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He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a
mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.
32 Though it is the smallest of all your seeds,
yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree,
so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."
Matthew 13:31-32
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Although the Kingdom of God started out small in Jesus' day, by the end of
time, it will be the largest kingdom on the earth. We can see through the
history of the church, and missions, that the number of Christians in the
world has steadily increased since the book of Acts.
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Since the entire kingdom is compared to the mustard seed that means that
every biblical principle can start out as small as that seed, but if we plant
and water it, we can expect it to grow into a huge amount of whatever it
is. This works for faith, love, hope, patience, in fact, for any of the fruit
of the Spirit.
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When we accept Jesus, the Kingdom of God has only a small part of our heart,
yet as we grow and mature, it eventually reaches into every part of our lives.
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The Jews in Jesus' day were expecting a messiah that would make an instant
Jewish kingdom upon the earth. However, God was concerned about a kingdom
that would grow in our hearts. Today, we are still expecting God to do instant
things. But, we must realize that the smallest of things, when God makes
them grow, become the biggest.
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Birds represent evildoers, or kingdoms of the world. Either way, the only
way they manage to exist is by the protection that believers provide. Once
the believers are removed from the world, then the unbelievers will be destroyed.
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We have such a tendency to judge things based upon their outside appearance.
Praise the Lord that He looks upon the inside, instead of the outside. You
don't have to be big, beautiful, or impressive on the outside in order to
be a giant in the spirit realm.
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God plants us, as mustard seeds into His field (the earth). Those around
us, which are in the world, don't realize what type of plant He has sown.
When we reach our full maturity in Christ, then we are a plant that is so
large, that the world can then receive from us. If nothing else, the world
can receive shade from us.
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Many of us never realize the full potential that God has placed within the
"seed" of our being. Instead of growing to the full stature of a tree (on
the inside), we remain only bushes. However, we are all called to grow as
big (in our spirits) as a tree. Many things can stunt our growth, but the
biggest thing that usually does, is us.
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In Aramaic, in Mark, it says that the birds "tabernacle under its shadow."
Tabernacles are tents, temporary dwellings. Most species of birds don't stay
in the same place, but migrate, or travel to new homes. Don't worry if an
unbeliever leaves your "shadow" to go elsewhere. God has already planted
a believer wherever they are going. They will receive from that believer
what they would have received from you.
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When the mustard seed grows, than others can live off that tree. As we grow
in faith, we can reach a point where others can live off of our faith. Although
they shouldn't stay this way, many believers need someone else's faith while
theirs is growing.
See paraphrase "The Seed" |
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