Mark 4:30-34 - Seemingly Small, But Mighty

God's Kingdom only seems small to the world.

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Gospels: Week 4 - Kingdom Teaching and Parables

Photo: Jaspreet Kalshi, via Unsplash

Mark 4:30–34 (NASB95)

³⁰ And He said, “How shall we picture the kingdom of God, or by what parable shall we present it? ³¹ “It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the soil, though it is smaller than all the seeds that are upon the soil, ³² yet when it is sown, it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and forms large branches; so that the birds of the air can nest under its shade.”

³³ With many such parables He was speaking the word to them, so far as they were able to hear it; ³⁴ and He did not speak to them without a parable; but He was explaining everything privately to His own disciples.

Belgic Confession

Article 27: The Holy Catholic Church

We believe and confess

one single catholic or universal church—

a holy congregation and gathering

of true Christian believers,

awaiting their entire salvation in Jesus Christ

being washed by his blood,

and sanctified and sealed by the Holy Spirit.

This church has existed from the beginning of the world

and will last until the end,

as appears from the fact

that Christ is eternal King

who cannot be without subjects.

And this holy church is preserved by God

against the rage of the whole world,

even though for a time

it may appear very small

in the eyes of men—

as though it were snuffed out.

For example,

during the very dangerous time of Ahab

the Lord preserved for himself seven thousand men

who did not bend their knees to Baal.

And so this holy church

is not confined,

bound,

or limited to a certain place or certain persons.

But it is spread and dispersed

throughout the entire world,

though still joined and united

in heart and will,

in one and the same Spirit,

by the power of faith.

Summary

In Mark 4 we come across the Parable of the Mustard Seed. We know parables

to be earthly stories with a heavenly meaning. Through the parables Jesus uses

everyday ideas to explain matters of a spiritual nature.

The everyday idea used in this parable is a mustard seed, which is amongst the

smallest of the seeds. Mustard seeds and their miniscule size were familiar to

the people of Jesus’ day. This parable is not the only time Jesus used the

mustard seed as an example, this isn’t even the most familiar occurrence.

Matthew 17 contains a more often cited reference to the mustard seed, where

Jesus uses it to describe how one’s faith can grow. While the Parable of the

Mustard Seed is drawing on a familiar illustration, it is being used to teach on

something different than Matthew 17.

In Matthew 17 the mustard seed is used to describe the growth of a person’s

faith and what kind of faith can grow from something small. In Mark 4, it is the

kingdom of God which is being compared to a mustard seed. Like the mustard

seed, something grand can sprout from humble beginnings.

  Dig Deeper  

Mustard is an annual plant, and unlike a tree which adds to the previous years’

growth, mustard grows anew each year. Starting from a tiny seed, it grows into

a bush large enough for birds to nest in. In this parable, Jesus is comparing the

growth of the mustard plant to the growth of the Kingdom of God.

A mustard seed is small yet yields a larger plant than one would expect, so too

will be the kingdom of God. Though the kingdom may at its beginning seem

small and insignificant, over time and through God’s nurture it will grow beyond

what anyone could have imagined.

Although the kingdom of God may have appeared hidden and could easily be

overlooked at its onset, it would grow to reach the ends of the earth. This

message was spoken by Jesus through this parable and was further explained

privately to his disciples.

We live in a time where the Christian faith seems to be falling into obscurity in

many parts of the world, including the United States. The research and polling

on numbers of believers is more than a little concerning. Even so, not all is lost.

Just as the kingdom of God originally grew from humble origins, God can once

again grow his kingdom out of a time of obscurity and into something grand.

AAA Prayer (About)

• ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, whose Kingdom, though it appears small, rules over all things;

• ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will seek first the Kingdom of God, no matter how insignificant it seems in this world;

• ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

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