Jesus asked, "What is the kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to? It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches." Again he asked, “What shall I compare the kingdom of God to? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into a large amount of flour until it worked all through the dough" (Luke 13:18-21). When Jesus compared God’s kingdom to a small seed, he was a penniless wanderer in a poverty-stricken area of a weak country occupied by a foreign army. Jesus was unknown to the world’s ruling powers and leading thinkers, and his followers were lower class nobodies. Jesus and his band seemed as small and insignificant as a tiny seed lying unseen in the dirt. But Jesus declared that this seed of God’s kingdom would grow and branch out, becoming so big and beneficial that countless people and entire nations could nest and find shelter in its branches. It seemed unlikely at the time, but that’s exactly what happened. The comparison to yeast makes a similar point: a little bit makes a big difference. When a woman makes dough for bread, she uses lots of flour and only a little yeast. When the yeast is tucked into the flour, it’s no longer visible. Yet somehow that yeast affects the entire lump of dough. In the same way, God’s reign in Christ starts out small, invisible. It works gradually, secretly, seldom in the headlines. But the invisible turns out to be invincible. Nothing can stop it from fermenting and spreading into more and more areas of life, more and more spheres of culture. When God became a man in the person of Jesus, the yeast of God’s life and power entered the dough of this world.
Posted on: Sun, 06 Oct 2013 09:12:13 +0000