The Soil of Your Soul (Wednesday) – Mark 4:30-32

How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade

Once again Jesus is likening the kingdom of God to seed. Seeds and what they produce must be quite important – this is the third seed/kingdom parable in one chapter! On this occasion Jesus highlights the mustard seed which was the smallest seed sown by the Palestinian gardener. The black mustard seed could grow up to 12 feet tall. The largest thing began as the smallest (and most easily overlooked) thing. Another common feature to this parable is the multitude’s failure to understand. The scriptures reveal a most sobering thing about Truth – it is, by design, a narrow passageway through which few will enter. Also shocking – the other, broader path leads to destruction. This is not good news for most.

Warren Buffet has made a radical fortune betting on the values of companies most were overlooking. His counterintuitive decisions have distinguished him from a multitude of investors. This is Jesus’ point; most are inclined to overlook and undervalue His kingdom. He is trying to teach us that the kingdom of God, which is imperceptible to most, will ultimately be all that really mattered. It is troubling that relatively few are going to get this but I want to be among those who do, regardless the cost.

 

Father, give us ears to hear and hearts to grasp your kingdom. Help us to see our investments in other kingdoms. Help us to examine our hearts to see the small kingdom-seed you planted. Let this tiny overlooked seed grow in us such that we may become a source of healing and refuge for many. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

The Spirit of Truth was sent to us after Jesus’ ascension. Jesus said it was expedient that He leave and the Spirit come. The Spirit of Truth is here to continue the Kingdom which Jesus inaugurated. The Spirit of Truth is still setting men free. These accounts of liberation are bright bursts of light that can in turn liberate others. One of the most powerful accounts of deliverance I have heard came from William Paul Young. While his book The Shack was a runaway best seller, the story behind it upstages the book. While Young’s testimony is twice as long as most sermons, it is a hundred times better. If you can’t click on this link and open it here, just copy and paste it into your search engine. This is the Spirit of Truth at His best.

http://www.tsdowntown.com/sermon-database/message/paul-young-s-testimony

 

 

 

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