Proper 12 / Pentecost 10 / OT 17
Devotional
Water From the Well
Lectionary Devotional For Cycle A
Object:
"Have you understood all this?" They answered, "Yes."
-- Matthew 13:51
Perhaps a challenge for the church is to answer Jesus' question with respect to these parables. This is a collection of parables that seek to reveal the kingdom of God or how God governs. If people within the church are going to live in relationship to each other and the world according to God's way, these parables help us understand what our life and relationships should be like.
The first parable is that of the mustard seed that begins small but grows large and provides shelter for the birds of the air. The birds of the air are a biblical symbol of the nations. It is for the sake of the world that God called the people together. When we are feeling our work, however faithful, is insignificant, this parable is a parable of promise. The faith that changed the world began with a Galilean Jew who could not even gain the loyalty of his own people. The parable of the yeast suggests that we proclaim a faith that infiltrates and changes all around it. The yeast is an almost invisible element that affects the whole loaf. The church does not need to get great publicity to be effective. The next parable is about a treasure hidden in a field and then a fine pearl that is so precious it is worth all that one has. Finally, the kingdom is compared to a net that gathers up the good and bad and leaves the separation until later.
If the church as the body of Christ is to reveal how God governs, the parables are suggestive. God's rule is built on small things (mustard seeds) that build a structure that protects the nations. Like yeast, it infiltrates from within rather than conquers from outside. God rules in our life by enticing our spirit by the value of serving God (fine pearl) and is worth all that we have. God governs by a grace, like a fishing net that gathers everyone in and leaves the separation of good and bad to God at a later time. It is a different way to govern our lives than that which the world offers.
-- Matthew 13:51
Perhaps a challenge for the church is to answer Jesus' question with respect to these parables. This is a collection of parables that seek to reveal the kingdom of God or how God governs. If people within the church are going to live in relationship to each other and the world according to God's way, these parables help us understand what our life and relationships should be like.
The first parable is that of the mustard seed that begins small but grows large and provides shelter for the birds of the air. The birds of the air are a biblical symbol of the nations. It is for the sake of the world that God called the people together. When we are feeling our work, however faithful, is insignificant, this parable is a parable of promise. The faith that changed the world began with a Galilean Jew who could not even gain the loyalty of his own people. The parable of the yeast suggests that we proclaim a faith that infiltrates and changes all around it. The yeast is an almost invisible element that affects the whole loaf. The church does not need to get great publicity to be effective. The next parable is about a treasure hidden in a field and then a fine pearl that is so precious it is worth all that one has. Finally, the kingdom is compared to a net that gathers up the good and bad and leaves the separation until later.
If the church as the body of Christ is to reveal how God governs, the parables are suggestive. God's rule is built on small things (mustard seeds) that build a structure that protects the nations. Like yeast, it infiltrates from within rather than conquers from outside. God rules in our life by enticing our spirit by the value of serving God (fine pearl) and is worth all that we have. God governs by a grace, like a fishing net that gathers everyone in and leaves the separation of good and bad to God at a later time. It is a different way to govern our lives than that which the world offers.
