Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given

 Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."

Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."

And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the  harvest has come."

Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples.

- Mark 4:21-34

Yesterday, we read that Jesus once again began to teach by the sea.  And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea.  Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:  "Listen!  Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it.  Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away.  And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop.  But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."  And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable.  And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, so that  'Seeing they may see and not perceive, and hearing they may hear and not understand;  Lest they should turn, and their sins be forgiven them.'"  And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable?  How then will you understand all the parables?  The sower sows the word.  And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown.  When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts.  These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time.  Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble.  Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.  But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit:  some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."

Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed?  Is it not to be set on a lampstand?  For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."   In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus uses these words to encourage His followers (in the Sermon on the Mount, see Matthew 5:14-16) to shine the light they are given into the world, to reflect the glory of God through their faith and the works it produces.  But here His teachings about light have yet another facet to them:  as the Light Himself, He is in the world to bring that light into the world for those who will receive it.  That light is His word, for those with "spiritual ears" to discern.  See yesterday's reading (above) for His reference to those who would hear, quoting Isaiah.  This is an encouragement to those who desire spiritual truth.  He is promising growth in their understanding, though He has begun to teach publicly in parables.

 Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear.  With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  This teaching is connected to what He's just said.  My study bible names it a call to attentive listening and discriminating response.  A note reads, "We must not only hear, but hear properly.  More will be given to those who respond to Christ with open hearts; they will grow in understanding."  My study bible also quotes St. Mark the Ascetic:  "Do the good you know, and what you do not know will be revealed to you."

 And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how.  For the earth yields crops by itself:  first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head.  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the  harvest has come."  This parable is found only in Mark's Gospel.  The kingdom, says my study bible, refers to the whole span of God's dispensation or plan of salvation.  The man is Christ, and the seed is the gospel (see yesterday's reading, above, and the parable of the Sower).  The man's sleep indicates Christ's death, from which He will rise.  That the man does not know how the seed grows shows that Christ does not manipulate our response to the gospel, but rather each person is free to receive it and to let it grow in his own heart.  The harvest is the Second Coming, when all will be judged on their reception of the gospel.

Then He said, "To what shall we liken the kingdom of God?  Or with what parable shall we picture it?  It is like a mustard seed which, when it is sown on the ground, is smaller than all the seeds on earth; but when it is sown, it grows up and becomes greater than all herbs, and shoots out large branches, so that the birds of the air may nest under its shade."  According to Theophylact, the mustard seed and the leaven represent the disciples, who began as just a few men, but "soon encompassed the whole earth.  They also teach us about the nature of faith entering a person's soul, causing an inward growth of virtue.  This soul, says my study bible, will become godlike and can receive even angels.  Both these parables, and the one above, illustrate a mysterious growth process of grace that we do not control, but which nevertheless produces its results for us to see and know its work.

And with many such parables He spoke the word to them as they were able to hear it.  But without a parable He did not speak to them.  And when they were alone, He explained all things to His disciples.  My study bible tells us that to unbelievers, the parables remain bewildering.  To those with simple faith, Christ's stories using common images reveal truth in ways they can grasp, as they were able.

What is this mysterious process of spiritual growth that Christ describes?  Why is it couched in the riddles of parables, and the hidden gems of meanings contained therein?  Why does He explain privately to His disciples but leave the public to wonder about the parables?  All of these questions are pertinent to the nature of this Kingdom itself.  A poetic irony, given that the parables are meant to illustrate the Kingdom, to draw those in who will want to learn more.  We're given two kinds of information in today's reading.  First Jesus teaches about illumination in the illustration of the lampstand.  The parables are meant to draw out our capacity for such truth, for this kind of enlightenment that He offers through His ministry of salvation.  Everything depends on our faith, our capacity to receive what He's offering.  Keep in mind that this follows His giving of the parable of the Sower.  The seeds He is sowing depend for their harvest on the ground upon which they're sown, what kind of root they can take up within us, and how they can survive the storms and difficulties of life, the cares with which the world will present us, the distractions and forgetfulness of life.  Secondly, the parables themselves in today's reading illustrate this mysterious process of growth that is unfathomable.  You can't watch it happen and you can't make it happen.  So much depends on a process that has its own pace and energy, its own power.  One can only see the "fruits" or the harvest.  My favorite parable is the story of the mustard seed:  a tiny golden seed sprouts up a sturdy great bush, one with so much to give that even the birds may nest in its branches -- a story of angels sent down and finding a home in the world.  This is a beautiful parable of the Kingdom, indeed, and the truths that Christ brings to us as they may nestle into our lives and we produce more harvest through our faith.  But the power of all this growth is contained in those seeds.  We are merely to do the work required for fertile ground:  patience, persistence, nurturing.  In such cultivation the discipline of attending worship service, participating in religious community, and our own practices (both corporate and private) of prayer and even fasting, reading Scripture and contemplating it prayerfully -- all these things go to the care of our souls and finding the fertile resting ground for the seeds and the mysterious process that is at work, if we but let it be, within us.   So where are you in this process?  How do you cultivate a receptive attention?  Jesus promises that where there is some that is received, more will be given.  We're given back in the measure with which we give.  This is a never-ending growth, the story of expansion and surprising results.  The branches that grow will shelter even the birds of the air, the harvest of beauty in the world, the grace of God's love and truth.