Mark 4:26-29 ” He also said, ‘ This is what the Kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain – first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.’ “

This is one parable that Jesus does not go on to explain to His disciples in detail, but even Paul understood its underlying meaning when he wrote in I Corinthians 3:6-8 about God’s role and our role as fellow field workers. The way God uses His Word in the hearts of man we have to admit is mysterious and completely independent of any of our efforts. We just need to remain faithful in “sowing the seed”, praying for the harvest, and leaving the results totally in the Lord’s hands. For only the Lord gives the increase in the seed that we scatter.