Gospel: Kingdom of God

Today marks the Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, and the Gospel will be read from the narrative of St Mark (4:26-34).

Jesus said to the crowds: "This is how it is in the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and through it all the seed would sprout and grow, he not knows. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come."

He said, "To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade."

With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explain everything in private.

In St Mark's Gospel, Jesus appears reluctant to reveal his identity as the Son of Man. After performing miracles of healing, he warns those cured to tell no one (see Mark 1:44, 3:12, 5:43, 7:36, and 8:26). Also, when preaching, Jesus chooses to speak to the crowds in parables, leaving them to discern his message. Only to his disciples does he explain the parable's meaning, and he does this in private at a later time.

Today's Gospel reading consists of two parables about seeds. In the first, Jesus tells those gathered that this is "how it is in the Kingdom of God." A man scatters seed which over time sprouts and develops. Then when the grain is ripe, the man harvests his crop. The emphasis in the parable is on the seed, which seemingly has the power to grow on its own. In this it is like the Kingdom of God. While on earth, Jesus planted the seeds of the Kingdom by his life, miracles, teaching, and suffering. However, the Kingdom is not yet fully established. Although already present in Jesus and his group of twelve, it has yet to come to fruition; just as the seed in the parable needs time to grow, so does God's Kingdom.

The second parable focuses on the tiny mustard seed. Though not the smallest of seeds, it is most likely the smallest that a first-century farmer in Jesus' part of the world would have sown. Small as the mustard seed is, it develops into a tree. Though the mustard tree generally averages only nine to twelve feet in height, it has a wide expanse and provides a nesting place for birds. Just as the tree welcomes the birds, so is God's Kingdom welcoming and open to many.

These parables help us discern something about the Kingdom of God and our own faith. In God we live and move and have our being, but God is a mystery and his Kingdom, though present, has not yet come to its fullness. Today, the Kingdom of God is present in the Church. The mission of proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom given to the Apostles is now given to us. But just as seeds need time to come to fruition, so does the Kingdom of God. That is why in the Lord's Prayer, we pray, "thy Kingdom come." We know that it will come in its fullness at the end of time. All we need is faith.

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The Gospel is brought to you by Tim Hortons.