The Point of Parables #Jesus

The Point of Parables

Today we hear Jesus speaking two very short parables. Yes, the Kingdom of God is like a tiny seed, it is planted in fertile ground and it grows and becomes grand and gives comfort and life. Yes, the Kingdom of God is like a tiny measure of leaven, it is put into flour dough and it rises and provides enough for a feast and gives nourishment and life. Easy, I get it - its a small thing to say yes to Jesus yet that small yes grows to bring me comfort and nourishment - I get it!!

Except that's not really the point.

There are pitfalls I think we risk in reading Jesus' parables. One is we tend to treat them like a riddle and want to find "the" unique right solution - if we can find the hidden secret perhaps it is the key to the Kingdom of Heaven and will confirm my salvation. Another might be that we tend to look for solutions that are right "for me" - "here's what Jesus is saying to me" - we tend to look for and find confirmation of who I am rather than transformation to what God desires for us.  It does not take much to go off track with Jesus' parables. The point of parables is to make us think and explore; but that remains bounded by the nature and Word of God.

Today we see Jesus trying to communicate what the Kingdom of God is like. I can only imagine how difficult it is for our God who is awesome and infinite to communicate His context (His Kingdom) to us. We are finite and temporal; He is infinite and eternal. How can the finite ever grasp the infinite, we are so trapped in the here and now! So Jesus breaks it down for us and He does it in a context of hope.

How does the mustard seed become a grand and glorious tree bringing comfort and life? It is a mystery - yet there it is. How does the leaven feed a feast? It is a mystery - yet it does. Similarly, the Kingdom of God once begun in faith will flourish and thrive and provide comfort, life and bread for life. If we can have faith that a small speck of a seed put in soil or a small lump put in dough will have effect, surely our faith is secure in God?

What is this seed and leaven? What is the ground and dough? What is the tree and bread? What is the effect and function of the tree and bread? How we answer these questions can  reveal something new yet true and consistent about God, His Kingdom and His Church. I'd love to explore this after Lent!

One notion for us today in Lent: what if Jesus is communicating that a Christian is one who lives a life in trust and obedience? What if the seed/leaven is witness? What if the ground/dough is the sphere of our life? What if the tree/bread are the cloud of witnesses - God's people gathered in and around the Tree of Life seeking the Bread of Life? In this reading we hear the echo of Christ's commissioning of His followers to bear witness in all the world. We might also notice that Jesus does not say how the cloud of witness is grown from our witness - yet (like seed and leaven) relying on the promises of God and obediently bearing witness, somehow our simple words and actions grow and prosper the Kingdom of God. That's amazing!

Note one other thing. The leaven is the first parable where a woman is the principle character. So here is a bit of trivia - who was the first evangelist? Who was the first to run into the world and bear witness of Christ? (click here if your device won't play the video) 

Can you hear the echoes of sowing and leaven in this?

Just as it is true that in God's choices in creation the man and woman were made different yet one, to accomplish God's purpose and to bring God pleasure it is also true that woman and man are both sent into the world in different ways to bear witness of Christ. The man plants and the woman nourishes and both reveal Christ and the nearness of the Kingdom of God.

Here now is one aspect of the hope I spoke of earlier. There is more going on than what we see. We humans are bound to linear time and a finite place. God is not. What we see is a small dry seed  or a lump of sour mash. What God sees is a brilliant majestic plant and a great feast! It is amazing that God in His grace brings us into the growing of His Kingdom among His people - we are transformed as He uses us to transform the world. Therein our hope is found. We are part of something that is so much more than we see or imagine!

How do we respond to God: is it yes or is it no? God seeks His people; He uses us to reveal the nearness of His Kingdom - are we His followers or not?

Today please visit the ACrossMission website. Please pray for our missions and please consider supporting the witness of the Gospel in the poverty and violence of Sub-Saharan East Africa. Help us sow and knead the Gospel into people who have either never heard of Jesus or have rejected Him.