SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL
Opening Prayer
I praise You, God, that You are Lord of the details.
Read Matthew 13:31–43
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
31 He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 32 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.”
33 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.”
34 Jesus spoke all these things to the crowd in parables; he did not say anything to them without using a parable. 35 So was fulfilled what was spoken through the prophet:
“I will open my mouth in parables,
I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Spend time now thinking about the common details of your life and what they have to say of God’s presence.I bought some sunflower seeds a few years ago and planted them in flowerpots. I’ve never been much of a gardener but I was obsessed for a few weeks. I followed daily watering with minute observation of any growth. There was nothing for a while and then the shoots broke through the damp earth. Finally, after much waiting, the bright yellow head erupted from the tight green bud.
Though the last phase was exciting, the real growth
happened underground, beyond my gaze. And that’s what Jesus is saying in the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast. Spiritual growth is largely invisible, beyond measurement and scrutiny.
But as we commit ourselves to following Jesus and allow his life to permeate ours, then change happens. Very often, there is no crisis, drama or public event—God is at work in the ordinary stuff of life. A speck of yeast or a small seed is deeply unimpressive, but this is how Jesus describes the Spirit’s work in and through his followers. Small really is beautiful as far as Jesus is concerned.
Apply
Where can you find God today in your ordinary and common routines? Jot down his evidence as you go through your day.
Closing prayer
God, show Yourself to me in all the small and great
ways today.
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