A Seed – A Kingdom
June 14, 2009 Second Sunday after Pentecost
MARK 4:26-34 He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself, the soil produces grain–first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” Again He said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when 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.” With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.
I’ve used this passage as a sermon text several times over the years. The first time was in my previous congregation, Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in Watonga, Oklahoma. That is a farming community, and this text falls at the time of year when they are harvesting wheat. It seemed so appropriate to read: the harvest has come!, but I did so to an almost empty church, because most of them were out working in the fields to get that harvest in! This passage also says all by itself the soil produces the grain. Those people, even in the midst of working so hard to bring in the harvest, were quick to acknowledge that it was all God’s doing, His goodness, that gave them the crop. I’m sure they just kind of smirked and rolled their eyes as what was then a kid from the city talked to them about farming and harvesting. However, I tried explaining to them the same thing I want you to understand about this passage. Jesus is talking about seeds and crops because the people understood those things, but what He is really talking about is the kingdom of God, His followers. He began by saying This is what the kingdom of God is like. Let’s see if we can understand together some of what this passage is telling us.
First of all, we can be sure that God loves us. Jesus showed this in wanting to explain things to people in terms that they could understand. We call that speaking in parables. It may be hard for some people to think that God would actually care about them. When I’m flying, I often look out the window. You can see buildings and roads and sometimes cars, but you can’t even see the people. They are so small and insignificant that you cannot see them from a few miles us in the air. Is that how people look to God? Many people think so. If God is so big and powerful, why would He care about sinful, insignificant people? The answer is simple: LOVE. God cares about us because He loves us with a love that will not fail. Automobile manufacturers may go bankrupt, storms will come, finances will be uncertain, homes burn down, but God’s love is steadfast and sure. That love was most evident in the form of Jesus Christ.
When Commander Scott Carpenter returned from his flight into space, everyone rolled out the red carpet for him. All the big shots were there to honor him. Newspaper reporters and TV cameras were everywhere. In the middle of the ceremony, his five-year-old daughter tugged at his sleeve. She wanted to show her daddy the scratch on her elbow that she got while he was away. What did he do? He turned away from all the honors and cameras and glory to his little girl. He looked at her scratch and assured her of his love and concern. That is the way God loves us. He is, of course, powerful, mighty, and glorious, but He is above all our Father. He loves us and cares about us. He knows you and loves you and cares about you.
Another thing that can be said is that God saves us. His love led Him to action. He knew that we were trapped in a hopeless state of sinfulness. We were like a fly on flypaper, or a bug in a spider’s web, or an animal in quicksand. All our efforts to save ourselves made matters worse. But God did not abandon us. He got involved, sending Jesus to be our Savior. He was willing to show us God’s love by taking our place in punishment and paying for our sin and corruption. Everyone who accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior from sin receives the free gift of heaven. Our faith in Him is what saves us. And that faith comes by hearing God’s Word and having the Holy Spirit work in our hearts. Just as the soil produces grain all by itself, the Holy Spirit produces faith in the hearts of men all by Himself.
A third thing that can be said upon the basis of this text is that God raises us. He loves us, saves us, and continues to embrace us, drawing us ever closer to Himself. He helps us grow and mature as Christians. The parable of the mustard seed illustrates this. Some mustard plants only grow to three or four feet, but in Israel they reach heights of 15 feet and more–all from that tiny seed. And it is the same way with us. We start with a tiny faith. It is a saving faith, but it can’t always be seen by others and it doesn’t fill our lives. Yet, through the nourishment of God’s Word and Sacraments, it will grow, showing that small beginnings can result in gigantic endings.
Yet another thing we can say from this text is that God makes His kingdom grow. Just as these parables can be applied to the lives of individuals, they also refer to all believers together. God is the one who has saved us by accepting the death of Jesus as payment for the sins of all men. He is the one who creates faith in the hearts of all men. He establishes His kingdom among men without the need for any outside help. And He can do it from tiny beginnings.
How will the church of tomorrow grow from the church of today? People are spiritually hungry. I read a study released by the Barna Group this week.
∆ 88% of American adults say that “my religious faith is very important in my life.”
There is nothing on the horizon to suggest that this is likely to change in the foreseeable future. But if we think they are going to come to us, we are sadly mistaken .
∆ 75% say they sense that “God is motivating people to stay connected with Him, but in different ways and through different types of experiences than in the past.”
There is a growing sense of release from traditional religious practices in this country. People are suggesting that they want more of God and less of the stuff that gets between them and their relationship with God. This mindset is equally common among Catholics and Protestants.
∆ 45% say they are “willing to try a new church.”
A staggering number of Americans – almost half of the nation’s 230 million adults – are open to changing their church home, demonstrating their lack of connection with their present community of faith and their desire to have a more significant connection. It may also be a reflection of people’s increasing lack of loyalty to both organizations and personal relationships, and the growing sense that there is always something better available if you can simply find it.
∆ 64% say they are “completely open to carrying out and pursuing your faith in an environment or structure that differs from that of a typical church.”
Two out of three adults contend that they are not tied to a conventional church setting as they seek to experience and express their faith. This openness to new contexts, processes and structures is especially common among Baby Boomers (68%).
∆ 50% say “a growing number of people I know are tired of the usual type of church experience.”
It is not just the survey respondents who indicated their willingness to change churches or to consider different forms of church experience. Half of all adults said they are aware of such a willingness to experiment on the part of people they know because those individuals are tired of the common church experience. (BARNA GROUP JUNE 8 2009)
What does all this mean for us? First and foremost, we don’t change the message. The only way the kingdom will grow is if people come to know Jesus Christ as their Savior, the only hope for restoration and forgiveness and salvation. What may have to change is our methods, our presentation, some of the outward things. And God will work through us as we share His message. Look what he did with the Christian Church in its infancy. It started with just a handful of disciples. If you had taken a survey in the Roman Empire in 65 A.D. on religious preferences, you would have found that 51% favored Jupiter, 30% were for Zeus, 9% for Mithra, and only 10% for Jesus. Thirty years after the death and resurrection of Christ, 10% of the known world at that time professed faith in Him. But the Holy Christian Church here on earth has continued to grow.
The reason the church has grown and will continue to grow is because the Spirit works through the Word and through believers to convince always more people of the truth of God’s promises. They hear the message of a loving Father, who sent His Son to rescue us, so that we may grow and blossom as His faithful children. They believe in Jesus as their Savior, and will share in the joy of heaven because of that faith. May God keep each of us in that faith and work through us to make His kingdom grow.
