Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.” (Matthew 13:31-32; Luke 13:19) It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade.” (Mark 4:31-32)
A mustard seed is the smallest of seeds, but from it grows a very large tree, that even the birds of the air come and nest in its branches:
Jesus is teaching that the kingdom of heaven is just like a mustard seed, it starts out small, but once the Word of God is "planted" in the hearts of people, the kingdom of heaven grows, to the point that the Apostle John wrote, when God allowed him to see into heaven, And I heard how many were marked with the seal of God—144,000 were sealed from all the tribes of Israel: After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. (Revelations 7:4, 9 NLT) “Come.” Let anyone who hears this say, “Come.” Let anyone who is thirsty come. Let anyone who desires drink freely from the water of life. (Revelations 22:17 NLT) As we learned in our previous study, God will make sure His Word is spread throughout the entire world, to every human being that has lived and will live; ...this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:14; see THE GOSPEL: Parable of the Wheat and Tares)
What God desires, but does not require, is that we participated in the spreading of His Word. Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will. (II Timothy 2:15, 24-26)
And again He said, “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? (Luke 13:20) Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.” (Matthew 13:33; Luke 13:21) Yet again, leaven, like the mustard seed, appears to be a small thing, but once added to the flour mixture, causes it to grow into a very large and fragrant bread dough, and bakes into a very good tasting bread:
The kingdom of heaven is just like leaven, the Good News will travel everywhere. And once people ...taste and see that the Lord is good; (Psalm 34:8), they will be blessed, because Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! (Psalm 34:8)
Each of us individually may think, "what difference can I make"; "who will listen to me"; "what can I change"; etc??? God used a small nation, the twelve children of a man named Jacob (aka Isreal), to change the entire world! God sent His Only Begotten Son, Christ Jesus, ...to save the world. (John 12:47) And Jesus commissioned a few disciples, saying to them "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) But Jesus also prayed for all of us who would believe the Word of God, while He is still in heaven with the Father, by saying, “I do not pray for these [the disciples] alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me." (John 17:20-21) Through ALL of us, who believe the Word of God, God will use us to lead others to the Truth! “Go into the world. Go everywhere and announce the Message of God’s good news to one and all!" (Mark 16:15 MSG)
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