Corn Fields and Mustard Bushes

Based on Mark 4:26-34

Things were really clicking for Jesus in his life. Huge crowds followed him around attracted by his healing powers and his ability to cast out demons. He had a group of twelve disciples who he had hand selected. They were there to support him in whatever way he needed and then sat around him in the evenings when he would teach them about the things of God. He had faced down the scribes in a very public way, asserting his authority and undermining their credibility. He made the statement about how every person who did God’s will was like family to him, making room for all the people who were drawn to him to be included, for them to feel like they belonged, not held at arms-length but that they were like a brother or sister. By every indication Jesus was the center of a real movement, perhaps even a messianic movement. It was significant enough to get the attention of the religious leaders, prompting them to start pushing back. They could feel their power and influence slipping. Things were shifting and they were losing power to control it. Jesus had a lot of power and he was not hesitant to use it. Jesus was clearly on a mission and he was clearly making an impact.

Now that Jesus is riding high, established as a movement leader, popular, threatening the status quo, he starts talking about the kingdom of God, that is, the reign of God in their day. It is an important thing to remember, that when Jesus speaks of the kingdom of God, he is not talking about a future reality that we will one day enter when we die and go to heaven. The kingdom of God is among us. It is a present reality. God’s rule and reign is currently established. When Jesus speaks of the kingdom of God, he is telling the people about a kingdom that they can participate in right now. And that’s another thing that the powers that be are not crazy about. See, there is already a kingdom that has been established. It is called the Roman empire and the ruler is Caesar. Jesus is proclaiming to the people that there is another kingdom, a contrasting kingdom, a competing kingdom…the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is not theoretical or ideological. It’s a real thing that demands the allegiance of the people. Rome, and the religious establishment that is supported by Rome, see this as a threat. When Jesus starts talking about the kingdom of God, the stakes start getting a lot higher.

So, if Jesus is going to be talking about the kingdom of God in contrast to the kingdom of the Roman empire, then we can expect Jesus will use images that reflect great power, to make the point that the kingdom of God is much more powerful than the Roman empire. The kingdom of God must be like a mighty mountain or like a forest of tall and strong cypress trees.

Jesus, however, never fails to surprise. He is regularly turning conventional wisdom on its head. What are the images Jesus uses to describe the kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is like a corn field. The kingdom of God is like a field of mustard bushes. OK…Not what we expected.

How is the kingdom of God to be established? There’s going to be a mighty army from heaven, right? A celestial calvary? If Jesus is the messiah, he’s going to lead some military coup to dethrone the Caesar or at least get Rome out of the land of Israel and Judah, set up his throne in Jerusalem and restore the kingdom of David to its rightful place. I mean, that was the messianic expectation in those days. So, that’s how this is going to work, right?

No. Instead, the establishment of the kingdom of God is like a farmer scattering seeds, whether they be corn seeds or even teeny tiny mustard seeds. Then the farmer sleeps and wakes, goes about his life, keeping an eye on things until the harvest comes when he then goes out to gather in the corn. No military invasion. No coup. No armed revolution. It’s more like farming and letting nature do its thing. What kind of kingdom is this? It sure is different from the Roman empire. The contrast between the two kingdoms could not be more stark.

Jesus is describing the kingdom of God in a way that common peasants could relate to. These were people who actually worked the soil. They knew something about planting and harvesting corn. And they knew about mustard which, by the way, is an invasive weed. In fact, if you wanted to prank someone or get back at them for something they did you could sneak over to their field and scatter a bunch of mustard seeds. That’s a good way to mess up an otherwise productive field. The kingdom of God is like an invasive weed? Sure. The main thing is that the kingdom that Jesus is describing is relatable to common people. There is a pattern here. Just as Jesus was letting the people know that he is a brother to them he is also letting them know that the kingdom manifests in the world in ways they can relate to, like farming. The kingdom of God is an extension of how they do life. It’s like cultivating the soil and like cultivating a family. No palaces. No standing armies. No command and control hierarchical structures. It’s like common community life; a community that is an alternative to the oppressive Roman empire.

At another level, Jesus is describing a reality that is hopeful. This is especially good news for the fledging Christian community that Mark the gospel writer was a part of. Mark’s community was small and insignificant in comparison to the society at large. They were scattered about. They were trying to figure out how to keep the movement going now that Jesus was gone. They had to deal with some local hostilities. But the main thing was that society as a whole had moved on. Jesus was dead and gone. Rome was still in charge. Nothing changed. The Jesus followers were struggling. They still deeply believed in Jesus. They were committed to sharing the good news. They were committed to the movement that Jesus started. But they were living in a world that was not interested. It must have been downright depressing to be a Christian in those early days. They were in need of hope. That’s what these parables provide.

Jesus taught that our task is to keep scattering seeds and trust that those seeds will sprout and grow. The seeds are the word of God, the proclamation of the gospel, the telling of our experiences of Jesus, our witness of the impact Jesus has had on our lives. These stories we tell are seeds that are planted into the hearts and minds of people. We tell our stories and then let those stories do their thing. Jesus reminds us that God is involved in this process. The Spirit is at work. Those seeds are going to sprout if the soil is good. We just be patient, let those stories do their work. Our job is to plant the seeds, tell the stories. And when the time is right, when the stories have borne fruit and people have come to a point where they want to be a part of the community, the family, the kingdom of God, we gather them in as one who harvests corn. We plant. We gather. God does the rest. We can trust the process. There is a nugget of hope.

Jesus invites us to think of churches as mustard bushes scattered all across the earth. Weeds sometimes get a bad rap. One thing you can say about weeds, they are resilient. You cannot get rid of them easily. It’s actually a source of hope to contemplate that all these little Christian communities scattered across the world are like weeds. You just can’t get rid of us! That was surely a hopeful message for Mark’s community to claim. It can give us some confidence as well. Churches are like weeds.

Mustard bushes are invasive. They are prolific. They are resilient plants. And they provide a lot of benefits. Mustard obviously can add some flavor to your food. It has medicinal benefits. It also provides safety and shelter for birds. Mustard is a beneficial weed. It offers all kinds of benefits. Just like the church. Being in community together adds flavor to our lives. The church is a community where we can find healing. There is medicine in our life together. The church is a place of safety and shelter for all kinds of birds, I mean people. The kingdom of God manifested in the world as all these churches scattered about the world truly is like a field of mustard bushes, a beneficial weed.

This is what the kingdom of God is like in real time. It is a global family, brothers and sisters who have been drawn to Jesus. And we tell stories. These stories, like seeds, take root and grow in the lives of people, slowly transforming lives until people reach a point where they are ready to be gathered into the community and find their place as a brother or a sister. Each of our communities are like mustard bushes scattered all over the place, offering medicine, offering safety, offering security. This is the kingdom, or maybe a better term is the kin-dom of God.