Who Was John Chapman, And What Did He Sow?

Who Was John Chapman,
And What Did He Sow?

Have you ever heard of John Chapman of American history? Probably not. Maybe you know him by his nickname, Johnny Appleseed. He’s not just some fictional character of American folklore, as some people think.

Johnny Appleseed/Chapman was born in Massachusetts in 1774. Before his death in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1845, he really did sow many apple seeds, establishing orchards in Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky and Indiana. But that’s not all he sowed. When he left home at 18, this seed-sowing pioneer carried two things in his knapsack – apple seeds and a Bible. As he traveled, he sowed apple seeds in the ground and the seeds of the kingdom in the hearts of those he met.

Among the many folk tales about this early American apple orchard pioneer, the most spiritually significant is recorded by one biographer who wrote: “As he planted tiny apple seeds in the soil across an ever-growing America, Johnny Appleseed also carried the Christian message to everyone he met ... He was truly a messenger of God, sharing the Lord’s Word with all who would listen.” According to another biographer, his life verse was Psalm 126:6 – “He who goes out weeping, carrying seeds to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.”

Johnny Appleseed knew from Matthew 13, his favorite Bible chapter, that not every seed he sowed – whether apple seeds or God’s Word – would mature into a healthy fruit-bearing plant, unless they were sown in good soil. But he did know that the more he sowed, the more would grow up to bear fruit for God. And this was his driving force. Can we say as much?

To help us develop a better understanding of kingdom soil, seed and sowing, we offer this month’s Feature articles on three parables of the sower from Matthew 13. We hope you find them as encouraging as Johnny Appleseed did.

By Larry Ondrejack