Matthew 13:31-35

We’re in Matthew’s 3rd Major Teaching Discourse of Jesus: Parables of the Kingdom

Parables Reveal Secrets of the Messianic Age…

To Those with Ears to Hear

Those Who are Willing to Open Their Hearts to the Truth of Jesus Being the Messianic King

But They Conceal the Secrets of the Messianic Age…

From Those Without Ears to Hear

Those Unwilling to Open Their Hearts to the Truth of Jesus Being the Messianic King

We’ve Looked at 2 Parables So Far

The Parable of the Sower Reveals the Answer to the Question:

Why Do So Many Refuse to Accept Jesus as the Messiah?

Hardness of Heart, Self-Preservation, and Desire for Pleasures

The Parable of the Tares Reveals the Answer to the Question:

Why Does Evil Still Exist in the World if the Messiah has Already Come?

The Jews Expected the Messiah to Show Up and Immediately Establish World Peace

But Instead, the Messiah is Patiently Waiting for the End of the Age…

So that Everyone Will Have an Opportunity to Place Faith in Him

Then Jesus Will Bring Judgement…

And Establish Justice, Peace, and Righteousness

This Morning We’re Going to Focus on 2 Short Parables

The Parable of the Mustard Seed and the Leaven

These 2 Parables are Going to Reveal the Secret Answer to This Question:

If the Messiah is Here, Where is His World-Changing Kingdom?

If the Ruler is Here, Where is the Proof of His Rulership?

The Jews Expected the Messiah to Be a Great Powerful King with a Great Powerful Army…

Through Which He Would Establish His Rule Over the Earth

But the Messiah is Here and What Does His Great and Powerful Kingdom Consist of?

A Small Band of Uneducated, Inexperienced Nobodies

Is This What We Should Expect the Kingdom of Heaven to Look Like?

How Could Such a Kingdom Change the World?

Now, We Know From the Parable of the Tares…

That Universal Peace and World-Wide Justice Won’t Come in Their Fullness Until Jesus’ Return

But Just Because We Shouldn’t Expect Those Things Until the Age to Come…

Doesn’t Mean We Shouldn’t Expect a Foretaste of Them in this Age

We Shouldn’t Expect to See World Peace in this Age

But We Should Expect to See More Peace Because of His Kingdom

We Shouldn’t Expect to See Universal Justice in this Age

But We Should Expect to See More Justice Because He’s Ruling Over the World

We Shouldn’t Expect to See a World Filled with Righteousness in this Age

But We Should Expect to See More Righteousness Because Jesus is King

This is the “Already & Not Yet” Aspect of the Reign and Rule of Jesus

His Reign was Inaugurated/Began in His Death, Resurrection, and Ascension

But His Reign Won’t Be Consummated/Completed Until His Return

When He Returns, All Creation Will Bow Before Him and All Things Will Be Made Right

But He is Already Reigning Over and Changing the World for the Better

But the Question is:

How Can a Kingdom So Small and Insignificant Change the World?

That’s What These Parables are Going to Reveal

Matthew 13:31–32 (NASB95)

He presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

“The Kingdom of Heaven is Like” = “This is What it is Like When God Reigns”

It’s Like a Mustard Seed that’s Been Planted and Grows into a Large Tree

Mustard Seeds Were the Smallest Seeds that Were Commonly Planted in Palestine

But They Would Grow to Be Larger than Any of the Garden Vegetables

Around the Sea of Galilee They Could Grow to Be 8 to 12 Feet in Height

The Point is: Something Very Small Became Something Very Big

If We’re Taking Cues From the First 2 Parables…

We Would Say Jesus is the Man Sowing the Mustard Seed in His Field/World

The Seed Would Represent His Reign/Rule/Kingdom

It Began Very Small

Jesus Began With a Small Group of Devoted Disciples

In the Beginning of the Book of Acts, Just After Jesus’ Ascension…

We See 120 of His Disciples Gathered Together in Jerusalem

By the End of the Book of Acts There are Multiplied Thousands…

Spread Throughout Cities, Countries, and Over Thousands of Miles

Jesus Adds the Detail that “the Birds of the Air Come and Nest in its Branches”

