Our harvested fruit becomes a gift that we offer back to further God’s kingdom, given in the same spirit of generosity with which we have received. This is how we are to participate in the kingdom here and now.
Then, can we imagine ourselves doing the same as the sower in today’s parable? Can we also scatter seeds of love, joy, and peace for all people, regardless of who they are? Can we sow seeds of patience, kindness, and generosity in everyone, regardless of how they may perceive or respond to us? Can we extend seeds of faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control even to those who may return betrayal, disappointment, or harm?
Ultimately, the question becomes whether we see all soils — all hearts — as redeemable, just as God does. Scattering seeds everywhere is not a “take it or leave it” approach; it’s about recognizing the potential for repentance and redemption in every heart. Paths can be softened, rocks cleared, and thorns removed. So can we, together, work to make the soil fertile, one square foot at a time, nurturing each other’s hearts to grow healthy and whole?
Whenever I get to preach on scriptures that have an agricultural theme, I find myself wishing I actually knew what I was talking about. I wish I had firsthand experience and the vocabulary of farming because I know how richly it serve as a metaphor for our faith.
The only connection I have with farming is my late grandmother. As a homemaker, she worked daily in the fields to provide for her large family — planting, growing, and harvesting crops. As a young kid, the most striking thing I remember about her was her hunchback, which I later understood as a testimony to her sacrificial labor of love.
When I think about my grandmother’s hunchback, I am reminded of Jesus, who stooped to wash the feet of his disciples, bringing the kingdom through his sacrificial love on the cross. We often think to ourselves and believe that the most effective way to spread the gospel is by standing tall and commanding attention from center stage — much like what I am doing now. But let’s not kid ourselves; this is not how the Christian church has endured over the past two millennia.
I believe the Christian church has stood the test of time because of those who faithfully imitate Jesus’ sacrificial labor of love from the sidelines, making sense of the hope of the kingdom with those standing in the margins of empire, trusting that their labor will bear fruit and yield a harvest.
So, let us continue to live out our calling as the hands and feet of Christ, offering ourselves to the labor of love that seems endless, for love itself never ends. We have leaves to rake.
May all barriers that prevent us from understanding the word of the kingdom be removed from our hearts. May we have ears, eyes, and hearts attuned to those who truly understand the meaning of hope — those whom Jesus calls blessed, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. May we continue our humble attempts to love as Jesus did. May God bless the hunchbacks and the calloused hands of those who faithfully engage in this sacrificial labor of love. May the little fruit we offer to Christ be our resilient prayer of hope: thy kingdom come, thy will be done.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Rev. Minoo Kim is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church, currently serving in the Virginia Annual Conference. Follow his Medium publication to receive his latest sermons or check out his website minoowkim.com for his latest content. Peace!
