Today we continue our series entitled, “Heaven on Earth,” by teaching on God’s Kingdom.
About a week ago we looked at a parable Jesus taught about the Kingdom in Matthew 13. It was about yeast and flour. Jesus said the Kingdom was like a woman who put a very small amount of yeast into about 60 lbs. of flour. Once the yeast is activated, it begins to EXPAND and work its way through the flour. Before long it permeates through the entire batch and it causes the bread to RISE! In that same setting Jesus taught a parable about the mustard seed and how this small seed is like the Kingdom of God. Let’s look at that today.
(Mat 13:31,32 ERV)
Then Jesus told the people another story: “God’s kingdom is like a mustard seed that a man plants in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds. But when it grows, it is the largest of all garden plants. It becomes a tree big enough for the birds to come and make nests in its branches.”
So what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. Jesus wanted us to get an understanding of what the Kingdom of God is like. He knew that we are born in this world and, for the most part, until we are Born-Again and filled with the Holy Spirit, our mentality is shaped by this world’s system. So for God to get us to understand what His system (or Kingdom) is like, He has to communicate with us in ways we can relate to. You will never reach someone you can’t relate to. So God attempted to relate with us by teaching heavenly truths through earthly stories. That’s what parables are. If you can understand the earthly story (the parable), you can open your heart to divine truth. I appreciate the fact that God loves us SO much that He goes out of His way to communicate with us in ways we can understand.
2. Jesus came from the Kingdom of God, He was living in the earth as a human conduit of the divine, and He was seeking for ways to help humans understand God’s Kingdom. In the parable of the mustard seed Jesus paints a picture of the smallest seed growing up into the largest tree. And He tells us that this is what the Kingdom of God is like. The Kingdom of God is within you and if you give God’s Kingdom reality the priority it deserves, it will EXPAND and EXPAND inside of you until it becomes the biggest thing in your life. That should be your goal. When you give God and His Kingdom first place, everything else will fall in place.
3. Jesus tells us that the Kingdom of God is like the smallest of all seeds, the mustard seed. He tells us that this seed can grow into one of the largest of all trees. But in order to do so the seed must be planted. Unless the seed is planted it remains a seed. The seed will not work, produce or EXPAND outside of the soil. In order for the seed to produce and realize the full potential God placed in it, the seed MUST be planted. In the parable Jesus tells us that a man must plant the seed in HIS FIELD. The parable is that you must allow the seed of God’s Word to be planted in your heart. God’s Word is the incorruptible seed and your heart is the soil. The seed of God’s Word contains the power of the Kingdom. If you allow the seed to be planted within the soil of your heart, it will grow. The picture Jesus gave was of a tree so large that birds come and build nests on its branches. That’s how big the reality of God’s Kingdom can become INSIDE of you if you allow the seed to be planted and if you give it the priority it deserves.
4. In the parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the yeast, Jesus is giving us a picture of KINGDOM EXPANSION. He is showing us how the reality of God’s Kingdom starts small. But once it is planted inside of us, down in our hearts, it will grow, EXPAND, and permeate throughout every aspect of our lives. One day you will wake up and realize that you are a Kingdom citizen. You have been born from above. You are covered by the Blood of Jesus. You are filled with the Holy Spirit. You are called according to God’s Kingdom plans and purposes. You can do all things. You are an ambassador from heaven assigned to the earth and you live to show people down here what heaven is like. This all starts with a small seed, but if you allow it to grow in your heart, that small seed to change you and then change the world through you!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I open my heart and mind to the reality of Your Kingdom. Your Kingdom is within me. It starts off like a small seed. I received the seed of Your Word and I was Born-Again. I now meditate and medicate on Your Word day and night. Your Word is incorruptible seed and it is causing the reality of Your Kingdom to grow and EXPAND in me. Your Kingdom is EXPANDING and EXPANDING in me until it becomes the biggest part of my life. I give You and Your Kingdom FIRST PLACE. As I do, everything else just falls in place. I can do what You say I can do. I will go where You lead me to go. I am a world-changer and atmosphere-setter, because I am IN Your Kingdom and Your Kingdom is IN me… and it is EXPANDING daily! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
