Awaiting The Kingdom Of God
Preaching
The Parables Of Jesus
Applications For Contemporary Life
He also said, "The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come."
He also said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."
With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.
Theme
Life experience demonstrates that most things that are big and great did not start that way. Many great scientific discoveries began with a few mathematical equations on a chalkboard and a basic theory of operation. Numerous political movements started when a small group of people possessed a vision for the future. Some of the greatest companies began as door-to-door sales or as a single shop in one location. Only with faith is it possible to have the trust and confidence necessary to see how things that seem so insignificant can with time become ideas, companies, or people that transform society. If we can trust God to do the work that is beyond us, then the difficult we can do today and the impossible we can tackle tomorrow.
Spiritual Food For The Journey
A group of botanists was exploring almost inaccessible regions in search of rare and new species of flowers. One day the chief of the expedition spied a rare and very beautiful flower located deep in a ravine that was guarded on both sides by tall and sheer cliffs. The only way to reach the flower was for someone to be lowered over the side on a rope. There was a young man who was observing the scientists at their work. The leader of the group came to the youth and said, "We will give you twenty dollars if you will go over the ledge on a rope and retrieve a rare flower for us." The young man looked the situation over and responded, "Wait one minute. I'll be right back." The youth ran off and returned a few minutes later accompanied by an older man. Approaching the botanist the young man said, "I'll go over the side and retrieve your flower as long as this man holds the rope. He is my father."
Who or what do you trust in life? Some people may answer that they trust members of their family, other relatives, and close friends. This would be a good and certainly an appropriate answer. When problems arise or obstacles are found along the road of life it is only natural to seek those who share our home and are integrally involved with our lives. Others may answer that they place their trust and confidence in things. In certain cases this too may be an appropriate response. If we find ourselves stranded somewhere, the fact that we have a VISA, Mastercard, or similar internationally accepted device that can obtain money, lodging, food, and transportation would certainly come in handy. Some people can only trust themselves. We have all heard and probably exercised the expression which says, if I want it done right I will do it myself. There are those in our world, however, who when asked the question, "Who or what do you trust?" could honestly answer, "I trust God."
Ultimately, as helpful as people and the material world can be, we must place our trust and confidence in God. God and God alone is the final answer to the pain, difficulty, misunderstanding, and loss that life can bring. We must do what we can do as best we are able and then we must allow God to act. Many people cannot place their confidence in God because the Lord is not visible; others fail to see the action of God before them and thus feel certain situations need the immediate "fix" that the visible world can bring. The parables of the growing seed and the mustard seed tell us that we must be like the farmer, who sows and then with patience and trust waits for the magnaminity of God to be manifest. God will act, and although it may at first seem insignificant, like a mustard seed, the kingdom that comes will be beyond our imagining.
Application Of The Parable To Contemporary Life
Sermon Openings
1. John Harding had it all; his credentials were impeccable. He had a wonderful family. His wife, Sally, was one of those people everyone enjoys meeting. His eight-year-old son, Rick, was a good student, enjoyed athletics, and obeyed his parents. John himself had moved up the corporate ladder. After graduating from Arizona State University, where he played baseball well enough to be offered a professional contract, he moved to California's "Silicon Valley" and signed on with one of the many software companies with headquarters in the region. Through his brains, diligence, and much hard work he rapidly moved into management, beginning at the bottom and moving up. Still in his thirties, national publications such as Forbes, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal commented favorably on his managerial style. John Harding had the perfect resumé for life: academic achievement, awards, and many positions of importance.
With such a record it was not a big surprise when Millennium, the third largest software manufacturer in the world, offered Harding a special position; they asked him to be their chief executive officer. John jumped at the offer. Not only was it a great position, but it would allow him to return to his native New England. He settled in his home town of Boland, New Hampshire, only twenty miles or so from Concord, the world headquarters for Millennium.
Everything seemed to be going well for John. The town welcomed a favorite son; the company liked their new boss. Then in the twinkling of an eye everything changed for John Harding. Sally and Rick were riding in the family car. A drunk driver crossed the centerline and an instant later they were both gone. John Harding had the perfect resumé for life; he had no resumé for death. He was a man who placed all his trust in his own ability; he never had to rely on others. Now, however, in grief and shock, he crawled into a shell of mourning and refused to come out.
After a couple of months an old friend, Bill West, came to John to see if he could pull him from his state of grief. He knew that John liked baseball; maybe he would consider being the manager of one of Boland's four summer little league teams. Harding tried to run away, but Bill West was persistent and so John agreed. His team was the Angels.
It was at this time that John Harding met little Timmy Noble. Timmy, a member of the Angels, was eight years old and a towhead just like his son Rick. Unlike his son, however, Timmy was not a good player; he did not have the gifts for baseball. He did not possess the keen eye to be a good hitter and he did not have the strong arm needed to be a good fielder. But Timmy Noble had some very important qualities nonetheless. He had courage and a big heart -- how can one measure such qualities? He had determination and, most especially, Timmy Noble had faith. He didn't worry about what he couldn't do; he was grateful for what he had. He had decided a long time ago to place his trust in God.
