The Seed that "Springs Eternal"

1 Peter 1:23–25 (ESV)

You have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

It’s spring!  The signs are everywhere.  The trees are budding.  People are planting gardens.  The other day Linda sent me three pictures of the flowers she planted on our patio.  My eyes are itching from all the pollen.  One of my favorite signs of spring around here is when the flowering trees have their early spring blossoms.  I call them tulip trees because that’s what their blossoms look like.  They are absolutely beautiful or they were.  That’s why I am here.  The blossoms on this tree are already falling off and dying, leaving a mess.  Spring is a time of rebirth and renewal.  Yet already here we have a reminder that the rebirth of the spring is only temporary.  Soon will come the heat of summer, the old age of fall and the death of winter.  Next December all this new life will be dead. 

So many of the seeds we plant in life, so much of what we invest our time and energy in is only temporary.  You celebrate a success one day, only to be asked the next day, “So what have you done lately?”  The days of having one career or living in the same house, or working at the same company all your life are over. How many jobs have you had?  How many places have you lived?   Many marriages don’t last these days.  People get divorced sometimes more than once.  Even the marriages that last a lifetime, only last a lifetime.  Time flies. You look forward to college yet those four years are gone in a flash.  The honeymoon isn’t forever.  The vacation you planned and saved for is over in a couple of weeks.  Before you know it your kids grow up, leave home and the nest is empty.  Your once young healthy body grows old.  Your hair falls out or turns grey.  One day you die. 

Don’t get me wrong.  Investing in, planting seeds and giving your life to be a good worker, a faithful spouse, a loving parent – all that is important.  There is nothing wrong with working for a better job or buying a nicer house.  However if that’s all you have to give your life to, then your life has nothing in it that lasts.   Peter is right, “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls…”

That’s when Peter adds one of the most important short words you will find in the Bible, the word “but.”  “The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.”  That Word is the good news that “God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”   That word is the good news that “the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord.”   It’s the good news that “God has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade away...” 

From that seed of God’s word, according to Psalm 1, grows a life “that yields its fruit in season and whose leaves do not wither.”  God’s word is the seed that produces an eternal spring.  That’s why being in worship every chance God gives you… that’s why being a part of a Bible class… that’s why having your own daily time in God’s word… that’s why having a family devotion time… that’s why taking your kids to Sunday School and church is so important… That’s why it’s worth putting up with your teenager’s grousing to get them up and go on Sundays… that’s why time with God is way more restful than sleeping in… This is how the seeds of God’s eternal word are planted in your heart and the hearts of your children.  If you wish to have a full life that lasts forever… if you pray that kind of eternal life for your children then know this - that is what God offers us here in His Word.  By ourselves we are no different than the grass that withers and the flowers that fall.  Only what God offers in His word lasts forever.  His word is the seed that “springs eternal.”