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A Mustard Seed and Yeast
(Matthew 13.31-33; Mark 4.30-32)
18Jesus said, “What is God's kingdom like? What can I compare it with? 19It is like what happens when someone plants a mustard seed in a garden. The seed grows as big as a tree, and birds nest in its branches.”
20Then Jesus said, “What can I compare God's kingdom with? 21It is like what happens when a woman mixes yeast into three batches of flour. Finally, all the dough rises.”
Reflect
I remember once being present when people were discussing whether, if Jesus were among us today, he would agree to being interviewed on T.V. It was an interesting discussion.
The Jews expected God’s kingdom to be launched with a big fanfare. It’s easy to see why. Passages like Zechariah 14:9: (“The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name.”) They looked forward to a day when God would rule. Looking around them at their political subjection to the Romans they must have wondered how on earth this was going to come about. If Jesus was indeed the Messiah, why did he not inaugurate his rule? Fair question.
Jesus’ words here challenge the thinking behind this question. His kingdom would not be like earthly kingdoms, as he pointed out to Pilate (John 18:36). It grew from small beginnings. For those who could see it, there were signs all around them that the Messiah had come. When John the Baptist doubted this, Jesus reassured him “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor” (Matthew 11:4-5).
Our culture is no different. Do we like spectaculars? Events with big name speakers? Big numbers? A You-Tube video gone viral?
God’s kingdom isn’t like our empires. He is at work like the life in the seed that causes it to grow into a tree, or the yeast in the dough that makes it rise. Hard to discern at first, but unmistakable in its effects. We pray “Your kingdom come,” and we don’t have to wait for some future time to see that prayer answered. His kingdom came with the birth of a baby.
Where is God at work in your church? In your life? In answers to your prayers?
Oh, and what do you think? Would Jesus have agreed to be interviewed on T.V.?
Respond
Father God, So often I look to see you work in big, exciting ways. Forgive me for missing what you are doing right in front of my eyes. Teach me to see things from your perspective. Amen
Annabel Robinson
Annabel was born in Kew, near London, England. She committed her life to Jesus Christ at a Scripture Union camp when she was 16, and immediately found joy and peace. At Oxford she was active in the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, where she met her husband, Reid. They emigrated to Canada in 1965, where she taught Classics at the University of Regina until 2007. She has two children, Heather in Oslo and Alasdair in Calgary.