Mustard Seed - Matt 13:31-32; Mark 4:30-32

Jesus continues teaching in parables saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: which indeed in the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” JTC makes interesting commentary on why this parable would have sounded strange to many at the time saying, “To the mind taught by teachers of the time the kingdom was to be great and glorious from its beginning; it was to be ushered in by blare of trumpets and tramp of armies, with King Messiah at the head; yet this new Teacher spoke of it as having so small a beginning as to be comparable to a mustard see… the comparison ‘as small as a mustard seed’ was in every-day use among the Jews of the time.” He also points out that while there are, in fact, seeds smaller than the mustard seed, in maturity they are also quite small, so the mustard seed makes the greatest transition from seed to tree.

The seed growing over time to become a great big entity is not what the Jews expected the coming of their Messiah to be like. I think there is a powerful message in here about blessings and greatness coming over time and not something that happens right away. There are many instances where I think that a lot of the stuff that I want to do might have to wait until the next life, like traveling or getting married again. Perfection and glory come over a long period of time with lots of work, not only in the Church but also in our own lives. The IM teaches, “When the Church was restored in 1830, it was like a tiny mustard seed. Since then it has grown until its’ branches’ are found in almost every nation on earth, and its members find in them a spiritual ‘home’ and protection form the world. The Savior used the parable of the mustard seed to teach that His Church would grow from a small beginning into a very large organization.”

I also think that it’s worth mentioning that the desired end result of growing the seed is to have a place of peace and refuge where “the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” The Lord is not trying to create a tree that overpowers all other plants or takes up the entire earth, He just wants to create a place where all who want to can come and rest and have peace. And ultimately that’s what the gospel is all about right? That a family can be happy at home?