Matthew 13:1–58 (Continued)

May 08, 2012

"I will speak using stories; I will tell things that have been secret since the world was made." (Jesus was quoting Psalm 78:2) Jesus tells five more stories about the kingdom of heaven.

The kingdom of heaven is like:

• A mustard seed planted in a field. A mustard seed is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows it is one of the largest garden plants. It is big enough for wild birds to come and build its nest in the branches.
• Yeast that a woman took and hid in a large tub of flour until it made all the dough rise.
• A treasure buried in a field. A man found the treasure, hid it, then sold everything so he could buy the field.
• A man looking for pearls. When he found a valuable one he sold everything to buy it.
• A net put into a lake. The net caught many different kinds of fish. The fisherman separated the good fish from the bad.

A mustard seed—small and seemingly insignificant, yet mighty and powerful. The very beginnings of the "church" (Act 1:15; 2:41) started small. But when the Holy Spirit came upon them everything changed. If a small mustard seed can produce a large plant, and if the Holy Spirit can take a few men and begin a movement, how much can He do in and through us? We can make a difference. We must share our faith. We must spread the Gospel. We must use the gifts and talents God has blessed us with to tell a lost and dying world that there is hope, and that hope is found in Christ.

Yeast (Leaven)—throughout the Old Testament the word leaven was used to indicate evil. In the New Testament it is used symbolically to represent "malice and wickedness" as contrasted with "sincerity and truth." I have thoughts running through my mind which I am having a hard time figuring out how to put into words. I wish the story about the yeast would be about how a little bit of God (salvation, truth, and grace) takes over and soon everything is good. But trying to say that is what yeast represents in this story Jesus told doesn't line up with the way the word "leaven" is used throughout scripture. The truth is sin pollutes more than the "good news" purifies. There—I said it. I wish it were the other way around but it isn't.

We all know what happens when one bad apple is in the bushel. The good apples, even if they are in the majority, do not make the one "bad" apple "good." But, that one bad apple most certainly will cause the ones around it to go bad, and soon a snowballing effect takes place until they are all bad. We have got to do our part!!! We must practice Deuteronomy 6. We must impact a lost and dying world! We must! If we believe what we say we believe, if we believe there is a heaven and a hell, then we must! We have no choice. We must!

LORD, expand our territories. May our lives reflect YOUR love. May we see YOUR hand working in our lives. Our hands are open. Use us however you wish.


Next Entry: Matthew 13:1–58 (Continued)