I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world

 

 Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

    "I will open My mouth in parables;

    I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."

 

- Matthew 13:31-35 

 

In Matthew's chapter 13, Jesus begins preaching to the crowds in parables, beginning with the parable of the Sower (see Tuesday's reading).  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught another parable, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.  But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared.  So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?'  He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.'  The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?'  But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them.  Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

 

Another parable He put forth to them, saying:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." Another parable He spoke to them:  "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.  All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:  "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world."  My study Bible claims that the mustard seed and the leaven represent the disciples who, according to Theophylact, began as just a few men, but "soon encompassed the whole earth."  They also stand for faith which enters a person's soul, and causes an inward growth of virtue.  This soul can become godlike, and can receive even angels.  Christ quotes from Psalm 78:2; see also Romans 16:25-26; 1 Corinthians 2:7; Ephesians 3:9; Colossians 1:26.

Christ's parables today speak of an explosive growth, something that grows strangely and mysteriously, without obvious explanation.  Of course, ancient people understood leaven and how it worked and what it did.  Ancient people understood that their lives were dependent upon tiny seeds, which could grow crops for sustenance and survival.  Today we have science which studies these kinds of natural phenomena and can explain the processes in scientific terms and how they work.  But the mystery still remains:  Who created these things?  Who planned such work?  Who programmed this kind of growth?  And growth remains mysterious, and something to marvel at.  But for the parables, we're being given a word-picture that corresponds to something Jesus is teaching us about.  What is the subject here?  Jesus tells us that when He begins each parable with the phrase, "The kingdom of heaven is like . . .."  He's teaching us about this mysterious thing He's been preaching all along, the kingdom of heaven.  For His preaching is all about the gospel of the Kingdom.  So, it's our job to ask, then, how is the kingdom of heaven like leaven?  How is it like a mustard seed?  Can we see it grow?  How do we know it's growing?  And in both cases, it's just like the examples He's given.  It's mysterious.  A mystery is literally something that is hidden or secret.  It's not something that comes with observation, as Jesus will also say of the kingdom of God.  In Luke 17:20-21, Jesus says to the Pharisees who demand answers, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you."  So we find also this mysterious reality that doesn't come with observation, scientific or otherwise.  To add the mysterious quality, we can understand Christ's words in the passage from Luke to mean that the Kingdom is both "within you" and "among you."  The truth is that, like so much of Scripture, it is not a choice to debate; both meanings apply and must remain.  These "riddles" or "allegories" of both leaven and the mustard seed tell us about  what happens in communities and in the world, and also about what happens within human beings to produce fruit of the Spirit, such as those St. Paul names in Galatians 5:22-23:  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law."  This is what we look for within ourselves, and hopefully as characteristics of our community.  It is within such a community or such a person that one may find that even "the birds of the air come and nest in its branches" -- that the angels may be drawn and dwell with such a person and within such a community, leading us to yet more growth of this mysterious community.  So when we come across such parables, we are assured that we should not be surprised by the things we see within our communities and within ourselves, and if those things we see reveal this fruit of the Spirit, and expressions of such, then we should know that this is the way this mysterious Kingdom works and grows:  from within like the leaven that leavens the whole lump, and also as a kind of organic growth and expansion like the mustard seed.  These are the signs of the presence of Christ's Kingdom.  Do you find that you change and grow, so that people wonder at how different a person you've grown through your faith?  Are there good things that come out of a community, like love and care for one another, services to help those who need it, love and companionship for those who otherwise lack and need such?   Do you find that a love of the word grows in you, or a love of God, or a capacity for charity to others?  These are the parables we must consider, and we mustn't be surprised, for this is the gospel of the kingdom of heaven.  These things "kept secret from the foundation of the world" are within us and among us, though "the world" may not understand.