The Angels did well that year; in fact they won the league championship. Timmy Noble was not one of the stars; he just was not gifted as a baseball player. But there was something wrong, something radically wrong. Timmy Noble was very sick. He never told anyone; he never complained. He came to every practice and played in each game, even though he had to ride his bike five miles each way to the field. When the season was over and it was revealed that Timmy Noble had terminal cancer, John Harding knew the reason that God had led him to manage the Angels. John had the perfect resumé for life; Timmy Noble had the perfect resumé for eternal life.1
Are you a person who places all your trust in yourself or can you let go and allow God to operate in your life? Jesus in his parable of the growing seed suggests that we must do what we can do and then allow God to act in our lives.
2. Between 1955 and 1968 the Civil Rights movement transformed the United States of America. The beginning of this drive to human freedom did not start in a glorious and auspicious way; it was subtle and barely recognizable. Although Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, freeing all slaves in the Confederate states; and the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments to the Constitution, which guaranteed rights to all citizens regardless of color, were all in place by 1870, the experience of black America in 1955 was one of segregation and racism. On December 1, 1955, however, a seed was planted that would cause a revolution. Mrs. Rosa Parks, returning home from work on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus refused to move to the back of the vehicle when ordered to do so by the driver. "Jim Crow" segregation mandated that blacks sit or stand in the back of the bus only. Mrs. Parks was arrested and temporarily jailed, but word spread rapidly and she was released.
The incident was small, hardly worth mentioning in any usual situation, but these were special times in Montgomery. Martin Luther King, Jr., a young pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, was asked to lead the black community in a citywide boycott of the bus system. Led by Dr. King the boycott was almost total. Car pools and walking became the principal modes of transportation for almost the entire black community. It took just over a year, but finally in December 1956, the city buses of Montgomery were integrated.
Rosa Parks' courage and the rise to prominence and community leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr., initiated a series of events that eventually broke down the barriers of racism and ended the Jim Crow system of segregation which had been practiced in the South for nearly 100 years. From Montgomery the movement went to Greensboro, North Carolina, where four black college students demanded that they be served at a local all-white Woolworth's lunch counter. The Freedom Ride of 1961 was followed by other non-violent protests, including the voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. In August 1963 Dr. King closed the March of Washington with his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. Over the next five years the Civil Rights movement continued to grow, making inroads into the slums of Chicago as well as the urban areas of the South.
In April 1968 Dr. King came to Memphis, Tennessee, to support a sanitation workers' strike. He gave an electrifying speech to an assembled group where he exclaimed, "I have been to the mountaintop and I have seen the promised land." He had led his people through a dark valley that was beginning to produce light. The next day, Martin Luther King was assassinated; he was silenced at the tender age of 39.
The American Civil Rights movement began as one small voice saying "no," and it culminated with the transformation, legally and morally, of an entire nation. Few if any thought that Rosa Parks' refusal to move would result in a mass movement, but this is exactly what happened. It is like the mustard seed in today's Gospel that seemed so insignificant yet produced a bush so large.
Points Of Challenge And Questions To Ponder
1. Who or what holds our loyalty? When difficulty strikes where do we turn? Do we seek the easy and obvious answer or can we with faith and trust seek the ultimate solution which only God can give?
2. Are we people who seek control in our lives? Do we have a "need" to know that the situation is in hand? Do we only trust ourselves to handle the critical and difficult situations?
3. Is patience an important virtue in our lives? Can we step back far enough from a situation to relinquish some control and not fear that it "won't get done"? Do we possess the patience to allow God to operate in God's own time?
4. Do we allow the seed of new ideas and projects to germinate and grow? Can we see the possibility without the need to experience the final product immediately? Can we understand that greatness in anything cannot happen overnight?
5. What role do we wish God to fill in our lives? Do we wish God to be kept in reserve until such time as we need the divine presence? Can we perceive the presence of God around us in situations, events, and most especially people, or have we closed our minds to God?
Exegesis And Explanation Of The Parable
Chapter 4 of Mark's Gospel is one of only two places in the entire book (chapter 13 being the other) where the evangelist presents extensive teaching from Jesus. Commentators believe that the purpose of this instruction to the four apostles (Peter, Andrew, James, and John) was to implant the conviction that the suffering that lay ahead was to find explanation and denouement in the coming of the Son of Man, identified silently as the speaker -- namely Jesus. The Lord teaches his apostles in chapter 4 that those who listen to him are assured that silent yet powerful forces are at work for them on the side of righteousness. This is as certain and unfailing as the work of nature, yet not all perceive the Lord's work (4:10-12).
Some exegetes have asked why Mark presents this collected material in chapter 4. One suggested answer is that the evangelist wants to provide some light to counter the gathering storm of controversy that is presented in the previous two chapters of the Gospel. Since Mark opened his book with the proclamation of the arrival of the Kingdom of God, it is necessary to express supreme confidence that Jesus can triumph over all opponents in due time. The goal of the Kingdom is thus tacitly identified with the cause and work of Jesus and his followers.
