Wednesday, July 22, 2020

He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” – Mark 4:26-29

Jesus talked a lot about the kingdom of God. What we see from his teachings and the manner in which Jesus lived, just how different God’s kingdom is from Earthly kingdoms. Where earthly kingdoms rule through force and oppression, God’s kingdom rules in service and love. Where Earthly kingdoms place the highest value on those things that separate us and actually diminish our enjoyment of life, God’s kingdom shows us that the highest values are love of God and love of neighbor. It’s living those principles out that will bring us true life and freedom.

Jesus’ promise in this parable is that when we look around and it seems impossible that earthly kingdoms will ever be unseated or that sins of greed, bigotry, or sexism will ever go away, through his life, death, and resurrection the seed was planted. The coming of the kingdom of God is “as inevitable as seed growing and producing fruit for harvest.”[i]

So then, may we encourage the growth of God’s kingdom today through our thoughts, words, and deeds.

[i] Klyne Snodgrass, Stories with Intent, p. 336