Scripture: Matthew 13:31-32
He told another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and planted in his field. It’s the smallest of all seeds. But when it’s grown, it’s the largest of all vegetable plants. It becomes a tree so that the birds in the sky come and nest in its branches.”
Thought for the Day: Most commentaries on this passage are quick to point out how the mustard seed does not grow into “the largest of all vegetable plants”…not even in that part of the world. Of course, some folks then spend way too much time trying to explain or defend why Jesus might have said that it is the largest. The explanations and excuses range from comical to outrageous. Here is the thing – it’s missing the point. Whether it is the largest, fourth largest or doesn’t even make the top 10 is not what Jesus would want us to be discussing. Yet too many good Christian folks get bogged down in the weeds of irrelevancy and believe that their fight over the word “largest” is a sign of faithfulness. In fact, the mustard seed really shouldn’t be described as a “vegetable plant” because it was more of a weed. The Romans hated the mustard seed, and there might be the clue to why Jesus used it in his parable. Just one little mustard seed blows into your garden, and if you’re not paying attention, it can take over the whole thing. Could it be that the Kingdom of Heaven is not going to manifest itself in the ways we think it should? It’s not coming through the front door. It will, instead, sneak in unnoticed and take root. And before you know it, it will be everywhere and in everything. It’s really a rather glorious image.
Prayer: Sneak into my life if you’d like, O Gracious God. Allow your kingdom message to take root in all that I do so that the fruit of love and kindness and compassion come forth. Amen.
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