“these parables are fundamentally about God, …their aim is to lay bare the nature of the divine response to the recovery of the lost.” – Joel Green, “The Gospel of Luke”
Central to understanding the teachings of Jesus, particularly how Luke presents them, is to recognize the importance of Jesus’ use of parables in conveying truths about the life of faith. The reading during yesterday’s worship service included the parable of the fig tree which helped to reinforce God’s willingness to keep giving second chances. Omitted from the reading in Luke chapter 13 were two more parables that offer another truth about God’s vision for the world…
18 He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what should I compare it? 19 It is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in the garden; it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” 20 And again he said, “To what should I compare the kingdom of God? 21 It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
These well-known and oft-recited analogies for the kingdom of God, the mustard seed and yeast, suggest something important about our place in God’s world. While God’s vision may be grand and though we might feel insignificant in comparison, the simple gift of faith holds the power to expand in great measure. Within each one of us, exists the capacity to make God’s vision real.
May peace find you this day. – Pastor Peter
Let us pray…
We may not be able to confront queens,
or challenge presidents;
We may not have the capacity to divert resources,
or uplift communities;
We may not have the voice to silence the noise of war,
or the words to negotiate peace between armies;
But, as we follow you, O Christ, we are able to do something.
And so, we pray that you would inspire us
to commit to and act on the small difference we can make:
May we bring peace
through small acts of gentleness and reconciliation;
May we bring wealth
through small contributions and collaborations;
May we bring safety
through small acts of consideration and acceptance;
May we bring wholeness
through small acts of care and service.
And in the small ways, O God,
may our small difference make a big contribution
to your saving work in our world. Amen.
~ written by John van de Laar.