What is the scattered “seed”?

The gospel writers gave different aspects of what “the seed” in Jesus’ parable stood for. Mark, the shortest gospel, left it at “the word,” spoken or written. Luke was more specific: “The seed is God’s word.” That’s a helpful qualifier—our world is awash with “words,” some of which can harm rather than help us. Matthew tied it most closely to Jesus’ teachings—it was “the word about the kingdom” (cf. Matthew 4:17, 23). Jesus’ good news is the seed we need to welcome and allow to grow in our hearts.

• “Jesus was declaring that God’s kingdom, the sovereign rule of heaven, was approaching…. Jesus believed his contemporaries were going in the wrong direction. They were bent on revolution… military resistance to occupying forces…. His message was… that they should go the other way, towards God’s kingdom of light and peace and healing and forgiveness, for themselves and for the world.” * What made that message a “seed” that could truly change the world?
• But Jesus’ message was likely, from the beginning, to get at best a mixed reception. It challenged standard human ways of thinking, like “we have to be violent because the only language they understand is violence.” As scholar William Barclay said, “There are different ways of accepting the word of God, and the fruit which it produces depends on the heart of [the person] who accepts it.” ** How did Jesus’ parable lead hearers to reflect on the state of their own heart?