The parable of the sower is fairly transparent in meaning, especially since the Savior Himself explains it. What is most interesting here is the sequence in which the obstacles are listed, the obstacles that stand before a person on the way into the Kingdom. It all begins with the need to hear the word about the Kingdom. This is, of course, not simply a matter of some words about the Kingdom reaching a person's ears; one must truly hear, pay attention, and then turn one's heart to what the witness says.

In fact, this is conversion, without which the path into the Kingdom will not begin. Conversion, however, varies, because in different cases it touches different layers of the human person, the soul and the heart. There is a superficial conversion, at the level of idle interest - and then a person remains an adherent of Christ and the Kingdom only until the first problems, difficulties, and persecutions. This does not necessarily mean some persecution organized by the authorities; the problems and difficulties that inevitably arise before anyone who wants to rebuild life according to a new ideal are enough.

If the ideal is received superficially enough, the person simply will not want the problems connected with it and will step aside. It happens, however, that conversion is deep enough for the new convert to endure even real persecutions. He has enough resolve; he is ready to follow Christ into the Kingdom, but he does not yet have experience of the spiritual path. Yet resolve alone is not enough; one also needs the skill of the path, experience connected with the process of spiritual formation. It is not acquired quickly; it requires consistency and persistence. The spiritual work itself connected with the Christian path often turns out to be rather dull, unflashy, outwardly unnoticed. It certainly includes bright spiritual experiences too, but they make up, conventionally speaking, about ten percent of this work, while the rest is painstaking effort to build one's own life, inward and outward. It is like artists and athletes: one or several bright days of glory presuppose several years of intense labor hidden from those around them.

If a person is not ready for such work, if he is constantly distracted by something else that matters more to him, he may set out on the spiritual path, but fairly soon he will inevitably turn away from it, remaining at best only an amateur of vivid spiritual experiences. But if a person is ready for the corresponding effort, then, showing resolve and consistency, he will surely bear his fruit - for God does not leave without help those who take spiritual life seriously. Here everything depends on the person himself.

Today the Lord addresses to us one of the most important questions: "How do we listen?" We regularly read the Bible, and even visit Bible sites on the Internet, but do we have ears to receive the Word, let it take root in our heart, and bear fruit?

The Lord says: "With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and more will be added to you who hear." In essence this means: what a person wants to find in Scripture, and in God's revelation in general, is what he will find. The Bible can provide us with the richest material for history, literature, philology, mysticism, and so on, but only the one who seeks in it the knowledge of God, that is, living personal relations with Him built on trust and love, will be able to find God in reading Holy Scripture.

And here the words that "to the one who has, more will be given" acquire their meaning. In listening to and understanding the Word of God, we can only deepen and multiply what we already have; that is, we must approach it from within an already existing bond with God, in faith and prayer.

Today's reading tells of Jesus' preaching on the shore of the Lake of Gennesaret. Judging by the Gospel accounts, this place was one of Christ's favorite places to preach in Galilee. More people could gather on the shore of the lake than in any synagogue, even the largest one, and the chance of conflict with opponents was somewhat lower there, so no one would have been very likely to interfere with the preaching.

As a rule, Jesus preaches to His listeners by speaking in parables, and then explains the meaning of those parables to His closest disciples, the apostles. This method was generally widespread in the ancient East, and in some countries it is still used just as widely today. In this way the speaker achieved two important aims: he expanded the meaning of what was said and made his listeners think.

The language of a parable is always symbolic, and a symbol is always rich in meanings. Something said in the form of a parable always allows more than one interpretation, and for that reason a parable can convey to the listener truths that could not be adequately expressed, for example, in strict scientific language. In addition, a parable never gives ready-made answers, and therefore the listener or reader must always search for those answers personally, reflecting on the variety of meanings the parable offers. An answer found independently was, of course, remembered and absorbed better than one received in finished form, which only had to be heard and memorized. Thanks to the parables, Jesus' preaching became a form of living communication with those who listened to Him. Without them it would have turned into something like a scholarly lecture, and the Gospel would have resembled a textbook, whose reading may have been useful but most likely would not have brought the joy it brings us today.

And yet, when a parable was not entirely clear to Jesus' closest disciples, He Himself explained it to them, as described in today's passage. An adequate understanding of Jesus' words was absolutely necessary for the apostles: they had a mission to preach, and without such understanding that mission would have been impossible.