Again Jesus gets into a boat and lakeside begins teaching
the crowd in parables. These are stories with life meaning.
He later tells his disciples they have been entrusted with
the secrets of the kingdom of God, but everyone else must learn in
parables. They don’t know what
he’s talking about. They don’t
understand his parables.
The parables themselves? They are about seeds sown, soil
hospitable to seeds and inhospitable, light being set out to light a room, growth
taking place in secret, small things with huge potential, reaping, giving and
receiving.
Jesus is saying the kingdom of God is like that. The
kingdom of God is not like the kingdom of Caesar. It’s not about taxes,
conscription into military service, subservience, or fear.
The kingdom of God is about light that cannot be contained
and seeds with potential beyond the ability of the soil. The kingdom is about
growth that can take place anywhere any time. The kingdom is about abundance
and about human potential to forward it.
This is the first time in Mark’s Gospel that Jesus has
talked openly about the kingdom of God. He has been announcing the nearness of
God’s Kingdom and calling people to repentance. He has been demonstrating God’s
kingdom, now he is talking about it openly.
What does Jesus do with the ignorant disciples? He explains
everything to them in private.
Text for the day:
Things to think about:
The sower has an abundance of seed and throws it
everywhere, even on the footpath. The seed is good and abundant and thrown into
every human heart.
Things to do:
Notice the nature of the political kingdom of our day. How
is the kingdom of God at odds with it? Pray for the enlightenment and courage
of our political leaders, that they might be able to align themselves more
closely with God.
Jesus,
please keep throwing seed into our world.
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