The Parable of Seed Growing Secretly
Blessed Lord, since You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written
for our learning, grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly
digest them that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of
everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and
reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.[1]
And he said,
“The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27 He
sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not
how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the
full grain in the ear. 29 But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the
sickle, because the harvest has come.[2]
Notice that this parable is found only in Mark.
Circle the words, “kingdom
of God,” and write near them, “the central theme of Jesus’ teaching.” The
kingdom of God is the reign of God. The kingdom of God is anywhere and
everywhere that God’s love, justice, and goodness rule.
-And the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know
how. This parable is about the power intrinsic within the seed, the power
inherently within the Word of God, within Jesus, within the Bible, the living
Word. The Word is alive; it grows. Anything that grows is alive.
Centuries ago, you may assume that farmers from a
farming generation would understand how seeds grow, but they did not. The
growth of seeds was a miracle even then.
Today, when farmers plants seeds and seed grows, it is
still a miracle. Gardeners feel the same way. When we see the seeds sprout and
grow in our gardens, we almost always say, “These flowers are miracles.”
So it is with the kingdom of God, the reign of God in
our lives. We cannot explain its growth. The growth of love, justice and
goodness within an individual or within a society is the result of the power,
which is in the seed itself.
The seed growing automatically (Mark 4:26) was written
by Martin Luther when he said about this text: “After I preach my sermon on Sunday, when I return home, I drink my
little glass of Wittenberg beer and I just let the gospel run its course.”
Luther knew that the power of his sermon was not based
on the power of his theological acuity. He knew that the power of his sermon
was not based on his eloquence or his abilities. He knew that the power of the
sermon would have no effect whatsoever unless the very Word of God got into a
person’s heart. Luther knew that he couldn’t do that. It was the Holy Spirit
who did that. Luther keenly understood the power of the Word.
Focus on Mark 4:26. The kingdom of God, the way of
God, the way that God works is this: “If someone would scatter seed on the
ground and sleep and rise night and day and night and day. And then the seed
would sprout and grow, but he doesn’t know how it happens. The earth produces
of itself. The seed produces of itself.”
Let’s pause. Focus on the two words, “of itself.” That
is the Greek word from which we get our English word, “automatically.”
Notice where that Greek word is placed in the
sentence, at the very beginning of the sentence. For emphasis, Mark puts it at
the beginning of the sentence. Automatically
the seed grows.
Automatically the
seed grows.
Automatically, the
earth produces.
Automatically, the
Bible produces.
Automatically, the Word gets inside of us.
There is something inside the word that changes us. It
is Jesus inside the Word that gets through to us. Jesus grows in you, just as
seeds grow mysteriously and miraculously.
Focus on the reign of God and God’s increasing reign
on this earth. The reign of God is when God rules over anything and everything
to do with the human race e.g. our intelligence, language, technology,
medicine, quality of life, and governance of life. Good homes, good family,
good jobs, good education, good science, good medicines, good government are
all signs of the reign of God.
Martin Luther called them the “masks of God.” The Presence of God is living behind these masks of
good homes, good families, good schools, good hospitals, good jobs, good
government.
But when the
grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come."
In all the parables of Jesus, he assumes that there will be an End of human
history, which is called "the time
of the harvest."
[1]
Collect for Proper 6 Series B, Lutheran Service Book © 2006 Concordia
Publishing House, St. Louis
[2] The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a
publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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