Yeh 17:22-24 | 2 Kor 5:6-10 | Mrk 4:26-34
God starts things small
There are two parables that Jesus mentioned when He explains about the Kingdom of God. One of the parables is about the infamous mustard seed, which we have heard quite a lot. We know that mustard seed is very small, probably not the smallest in today’s time, but back then it would have been the smallest seed. Yet, as Mark described it, “when it sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” (Mark 4:32)
But why does Jesus use this parable to describe the Kingdom of God?
Firstly, what is the Kingdom of God?
“The Kingdom is not a thing, it is not a geographical dominion like worldly kingdoms. It is a person; it is HE. On this interpretation, the term ‘Kingdom of God’ is itself a veiled Christology. By the way in which he speaks of the Kingdom of God, Jesus leads men to realize the overwhelming fact that in him God himself is present among them, that he is God’s presence.” (Pope Benedict,
Jesus of Nazareth, Part 1)
So when Jesus started talking about the Kingdom of God, He was talking about God Himself. And who is God? God is love. So really, Jesus wants to bring love to earth, but not an ordinary love, the greatest love of all, Agape (the sacrificial love).
What can we learn from the Gospel this week?
- God wants to rejoice in our cooperation
In the first parable, the emphasis in the parable is on the seed, which seemingly has the power to grow on its own without a man’s help. “The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.” (Mark 4:28) It seems like the seed has been taken care of by the earth and the man can just enjoy it when the harvest season comes.
Now, there is something romantic about this, if we could just reflect on how this seed is Our Heavenly Father’s love that Jesus has planted during His ministries – He healed the sick, drove out an unclean spirit, and taught many things. Those little seeds have the same potential to grow to be a big tree, on every single person, because God loves us so much and He will take care of everything for us. We can sleep and eat and talk and decide. But Our Heavenly Father never sleeps, never stops loving, never stops reaching out, never stops worrying about what we are going to have or not have.
He can, in His power, will for those little seeds to be a big tree in a matter of seconds, but He also wants us to have the freewill to choose Him – and this is what His love is all about. He wants to rejoice in our cooperation. He wants us to participate, through freedom, intelligence, and creativity, in what He is doing. And so He plants seeds and He wants us to cultivate them.
Sharing Question: Has God ever asked you to do something? If yes, what was your response?
- God wants to humble ourselves so He can have a heart-to-heart conversation with us Jesus “did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.” (Mark 4:32) Straightaway, there’s an emphasis on the closeness between Jesus and His disciples. Something will be revealed in private (personal) but not to the rest of the world.
Now, parables is a simple story used to illustrate a moral or spiritual lesson, as told by Jesus in the Gospels (Google Dictionary).
However, parables usually cannot be taken literally because sometimes they don’t make sense.
But parables are still Jesus’ words.
“My son, hear My words. They are of surpassing sweetness, and excel all the learning of the philosophers and wise men of this world. My words are spirit and life,(John 6:63) not to be weighed by man’s understanding. They are not to be quoted for vain pleasure, but are to be heard in silence,(Eccles. 9:17) and received with all humility and love.” – The
Imitation of Christ (Ch. 40)
So if Jesus’ words cannot be heard in silence and received with all humility and love, it cannot be understood. And if His words are those little seeds, then nothing will be planted on the ground of our hearts to bring the Kingdom of God to earth. Therefore, parables are not hidden mysteries, they are basically a heart talking to a heart.
Which is why it’s so important for us to pray for the gift of humility, because this becomes the key to grow closer to Him and allow His Words to grow in our heart.
Commonly, when we hear “teacher” and we think, “What’s he going to tell us from up here (head)?” and we don’t say, “What would you do to us down here (heart)?” However, Jesus is the teacher who touches down here (the heart), and then reaches for the explanation if we want it (freewill). Doesn’t this make the Words we say so much more precious, as if the hidden God remains hidden?
But why let the hidden God remain hidden?
Because He does not trust people who just think with their head and have forgotten their heart. The head is full of explanations but the heart is full of love. We must live by the feeling and the understanding of the heart deep down inside us, who whispers to us and tells us, and then the head becomes important.
“Blessed are those who enter deeply into inner things and daily prepare themselves to receive the secrets of heaven… O my soul, and shut fast the doors against the desires of the senses, that you may hear what the Lord your God speaks within you.” – The
Imitation of Christ (Ch. 38)
So, the parables understood by all who know that God has come not to explain the world to us, but to teach us how to live in the world, just as we are. This is the beauty of what He will reveal to us in private if we continue to remain close with Him – just like He told the disciples.
