With Spring finally entrenched and summer on its way, we can turn to the many biblical images that relate to gardening and farming.  You don’t have to be engaged in either one to appreciate the images, though it certainly will give you a deeper understanding of why Jesus and the prophets used these common examples for his teaching.

Most of the time we are simply beneficiaries of the end results of farming.  We go to a grocery store or local market and pick out fresh vegetables and fruit.  The end result is the most visible and most important part of farming or gardening.  What does it matter if we have a garden or farm but do not bear fruit?  In fact, if drought or storm or other catastrophe destroys crops too often, farmers go out of business.  And in our local community gardens, I see plenty of plots that are not cared for adequately, so the weeds take over and the well-intentioned gardener abandons the plot – usually without getting much fruit.