Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Matthew 13:31-32 He put another parable before them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches."
LIKE A MUSTARD SEED
In this parable Jesus wishes us to learn that despite appearances His Kingdom will grow and become great.
There is no need to get sidetracked over the question of the meaning of the birds. When we stick to the meaning above, the birds show us just how strong and large the mustard seed grows, namely so that its branches will support even the birds of the air. If Christ meant the birds to be anything more than a simple demonstration of the size of the mustard plant there is no hint of it anywhere in the text or the context. Thus such ideas are merely speculation, which at their best distract from Christ's main point and at their worst are an addition to Christ's word.
Many make another mistake with this parable by pointing to the largeness of "Christianity" on this earth as the fulfillment of this parable. Such thinking is contrary to the very point Christ wishes us to learn. There is no generation of true Christians who have not sighed within themselves, thinking the forces arrayed against them are too great -- thinking that the newest generation is too worldly, thinking that no one wants to listen to the word anymore.
The kingdom of our Lord always appears small -- in power, in numbers, in ability, in strength -- in all things by which men measure. It is insignificant in the thinking of men. And yet it becomes greater than all the things of men -- not ever in the view of worldly men, but God knows the truth.
Do we dream of a church, a synod, a pastor who/which is large and glorious? Do we become discouraged by the apparent smallness of our work? Let us rather dream and search for the "mustard seed" no matter its appearance. And rejoice in the largeness of Christ's forgiveness.