The two parables presented in this passage, the growing seed (4:26-29) and the mustard seed (4:30-32), present a picture of the victory of God's kingdom. The evangelist wants his readers to know that although the present age may be frought with difficulties for those who believe in Jesus, and there may be little evidence of God's work, the seed that was planted by Christ during his time on earth will one day blossom greatly and become a mighty force in the world. Mark tells us that ultimately any opposition to Jesus will be ineffective. Trusting in God that the kingdom will come is strongly emphasized in the collective message of these two parables.
The parable of the growing seed (also called the parable of the husbandman) is difficult to understand because of its lack of context. Most scholars have pointed to the sequence -- harvesting following sowing in due time -- as the central image of the parable. It is highly unlikely that this was intended to refer to a gradual arrival of the Kingdom. Review of Jesus' teaching on the end times, and our knowledge of Jewish eschatological thought from which it was drawn, makes it extremely unlikely that he taught that God's reign would only come in a gradual fashion. Many commentators, in fact, believe that the stages of growth -- blade, ear, and corn -- are not part of the original parable. The length of the process is not emphasized, but rather the necessarily inevitable progression of growth. Spontaneity and the uncompelled nature of the seed's growth are the emphases. As a point of context, scholars point out that in 1 Clement 23:3-4 (written about 96 A.D.), a similarly worded parable is used to show how the Kingdom will not be long delayed.
Several interpretations of this parable exist in the scholarly literature. Some exegetes suggest the account is allegorical. Christ has sown; in time he will reap. During the interim the invisible work of the Holy Spirit in the Church and the human soul will continue. Protestant reformer John Calvin understood the ministers of the word to be the sowers of the seed. They should not become discouraged when immediate results from their efforts do not materialize. By reminding his followers of the process of nature, Jesus is telling the apostles that they must be patient to allow the seed to germinate and to grow. Calvin believed that Jesus' ministers should sow the seed and then go about the ordinary tasks of the day. As the wheat matured at the right time, so the fruit of the preacher's labors will eventually appear. Ministers of the gospel should take courage and continue their work, eagerly and faithfully. The Scripture scholar Joachim Jeremias suggests that God is the sower who allows nature to run its course, even to the point that it appears God has ignored the seed. However, when the hour arrives, God wields the sickle and this wondrous act initiates the Kingdom. The faithful are thus challenged to be patient and wait for God's action.
The preponderance of scholarship suggests that this parable is an answer by Mark to those who felt discouraged at the apparent lack of growth of the Christian community and the perceived failure of Christ's words to command the attention and respect of the world. Jesus' words indicate that life follows the normal order, like a seed which grows to maturity. The farmer is not anxious about the seed, for he knows the pattern of growth. The disciples should thus model themselves after the farmer and have faith in God to bring about the universal rule, as the farmer has faith in the process of natural growth. The parable sustains Mark's view that the dawn of the Kingdom, in its obscure beginnings, is hidden from human eyes in the ministry of Jesus. Nonetheless, Jesus' presence guarantees that the harvest of the Kingdom of God can be awaited with confidence. Mark thus challenges his readers to see that all who open themselves in faith to the future will certainly be freed from frustration and anxiety in the present age.
It is assumed that Mark aimed this parable of Jesus at those of his contemporaries who felt that by their own efforts they could hasten God's Kingdom. No special zeal for the law, revolutionary political activity, or preparation of the elect for the end will influence the arrival of the reign of God. Against all such ideas, Jesus teaches that the Kingdom of God will be brought about by God's power alone. Christ thus challenges his followers to build one's life entirely upon God's promise and no longer upon one's own ability or inability. When the hour has come and the eschatological term is completed, God will bring about the Kingdom; humans can only wait as does the farmer for the growth of the seed.
The parable of the mustard seed, verses 30-32, is another story of the Kingdom of God that presents a message related to the theme of the parable of the growing seed. There is little doubt that every Jew who heard Jesus' words could relate them to Israel's own experience. It was part of the social tradition that Israel had small beginnings, even inconspicuous. Indeed, the community had been destitute and enslaved at one time. Yet God never abandoned the people, but rather was ever present and has overseen the growth of the community into God's holy people. For the followers of Jesus the parable was equally meaningful. The unspectacular and outwardly insignificant ministry of Jesus may not look like the sort of thing that can usher in the Kingdom of God, but the parable of the mustard seed demonstrates that one cannot judge the significance of results by the size of beginnings. Mark applied the lesson to the evangelistic activities of the early Church as well as the ministry of Jesus. The insignificant beginnings of Christian missions must not daunt the missionary's faith.
