like a mustard seed

Luke 13:18-19  So He was saying, "What is the kingdom of God like, and to what shall I compare it?  It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and threw into his own garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches."

 

Jesus is the only one who has walked in Heaven and then come to earth.  He is God and also man and He fashioned all of creation with the Father.  But He also walked with men and He came to reach men and show them the way to Heaven.  Who could be better to paint the best picture of Heaven for us?  We know from other passages of scripture that Heaven is an amazing place...glorious and grand and wondrous and different than our familiar earthly setting in so many ways.  Jesus could have taken some time to describe the various kinds of angels and the throne of His Father.  He could have talked about the activities of Heaven and He could have illustrated a picture that His disciples could imagine (something like the Revelation that John received and wrote about).  But Jesus chose to use a tiny mustard seed to represent Heaven and the Kingdom of God.  How could something so small represent something so big?  I believe that, although Heaven is indeed grand and God's Kingdom is wondrous and glorious, it starts small in our awareness.  We live in a natural kingdom of the earth, ruled by men and limited by the barriers of nature, our experience and our ability to perceive.  We first grasp the very real reality of Heaven when our spirit is awakened by faith and we place our trust in the Lord for salvation.  But we still walk the earth.  However, as we consider Heaven and as we inquire about Heaven and as we develop a personal walk with the Lord that tiny mustard seed of the Kingdom grows larger inside of us and ultimately the largeness of Heaven dwarfs the smallness of our short natural lives.  The seed grows into a tree and the tree supports us and also provides a nest for others. 

 

In our yard we have numerous flowering bushes and plants that add beauty.  If I were not married to Shirley I am confident that my yard would be bare of these plants.  But because Shirley was planted in the garden of my life I now enjoy much added beauty.  I think the Kingdom of God is something like this.  Jesus has come to our garden and now we bloom in ways we never could have imagined, apart from Him.

 

blessings,

Rob Smith