Every one of us once planted a bean in a jar at school. You water it, you watch it, sometimes you even talk to it, and for a long time absolutely nothing happens, although underground everything is already happening. That picture opens a sermon about the parables of the mustard seed and of the weeds (Matthew 13). Jesus says the kingdom starts from the smallest and least impressive thing, that it grows without our help because God gives the growth, and that wheat and weeds are separated only at the end. Listen if you cannot see God’s kingdom growing anywhere around you.
What Does the Kingdom Look Like?
Between the Words
When Jesus taught, he often told seemingly simple stories called parables. At first glance, they resembled IMAGES of everyday life. However, when his listeners looked closely at them, those IMAGES became MIRRORS in which they could see their own faces. And as they continued to look at them, the MIRRORS became WINDOWS through which they could view life from a completely new perspective, because in these stories, somewhere BETWEEN THE LINES, important lessons about God and life are hidden.
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