Most recent commentators are agreed that the parables of the mustard seed and leaven (as included in Matthew and Luke) should be classified as "contrast parables." The central point of the parable of the mustard seed is the contrast between the insignificant and obscure beginnings of the Kingdom in, with, and around Jesus, and the magnificient ending that God has in store for those who are prepared to trust him in the quite unspectacular present. Mark's perspective on the parable involves a transference of situation. The time of the beginning, when Jesus sowed the seed or brought the good news, has now given way to the time of the Church's missionary promulgation of its message. In this latter time, despite hindrances and failures in mission, the Gentiles are being brought within the scope of the kingdom. Mark challenges his readers to perceive that despite the present insignificance of the day, the future is bright that God's purpose will be manifest in a triumphant manner.
Jesus' reference to the birds of the air nesting in the branches of the mustard plant has raised some questions in the minds of scholars. They suggest that Christians of the apostolic era would have interpreted the parable as a prophecy for the future growth of the Christian faith. Some commentators see the words allegorically as implying that the preaching of the gospel would bring all nations within the scope of the Kingdom. Old Testament references of birds seeking shelter under a tree (Ezekiel 17:23, 31:6, and Daniel 4:12) serve as the principal evidence to this interpretation. Other exegetes, however, use these same references to the Hebrew Scripture to suggest that verse 32 in its entirety was not part of the original passage, since none of Jesus' parables have references in them to Old Testament passages.
Verses 33 and 34 present a problem of inconsistency. Scholars suggest that verse 33 fits the original intent of parables, while verse 34 reflects Mark's understanding of them as designed to veil the truth from the outside. The latter verse emphasizes continual dependence on Jesus for the word. From Mark's standpoint this is an invitation to readers to recognize the deeper understanding of the word, but this is conditional upon their being drawn into the company of Jesus and their listening attentively to his living voice in the Church.
Context Of The Parable
Context In The Church Year
After the introduction to Mark's use of parable last week, we are today presented with one of the two major sections of Jesus' teaching in the whole of the Marcan corpus. The reality of our difficult world and the discouragement that at times comes with it necessitates that we focus on the victory won for us through the salvific death of Jesus. The parables of the growing seed and the mustard seed challenge us to see beyond the immediacy of our existence to the possibility that God can bring for those patient enough to await the Kingdom's arrival. The Christian community needs this periodic message of hope. We need to know that our efforts, which ofttimes seem so insignificant and worthless, will with time become not only important but so conspicuous that others, the birds of the air, will be attracted and seek shelter under our protection.
Context With Other Gospels
The parable of the growing seed (4:26-29) is unique to Mark's Gospel, although its message of trust, faith, and patience is found in many biblical passages. Matthew's parable of the wheat and tares (13:24-30) uses similar vocabulary to that used by Mark in this pericope.
The parable of the mustard seed is found in all three Synoptic evangelists and the Gospel of Thomas (20). Mark's version of the parable is is more precise than the other two writers, especially in its emphasis on the mustard seed being the smallest of all seeds. Luke and Matthew place this parable in tandem with that of leaven. The two form a pair which are two sides of the same coin. The parable of the mustard seed portrays the extensive growth of the Kingdom while the parable of the leaven describes the intensive growth of the Kingdom. Luke and Matthew also both say the mustard plant became a tree while Mark uses the word bush; the difference is not thought to be theologically significant. More importantly, all three versions of this parable teach us that although God's Kingdom may at first be inconspicuous, in the end it will be so conspicuous that those who are attracted to it, the birds of of the sky, can put it to their own use.
Context With First And Second Lessons
First Lesson: Ezekiel 17:22-24. The prophet Ezekiel wrote to the Hebrew people while they were in exile in Babylon. It is certainly understandable that the people may have lost confidence in God and felt they had been abandoned. Ezekiel reminds the people, however, that God will one day create a new Israel that will, like a majestic cedar that provides shelter for birds, be a place of refuge for the people. Those who have been made high and exalted will be lowered and those who have been humbled will be raised up.
Ezekiel's prophecy closely parallels the message of the parable of the mustard seed. God's kingdom has been planted, but it will take time for the mature plant to be seen. While the process unfolds people must trust in God to act. God's promise will be fulfilled; people need only be patient to witness its manifestation.
Second Lesson: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (11-13) 14-17. Saint Paul writes words of great encouragement to the Christian community at Corinth. He tells the people that if they can walk using their faith as a guide as opposed to their human vision, then they will possess the confidence necessary to wait for the presence of God in their lives. As we know, Paul expected the Parousia in his lifetime, but he realized that it might take some time. Patience, therefore, was a necessary virtue in order to experience the final revelation of Christ. We are all new creations in Christ; the old order has passed away and now all is new.
Paul probably did not want to wait for the coming of the Lord, but he came to understand that time was necessary for the Kingdom of God to grow in our world; it would not happen overnight. Maybe Paul had heard about Jesus' parables of the mustard seed and the growing seed and realized that he had to apply the teaching to his own ministry. We need to be patient for the Kingdom and allow God to act, with the surety that the wait will yield God's reign, which neither ear has heard nor eye seen.
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1. Summary of: Og Mandino, The Twelfth Angel (New York: Fawcett Crest, 1993).
