Text: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 Revised Standard Version (RSV)
The Parable of the Mustard Seed
31 Another parable he put before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; 32 it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
The Parable of the Yeast
33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”
Three Parables
44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind; 48 when it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at the close of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous, 50 and throw them into the furnace of fire; there men will weep and gnash their teeth.
Treasures New and Old
51 “Have you understood all this?” They said to him, “Yes.” 52 And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”
In the Name of God, the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Amen.
The parable in today’s lesson is probably not the one that comes to mind when we think about mustard seeds. The ones I always think of are the ones where Jesus starts by saying “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed…” That always sticks in my mind because it almost seems like a challenge, or even a slight rebuke – because I know for a fact that I can’t tell so much as a blade of grass to move, much less a tree, and a mountain? Forget it! It’s almost like Jesus is grading us – at least, that’s what it sometimes feels like: “Why is your faith so small?”
And this is a sad state of affairs. The best of us often feel as though we don’t measure up, when it comes to being followers of Jesus, and answering his call to address the needs of the world; it’s very easy to look around us and see people who, as far as we are concerned, exemplify what it means to be a Christian far better than we do. So we don’t need a reminder! We feel bad enough already! It feels like salt being rubbed into a wound.
Fortunately for us, that’s not what this parable is meant to convey. It’s not about the size of our faith, but rather these parables are about the limitless possibilities open to faith.[1] The “if” here is neither a rebuke nor a challenge, but a hopeful statement that nothing is impossible to those who are faithful. That is quite affirming!
But there is nothing of that in today’s lesson about the mustard seed. Instead, today we have again the image of a sower, only this time he’s sowing mustard seeds, which will grow into very large, even tree-like, shrubs, which can shelter birds and give shade to people. So this parable seems to be one of “from small things, big things grow,” which would be a good and hopeful thing.
David Lose tells us, though, that there’s a surprise lurking in this parable (as well as in the other four): In Jesus’ day, the mustard seed, and the shrub that grows from it, were considered invasive species, an uncontrollable weed that nobody wanted.[2] Instead of sowing the seeds of mustard plants, farmers were more likely to do their best to root out these shrubs!
Confused? Hang on; we’ve got four more parables to go!
The second parable has to do with yeast being kneaded into a loaf to make it rise. We think this means that faith is like yeast which helps to increase the Body of Christ. But Lose tells us that, in Jesus’ time, yeast was actually considered an impurity, and kneading it into the loaves ruined them.
The third parable about the man who finds a treasure in a field, then covers it up, and buys the field without the original owner knowing what he’s found, seems deceitful and downright dishonest – Jesus can’t be advocating that kind of behavior, can he?
The parable of the pearl seems a bit more straightforward – pearls were then, as they are now, very desirable, not just for their beauty and perfection, but for their value. Professor Lose writes that the actions of the man buying this pearl would not be understood by many of the people around him but I don’t think it’s at all beyond the scope of imagination that a person might sell off everything just to possess such a beautiful object.[3]
Finally, the parable about the fishermen is the most understandable of all of them – talking to the disciples in terms of what they did was the most natural thing to do: “Let me tell you a story that connects what you do in your daily life to the things of heaven.”
As stated, each of these parables, of course, has to do with the kingdom of heaven. Like a diamond, when held up to the light, shows different facets, so do these parables reflect different views of the kingdom.
The big shrub that grows from the tiny mustard seed, like the kingdom itself, invades our whole world, takes over our reality, and can’t be limited to Sunday, for example.
Like the yeast in the dough, the Gospel “infects” the reality we accept, and changes it into something much different, something which, again, can’t be contained by our limited points of view.
Regarding the treasure buried in that field, ancient Jewish Rabbinic law stated that, if a person found scattered fruit or scattered money, they belonged to him[4]; so the man who found it, then covered it up, and then sold everything he had and bought that field, was actually within his rights. So the point of this parable is that the kingdom of God is a treasure that makes us give up everything else to make sure beyond question that it becomes our own.
Finally, the parable about the net is maybe the most important of them all for us this morning. What do we learn from this parable?
