Last week, in “Stories Jesus Told, Part 2“, we learned from the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds that as long as we are in the world and not of the world, the worldly exposure will serve to strengthen our faith in Christ and make us more solid, adult Christians!
This week we are taking a closer look at two items that most of you have in your kitchens: mustard and yeast! Although we wouldn’t immediately think of these two ingredients co-existing in the same recipe, there are actually many delicious dishes that call for both. Both things serve important functions in our common recipes, and without them, our food wouldn’t taste—or look!—nearly as good!
Apparently, Jesus also saw this the relationship between mustard and yeast, because He would go on to use both of these common ingredients to teach us some very important lessons about something that we, as humans, have a very hard time understanding: The Kingdom of God—the spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority!
Jesus’ first Parable focuses on mustard, or more accurately, on the seed that produces it: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants…” (Matthew 13:31-32a NLT). Unlike the previous two parables that He went on to explain, Jesus offers no explanation for this story.
Interestingly, His next parable, the Parable of the Yeast, also begins with “The Kingdom of Heaven is like…” and He also does not offer any explanation: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.” (Matthew 13:33 NLT).
At first glance it seems that Jesus is teaching the same principle in both: Once we’ve accepted Jesus into our hearts, once we begin to long for His presence, then the more we seek Him, His kingdom principles begin to establish themselves in our hearts. It starts small, but it grows and spreads until it takes over our hearts.
The purpose of this series, however, isn’t to present the accepted, oft-preached-about meanings of Jesus’ stories. Rather, it is to follow Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 13:12: “To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge.” (NLT).
Let’s go back to the Parable of the Mustard Seed. A little research reveals that the mustard plant in Jesus’ day was considered a weed, and a very invasive one at that. It was not a desirable plant for farmers to find in their fields, because it took over the field. Yes, our faith starts small. The principles of God’s kingdom first only affect small parts of our lives. But as it grows, it spreads—invasively!—until it takes over every part of our lives! And then, in Jesus’ words, “…birds come and make nests in its branches.” (v. 32b NLT). The benefits of living in God’s Kingdom are not for us alone! As we grow in our faith and become more and more like Christ, as we begin to live out the principles of God’s kingdom through every part of our lives, we begin to bless others! We can even come to the point where we support others and disciple them! This parable of the mustard seed teaches us that it isn’t all about us! It’s about sharing what God has given to us!
What about the Parable of the Yeast? “Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour…” (vs. 33b NLT) Notice the woman isn’t just working the yeast! She is mixing it with a lot of flour! The story doesn’t tell us what else she works into the bread, but we know from modern baking that yeast needs to be activated, usually with warm water, a tiny bit of sugar, and…time! The woman will knead the ingredients together, then she will cover it and allow it the time needed to permeate all of the dough! Here we clearly see that when we accept Jesus into our hearts, the process of living by the principles of God’s kingdom doesn’t just happen on its own! We need to “feed” it by spending time with God and longing for His presence! We must take an active role in renouncing the kingdom of the world in order to allow God’s Kingdom to grow in us! And if we don’t see the results immediately, we shouldn’t be impatient! The whole process of Kingdom living takes time to permeate through our entire hearts/minds/souls/spirits!
To summarize all of this, Jesus used two common kitchen ingredients to help us learn that God’s kingdom starts small in us, but by feeding it and working it properly, it will eventually take over our hearts, and when it does, we begin to support, encourage, and disciple others as well!
Please join us next Saturday as we continue to find hidden truths in the “Stories Jesus Told!”
In His love,
Lyn
Lynona Gordon Chaffart
Author, Moderator, Acting Director, Answers2Prayer Ministries
(To access the entire “Stories Jesus Told” mini-series, please click here!)
