Growing through the Word: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sermon by Emmanuel Suntheni OSB – Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year A
Sermon and Christian Act In The Word
Theme: “Growing through the Word”! Human growth in the Word of God!
Point of Reflection: As I look at my life today I ask: “What impact does the Word of God have on my life?” Can I point out any fruits the Word of God has produced in my personal world? Today as Christians, we are invited to grow in the Word of God.
First Reading: Isaiah 55:10–11
Psalm: Psalm 65:10–14
Second Reading: Romans 8:18–23
Gospel: Matthew 13:1–23
Sermon (Reflection): How can a person continue to grow in his or her knowledge of God and Christ, and advance in the Christian way of life? The liturgy of the fifteenth Sunday shows that such continuous growth is possible through a consistent focus on God’s word.
Today’s Gospel reading invites us to think in Agricultural terms of farming and the seed in comparison to the Word of God and the Kingdom of God. The Gospel passage begins Jesus’ discourse in parables (Matthew chapter 13). The first and the most elaborate parable called the parable of the sower, focuses on the word of God delivered by Jesus and its effects. Like Isaiah, the parable employs images derived from agriculture and nature to make its point. The sower, Jesus, “sows” the word of the Kingdom. He brings God’s word into the world, but the responses differ depending on the “soil”, which represents the human heart.
The human heart can be hard, like a “path”, and “the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown”, because the word was not understood. Or, the heart can be like a “rocky ground” which produces a quick and spontaneous response which, sadly, lasts only a moment because it “has no root”. Or the seed of the word can be sown among “thorns” which represent the “cares of the world and the lure of wealth” that eventually choke the word. These are the responses of those who hear the word but are either unable to accept it or fail to hold on and respond to it.
The only soil that produces fruit is the heart of “the one who hears the word and understands it”. Here lies the core of the parables’ message – the word is widely accessible, but it demands a response through hearing and understanding.
“Hearing” represents the reception of the word with due recognition of its importance, while “understanding” implies a serious effort to comprehend its true meaning through reflection and study. Jesus explained the parable to the disciples, and, when they understood it, they were called “blessed”. Indeed, serious acceptance and study of Jesus’ word leads to blessedness.
Today’s first reading from the prophet Isaiah comes from the second part of his book, the so-called “second Isaiah” (chapters. 40–55) which contains the message of comfort for the Israelites enduring the Babylonian exile. They were promised the end of captivity and return to their land (Cf. Isaiah 55:12). Hearing such promises, the exiles, after nearly forty years in a foreign land, might have doubted that they would ever come true. Today’s short passage aims to reassure them that God’s words and promises would not fail. To make this point the prophet uses a very simple analogy between water and its effects on nature, and God’s word and its effect on history.
The people of Isaiah’s time needed nourishment for their hope of returning to the lost land. This nourishment was provided by the powerful guarantee that God’s word will not fail, and the promised return will happen. Indeed, in 539 BC this promise was fulfilled when the edict of freedom was issued, and the Israelites were allowed to return to Judah. The entire chapter makes a powerful argument about the trustworthiness and reliability of God’s words because he chose to make “his everlasting covenant”, one which will not fail, with his chosen ones (Cf. Isaiah 55:2-3).
The second reading of today continues with Paul’s presentation on the new life through the gift of the Spirit, which began in last’s Sunday second reading. The indwelling of the Spirit makes the faithful God’s children and heirs to God’s promises. Living in union with Christ they look forward to being glorified, which means living eternal life in God’s glory. At the same time, Paul fully realizes that the life of God’s children on earth is permeated by suffering. Just as Christ suffered, so his followers, including Paul, experience tribulations and pains which are an inevitable part of life in the here and now.
What we need as Christians is to sow the seed of faith in our life, by doing so, we grow in faith and the sufferings and pains we meet in our Christian journey become the source of our Joy.
In today’s passage, while acknowledging the current condition of corruption and pain, is permeated by vibrant hope for the future, the hope that provides strength and determination to confront the difficulties and suffering of the present age.
This hope is rooted in God’s promises contained and revealed through his word. Paul discusses these promises extensively in 1 Corinthians 15, but their essence is most straightforwardly expressed in 1 John 2:25: “the promise he made you himself is eternal life”. God’s promises contained in his word not only give hope but also make the faithful long for their fulfillment. This longing enlivens and motivates the faithful to continuously pursue growth and progress in their Christian life under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who is also the “guarantee” of the salvation yet to come (Cf. 2 Corinthians 5:5).
Christian Act in Word of God “Live by the Word of God”
In our African context, when a king issues a command, his attendants quickly go into action to enact what the ruler has said. Similarly, the words of the almighty God, the King of kings, are not without effect. He spoke words of salvation and deliverance to a distressed and broken people in exile in Babylon. As Christians, do we listen and obey the Word of God?
In due time, those words bore fruit and the Israelites were freed and allowed to return to their homeland. Indeed, the Word of the Lord does not return to him empty and unfulfilled. It accomplishes that which the Lord who spoke it intended, and succeeds in bringing to reality that which it declared.
Jesus likens the Word of God to a seed. By doing so, he communicates the most essential characteristic of God’s Word, that is, its capacity to bring forth life. We do not make the Word of God alive, as it is already full of life. However, we can either draw upon it and accept this life of to reject it and wither.
A seed is essentially an embryo in a protective coat, waiting in suspended animation until proper warmth, moisture and sufficient time make germination possible. The power of a seed goes unnoticed by the eye, until it takes root in the right place and at the right time. Herein lies the necessity for human cooperation.
The Word of God comes freely but we have a responsibility to make the soil of our heart good; our personal disposition is essential.
Come to think of it, we always hear the Word of God at Church services and in other places, and yet the lives of many of us remain untransformed. One of the major reasons for this is that many of us are unable to hold onto the Word for a significant period of time. We often allow Satan to deceive us and rob us of the Word, or in the face of trials, we give up.
In search of fruitfulness or, what people sometimes refer to as “breakthroughs”, many people, unfortunately, embark on a wild goose chase. They search for fruits in their lives, whereas the soil of their heart is arid. They despise the Word of God, but still hope to find happiness, and experience tangible evidence of the presence of God in their lives. It is only when we are willing to hold onto the word wholeheartedly and consistently that we will bear fruits. As Christians, we must listen and live by the Word of God.
Action: I will listen and obey the Word of God; I will always live by the Word of God.
Prayer: Lord our God, we come before you as arid soil, thirsty for water. May your living word pour forth as rain into our hearts and cause the seed of holiness that was sown in our hearts at baptism to bear fruit. May we always listen and obey your Word, we ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.
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- Life-Giving Obedience: First Sunday Of Lent - February 20, 2026
- Christ-Shaped Hearts: 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time - February 13, 2026