First and foremost, we learn that, just as a net thrown out into the water can’t choose which fish to catch, but draws in all manner of fish in its course through the water, so, too, the Church, which is the instrument of God’s kingdom on earth, can’t pick and choose who comes through its doors. The Church is bound to be a mixture of all kinds of people, some good, some bad, some useless, some useful. But all redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb.
Secondly, we learn that separating the good fish from the bad is not our job. Our duty is to throw our doors open wide and gather in all who will come, whoever they are. We – mercifully – leave the final judgment to God alone.
The major takeaway for us today is that all these parables show us that the Gospel is not a “half-in, half-out” proposition. As Lose puts it: “The Gospel makes a claim on your whole life, not just part. It invades your whole world and reality and can’t be contained only to your spiritual, Sunday self. Not only that, but it taints the reality we’ve grown to accept, challenges the views we’ve lived by, and again and again calls into question assumptions that have guided much of our lives in the world.”[5]
To put it another way, when we follow the Gospel, we must be “in it to win it.”
This might seem scary, even overwhelming. Going back to the feeling we might have about not having faith even as small as a mustard seed, we might be tempted to just throw in the towel, and say, “it’s too much for me; I can’t do it.”
Well, we can. Remember Jesus’ words: “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me” (NIV).
Whatever you did. There’s no preferred list of acceptable acts, no qualifiers, no rules. Whatever you did. Whatever we do. However we bring hope into the lives of others. However we show kindness. However we spread love. However we proclaim, by word and deed (mostly by deed), that God is serious about reconciling the world to himself, and that we are his agents, we show that yes, we are as drenched in faith as any saint. For we are saints, too.
Faith, at the end of the day, is not about reciting creeds or quoting Scripture passages by the bushel. Faith is really all about embracing God’s promise, putting it in a bear hug, and not letting it go. Faith is not about knowledge, or rules, or belonging to this or that church or group, but about trust, the kind of trust that leads you to act and speak differently, to think in a way that you may not have thought before.
Those of us here today recognize there is something more out there than the world has offered, even though we’re peering through the glass darkly, as the Apostle Paul says. We recognize that there is a deep ache in our hearts for that “peace which passes all understanding,” that true joy that the world cannot provide.
This place, this hallowed and beloved church, is the place where we remind each other of God’s promises. This is where we point to places in our lives and the world “out there” where we catch glimpses of God’s presence. We have all seen them: The people who make friends with those everyone else avoids; those who find joy in generosity; the person who stands up for those who can’t stand up for themselves; those who face down their illnesses or fear and serve as examples of confidence and courage to others; the ones who use their power or popularity to lift others up, not cast them down.
These parables give us a chance to make the kingdom – the life and reality Jesus preaches – just a bit more concrete by pointing us to those among us whose actions we might not be able to explain according to the way the world works, but who are intimately in tune with the promises of the kingdom we find in today’s parables.
Why are we here? Why do we do what we do? We are here and do all those wonderful, life-affirming things we do, because inside of each of us is that holy call from God to help make the world conform, slowly but surely, to the vision and intention God has for it. That call is compelling, irresistible, and so, so joyful!
For remember: “If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, will he not also give us all things with him? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies; 34 who is to condemn? … No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (RSV).”
What a promise! Sisters and Brothers, let us share and live that promise!
In the Name of God, the Holy and Undivided Trinity. Amen.
[1] Bruce, F. F., Hard Sayings of Jesus, © 1983, by F. F. Bruce, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, p. 210
[2] Lose, David, “Pentecost 8A: Parabolic Promises,” “…in the Meantime,” http://www.davidlose.net/2017/07/pentecost-8-a-parabolic-promises/
[3] Ibid.
[4] Barclay, William, The Gospel of Matthew, Vol. Two, The New Daily Study Bible, © The William Barclay Estate, 1975, 2001, Westminster John Knox Press, p. 99.
[5] Lose, David, “Pentecost 8A: Parabolic Promises,” “…in the Meantime,” http://www.davidlose.net/2017/07/pentecost-8-a-parabolic-promises/