The Mustard Seed and the Yeast

Thank you very much. Good evening everyone, it's a pleasure to be with you this evening.

Please keep Luke chapter 13 open in front of you as we study it together.

Luke 13 · chapter mention

That will be a huge help for all of us as we consider what the implications are of Jesus' words for us,

not only as individuals but as a church family.

Let me pray for us before we go any further.

Father, we thank you for your word to us.

And we thank you that when you speak, you shape our hearts to look more like that of Jesus.

And so we pray that you would help us this evening to understand what it is that you have to say,

that you would help us to respond in gratitude and in obedience to you.

Please, Father, would you give us everything that we need this evening to hear your word

and to live it out in our lives so that you may be glorified.

Please, we pray, would you show us Christ.

And it's in his name that we ask for all these things. Amen.

Well, it's a beautifully sunny day.

It's the end of what I'm sure has been an academic year full of highs and lows for you as a church family.

The summer holidays often give us a chance, I think, to reflect back on what the previous 12 months have held for us

and then also to look ahead at what is coming up next over the academic year that faces us.

And so my question to us all this evening is this.

What should our gospel expectations be over the next academic year?

What should our gospel expectations be until the summer of 2023?

What should the gospel expectations be for a church family like Brunsfield Evangelical

as you look to the next five or maybe even ten years of your life here as a church in Edinburgh?

Now, there's a whole variety of possible answers to that question.

I'm sure so many of us would love to see men, women, children, those who are elderly

around our part of Edinburgh, in our social circles, who don't yet know Jesus,

to hear the gospel, to ask Jesus for forgiveness and for eternal life.

I know that I would love that myself.

I'm sure we'd love to grow together as a church family in unity and in holiness

as we study God's word on a Sunday and during the week.

I would love that too.

Having said that, I'm sure so many of us know that things are actually often in reality

much tougher for us as a church family.

People who we would love to know Jesus just don't seem all that interested.

Friends around us who we would love to grow in godliness aren't making progress like we

would want them to.

Even when we think about ourselves, when we reflect on the past 12 months, how we have grown

as Christians, we feel frustrated, I'm sure, thinking about how slow our own progress can be.

As we look at our world, we just think, where is God's kingdom?

Where is the reign of Christ?

And so for some of us, I imagine our expectations might be really optimistic, positive, bright,

as we think about what God might do in our lives and in the lives of others.

But for some of us, our expectations might be more pessimistic or perhaps realistic

as we think about the sin that permeates our hearts and the evil that permeates our world.

Well, wonderfully, in our parables this evening, Jesus sets really, really clear gospel expectations

as to what a church family like Brunsfield Evangelical can expect and should expect over the academic year ahead.

And it's a really, really important lesson for us to learn because Jesus' words are going to transform

and change our expectations to look more like the genuine gospel expectations of his kingdom.

And that in turn will stop us as Christians from having an outlook that is either too high or too low.

Overly optimistic or overly pessimistic.

See, if our expectations match Jesus' kingdom expectations,

then we'll make much better sense of what is happening around about us in our lives and in our world.

In fact, that is exactly what Jesus is teaching his disciples in Luke chapter 13.

Luke 13 · chapter mention

We're following Jesus on his way to the cross.

We're following Jesus on his way to Jerusalem.

And he is showing his followers what it means to understand and correctly interpret the days in which they are living.

As Jesus teaches, as Jesus heals, as Jesus drives out demons on his way to Jerusalem,

how are the disciples to make sense of it all?

Should daily healings and the driving out of demons be the norm going forwards for anyone who follows Jesus?

How does a disciple correctly understand what Jesus is saying and what Jesus is doing as he heads towards Jerusalem?

And you'll see what I mean if you scan chapter 13.

Just before these parables in chapter 13, we read of Jesus freeing a woman on the Sabbath

from this crippling spirit that has had her bent over for 18 years.

So if you glance with me at verse 10, we read,

On the Sabbath, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues,

and the woman who was there had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years.

She was bent over and could not straighten up at all.

When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her,

Women, you are set free from your infirmity.

Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

Now Luke records this for us because it is miraculous in the truest sense of the word.

This poor woman has suffered for 18 years,

and Jesus in his kindness and in his mercy cures her.

But there's much more going on here in Luke chapter 13.

