Matthew 13:31-35 NIV
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”
He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”
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Matthew 13 continues with the parables of Jesus. Jesus is specifically instructing the people about the kingdom of heaven, the government of God upon the earth. These two short parables compare the kingdom of heaven to something small that ends up massive or highly impactful.
The mustard seed is tiny, only one grain is 1 or 2 millimeters in size. The mustard bush, under ideal conditions, can grow upwards to 30 feet in height and it's foliage spread 20 feet in diameter. That's quite the transformation!
In the same manner a small pinch of yeast powder mixed into a batch of dough will cause the whole loaf of bread to rise in the oven. According to one website on baking tips, one tablespoon of yeast will leaven up to 6 cups of flour, which will produce two 10" loaves of bread. That's a lot of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches from one tablespoon of yeast!
The illustration is simple to comprehend. The kingdom of God starts small, almost insignificant, but it becomes great in the number of people within the movement and influential in the world.
The influence Christianity has had on the world cannot be understated, though contemporary opponents continually do so. This web article gives an excellent summary coming from various books on the subject.
http://www.faithfacts.org/christ-and-the-culture/the-impact-of-christianity
Christianity has changed the world for the better in numerous facets of society like how we view the value of human life, our concern for the needy, our compassion when tragedy strikes, marriage and family, education and so on.
Did you know that the first 123 colleges in America were Christian institutions, save one? Look at this excerpt from the founding documents to Harvard.
"Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the maine end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life." (John 17:3 being clearly referenced)
In His book, What's So Great about Christianity, Dinesh D'Souza writes,
"Christianity is responsible for the way our society is organized and for the way we currently live. So extensive is the Christian contribution to our laws, our economics, our politics, our arts, our calendar, our holidays, and our moral and cultural priorities that historian J. M. Robers writes in The Triumph of the West, 'We could none of us today be what we are if a handful of Jews nearly two thousand years ago had not believed that they had known a great teacher, seen him crucified, dead, and buried, and then rise again."
Our contemporary society seems to be slipping into a new dark age with violence and the ignorance that breeds it pervasive in the headlines. Even though our media depicts Christianity as synonymous with bigotry, superstition and hate, the freedom of press wouldn't even exist if it weren't for Christ's movement.
Jesus and twelve men began a small religious movement that has propelled the human race forward in dramatic ways.
The parables of Jesus reveal something of what God is doing in the world. God has been working from the beginning to redeem this earth and free it from the death grip that sin has upon it. Matthew said Jesus' parables fulfill prophecy. The scripture he quoted was from Psalm 78, a retelling of God's history with Israel from their deliverance from Egypt to the anointing of David as king. For Matthew to quote the psalm points to the fact that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of David.
Psalm 78:70-72 NIV
He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them.
That the kingdom is led by a king with integrity and skill is good, but to be led by God's own Son is to live under divine blessing. The kingdom may seem small at times against the enormity of evil we see displayed in the news, but remember that God's good and righteous government will grow until all the world knows the truth and bows the knee to Christ. Keep hope alive and let the kingdom grow mightily within you as you contribute to its growth in the world.
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