Matthew 13:31-33:
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 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.”
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.”
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
The three dimensional kingdom of heaven
Have you ever seen a 3D movie or one of those books which you need the red and blue glasses to see the picture with focus and clarity?
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. 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.”
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.”
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.
“Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“Have you understood all these things?” Jesus asked.
“Yes,” they replied.
He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
The three dimensional kingdom of heaven
Have you ever seen a 3D movie or one of those books which you need the red and blue glasses to see the picture with focus and clarity?
Without the glasses all you see is a blurry picture, you may be able to see a little bit of the picture, but without the glasses your eyes can not work out the details of the picture.
The gospel reading we heard this morning is like these pictures. We heard five different parables each describing a different view or different aspect of the kingdom of heaven. Sure, we can look at the pictures individually. But this does not let us see the full three dimensional view of what Christ is showing us this morning.
So How should I describe the kingdom of heaven? The kingdom of heaven is like a 3D movie or book, it has many layers, which look blurred when looked at through our own eyes but can be seen clearly and in focus when we look through the lenses of Christ Jesus.
The Largeness of the kingdom of heaven.
The kingdom of heaven is described as being like a mustard seed, the smallest of seeds, which a farmer sows in the middle of a field, and which grows to be the largest of the bushes.
I am no farmer, and correct me if I am wrong, but doesn’t it seem like a waste of a field to plant one lonely, tiny seed in the middle of the field? Wouldn’t it be more economical to plant a lot of seeds within its boundaries to maximize the yield of the crop?
But this is the way Christ describes the kingdom of heaven. It begins with a tiny little seed, planted in the ground and it grows, and it grows. Yet it is still only one plant in the middle of the field.
Does this catch you as odd? Why wouldn’t Christ describe the kingdom of heaven as like a huge, strong and ancient Red Cedar or Blue Gum tree? Why does he use such an insignificant bush that you could barely call a tree at all?
It is because the kingdom of heaven is exactly like a mustard seed. It is easily seen as insignificant, small and blurry. But when seen in its fullness, it is like a large mustard plant, in which the birds of the air can roost and get protection from the surrounding elements and the predators that are in the surrounding, bare field.
We too come and hide in the branches of the kingdom of heaven. We come to church and roost. We are protected and strengthened by the Word of God and we find ourselves protected and strengthened from the bare field, or the world around us when we sit in the branches of the kingdom of heaven.
The Hiddenness of the kingdom of heaven.
Again the kingdom of heaven is described as a bit of leaven or yeast which has been placed in a heap of flour. When we read the parable of the leaven, the enormity of the flour is lost. The dough consists of around 50 kilograms of flour. That is enough bread to feed over 150 people. And yet within this huge amount of dough, a tiny little bit of leaven is placed and kneaded into the flour.
You cant see the leaven, it is such a tiny amount of yeast that is hidden within the huge lump dough, but the results of this tiny little bit of leaven is huge. Imagine for a moment a 50 kilogram ball of dough, and just how much this dough will grow. Instead of a wheelbarrow full of dough, you end up with a truck load of dough.
It is the same with the kingdom of heaven. The flour or dough is those who hear God’s word and listen. The leaven is God’s word spoken into our lives and as the leaven works through our lives, we rise and we prove and we become more and more like Christ. As we grow and become more like Christ the leaven, we too spread the leaven to those around us. The kingdom of Heaven grows through us who receive the leaven, as we leaven those around us with the word of God.
The kingdom of heaven may seem small and insignificant at first glance but as the three dimensional picture comes into focus we see that what seemed small and was initially hidden, has become really huge. Yet this is still only one aspect of the whole picture.
The Preciousness of the kingdom of heaven.
The next two images of the kingdom of heaven are a hidden treasure and a precious pearl of great worth.
In the image of the pearl the merchant who has been looking for and selling pearls, finds one remarkable pearl and instantly sells everything he owns just to have, hold and keep this one. Nothing else is important to this man other than this one pearl.
It is the same thing with the image of the hidden treasure. A person who found the treasure, re-hid it, sold everything he owned just to buy that single field. Because he knew of the great wealth hidden within it.
Both of these images show us how very precious the kingdom of heaven is. These two images don’t mean that to get the kingdom of heaven you must sell everything you own. What they do mean is that the value of God’s word and wisdom is far greater than any worldly possession and that you. Having received it, you should be willing to do that which God tells you; namely, to Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind and soul. And to love your neighbor as your self.
The drag net, and the catch.
The final image of the kingdom of heaven is that of the drag net, in which all fish, both clean and unclean are gathered together. And as Jesus says the dragnet and the boat are the angels who at the end of the age are sent to gather in all people to bring them all to judgement. No one is spared this final judgement. The righteous will be saved and the unrighteous will be cast away from God’s presence.
But don’t let this image frighten you, as it has to many people over the ages, remember this is just one detail or one layer in the 3D image of the kingdom of heaven. Without this image we can forget that there will be a final judgement.
Remember the image of the hidden treasure.
There is an even deeper level of this image that Christ has put before us. It is the fine detail of that 3D image of the kingdom of heaven. The field is the world, but the treasure is not the Word of God as with the pearl, but the treasure is you. You are the treasure in the field. Christ himself is the person who found the treasure, who found you. He sold everything he owned, His heavenly glory he left behind, to become truly human, He even sold His life to pay for your salvation so that you could live. He sold everything he had, so he could have the treasure so he could have you!
The work of those who see in 3D.
From these five parables we see the the smallness, the largeness, the hiddenness, the revealedness, and the preciousness that forms the layers of the picture. Which when we look through the lenses of Christ, the 3D picture of the kingdom of heaven becomes clear, vivid and in focus.
So, having heard all this, I ask you the same question that Jesus asked His disciples, “Have you understood all these things?” Do you see the three dimensional image of the kingdom of heaven?
If so, I ask you to think this week about the final parable that Jesus gives to us this morning.
That: All who have been taught and discipled into the kingdom of heaven are like the man who is master of the house, who brings out of his storeroom both new things and old.
What a great joy we have, that we can dig into the word of God. And that we know that we are part of this 3D kingdom he has given to us.
Being part of this 3D kingdom means that we have access to this huge storeroom full of old thing and new things that Jesus talks about in this parable. He has given us The Old and New Testaments, which we can bring out to those around us so that they too can see the wonderful 3D picture God has painted for us, The kingdom of heaven.
And the peace of God which passes all human understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