He also said, "With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade."
With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.
Theme
Life experience demonstrates that most things that are big and great did not start that way. Many great scientific discoveries began with a few mathematical equations on a chalkboard and a basic theory of operation. Numerous political movements started when a small group of people possessed a vision for the future. Some of the greatest companies began as door-to-door sales or as a single shop in one location. Only with faith is it possible to have the trust and confidence necessary to see how things that seem so insignificant can with time become ideas, companies, or people that transform society. If we can trust God to do the work that is beyond us, then the difficult we can do today and the impossible we can tackle tomorrow.
Spiritual Food For The Journey
A group of botanists was exploring almost inaccessible regions in search of rare and new species of flowers. One day the chief of the expedition spied a rare and very beautiful flower located deep in a ravine that was guarded on both sides by tall and sheer cliffs. The only way to reach the flower was for someone to be lowered over the side on a rope. There was a young man who was observing the scientists at their work. The leader of the group came to the youth and said, "We will give you twenty dollars if you will go over the ledge on a rope and retrieve a rare flower for us." The young man looked the situation over and responded, "Wait one minute. I'll be right back." The youth ran off and returned a few minutes later accompanied by an older man. Approaching the botanist the young man said, "I'll go over the side and retrieve your flower as long as this man holds the rope. He is my father."
Who or what do you trust in life? Some people may answer that they trust members of their family, other relatives, and close friends. This would be a good and certainly an appropriate answer. When problems arise or obstacles are found along the road of life it is only natural to seek those who share our home and are integrally involved with our lives. Others may answer that they place their trust and confidence in things. In certain cases this too may be an appropriate response. If we find ourselves stranded somewhere, the fact that we have a VISA, Mastercard, or similar internationally accepted device that can obtain money, lodging, food, and transportation would certainly come in handy. Some people can only trust themselves. We have all heard and probably exercised the expression which says, if I want it done right I will do it myself. There are those in our world, however, who when asked the question, "Who or what do you trust?" could honestly answer, "I trust God."
Ultimately, as helpful as people and the material world can be, we must place our trust and confidence in God. God and God alone is the final answer to the pain, difficulty, misunderstanding, and loss that life can bring. We must do what we can do as best we are able and then we must allow God to act. Many people cannot place their confidence in God because the Lord is not visible; others fail to see the action of God before them and thus feel certain situations need the immediate "fix" that the visible world can bring. The parables of the growing seed and the mustard seed tell us that we must be like the farmer, who sows and then with patience and trust waits for the magnaminity of God to be manifest. God will act, and although it may at first seem insignificant, like a mustard seed, the kingdom that comes will be beyond our imagining.
Application Of The Parable To Contemporary Life
Sermon Openings
1. John Harding had it all; his credentials were impeccable. He had a wonderful family. His wife, Sally, was one of those people everyone enjoys meeting. His eight-year-old son, Rick, was a good student, enjoyed athletics, and obeyed his parents. John himself had moved up the corporate ladder. After graduating from Arizona State University, where he played baseball well enough to be offered a professional contract, he moved to California's "Silicon Valley" and signed on with one of the many software companies with headquarters in the region. Through his brains, diligence, and much hard work he rapidly moved into management, beginning at the bottom and moving up. Still in his thirties, national publications such as Forbes, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal commented favorably on his managerial style. John Harding had the perfect resumé for life: academic achievement, awards, and many positions of importance.
With such a record it was not a big surprise when Millennium, the third largest software manufacturer in the world, offered Harding a special position; they asked him to be their chief executive officer. John jumped at the offer. Not only was it a great position, but it would allow him to return to his native New England. He settled in his home town of Boland, New Hampshire, only twenty miles or so from Concord, the world headquarters for Millennium.
Everything seemed to be going well for John. The town welcomed a favorite son; the company liked their new boss. Then in the twinkling of an eye everything changed for John Harding. Sally and Rick were riding in the family car. A drunk driver crossed the centerline and an instant later they were both gone. John Harding had the perfect resumé for life; he had no resumé for death. He was a man who placed all his trust in his own ability; he never had to rely on others. Now, however, in grief and shock, he crawled into a shell of mourning and refused to come out.
After a couple of months an old friend, Bill West, came to John to see if he could pull him from his state of grief. He knew that John liked baseball; maybe he would consider being the manager of one of Boland's four summer little league teams. Harding tried to run away, but Bill West was persistent and so John agreed. His team was the Angels.
It was at this time that John Harding met little Timmy Noble. Timmy, a member of the Angels, was eight years old and a towhead just like his son Rick. Unlike his son, however, Timmy was not a good player; he did not have the gifts for baseball. He did not possess the keen eye to be a good hitter and he did not have the strong arm needed to be a good fielder. But Timmy Noble had some very important qualities nonetheless. He had courage and a big heart -- how can one measure such qualities? He had determination and, most especially, Timmy Noble had faith. He didn't worry about what he couldn't do; he was grateful for what he had. He had decided a long time ago to place his trust in God.
