THE THREE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN PARABLES (13 – 15)
Jesus had recently told the parable of the four types of soil, then the parable of the weeds among the good plants, and now he tells this parable, recorded only by Mark, about plants growing from seed.
PARABLE 13 — THE GROWING SEED
MARK 4:26 – 29 And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground; 27 And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how. 28 For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear. 29 But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.
PARABLE 14 — THE MUSTARD SEED
(Also appears in Matthew 13:31-32 and Luke 13:18-19)
Mark 4:30 – 32 And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 32 But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.
PARABLE 15 — THE LEAVEN (YEAST)
(Also appears in Luke 13:20-21)
Matthew 13:33 Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.
Discussion Questions – Parables 13 – 15
THREE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN PARABLES (13 - 15)
THE GROWING SEED - PARABLE 13
1. Who does the man who plants the seed represent? The seed? The plant it grows into? The soil? Think before you answer.
The man represents the planter of the seed who might be Jesus or might, in fact, be a believer planting the seed in a non-believer. The seed represents the word of God (it does not represent a person, which may be a bit confusing, because the mature plant does, in fact, represent a believer). In this parable and the previous ones, people also seem to be initially represented by the soil (“All by itself the soil produces grain...” 4:28).
The first thing we notice about this parable is its similarity to the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4:2-9. In some ways, this parable expands on Jesus’ teaching of how the “good soil” (a receptive heart) receives the “seed” (the Word of God).
2. What was the growth process like for the seed in the parable? (4:27-28) Quick or gradual? Well understood or mysterious? What’s the meaning of the parable?
In the Parable of the Growing Seed, Jesus tells of a man who scatters seed on the ground and then allows nature to take its course. As the man who sowed the seed goes about his business day by day, the seed begins to have an effect. First, the seed sprouts; then it produces a stalk and leaves, then a head of grain, and, finally, fully developed kernels in the head. Jesus emphasizes that all of this happens without the man’s help. The man who scattered the seed cannot even fully understand how it happens—it is simply the work of nature. “All by itself the soil produces” (verse 28).
The parable ends with a harvest. As soon as the grain is ripe, the sickle is employed, and the seed is harvested. This happens at just the right time.
Jesus did not explain this parable, as He did some others. Instead, He left it to us to understand its meaning. Taking the seed to be the Word of God, as in Mark 4:14, we can interpret the growth of the plants as the working of God’s Word in individual hearts. The fact that the crop grows without the farmer’s intervention means that God can accomplish His purposes even when we are absent or unaware of what He’s doing. The goal is the ripened grain. At the proper time, the Word will bring forth its fruit, and the Lord of the harvest (Luke 10:2) will be glorified.
The truth of this parable is well illustrated in the growth of the early church: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow” (1 Corinthians 3:6). Just like a farmer cannot force a crop to grow, an evangelist cannot force spiritual life or growth on others.
To summarize the point of the Parable of the Growing Seed: “The way God uses His Word in the heart of an individual is mysterious and completely independent of human effort.” May we be faithful in “sowing the seed,” praying for a harvest, and leaving the results to the Lord!
What’s the meaning of the parable? It seems to be that “once planted in a fertile mind, the gospel message contains its own power to grow and mature.”
3. Does the seed have anything to do with being “born again?” (1 Peter 1:22-25) How about with saving your soul? (James 1:21)
These three verses show how the seed, which is actually the word of God, can work within you.
1 Peter :22-25, ”Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”
Isaiah 40:6-8, For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.”
James 1:21, “Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.”
4. Does this parable imply an obligation for believers to sow the seed, water it, and fertilize it in others, i.e., speak of your faith to others? (1 Corinthians 3:6–9)
Answer: Yes to all of the above. All Christians have an obligation to plant seeds, water them, and fertilize them by speaking of our faith or giving our testimony to others.
1 Corinthians 3:6–9, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.”
THE MUSTARD SEED – PARABLE 14
5. Jesus often referred to mustard seeds in what context? (Matt 17:20, Luke 17:6)
In Matthew 17:20 Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Again in Luke 17:6 we have: He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.”
6. The parable of the mustard seed (Mark 4:30-32) may have been confusing to some of Jesus’ listeners, but clearer to others. The mustard seed is not the smallest seed, but it is small compared to the seeds of other vegetables and herbs. What is Jesus saying here?
The Parable of the Mustard Seed is contained in all three of the synoptic gospels. However, the Gospel of Matthew provides us with the most side-veiw information, as it includes one parable before and after the mustard seed parable, each teaching on the same subject.
Each of the three parables: the weeds among the wheat, the mustard seed, and the yeast have six common elements in them, providing structure which helps us to interpret the individual parables. The common elements are:
(1) a similitude about "the kingdom of heaven," and the earthly sphere of profession;
(2) “a man,” Christ;
(3) “a field,” the world;
(4) “seed,” the Word of God or its effect;
(5) ”growth” or “spreading,” church growth; and
(6) the presence of evil, symbolized by weeds, birds of the air, and yeast.
The Parable of the Mustard Seed was taught here in a comparable exaggeration. Here, Jesus uses a shrub/tree coming from a seed (John 12:24) to represent kingdom growth, consistent with other tree/kingdom references (Ezekiel 17:23 and Daniel 4:11-21). The seed’s growth attracts the presence of evil—depicted as birds (Matthew 13:4,19; Revelation 18:2)—to dilute the church while taking advantage of its benefits.
So, the picture painted in the Parable of the Mustard Seed by Jesus is of the humble beginnings of the church experiencing an explosive rate of growth. It grows large and becomes a source of food, rest, and shelter, for both believers and false professing individuals that seek to consume or take advantage of its benefits while residing or mixing among what was produced by the seed (1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:7; 2 Corinthians 11:13; Galatians 1:7). In other words, Jesus predicts that, while the church will grow extremely large from just a small start, it will not remain pure. The Parable of the Mustard Seed is both a prediction and a warning. May we listen to its message.
THE LEAVEN (YEAST) – PARABLE 15
7. What is leaven? And how does it work?
Leaven is a substance (such as yeast) that causes ferment or activity; yeast can cause dough to rise or expand.”
8. Can you summarize this parable in a simple way as to what it meant to his listeners then and what it means to us today?
In the Parable of the Leaven, we can learn a couple of things about the working of the kingdom. Each of these lessons stems from the nature of yeast. First, the kingdom of God may have small beginnings, but it will increase. Just as yeast works until the dough has completely risen, the ultimate benefit of the kingdom of God will be worldwide (Psalm 72:19; Daniel 2:35). Second, although the kingdom of God works invisibly, its effect is evident to all. Yeast does its job slowly and silently, but no one can deny its effect on bread. The same is true of the work of grace in our hearts. The nature of yeast is to grow and to change whatever it contacts. When we accept the message of the gospel, His grace grows in our hearts and changes us from the inside out.
9. Jesus often spoke in parables. Are there examples, stories, or illustrations that you can use to help share your faith in Christ with your family or friends?
No comments:
Post a Comment