This is Likely a Reference to Several Prophecies in Ezekiel and Daniel

There, the Great Tree Represented a Great Kingdom

And the Birds Nesting in the Branches of the Tree…

Represented the Many Nations Gathered Under the Protection of that Kingdom

Jesus’ Small Handful of Jewish Disciples Would Eventually Grow Into…

A Giant Multi-Ethnic, Multi-Lingual, Multi-National Kingdom

Our Question Was:

If the Messiah is Here, Where is His World-Changing Kingdom?

Jesus Reveals the Answer in this Parable:

God’s Plan was to Start the Kingdom Out Very Small

It Wouldn’t Begin with a Powerful King Leading a Mighty Military

It Wouldn’t Begin with a Big, Flashy Destruction of All Other Kingdoms

It Would Start Off Small in the Midst of All Other Kingdoms

Then it Would Grow and Grow and Grow…

Until All Ethnicities and Nationalities Were a Part of it

This is the Mystery/Secret Jesus Reveals With the Mustard Seed Parable

The 2nd Parable is Very Similar:

Matthew 13:33 (NASB95)

He spoke another parable to them, “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three pecks of flour until it was all leavened.”

Leaven, in the NT, Almost Always Refers to the Power & Influence of Evil

But Here, Leaven Refers to the Power & Influence of Good

Jesus’ Reign is Compared to Leaven Which is Hidden in 3 Pecks of Flour

3 Pecks of Flour Would Equal Out to Nearly 50 Pounds of Dough

This is Enough to Feed 100 People

The Secret this Parable Reveals is Similar to that of the Previous Parable

The Mustard Seed Represented the Growth/Expansion of Jesus’ Kingdom in the World

The Leaven Represents the Spreading of His Kingdom’s Influence Throughout the World

Like the Little Leaven that is Hidden and Unnoticed Within the Dough

It’s Work is Gradual, But Over Time, it Drastically Changes the Dough

Jesus’ Reign is Small and Hidden Within the World…

But, Over Time, it Will Leave a Great Influence On the Entire World

The Jewish People Expected the Messiah and His Rule to Show Up in Extravagant Fashion…

And Drastically Change the World Immediately

But the Parables of the Mustard Seed and Leaven Reveal Something Different

The Kingdom and its Influence are Going to Grow Gradually Over Time

It Will Have Humble Beginnings

But Eventually, it Will Grow to Become a World-Wide Kingdom…

That Influences the Entire World Toward Peace, Justice, and Righteousness

Matthew 13:34–35 (NASB95)

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: “I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden since the foundation of the world.”

On this Occasion with the Crowds on the Beach, Jesus Only Taught in Parables

He Would Only Speak Plainly to His Disciples in Private

Matthew Saw this Occasion as the Fulfillment of Psalm 78:2

This Psalm By Asaph is a Recounting of the History of Israel

Asaph Wanted the Next Generation to Know this History…

So They Wouldn’t Follow in the Same Rebellious Footsteps of Their Ancestors

This Psalm Reveals the Constant Rebellion of Israel Against God

But it Ends with God Choosing David to Shepherd His People

Matthew Noticed Several Similarities Between Psalm 78 and What Jesus was Doing

Just as Asaph was Giving Information to the Israelites that They Didn’t Previously Know…

Jesus was Giving Secrets of the Kingdom to His Disciples that They Didn’t Previously Know

The Reason Asaph was Revealing this Information was Because of Israel’s Rejection of God

The Reason Jesus Spoke in Parables was Because the People Were Rejecting Him

Asaph Ended with the Hopeful Message of God’s Shepherd, David

Jesus is the New David Whom God Chose to Shepherd His People

Application

There are 2 Similar Questions These 2 Parables Revealed the Answers to:

If the Messiah is Here, Where is His World-Changing Kingdom?

