And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it. He did not speak to them without a parable, but privately to his own disciples he explained everything.
Comment: What lesson(s) are we meant to learn from this? If God is the Creator and God of the whole Universe what can be greater than His Kingdom? Yet here is Jesus talking to a few people in a small almost insignificant place. Insignificant to world politics of the time, at least. Sowing, in a small piece of the then vast Roman Empire, the seeds of the Truth of the Gospel and the Kingdom of God. A bit like scattering tiny mustard seeds. But His message grew to be the greatest thing that has hit world news! The birds making nests in its branches are of all kinds – some helpful, some counterproductive. I would love to have been sitting with His disciples during the following explanation. I wonder what questions they asked? I would love to hear His statements and answers. If the mustard bush is likened to the church, sadly not all the birds which hide in its branches are very nice!
Prayer: Please help me to understand more of the Truth of Your Kingdom, O God!
As I read it! 
Thank you Barry for your comments on this passage. Growth is something which we take for granted in our lives. If one stops to think about life itself, a human being grows from a tiny seed, an animal grows from a tiny seed, a tree grows from a tiny seed, and so does faith in God, and God’s Kingdom as well. And it is God who makes everything grow. Without Him, nothing would grow, and nothing would be possible. But with God, all things are possible. God bless you.
LikeLike