The Idea of The Sower

he idea of the Sower was an effort to identify a biblical figure that most represented the church's history and that would also challenge the church to remain focused on its mission in the future. 


Over these 50 years, we have had the priviledge of sowing the gospel in our city, state, country and throughout the world.


The Sower figure is intended to encourage our church to remember its gospel-sowing heritage and to recognize that we are part of the Lord's larger plan. It is also to challenge Christians to be involved in God's work with fervency and dedication - until Jesus returns!

We are not just building a memorial for the past, we are casting a vision for the future. Thank you to everyone who has given so that The Sower could become a reality on our campus.


Bill MonroeT

The Message of the sower


The story of the Sower is a parable given by Jesus Christ in Matthew 13:3-9 and Luke 8:5-8. The teaching of the parable is that a sower faithfully sows good seed but it lands on varying types of sioil. The fruitfulness of the seed is dependent on the condition of the soil. The soil in the parable is actually depicted in our garden setting: wayside or hard ground (side-walk), rock (gravel path), thorns (roses encircling the statue) and good ground (grass and flowers). 


The seed of the Sower is the gospel. The heart of the gospel are 3 facts: 1) Jesus died on the Cross, 2) Jesus was buried, and 3) Jesus resurrected from the dead (1 Cor. 15:1-3).


Why was Jesus' death on the cross necessary? It was necessary because all peopole have sinned (Rom. 3:23). Sin is when we fail to live to the standard God has established. Our conscience and experience inform us that this is true. When we lie, cheat, steal, lust, covet, hurt, and neglect the things of God we realize that we have sinned (Rom. 3:19-20). Sin requires punishment and that punishment is death and separation from God (Rom. 6:23).


When Jesus died on the cross, He bore the punishment we desrve - He died as our Substitute. In this way, Jesus paid a debt He did not deserve - but you and I owe. Have you believed the gospel and placed your faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior? The Bible teaches when you do, God will forgive you and begin to change you into a new person (John 1:12, Eph. 1:7, 2 Cor. 5:17). The degree to which you receive the message of the gospel is an indicator of the condition - or the soil of your heart and mind.

Alex Palkovich

Alex Palkovich was born in the trans-Carpathian Mountains in 1948 and grew up in Uzhhorod. In his lifetime the city has been part of 4 different countries (Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Soviet Union & Ukraine). During WWII, Alex’s parents, Marcus and Fannie were taken by the Nazis to concentration camps in Mauthausen and Auschwitz. They both survived and were married in 1946. 


Alex received a scholarship to attend the Lviv Polytechnic National University in Poland where he earned his Master’s Degree in mechanical engineering. In 1973, he and his family immigrated to Israel. With his degree in engineering he easily landed a job with a company that designed and manufactured advanced medical equipment. The company, Magnex, was eventually acquired by General Electric. Over the following years, Alex worked as General Electric’s Global Manager for Medical Systems, overseeing plants worldwide in 8 locations including Florence, South Carolina. He and his family relocated to Florence until his retirement from GE in 2015.  


His passion for sculpting began when as a six-year old boy, he was given a box of modeling clay. Art still captures the imagination of the man now 72-years-old. Alex is a member of the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, the Oxford Art Society, and the National Sculpture Society. He has won numerous awards including a British Design Award, an award from the American Institute of Commemorative Art, a People’s Choice Award from the National Sculpture Society, the Allied Artists of America, and the Portrait Society of America. 


Alex has become a friend of our Pastor and church. He has made a beautiful and lasting impact with several projects throughout Florence County.  Florence Baptist Temple is honored to contribute to this collection and have Alex Palkovich commemorate its 50th Anniversary by sculpting “The Sower.”