The Angels did well that year; in fact they won the league championship. Timmy Noble was not one of the stars; he just was not gifted as a baseball player. But there was something wrong, something radically wrong. Timmy Noble was very sick. He never told anyone; he never complained. He came to every practice and played in each game, even though he had to ride his bike five miles each way to the field. When the season was over and it was revealed that Timmy Noble had terminal cancer, John Harding knew the reason that God had led him to manage the Angels. John had the perfect resumé for life; Timmy Noble had the perfect resumé for eternal life.1
Are you a person who places all your trust in yourself or can you let go and allow God to operate in your life? Jesus in his parable of the growing seed suggests that we must do what we can do and then allow God to act in our lives.
2. Between 1955 and 1968 the Civil Rights movement transformed the United States of America. The beginning of this drive to human freedom did not start in a glorious and auspicious way; it was subtle and barely recognizable. Although Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, freeing all slaves in the Confederate states; and the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendments to the Constitution, which guaranteed rights to all citizens regardless of color, were all in place by 1870, the experience of black America in 1955 was one of segregation and racism. On December 1, 1955, however, a seed was planted that would cause a revolution. Mrs. Rosa Parks, returning home from work on a Montgomery, Alabama city bus refused to move to the back of the vehicle when ordered to do so by the driver. "Jim Crow" segregation mandated that blacks sit or stand in the back of the bus only. Mrs. Parks was arrested and temporarily jailed, but word spread rapidly and she was released.
The incident was small, hardly worth mentioning in any usual situation, but these were special times in Montgomery. Martin Luther King, Jr., a young pastor at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, was asked to lead the black community in a citywide boycott of the bus system. Led by Dr. King the boycott was almost total. Car pools and walking became the principal modes of transportation for almost the entire black community. It took just over a year, but finally in December 1956, the city buses of Montgomery were integrated.
Rosa Parks' courage and the rise to prominence and community leadership of Martin Luther King, Jr., initiated a series of events that eventually broke down the barriers of racism and ended the Jim Crow system of segregation which had been practiced in the South for nearly 100 years. From Montgomery the movement went to Greensboro, North Carolina, where four black college students demanded that they be served at a local all-white Woolworth's lunch counter. The Freedom Ride of 1961 was followed by other non-violent protests, including the voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. In August 1963 Dr. King closed the March of Washington with his famous "I Have A Dream" speech. Over the next five years the Civil Rights movement continued to grow, making inroads into the slums of Chicago as well as the urban areas of the South.
In April 1968 Dr. King came to Memphis, Tennessee, to support a sanitation workers' strike. He gave an electrifying speech to an assembled group where he exclaimed, "I have been to the mountaintop and I have seen the promised land." He had led his people through a dark valley that was beginning to produce light. The next day, Martin Luther King was assassinated; he was silenced at the tender age of 39.
The American Civil Rights movement began as one small voice saying "no," and it culminated with the transformation, legally and morally, of an entire nation. Few if any thought that Rosa Parks' refusal to move would result in a mass movement, but this is exactly what happened. It is like the mustard seed in today's Gospel that seemed so insignificant yet produced a bush so large.
Points Of Challenge And Questions To Ponder
1. Who or what holds our loyalty? When difficulty strikes where do we turn? Do we seek the easy and obvious answer or can we with faith and trust seek the ultimate solution which only God can give?
2. Are we people who seek control in our lives? Do we have a "need" to know that the situation is in hand? Do we only trust ourselves to handle the critical and difficult situations?
3. Is patience an important virtue in our lives? Can we step back far enough from a situation to relinquish some control and not fear that it "won't get done"? Do we possess the patience to allow God to operate in God's own time?
4. Do we allow the seed of new ideas and projects to germinate and grow? Can we see the possibility without the need to experience the final product immediately? Can we understand that greatness in anything cannot happen overnight?
5. What role do we wish God to fill in our lives? Do we wish God to be kept in reserve until such time as we need the divine presence? Can we perceive the presence of God around us in situations, events, and most especially people, or have we closed our minds to God?
Exegesis And Explanation Of The Parable
Chapter 4 of Mark's Gospel is one of only two places in the entire book (chapter 13 being the other) where the evangelist presents extensive teaching from Jesus. Commentators believe that the purpose of this instruction to the four apostles (Peter, Andrew, James, and John) was to implant the conviction that the suffering that lay ahead was to find explanation and denouement in the coming of the Son of Man, identified silently as the speaker -- namely Jesus. The Lord teaches his apostles in chapter 4 that those who listen to him are assured that silent yet powerful forces are at work for them on the side of righteousness. This is as certain and unfailing as the work of nature, yet not all perceive the Lord's work (4:10-12).
Some exegetes have asked why Mark presents this collected material in chapter 4. One suggested answer is that the evangelist wants to provide some light to counter the gathering storm of controversy that is presented in the previous two chapters of the Gospel. Since Mark opened his book with the proclamation of the arrival of the Kingdom of God, it is necessary to express supreme confidence that Jesus can triumph over all opponents in due time. The goal of the Kingdom is thus tacitly identified with the cause and work of Jesus and his followers.