Conclusion
The growth of God’s Kingdom is like mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, which springs up and becomes the largest of plants. It’s a law of the spiritual life that God wants good things to start small and grow over time. He wants to rejoice in our cooperation – for us to choose Him, through our freedom, by participating in cultivating the seeds He has planted. For example, God could have renewed the spiritual life of Christianity in the third century through a great infusion of grace, but He inspired St Anthony of Padua to leave everything behind and go live alone, despite his desire to go out and preach the Gospel.
He had to live a life of seclusion and contemplation for a while in order to prepare St Anthony to be the Doctor of the Church. The smallest seed (a young man with passion) in the end becomes the largest plant (an influential saint).
When things start small, they can fly under the radar while they gain strength and seriousness. And of course, there will be times our faith will be tested and tried. But this is why it’s important to have humility and remain close to Him. Suppose we want to do something great and we pray so God gives us massively what we want. But perhaps, we seem to come across many problems and challenges while pursuing it (e.g. a visa, a new job, knowing my vocation). It doesn’t mean God does not care about us, perhaps it only means we might not be ready, and that thing that we want might overwhelm us because of how big it is. So be patient and embrace the small invitation because God starts things small.
[EXTRA MATERIAL]
A living example of this was the story of St Anthony of Padua – which we will celebrate his feast day on Sunday too!
Story about St Anthony:
When he was 25, the relics of Franciscan martyrs were brought to his town. They had just died in Morocco while trying to preach the Gospel there. Their stories inspired Anthony, and he decided to give everything to Christ. He joined the Franciscan order and soon received permission to travel to Morocco to pursue what he felt was his calling – to be a witness for Christ, and a martyr as well, if God asked. But, as often happens, the gift Anthony wanted to give was not the gift that was to be asked of him. While in Morocco, he became seriously ill, and after several months realized he had to go home.
The boat he was on was driven off course by a storm and he landed in Sicily. He made his way to Assisi, where a large meeting of Franciscans was convening—a gathering open to all members of the order. Francis himself was present, though he was not in charge. Anthony kept to himself about his prior theological training, and after that meeting, he was assigned to a place of retreat – a life of seclusion and contemplation in hermitage. He spent his days in prayer and served other monks by washing dishes after meals.
One day, Dominicans and Franciscans gathered for a celebration and large meal. Through a misunderstanding, no one came prepared to give an address, and Anthony was asked to speak to everyone gathered and to share whatever the Holy Spirit inspired him to say. His address astonished the guests—he was eloquent and zealous, and the substance of his remarks was deep and thought-provoking.
He was immediately assigned to preach throughout the region, and converted many people, especially those who held distorted beliefs. He was very persuasive, had a passion for people, and possessed a resonant voice that carried well and was easy to listen to. He was short and round and had an attractive personality. He was given the gift of miracles, which accompanied the words he spoke. It was said that he seemed to radiate holiness. At the age of 36, Anthony became ill and died suddenly. He was almost immediately canonized and has been declared a doctor of the Church.
I can’t help but think about how devastated I would be if I was there in Morocco, ready to do something good (preaching the Gospel) but then became very ill and eventually had to live a life of seclusion and contemplation instead. The two are the total opposite of each other, and what I wanted to do was not a bad thing because it was God’s work, but I had to give it up because it did seem like God prevented it from happening. Now, reflect how many times in our lives do we come across this and think this way?
We began to question our faith and whether God cares about us at all.
Like St Anthony, God is taking care of everything and He only wants us to just eat, drink, and decide. He did not prevent St Anthony from preaching the Gospel, but He prepared St Anthony for a greater purpose – to renew the spiritual life of Christianity in the third centuries and became one of the most influencing Doctors of the Church of today. God took a shoot from the highest branch of the top of a
cedar, and planted it on the high mountain, and in the end, it became a noble cedar. (Ezk 17:22-24)
So let’s recap about what had happened to St Anthony:
- God touched St Anthony’s heart as he witnessed the relics of those martyrs arrived at his hometown
- God humbled St Anthony by sending him back home but reserve St Anthony’s desire (a shoot from a young tall tree) for a greater purpose (a bigger tree) which will be revealed in His time
- He took care St Anthony by providing him shelters, community, and necessity for him to get better
- In St Anthony’s freedom, he chose to live a life of seclusion and contemplation in order to enter deeply into his heart and prepare himself to receive the secrets of Heaven
- In God’s time, He gave the opportunity for St Anthony to preach the Gospel in ways that God intended Him to be
Some people may not be responding the same way to St Anthony and instead they become bitter and walk away from God. The difference sits in love. Why does St Anthony just keep going? Because he loves
God, the seed was planted in St Anthony’s heart and initiated the freewill in him to choose God and love
Him – to the point of wanting to die for Him (sacrificial love).
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