For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him

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 once again Jesus 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."  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."   My study bible calls these remarks by Christ a call to attentive listening and discriminating response.  It notes that we must not only hear, but also hear properly.  Additionally, it says, more will be given to those who respond with open hearts; they will grow in understanding.  Quoting from Mark the Ascetic, we're told, "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.  My study bible explains that the kingdom refers here to the entire span of God's dispensation or plan of salvation.  The man is Christ, and the seed  he scatters is the gospel.  In this interpretation, my study bible adds that the man's sleep indicate's Christ's death, from which He will rise.  Furthermore, that the man does not know how the seed grows indicates that Christ doesn't manipulate our response to the gospel.  Rather each person is free to receive it and to let it grow in one's own heart.  A harvest is a frequent allusion to the Second Coming, when each will be judged on one's own 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."   My study bible cites the commentary of Theophylact here, who says that the mustard seed  represents the disciples.  They began as a small number, but "soon encompassed the whole earth."  Also, the image of growth stands for faith which enters a person's soul and causes an inward growth of virtue:  this soul can become godlike, and receive even angels.

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 points out that to unbelievers, the parables remain inscrutable.  But to those with simple faith, these stories which employ the use of common images reveal truth in ways they can perceive, as they are able.  We note also that in private, Jesus explained all things to His disciples.  We may consider this action in light of our own prayer lives, our private time alone with God who is in the secret place (Matthew 6:6), and the work of the Holy Spirit to enlighten our understanding through grace.

Why parables?  Again, as in yesterday's reading, we note that they are designed not to enlighten everyone, but rather to draw in those who truly want this light and truth that Christ offers to them, to us.  What is clear from Christ's stated intention in using parables to preach (see yesterday's reading, above) is that He doesn't expect that everybody is going to want what He's offering.  Not everybody is going to understand or stay with it.  Indeed, elsewhere He wonders if, at His Return, "when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8).  Moreover the parables deliberately have a quality of mystery or hiddenness about them.  Their truths are couched in images one has to hear or perceive in a certain way in order to be drawn into them and what they offer to us as pictures of the workings of this hidden Kingdom.  Jesus explains those mysteries of the Kingdom to His disciples in private, when they are alone.  In yesterday's reading, He explained to the disciples, "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 . . .."  And this is directly linked to our capacity for spiritual sight and hearing, a heart which is opened to the mysteries of God and desires to participate in them, to be a part of them, to live this kingdom of heaven.   Often we get the impression that somehow the world has to be perfected, that everybody has to be a believer, that the proper environment for our faith is one in which there are no contradictions or dilemmas so that the gospel can fully live.  But this has never been the case, nor was Christ preaching with the expectation that it would be so until His own return, the Second Coming, at which time God's judgment would be rendered in effect -- and not our own efforts at some sort of perfection.  St. Peter writes, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8).  Jesus calls the devil the "prince" or "ruler of this world" (John 12:31, 14:30).  In Tuesday's reading, Jesus referred to the devil as the "strong man" who must be bound in order that He might plunder his house, meaning a prince or ruler who holds a kingdom.  If we wait for the world to be perfected in order that our faith might be truly lived, then we've got the short end of the stick.  Christ comes preaching into a world in which He expects hostility to the Kingdom He brings.  He expects hostility to the gospel message.  Certainly, by His statement wondering if, at His return, He would find faith on the earth, He indicates that this assumption was not meant simply for the early Church and its persecutions, or merely for His immediate followers.  The world remains a place of temptations to our faith, a place of hostility to it, even though the nominal challenges may have changed in form.  These days, most of us get our information about the world through social media, where image may be endlessly distorted so that it is impossible to know the full truth of an incident.  We need our faith to discern not only the time and what is going on around us, but in particular to govern over our responses to it.  Christ's gospel, it seems to me, has never been more important than at a time when fury seems to drive response, ratcheted up by deliberately extreme language, and expressions which make the most extreme mountains out of molehills.  Christ taught us to love our enemies:  He did not expect that we would do that in a world of perfectly receptive people.   But our communion made possible through His ministry was meant to teach us -- we who do wish to receive His message and reflect His light into the world -- how we are to love our enemies and live our lives.   Does love simply mean indulgence?  Does it mean saying a person is always right or approving of all they do?  Hardly (just ask the parent of a difficult and trouble-prone child).  Our parable-preaching Minister, the One who brings grace to us all, expects that we won't have an easy time of it -- just re-read the explanation He gives of His first, the parable of the Sower, to understand that (see above).  Rather, the faith He gives us was meant for struggle, in a world not perfectly receptive nor attuned to His teachings.  It is a light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not comprehend it (John 1:5).  Let us go forward and be that light as He commands, no matter what the darkness with which we may find ourselves surrounded.  He knows whatever we go through, for "even the very hairs of your head are all numbered" (Matthew 10:30, Luke 12:7).   We still are far from a perfectly syncretized world, in which we find no contradiction to our faith -- and so He understood.  Nevertheless, let us live our faith His way, as He did, and those who followed and sought His light.  "For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."