Mark 4:26-34

Hebrews 10:32-39

Psalm 37:3-4, 5-6, 23-24, 39-40

Mark 4:26-34

Jesus said to the crowds:

“This is how it is with the Kingdom of God;

it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land

and would sleep and rise night and day

and the seed would sprout and grow,

he knows not how.

Of its own accord the land yields fruit,

first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once,

for the harvest has come.”

He said,

“To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God,

or what parable can we use for it?

It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground,

is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth.

But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants

and puts forth large branches,

so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade.”

With many such parables

he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it.

Without parables he did not speak to them,

but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, you have mysteriously acted in my life and guided it to the present moment. Help me to hear your voice in prayer and discern your guiding hand.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Seed that is Sown: The Three Parables in Mark’s Gospel about the Kingdom of God are all connected by the word “seed.” The first parable, which we heard on Wednesday, spoke about the sowing of the seed and how it is rejected or welcomed by someone. The parable teaches us that God sows everywhere, almost indifferent to how human beings will welcome his Word. The main contrast is between those who do not bear lasting fruit in the Kingdom and those who do. The parable invites us to reflect on how we respond to God’s Word: indifferently, superficially, half-heartedly, or as we should. Is the Word of God bearing fruit in my life thirtyfold, sixtyfold, or one hundredfold?

2. The Seed that Grows: The second parable, which we read today, focuses not on the sowing of the seed and how it is rejected or welcomed, but on its mysterious growth. Just as a farmer is not the primary cause of the growth of the seed, we are not the primary cause of the growth of the Kingdom of God. We are only secondary and collaborating causes. The seed needs the heat of the sun, time in the earth, nutrients, and water. The farmer can facilitate these elements of growth but always occupies a subordinate role. The entire process of a seed becoming a living plant remains mysterious and beyond our understanding. In the same way, the growth of the Kingdom of God is primarily and mysteriously caused by God and only secondarily caused by our collaboration. 

3. The Seed that Welcomes: The third parable, which we read today, focuses not on the sowing of the seed or how it mysteriously grows, but on the result of the seed. The Kingdom is compared to a mustard seed, one of the smallest seeds. The Kingdom of God, Jesus predicts, will be small in its beginning but grow, like a mustard seed, into a very large and invasive plant. If we look at history, we see how this prophecy of Jesus has been fulfilled. The Kingdom of God was so small in the beginning – just twelve apostles, several dozen disciples, and a group of women who provided for Jesus and his disciples. The Kingdom has, over two thousand years, grown to international dimensions. The birds of the sky that dwell in the branches of the mustard plant are an image of the Gentile nations dwelling in the Church, the beginning and seed of the Kingdom of God on earth.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, enlighten my mind to know the mystery of your Kingdom revealed in your parables. Allow me to see how the seed of your Word has grown in the garden of my heart and understand what it needs to flourish and bear supernatural fruit.

Living the Word of God: How is the Kingdom of God growing in my life? Does Jesus reign more fully each day in my life, my family, and my workplace?