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Seeds

In Mark 4 Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is “like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground.”

Let’s pause there.

I love this because Jesus was wrong. Go ahead, leave me a hateful comment and tell me I don’t know what I’m talking about. Blah, blah. Yes, Jesus got it wrong. A quick Google search will tell you that the smallest seed in the world is not the mustard seed, but seeds that come from certain epiphytic orchids, which are found in rain forests.

It’s OK, though. I love that Jesus was wrong. Why? Because it shows me that He was more human than many of us give Him credit for. Yes, He was God. Yes, He was the Son of God. Yes, yes. Yes, He created all the seeds of the world.

Yes.

BUT.

Let’s not forget that He put His Godly qualities aside, put on human skin, and had to think and process with a human mind.

Jesus got it wrong and that makes me feel much more at home for the bazillion times that I get it wrong.

Anyways, back to the story.

So, Jesus said that the Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed that you plant into the ground. “Yet, when it is planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.”

… And then that’s the end of the story.

Bizarre, right?

Usually when this parable is talked about in church the minister will say something along the lines of …

God’s Kingdom is like a seed — it starts small and gets bigger over time.

That’s the way things work in our lives, because that’s the way God designed them in His Kingdom.

They start small, and they get bigger.

Everything that is big and good and great came from small beginnings.

So, trust in God’s power.

And trust in His ways!

Big things are on the horizon, but they must start small.

Amen, pass the plates and collect the money.

I want to tell you something about this story, though. It’s something that you won’t hear about in a sermon like that and it’s something that you and I won’t pick up in a surface-y reading of the story either, because when you and I read these few verses we see just a few things …

Seeds.

Ground.

Plants.

Branches.

Birds.

Shade.

… We envision a farmer dropping seed in the ground, water coming along in the form of rain or in a bucket to water it, the seed growing and growing and growing and growing and then birds eventually coming to sit on the branches and relax in the shade.

As people living in 2018, that’s what we see, right? That’s what sticks out most, it’s what leaps off the pages.

But, the original hearers of this story would have heard something entirely different.

First of all, we need to know that in biblical literature the ‘sheltering branch’ was a common description for political super powers. You might remember the story of Daniel and King Nebuchadnezzar, the King who had a dream about a tree and branches and birds and Daniel who explained to him that the tree in his dream was representative of him and his great kingdom.

(Daniel 4, if you’re interested).

Secondly, in the Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament), the prophet Ezekiel wrote down something significant that Jesus was alluding to in this story, something that these original hearers would have immediately picked up on.

In Ezekiel 31 the prophet speaks to the (then) super power, Egypt, and says …

“Who can be compared to your majesty? Consider Assyria, once a cedar in Lebanon with beautiful branches overshadowing the forest … its branches grew long … all the birds of the air nested in its boughs … all the nations lived in its shade.”

He was telling the Nation of Egypt (the super power of Ezekiel’s day) that although they were strong now and although they were a super power now, that sooner or later they would come crumbling down just like Assyria, which was wiped from the pages of history in 609 BC.

And who was the super power in Jesus’ day?

Rome.

Rome, remember, was only the latest and greatest empire to come up against the Nation of Israel and the newest group of bullies to beat them into submission and strip them of their dignity (an all too common theme in the history of God’s people). They were known for imposing ridiculous rules on the people, treating them poorly, heavily taxing them, taking advantage of them, and doing whatever needed to be done to control them.

(… Even, mind you, collude with the church leaders of the day to kill their Messiah.)

And so Jesus came along and talked about a mustard seed.

And trees.

And branches.

And birds.

And shade.

… just like the prophet Ezekiel did in reference to an early super power of his day and his time, the Nation of Egypt.

Don’t miss this. Because if you do, you’ll miss (what I think is) the entire point.

You see, the original hearers would have picked up on this right away because (in essence) what Jesus was saying wasn’t that “the small things that you have will grow into big things and life will be OK”; what He was saying, rather, was that a NEW KINGDOM was coming and the CURRENT KINGDOM was dying.

YES — the Empire of Rome and every other oppressive super power in the world that takes advantage of people, doesn’t care for it’s people, and tries to elevate itself above everyone and everything else might have grown big and tall and might have sprouted huge branches that house beautiful birds and lots of money and lots of glory …

BUT.

… they WILL eventually come tumbling down just like Egypt, just like Assyria.

And what’s coming in its place?

A NEW Kingdom.

C’mon!

Yes, a NEW Kingdom. And it’s as small as a mustard seed — it’s in the ground, it’s being watered, and it’s growing. Yes — it’s COMING. Your days are numbered, Rome. The clock is ticking, Caesar. Enjoy your gold now. Enjoy whatever glory you have left. Because you’re headed down the same road as Egypt, which was headed down the same road as Assyria.

To take it a step further, Jesus was telling a story of God’s very words in Ezekiel 17:24, “All the trees of the field will know that I the Lord bring down the tall tree and make the low tree grow tall. I dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish.”

Yes!

“God”, Jesus was saying, “will bring down the mighty and green super power tree of Rome. It’s days are numbered! And this small mustard seed of a Kingdom that I have come to build on this earth, right here and right now, will grow and grow and grow and give shade and rest to all who are oppressed and ridiculed and outcasted and pushed aside.”

“Come to me all who are weary and I will give you rest!”

“My yoke is easy, my burden is light!”

“Take my yoke upon you and you will find rest!”

And so the question that you and I need to wrestle with as we read this parable isn’t “what in my life is small right now that I hope will one day get bigger and provide shelter and shade for me and my family” …

My business.

My dream.

… BUT, am I willing to be part of this Kingdom that Jesus is building? Am I open to it? Am I on board? Do I want to see the oppressed raised up? Do I want to see the outcasts brought in? Do I want to see the outsides included? Do I want to see God’s love spread wider? Do I want to see the oppressors brought lower?

AND.

Will I take do whatever Jesus requires, and take a stand? Will I stand WITH the oppressed and AGAINST the oppressor?

AND.

What does it look like for me to do that in whatever place I spend my time? Who is oppressed in my world? Who is pushed to the side? Who is alone and broken? And what does it look like for me to scatter the mustard seeds of God’s Kingdom into those places and into those lives, and water them, so that they might grow?

I don’t know about you, but I have a lot to think about and act on.

Peace.

—

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