Pastor Thanael Certa-Werner
SCRIPTURE | MATTHEW 13:31-35 (NIV)
The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast
31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 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.” 33 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.” 34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 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.”
Have you ever watched Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood? What is the most memorable part for you of that show? For me, it was the magic picture frame where Mr. Rogers would put a video cassette tape in and the picture would start playing the video. As a kid, I thought it really was magic! From February 19, 1968 until August 31, 2001, Mr. Rogers invited kids into his home to teach them about the world. He focused on feelings and teaching kids how to deal with them. He dealt with hardship and how kids can handle sad or hard moments like when a loved one dies or parents divorce. His show was a pioneer for children’s shows because it wasn’t just for entertainment.
Mr. Rogers believed that kids had the intellect to be able to handle hard things and needed to be taught important lessons so that they could grow up to be solid adults. One thing that I love about Mr. Rogers is that he was a pastor through the Presbyterian Church. His calling was to serve kids as an extension of Christ’s love. Really, his work was all about planting seeds.
How many of you have ever had a garden before? Was it easy work? Notice what the dead give away in that question was? I called it work, because it is. First you have to prepare the soil, then you have to seed the soil, water it, weed it, make sure bugs or animals don’t eat it up, make sure it doesn’t have too much sunlight – but also has enough. Gardens are a lot of work! And that is exactly the reason why I don’t have one! But they do have a lot of reward. There’s nothing quite like the taste of a vegetable you’ve grown yourself (so I’m told). The hard work and determination makes the reward all the sweeter.
In our scripture for today, Jesus is talking about gardening as well. He talks about the mustard seed. He says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 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.” This illustration is one which many of us know in other forms. An acorn is the start of a mighty oak tree, the small apple seed contains an apple tree, and in the Mediterranean, the mustard seed, though it is tiny, grows the largest plant. But notice: It’s not just big for big’s sake – through its growth, others take shelter in it. It grows to serve in its purpose.
Jesus says that the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed and like yeast. “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.” This is a really interesting parable here, because yeast was not then like it is today. Have you ever made sourdough bread? How is yeast added to a sourdough bread? To make sourdough bread, you have to have a starter. A starter is a mixture of wild yeast, water, and flour which is a living organism that needs to be kept alive. For most of human history, people have made bread with this started. The bread from yesterday would make the bread today.
The yeast would pass on, day after day, year after year, continually providing the lifting agent for bread. In fact, something which would be passed down from parents to their children was the yeast starter. In saying that the kingdom of God is like the yeast that is mixed into 60 lbs. of flour – think about that, sixty pounds! Jesus is saying that the Kingdom of God continually gives life wherever it is mixed in, and continues to grow that life to be mixed in again.
So, we’ve talked about cucumbers, Mr. Rogers, mustard seeds, and yeast. How does this all tie in together? What Mr. Rogers did was plant seeds of life into the lives of children. We are called to do the same. There are so many weeds in the world that are ready to choke out any life from the ground. Years of harsh sun can make the ground hard and dry. The land might be barren, never used before. But into the best and worse situations, Jesus sends His followers to sow seeds – Seeds of the Gospel which tell the amazing story of Jesus Christ. Jesus sends His followers to be the yeast of the world – to share the power of His death and resurrection which is the power to break your bonds and lift you up.
There’s a lot of hard work involved with that. This means going into new fields you’ve never visited before: Talking with people you might not have talked to before. Listening to people you might not have listened to before. Sharing with people you might not have shared with before. This means lifting the heavy sacks of flour. 60 lbs. is a lot of flour. This looks like being willing to love people who you would not love before. It means seeing past what makes you upset, disgusted, or sad to love them anyways.
What’s so special about this work is the impact such small actions have on people and the world. 2 teaspoons of yeast can make a loaf rise. One seed can grow a mighty tree. But anyone who bakes or grows a garden knows that it takes time. You can’t make bread in 15 minutes, because it takes a while for the yeast to rise. You can’t grow a plant overnight, because it takes time to grow. The work of the kingdom of God – the work of being a neighbor is work that takes time.
We’ve talked about all these parables and metaphors, but I want to leave you with one more. The mustard seed is a small seed that grows to a large plant in a year. Another seed that was common in the area where Jesus lived is the olive tree seed. This seed, however, has a different story. An olive tree takes at least three years before it will bear any fruit. But, the average lifespan of an olive tree is 2,000 years. My friends, we are in the business of planting olive seeds. We are called by our faith in Christ Jesus to plant these little seeds wherever and whenever we can. While we may never see the fruit of our labor, we do this hard work knowing that it has a lifespan well beyond our imagination.
So, neighbor, our calling is to go plant seeds, to be yeast for the world, to share the good news of Jesus Christ through actions both big and small, that others might experience the life-changing power of Jesus Christ. Amen? Amen. May it be so.