 |
 |
||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
The Gospel of Matthew Bible Studies
The Gospel of Mark Bible Studies
The Book of Acts Bible Studies
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
April 2009
May 2009
June 2009
July 2009
August 2009
September 2009
October 2009
November 2009
December 2009
|
Time after Pentecost - Lectionary 11 (B) Text: Mark 4:26-34 June 14, 2009 Grace and peace be with you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen! What is the kingdom of God like, and to what can we compare it? In today’s gospel, Jesus tells two parables to answer that question. Both are illustrations of plant growth. But they are not the kind of illustrations that we would normally think about. Most of us probably think that the kingdom of God is something that needs to be carefully nurtured and cultivated in order to grow – like gardeners or farmers do for their plants and crops. In the familiar parable of the sower which Jesus told immediately before today’s gospel text, we get the idea that the seed will only grow in the “good soil” – with the implication that we need to do our part in order to make the soil “good” in our own individual lives and in our world. Only then will the seed of the kingdom of God grow and flourish. But in his two parables in today’s gospel, Jesus presents an entirely different understanding. The kingdom of God is not like a fragile plant that needs to be tended. It is rather like a hardy weed that we just can’t get rid of. Even if we don’t do anything – or even if we try to actively suppress it, the kingdom of God is going to keep on sprouting and growing and spreading everywhere. In his first parable, Jesus says that 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. Nothing is said about tending and nurturing the plants – their growth just “happens” – just like weeds. So it is with the kingdom of God. Jesus makes much the same point in his second parable about the mustard seed. As he says: “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.” I am sure that most of us are familiar with this parable, but many of us have probably not understood its full significance. The real focus of this parable is not about the “smallness” of the mustard seed, but rather upon the mustard plant itself and what it is like. The mustard plant is – to put it bluntly – a WEED! During our trip to Israel four months ago, we saw it in all kinds of places. In fact, here’s a picture I took of a field full of mustard near Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee. As you can see, it is not a tree but a shrub – kind of like sage. It grows without any cultivation and can easily take over a garden or field – crowding out the more desirable plants. For most gardeners or farmers of Jesus’ day, the mustard plant was about as welcome in their fields as crabgrass or dandelions are to us on our lawns today. It was one of the banes that they had to contend with and constantly try to control. In comparing the kingdom of God to a WEED, Jesus is trying to help us to understand something that most people fail to recognize. Jesus wants us to understand that God’s kingdom is everywhere – that it is hardy and intrusive – and that the world cannot get rid of it no matter how hard it may try to suppress it! It will keep on popping up among us and in our lives just like weeds in a field, or even in cracks on a sidewalk. Of course, a weed is not the kind of description of God’s kingdom that most people usually envision. It sounds much more inspiring (and “religious”) to compare the kingdom of God to a noble CEDAR TREE like in today’s first reading. A tree that is huge (over one hundred feet tall!). A tree that is a wonder to behold! But the cedar tree, as awesome as it may be, is not very common. It has a very limited habitat. The cedars of Lebanon referred to in today’s first reading and psalm only grow in the highest mountain elevations – a mile or more above sea level. Because of over-harvesting, today there are only several hundred acres of cedar trees left in all of Lebanon. If we use the cedar tree as an image to describe the kingdom of God, we could easily conclude that God’s kingdom is very fragile and is losing ground in a hostile world. But this certainly is not the case when we compare God’s kingdom to a WEED like the mustard plant! Weeds may not look pretty or inspire wonder among us, but they are plants which are very common and which keep on growing and spreading no matter what. The tiny seeds will spread and grow everywhere – even in the most unlikely places. That, people, is what the kingdom of God is like in our world and in our lives! Jesus in comparing the kingdom of God to a mustard plant (rather than a cedar tree) is engaging in a bit of “comic irony”. He is showing us that this kingdom is coming to us not so much in the great things but rather in the common things – the small things – even things we may often try to ignore or suppress. Yes, the kingdom of God is at hand! It is here among us and within us, and nothing can ever overcome it! That is the message of the parables in today’s gospel. Thanks be to God for this hope and promise that we have through Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen! -------------------- Pastor George Karres 418 W. Main St. Sidney, MT 59270
|
||||
