Mighty Oaks and Mustard Trees

A mustard seed is really tiny, and the mustard plant it produces is not very large.  But there is a variety of mustard seed that grows into a tree which can be quite large.

He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the 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." He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened." Jesus told the crowds all these things in parables; without a parable he told them nothing. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet: "I will open my mouth to speak in parables; I will proclaim what has been hidden from the foundation of the world." - Matt. 13:31-35

Here in the West, where mustard trees and plants are not as common, we have the Oak tree, which provides us with the same type of image.  

From a tiny acorn, a mighty oak grows.

Jesus uses the image of a mighty tree that can be shelter and a home for birds as an analogy for the Kingdom of God.

The fact that this tree spriings from such a tiny source is the key to the meaning of the parable.  It talks to our faith.

It doesn't take a lot to do a lot.

That is something I truly believe in.  Most of us feel what we can do is so minor compared to what is needed, so we do nothing.

Jesus wants us to think differently.  A little action can bring about a huge change in the world.

Imagine this.  If each of us did only a little, how much would we accomplish together?

This is the way faith works and the way the Kingdom works.

And the results are multiplied over time.

More to come...