How Can a Kingdom So Small and Insignificant Change the World?

Jesus Presents the Kingdom as a Tiny Mustard Seed in a Big Field…

And a Little Bit of Leaven in a Large Amount of Dough

The Kingdom Began Small But Eventually Grew into a Worldwide Kingdom

In the Beginning it was Hidden and Insignificant

But its Influence Would Gradually Effect the Whole World

Have You Ever Considered the Effect Jesus’ Kingdom has Had On the World?

Let’s Just Begin with the Roman Empire:

It was a Wicked Empire

Life was Expendable

Abortion was Rampant

Parents Would Often Abandon Their Babies and Children in Deserted Places to Die

Especially Female Babies, Because Women Were Considered Inferior

There was the Gladiatorial Games…

Where Thousands Were Slaughtered for the Amusement of the People

Sexual Activity Between Men and Women was So Promiscuous and Depraved

Homosexuality was Widespread Throughout the Empire

Pedophilia Against Little Boys was Acceptable Behavior

Women Had Low Social Status

They Received Little Schooling/Education

They Weren’t Allowed to Speak in Public

They Were Viewed as Property By Their Husbands

But Once the Kingdom of Jesus Began to Grow in Influence…

All of These Evil Practices Were Confronted and Would Eventually Be Abolished

Even Spreading Beyond the Roman Empire, the Kingdom Influenced the Entire World

The Cultures of Western Society Were Largely Shaped By Christianity

The Reign of Jesus Brought About the Establishment of:

Hospitals

Orphanages

Homes for the Elderly

Hospitality and Generosity to the Poor, Hungry, and Homeless

The Abolition of Slavery and the Quest of Equality for All People

Most of the Major Universities Were Established for Christian Purposes

Most of the Leading Scientists Until Recent Times…

Were Christians Seeking to Understand the Handiwork of Their God

The World We Live in Today is Unrecognizable in Many Ways to the World of Jesus’ Day

And it is Thanks to the Influence of His Kingdom

And it All Started with One Man and His 12 Devoted Disciples

So What Does this Mean for Us?

It Means We are a Part of Something Great, Something World-Changing

It Means, No Matter How Small or Insignificant We May Feel…

God Has Used Smaller and More Insignificant People to Change the World

According to a Recent Census, There are Close to 4,000 People Living in Livingston

There are Close to 23,000 People Living in Overton County

Our Little Community of Believers Here is Somewhere Between 100-150

That Means We Make Up a Little Over 3% of the Population of Our Town

And We Make Up a Half a Percent of the Population of Our County

Even When You Factor in All of Our Siblings in Other Congregations…

We are Still Outnumbered to a Great Degree

Do You Think it’s Possible for Our Little Community of 100-150 People…

To Positively Impact this Town?

Do You Think it’s Possible that We Could Turn this County Upside-Down for Jesus?

Or are We Too Small to Make that Big of an Impact?

Are We Too Insignificant to Be that Much of an Influence?

If These Parables Teach Us Anything, it’s That:

Don’t Underestimate the Power of the Gospel When it is Lived and Shared By Jesus’ Spirit-Indwelled People

When We Live for and Share the Message of Jesus, it Can Change the World

If Each Person Here Were to Influence 1 Person to Submit to the Authority of Jesus this Year…

Simple Math Tells Us that We Would Double in Size

This is What the Early Church Experienced

They Believed in the Power of the Gospel to Change the World One Soul at a Time

And They Lived Out the Gospel with All Their Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength

They Changed the World, Not with a Powerful Military or Political Savvy

They Did it By, Day in and Day Out, Loving Their Neighbor as Theirselves

By Living the Self-Sacrificial Lifestyle They Learned in Their King

What Could God Accomplish Through Us if We Did the Same?