The two parables presented in this passage, the growing seed (4:26-29) and the mustard seed (4:30-32), present a picture of the victory of God's kingdom. The evangelist wants his readers to know that although the present age may be frought with difficulties for those who believe in Jesus, and there may be little evidence of God's work, the seed that was planted by Christ during his time on earth will one day blossom greatly and become a mighty force in the world. Mark tells us that ultimately any opposition to Jesus will be ineffective. Trusting in God that the kingdom will come is strongly emphasized in the collective message of these two parables.
The parable of the growing seed (also called the parable of the husbandman) is difficult to understand because of its lack of context. Most scholars have pointed to the sequence -- harvesting following sowing in due time -- as the central image of the parable. It is highly unlikely that this was intended to refer to a gradual arrival of the Kingdom. Review of Jesus' teaching on the end times, and our knowledge of Jewish eschatological thought from which it was drawn, makes it extremely unlikely that he taught that God's reign would only come in a gradual fashion. Many commentators, in fact, believe that the stages of growth -- blade, ear, and corn -- are not part of the original parable. The length of the process is not emphasized, but rather the necessarily inevitable progression of growth. Spontaneity and the uncompelled nature of the seed's growth are the emphases. As a point of context, scholars point out that in 1 Clement 23:3-4 (written about 96 A.D.), a similarly worded parable is used to show how the Kingdom will not be long delayed.
Several interpretations of this parable exist in the scholarly literature. Some exegetes suggest the account is allegorical. Christ has sown; in time he will reap. During the interim the invisible work of the Holy Spirit in the Church and the human soul will continue. Protestant reformer John Calvin understood the ministers of the word to be the sowers of the seed. They should not become discouraged when immediate results from their efforts do not materialize. By reminding his followers of the process of nature, Jesus is telling the apostles that they must be patient to allow the seed to germinate and to grow. Calvin believed that Jesus' ministers should sow the seed and then go about the ordinary tasks of the day. As the wheat matured at the right time, so the fruit of the preacher's labors will eventually appear. Ministers of the gospel should take courage and continue their work, eagerly and faithfully. The Scripture scholar Joachim Jeremias suggests that God is the sower who allows nature to run its course, even to the point that it appears God has ignored the seed. However, when the hour arrives, God wields the sickle and this wondrous act initiates the Kingdom. The faithful are thus challenged to be patient and wait for God's action.
The preponderance of scholarship suggests that this parable is an answer by Mark to those who felt discouraged at the apparent lack of growth of the Christian community and the perceived failure of Christ's words to command the attention and respect of the world. Jesus' words indicate that life follows the normal order, like a seed which grows to maturity. The farmer is not anxious about the seed, for he knows the pattern of growth. The disciples should thus model themselves after the farmer and have faith in God to bring about the universal rule, as the farmer has faith in the process of natural growth. The parable sustains Mark's view that the dawn of the Kingdom, in its obscure beginnings, is hidden from human eyes in the ministry of Jesus. Nonetheless, Jesus' presence guarantees that the harvest of the Kingdom of God can be awaited with confidence. Mark thus challenges his readers to see that all who open themselves in faith to the future will certainly be freed from frustration and anxiety in the present age.
It is assumed that Mark aimed this parable of Jesus at those of his contemporaries who felt that by their own efforts they could hasten God's Kingdom. No special zeal for the law, revolutionary political activity, or preparation of the elect for the end will influence the arrival of the reign of God. Against all such ideas, Jesus teaches that the Kingdom of God will be brought about by God's power alone. Christ thus challenges his followers to build one's life entirely upon God's promise and no longer upon one's own ability or inability. When the hour has come and the eschatological term is completed, God will bring about the Kingdom; humans can only wait as does the farmer for the growth of the seed.
The parable of the mustard seed, verses 30-32, is another story of the Kingdom of God that presents a message related to the theme of the parable of the growing seed. There is little doubt that every Jew who heard Jesus' words could relate them to Israel's own experience. It was part of the social tradition that Israel had small beginnings, even inconspicuous. Indeed, the community had been destitute and enslaved at one time. Yet God never abandoned the people, but rather was ever present and has overseen the growth of the community into God's holy people. For the followers of Jesus the parable was equally meaningful. The unspectacular and outwardly insignificant ministry of Jesus may not look like the sort of thing that can usher in the Kingdom of God, but the parable of the mustard seed demonstrates that one cannot judge the significance of results by the size of beginnings. Mark applied the lesson to the evangelistic activities of the early Church as well as the ministry of Jesus. The insignificant beginnings of Christian missions must not daunt the missionary's faith.
