The Parables of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”

The Parables of the Hidden Treasure and the Pearl

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

The Parable of the Net

“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

“Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked. “Yes,” they replied.

He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

Sermon

Let us Pray – O God, light of the minds that know you, life of the souls that love you, and strength of the thoughts that seek you – bless the words that I will read and the meditations of my heart. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen

Imagine this scene? A labourer is ploughing a field when he suddenly comes across a great treasure, just below the surface. He can’t believe his luck!

But what to do? He knows he can’t just take it. The field doesn’t belong to him. Perhaps it’s too big to dig up and take away in any case. But he’s filled with joy at the thought of owning this treasure.

So he covers it up again, goes home and sells up absolutely everything he owns, so he can get enough cash together to buy the field. You can imagine the champagne flowing as he celebrates his good fortune with his family. He’s set up for life.

Then there’s the merchant, who is a trader in precious pearls and really knows his stuff! One day he comes across a superb pearl. It’s huge; its sheen is almost translucent and he realises that this specimen could make his fortune in the right market. And again he’s overjoyed at this discovery. He too is so overjoyed that he quickly goes home and sells absolutely everything he can lay his hands on so he can afford this perfect pearl.

We can see that the major theme in these two parables is joy? The joy of discovery, the joy of owning something that is priceless, a joy that makes everything else fade into insignificance and a joy that is life changing. The men in the parables have found a treasure that’s so great they’re willing to give up everything to get their hands on it.

Joy is an interesting thing isn’t it? Some people go searching for joy and never find it, while others find it in the simplest thing. And one of the most interesting things about joy is that you can’t actually find it by looking for it. You won’t make someone joyful by just telling them to be joyful. You have to first point them to something that’ll be a source of joy for them.

C. S. Lewis in his book “Surprised by Joy” describes his pilgrimage towards a knowledge of God, which he describes as a search for Joy.

At one stage of his description he talks about discovering that he’d been looking for the wrong thing. He says “I perceived that … I had been … wrong in supposing that I desired Joy itself.

Joy itself, considered simply as an event in my own mind, turned out to be of no value at all. All the value lay in that of which Joy was the desiring.”

His problem was that he was looking for something that he noticed other people had: this thing called joy. The problem was, that at that time he hoped to find it outside of Christianity, which he could only think of, at that stage, as mere mythology. He tells how one day as he travelled alone on a bus he was presented with a choice. He suddenly became aware that he was holding something at bay or shutting something out.

He describes the something as if it was as though he was wearing some sort of stiff clothing like a corset, or even a suit of armour. He felt himself at that moment being given a choice, to unbuckle the armour or to keep it on; to open the barricade door or break it down. It was a completely free choice, without threat or promise.

Well, he eventually chose to open up, to remove the armour to break down the barricade. But still that wasn’t it. He still hadn’t found the source of joy. All he’d done was take a step in the right direction. He still had to have an encounter. An encounter with Jesus Christ. It was when that happened, he says, that his life was changed around. And ironically, from that point on, joy itself became unimportant. It was valuable only as a pointer to something other.

So what is it in this parable that gives these men such joy? What is this great treasure that Jesus is referring to? Well, he says, it’s the Kingdom of Heaven. With a knowledge of Jesus comes a knowledge of God, and hence all the treasures of wisdom, knowledge and the Kingdom of heaven is tied to Jesus himself.

No money can buy this treasure. The treasure that Jesus is talking about is a free gift and can only be gladly received as a free gift. But the men in the two parables go and sell everything they have so they can possess it. Remember, these are parables about the kingdom of heaven. But the treasure of God’s free gift is of such value that when you find it everything else becomes secondary.

Jesus says the Kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it out, sat down and took out the good fish but threw the bad away. Just as in the parable of the wheat and the weeds that we heard last week, Jesus is talking about the church. The church is the kingdom net that gathers in all kinds of people, with all kinds of motives. There are plenty of people who come into the church because they recognise that there’s a great treasure here but who for one reason or another never take the next step of committing all they have to Jesus and his kingdom.

Just belonging to a church is no guarantee that we truly belong to the Kingdom. So we’re left with a challenge: Have we given up everything else in order to possess this incredible treasure of belonging to God’s Kingdom? Have we committed all we are and all we have to serving Christ as Lord? Have we recognised just how precious this free gift of God is?

Finally, look at the last little parable Jesus throws in as he finishes his series of parables of the Kingdom of heaven: “Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked. “Yes,” they replied. He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”

It’s as though Jesus has finished his lessons and this is the final examination. “Have you understood all these parables?” he says.

When they assure him they have he gives them a final pep-talk before they go out to teach others. He says if you’ve been properly instructed in the Kingdom of heaven then here’s how you’ll go about teaching.

You’ll be like a householder who has guests arriving and so gets out the best silverware as well as the brand new dinner set. In other words, when you come to teach people about the Kingdom you’ll teach them the new things about Jesus.

I guess this sums up the reason that we can hear the parables of Jesus year after year and keep coming up with new ways of understanding and applying them. Their age doesn’t diminish their value, because the truth that Jesus brings is always being refreshed and renewed as we bring it to bear on our particular situations.

We’re presented with a series of parables that start and finish with the image of a great treasure. God’s gift of membership in his kingdom and of his revealed word is a treasure that we can apply over and over again to each new situation we find ourselves in.

But in the middle is a warning and a challenge. We’re called to take up our cross in order to follow Jesus. That’s how precious this great treasure of the Kingdom of heaven is. It’s a free gift, but at the same time it calls for sacrifice of all we have.

So when we face hard decisions, particularly as we face temptation, let’s keep in the forefront of our minds the greatness of the treasure that God has given us, because none of the joys, none of the glitz and none of the glamour that temptations offer us can compare with the joy of knowing Jesus Christ. Amen

Prayers

Let us pray to God who gives to his people both bodily and spiritual food.

Guide the Church to feed your flock as Christ wonderfully fed the multitude. Make your faithful people, being rooted and grounded in love, instruments of your love to all people

Lord, in your mercy hear us

We pray for all in the world who do not know the name of Christ or will not honour him. Give to the learned knowledge of the love that is beyond knowledge, and to the rich understanding of the true riches of your glory

Lord, in your mercy hear us

Since the whole family of heaven and earth is named by you, give grace to our families to reflect your perfect love in our human love.

Bless those in our community who work to bring food and comfort to the infirm and to those in want.

Lord, in your mercy hear us

Have mercy on those who lack the food that they need. Prosper all efforts to relieve hunger in the world. Grant help and courage to all who cannot properly feed those they love

Lord, in your mercy hear us

We pray for all those who have died, that the love of Christ will gather them into the fellowship of the saints. May they rejoice in your heavenly feast where he presides forever.

Lord, in your mercy hear us

May the Lord receive our offering of prayer and multiply it towards the coming of his Kingdom.

Merciful father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen

And we seal our prayers together in the words that Jesus taught his disciples… the Lord’s prayer

Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen

Revd Kevin. Priest at St.Wilfrids and St.Thomas