REFLECTION

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 through it all 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.

Mark 4:26-34

In this week’s gospel reading we have two parables. In the first, a farmer scatters seed on the land and then, regardless of human intervention, the seed sprouts into a plant bearing grain, that the farmer can then harvest. In the second parable, the kingdom of God is compared to a mustard seed, that though the smallest of seeds springs up to become the largest of plants. In the parable of the sower which is at the beginning of chapter 4, the focus is on the land (the hearer of God’s word). In contrast, in the parable of the growing seed that we have for today, the focus is on the seed that grows without any human intervention after it has been planted.

The parable of the growing seed and the parable of the mustard seed both call to mind God’s grace in our lives and in the building of the kingdom of God; God’s grace that moves mysteriously in ways that we cannot comprehend or grasp. We plant seeds though our words and actions, but we need to remember that God is in control and not us. We are collaborators but it is God who is the builder. Thus, the kingdom of God grows mysteriously and we are called to trust in God’s presence even when times are dark and difficult. We are called to go beyond calculations, forecasts, tangible results, and to surrender to God’s plans and not be so caught up with our own. We are called to place ourselves in God’s loving hands and to allow him to use us as he sees fit in the building of his Kingdom of peace, justice, and love. We might be frustrated and even discouraged by continued racism, oppression, hatred, violence, intolerance and so on but we cannot and should not give up. If we are truly committed to living out the gospel values in our lives, then even though we might not see the results, it is possible that we have no idea of how our words and actions are germinating and helping the kingdom of God to grow. 

Today's readings encourage us to continue to be faithful and to trust in God who 

cares and loves us deeply.