Mark 4:26-29  The Parable of the seed.

To begin with, let’s discuss the “kingdom of God”. This is the same idea that is behind the “kingdom of heaven”. The idea is not a celestial kingdom where people go after death. The kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven is the body of believers that inhabit the earth. Our King is God. Our lives are ruled by Him. If we are not serving our God, then we are simply playing games and are pretenders.

The parable of the seed continues the thought of the passage.  The farmer does not understand how life emerges from the seed, only that it grows, then produces a crop that can be harvested.  Modern biologist can tell you the reason that a seed sprouts.  They can show you how that the cells respond to water and then grow and divide to become a plant.  However, they cannot tell you why life exists.  Science can only tell you that it does exist and that seeds sprout and grow.

The source behind life is God.  He is the prime mover of the universe that causes everything that has life to live.  The same is true regarding spiritual life.  God is the prime mover that regenerates the unbeliever to make him into a new creation which is designed after God’s image.  As farmers, we sow the seed of the Word, God causes it to grow and develop into mature believers.

Many people plant the seed, and many people are part of the growth of that seed.  The one person who is most responsible for the growth of the seed is the Holy Spirit.  He makes sure that everyone plants the seed, waters it, coaxes the young plant along until it comes to maturity.  Yet few are aware of our master gardener, the Holy Spirit at work in orchestrating this growth.  God’s Kingdom is made up of a lot of people, and all of us are working to bring forth the harvest.  At the right time, when a person is ready to receive the good news of God’s mercy, God directs us to that person and he is led to the Messiah.  Occasionally, this takes place strictly through the work of the Holy Spirit convicting the person of the need for salvation, but most of the time He uses believers.  We are not aware of all the little tweaks that were placed on a person to bring him to the point where he is willing to make a life change by recognizing Jesus and committing to follow His instructions.  I wonder if this analogy could go both directions, both toward salvation, and toward God bringing us home at the end of our lives, bringing with us the fruit that we have produced for Him.  Galatians 6:6-9

Mark 4:30-34

Jesus used a popular image from the Old Testament to teach that the Kingdom is now at hand.  The “birds of the air” was a euphemism which referred to the Gentiles or a foreign nation taking refuge under the shelter of a superior power.  For a quick study on this, let’s look at some cross-references for a moment.

Ezekiel 17:22-24 God promised to take a small sprig from a huge cedar and make it into a new tree. This figuratively symbolized growing a nation from a remnant.

Ezekiel 31:5-7 This passage refers to Pharaoh and the Assyrian empire.  The idea was that the kingdom had become so big that it fed the nations around it.  Birds of the air referred to other nations that relied upon Babylon for support and monetary gain.  This would be very similar to the way that the United States is a main consumer for many nations around the world.

Daniel 4 This is probably the most detailed of examples. Nebuchadnezzar had grown an empire that was immense. When reading through this passage, you will see clearly that the empire touched many people in many different areas. God called judgment on Nebuchadnezzar and for a time snatched the kingdom from him.

The picture of a mustard seed was not a new idea to the Jews.  In this case, it was applied to the Kingdom of God.  When you consider this in context, God’s kingdom will grow to the point that it will become a place where other nations will take refuge under its wings.  Step into their shoes for a moment.  The “Kingdom” was a “Jewish” kingdom established upon promises found in the Old Testament Torah.  We are too quick to interpret this passage strictly in the sense of the “New Testament” without looking at the implications from the “Old Testament.”  The point that I am making here is that the “Kingdom of God” is “Jewish”, the Gentiles and foreign nations are able to take part of that kingdom through the finished work of the Messiah.  To back this up let’s look at what Paul stated: Read Romans 11:16-25

God allowed Israel to go their own way.  Their rejection of the Messiah placed a distance between them and God.  During that time God allowed the Gentiles to be grafted into the tree of Israel.  For many years the church has taught “replacement theology” where Gentiles have replaced the Jews in all biblical promises. Nothing is further from the truth. How arrogant we have become by thinking that God has rejected the Nation of Israel. In reality we are the usurpers, the nations who have camped under the canopy of Israel.  The parable that Jesus gave was not that the mustard seed would germinate to become a Gentile tree, but rather that it would be a Jewish tree that grows out of Judaism.

If we investigate the scriptures, it is clear that the “valley of dry bones”, the “budding of the fig tree” and other illustrations demonstrate clearly that the Jewish nation will eventually recognize the Messiah and then return with full force to their rightful position. When they return to the Messiah that they have rejected, I believe we will be astounded at the spiritual power that they will have.

What does this have to do with us?  Each of us are part of individual churches that reach out to the world.  Our physical church buildings are ministry points that bring wealth, both spiritually and materially to many unbelievers. This is in the form of procuring goods and services and welcoming the unbelievers to our assembly.  Our church body touches many who are believers and unbelievers through the day influencing them for God as witnesses of God and ambassadors of the Messiah.  As individuals, we carry God’s message to the world in every aspect of our lives.  Our small to mega churches each started with an idea, a small mustard seed.  As they grow, so grows our contact with the world.  Ideally, we will evangelize our world and influence it to turn to Yeshua the Messiah.

Perhaps I have made the Parable of the mustard seed too complicated.  Picture this, the seed was sown, a small seed in the light of history, 12 men were discipled to care for that seed and to carry it forth to cause growth.  Those twelve men were highly unlikely candidates, nothing fantastic about them, simple men, fishermen and worker bees.  Yet they carried this message forward to all nations, who carried it forward.  The mustard plant has grown through the centuries, at first, it had a Jewish beginning, with the birds of the air (gentiles) who have made their home in its branches.  The Kingdom of God, the chosen ones of God, almost too heavy a concept to adequately cover the idea.  Yet here we are, all learning and growing and shedding our light because we are God’s kids, we are part of His kingdom.  Isn’t it fantastic?