Most recent commentators are agreed that the parables of the mustard seed and leaven (as included in Matthew and Luke) should be classified as "contrast parables." The central point of the parable of the mustard seed is the contrast between the insignificant and obscure beginnings of the Kingdom in, with, and around Jesus, and the magnificient ending that God has in store for those who are prepared to trust him in the quite unspectacular present. Mark's perspective on the parable involves a transference of situation. The time of the beginning, when Jesus sowed the seed or brought the good news, has now given way to the time of the Church's missionary promulgation of its message. In this latter time, despite hindrances and failures in mission, the Gentiles are being brought within the scope of the kingdom. Mark challenges his readers to perceive that despite the present insignificance of the day, the future is bright that God's purpose will be manifest in a triumphant manner.
Jesus' reference to the birds of the air nesting in the branches of the mustard plant has raised some questions in the minds of scholars. They suggest that Christians of the apostolic era would have interpreted the parable as a prophecy for the future growth of the Christian faith. Some commentators see the words allegorically as implying that the preaching of the gospel would bring all nations within the scope of the Kingdom. Old Testament references of birds seeking shelter under a tree (Ezekiel 17:23, 31:6, and Daniel 4:12) serve as the principal evidence to this interpretation. Other exegetes, however, use these same references to the Hebrew Scripture to suggest that verse 32 in its entirety was not part of the original passage, since none of Jesus' parables have references in them to Old Testament passages.
Verses 33 and 34 present a problem of inconsistency. Scholars suggest that verse 33 fits the original intent of parables, while verse 34 reflects Mark's understanding of them as designed to veil the truth from the outside. The latter verse emphasizes continual dependence on Jesus for the word. From Mark's standpoint this is an invitation to readers to recognize the deeper understanding of the word, but this is conditional upon their being drawn into the company of Jesus and their listening attentively to his living voice in the Church.
Context Of The Parable
Context In The Church Year
After the introduction to Mark's use of parable last week, we are today presented with one of the two major sections of Jesus' teaching in the whole of the Marcan corpus. The reality of our difficult world and the discouragement that at times comes with it necessitates that we focus on the victory won for us through the salvific death of Jesus. The parables of the growing seed and the mustard seed challenge us to see beyond the immediacy of our existence to the possibility that God can bring for those patient enough to await the Kingdom's arrival. The Christian community needs this periodic message of hope. We need to know that our efforts, which ofttimes seem so insignificant and worthless, will with time become not only important but so conspicuous that others, the birds of the air, will be attracted and seek shelter under our protection.
Context With Other Gospels
The parable of the growing seed (4:26-29) is unique to Mark's Gospel, although its message of trust, faith, and patience is found in many biblical passages. Matthew's parable of the wheat and tares (13:24-30) uses similar vocabulary to that used by Mark in this pericope.
The parable of the mustard seed is found in all three Synoptic evangelists and the Gospel of Thomas (20). Mark's version of the parable is is more precise than the other two writers, especially in its emphasis on the mustard seed being the smallest of all seeds. Luke and Matthew place this parable in tandem with that of leaven. The two form a pair which are two sides of the same coin. The parable of the mustard seed portrays the extensive growth of the Kingdom while the parable of the leaven describes the intensive growth of the Kingdom. Luke and Matthew also both say the mustard plant became a tree while Mark uses the word bush; the difference is not thought to be theologically significant. More importantly, all three versions of this parable teach us that although God's Kingdom may at first be inconspicuous, in the end it will be so conspicuous that those who are attracted to it, the birds of of the sky, can put it to their own use.
Context With First And Second Lessons
First Lesson: Ezekiel 17:22-24. The prophet Ezekiel wrote to the Hebrew people while they were in exile in Babylon. It is certainly understandable that the people may have lost confidence in God and felt they had been abandoned. Ezekiel reminds the people, however, that God will one day create a new Israel that will, like a majestic cedar that provides shelter for birds, be a place of refuge for the people. Those who have been made high and exalted will be lowered and those who have been humbled will be raised up.
Ezekiel's prophecy closely parallels the message of the parable of the mustard seed. God's kingdom has been planted, but it will take time for the mature plant to be seen. While the process unfolds people must trust in God to act. God's promise will be fulfilled; people need only be patient to witness its manifestation.
Second Lesson: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10 (11-13) 14-17. Saint Paul writes words of great encouragement to the Christian community at Corinth. He tells the people that if they can walk using their faith as a guide as opposed to their human vision, then they will possess the confidence necessary to wait for the presence of God in their lives. As we know, Paul expected the Parousia in his lifetime, but he realized that it might take some time. Patience, therefore, was a necessary virtue in order to experience the final revelation of Christ. We are all new creations in Christ; the old order has passed away and now all is new.
Paul probably did not want to wait for the coming of the Lord, but he came to understand that time was necessary for the Kingdom of God to grow in our world; it would not happen overnight. Maybe Paul had heard about Jesus' parables of the mustard seed and the growing seed and realized that he had to apply the teaching to his own ministry. We need to be patient for the Kingdom and allow God to act, with the surety that the wait will yield God's reign, which neither ear has heard nor eye seen.
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1. Summary of: Og Mandino, The Twelfth Angel (New York: Fawcett Crest, 1993).
