"The Lesson of the Seed" 7/22/25

Dear Brothers & Sisters,

The wonders of God's world teach us many things, some hidden and some revealed. The universe itself bears witness to God (Psalm 19:1, Romans 1:20) and the Word of God often reveals to us spiritual truths by pointing to the world God has created.

The Lord Jesus taught His disciples one such lesson in John 12:24.

The Lesson of the Seed

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.

The lesson is this, in order to bear fruit, the seed must die and be buried in the ground. In the same way, our Lord Jesus had to die, so that life would come to all who believe in His name. Life by death, living by dying. Here is the gospel pictured in a tiny seed. 

Yet there was more to Christ's lesson, for if we too would live and bear fruit, we must die to ourselves and follow Jesus.

Our Lord continues,

Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him (John 12:25-26).

There is only one way to live, my brothers, and that is in giving it up to God, to be used for his good purposes. To live by faith in the Son of God is to die to self and so to begin to bear the good fruit of a Spirit-filled life (see Galatians 5:23 for a start). 

Have you then, died to self, died to your way? Do you daily bring yourself a living sacrifice, to die and say with Christ "not my will but yours be done."

Consider the love of Christ, who unlike the seed of a plant, acts out of the motivations of his heart. 

In the following quote, E. K. Simpson paints a moving picture of the love that motivated Christ's willingness to die.

“Christ’s love to His elect passes knowledge; its depths are beyond the plumblines of created intelligences, its flame self-fed, self-kindled, aglow with an incandescence that many waters could not quench; a purpose to redeem which nothing could divert from its resolve, nor any obstacle, however tremendous, deter from achieving it once for all. The king of terrors, armed with his fellest sting, had no power to withhold this unblenching Lover from standing proxy for the bride of His choice. What an amazing spectacle this, of Life essential plunging into a dread abyss of dereliction that His bride might partake with Him of everlasting bliss and joy! Is He not the mirror of chivalry no less than of devotion? No human suitor has ever loved, or ever will, on such a scale.” (E.K. Simpson NICNT Ephesians, p. 132)

He died for you, my friend, if you would trust in His life-giving death.

Do not hold back your life from him who gave his life for yours. And remember, brothers, giving oneself to God means loving Him and loving others. If we claim we have died to self, but do not love others, we deceive ourselves. But if we do indeed trust in his sacrifice for us, O how sweet it is to give of ourselves daily to serve the one who has so greatly shown his love for us. What a small and glorious thing it is for us to die for him, when he has died to give us everlasting life.

Grace & Peace,

Matt