Luke 13 · chapter mention

See, this is the long-awaited kingdom of God breaking into our world,

breaking into this woman's life to set her free from the grip of Satan.

And Luke invites us to watch as Jesus, the king of God's people,

frees this woman from the grip, from the grasp of the evil one.

Someone stronger than Satan has arrived.

His kingdom has broken into our fallen world.

So listen to Jesus' words in verse 16.

Hear the authority, hear the compassion in the words that he speaks.

Should not this woman, he says,

a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years,

be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?

And when he said this, all his opponents were humiliated,

but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.

All the people see what Jesus does, and they rightly rejoice.

Finally, here is someone who can fully fix the world in which we live.

After years of oppressive Roman rule,

after years of oppressive religious tyranny,

after years of disease and death,

there is finally a light at the end of the long, dark tunnel.

And yet, as Jesus' kingdom breaks into our world,

he needs to make sure that his disciples understand

understand what things will look like going forward.

They've just witnessed something wonderful,

their right to rejoice,

but Jesus will tell his disciples in these parables

that his kingdom will not always look as powerful as it does

in verses 10 to 18 of chapter 13.

In fact, Jesus' kingdom will grow spectacularly,

but it will grow from small, unseen beginnings.

Jesus' kingdom will grow spectacularly,

but it will grow from small, unseen beginnings.

The two parables are very similar to one another.

There's a slightly different emphasis each time.

They're not especially tricky or hard for us to understand.

The word at the start of verse 18

that was read out for us there is,

actually, therefore, therefore, Jesus asked,

what is the kingdom of God like?

This is Jesus' direct response

to the rejoicing of the disciples around him.

He doesn't want to spoil their fun.

He's not telling them to tone down their rejoicing,

but he is clarifying and adjusting

their understanding of what is to come.

As Jesus compares the kingdom of God,

he speaks firstly, in verse 19,

of a mustard seed,

which a man took and planted in his garden.

And then he speaks in verse 21,

of yeast that a woman took and mixed

into about 30 kilograms of flour.

See, as Jesus describes the kingdom of God,

he speaks here in Luke of very ordinary,

everyday things.

We would walk right past mustard seeds and yeast

if we were at the local market there 2,000 years ago.

We wouldn't even notice they were there.

And yet listen to what happens to both of these things

in these verses.

In verse 19,

the mustard seed grew and became a tree

and the birds perched in its branches.

That small, weak, ordinary, unimpressive mustard seed

grows into something that offers shelter

and provision for the birds that come

and perch in its branches.

And then again, verse 21,

the yeast that a woman took and mixed,

that word there is literally hid,

the yeast that a woman took and hid

in about 30 kilograms of flour

works its way through all the dough.

That tiny amount of yeast

grows into the rest of the flour,

which I'm told would be able to provide enough bread

to feed over 100 people.

Now we might have walked past the yeast

and we might have walked past the mustard seed,

but we would not walk past that tree

nor that amount of bread

without noticing them.

We would see them very, very clearly.

Jesus' kingdom will grow spectacularly

from small, unseen beginnings.

And you can understand why Jesus would want his disciples

to understand this

in light of what's just happened in chapter 13.

You can understand why Jesus would want his disciples

to know this, given where he is heading.

If you glance down at verse 32 of chapter 13,

Jesus is responding to very, very false concern

from the Pharisees.

They don't want Jesus anywhere near Jerusalem.

And so they attempt to ward him away from Jerusalem

by trying to explain that Herod is out to get him.

And Jesus responds by saying, verse 32,

I will keep on driving out demons

and healing people today and tomorrow.

And on the third day, I will reach my goal.

In any case, I must press on today and tomorrow

and the next day,

for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem.

See, in Jesus, the kingdom of God

has broken into the world with all of its power.

We've seen that in the healing of the women on the Sabbath.

But healing people physically

before going to the cross

is not Jesus' ultimate goal.

He says that he will keep on driving out demons.

He says that he will keep on healing people,

but he will only do it until he reaches,

on day three, his goal,

which is the cross of Calvary.

Now that is when the kingdom of God

will look at its least impressive.

That is when the kingdom of God

will look at its most hidden.

That is when the disciples

will need to hang on to Jesus' words here

in chapter 13.

See, as Jesus hangs on the cross,

he looks weak and he looks frail.

As Jesus hangs on the cross,

the glory of the kingdom will be small,

just like the mustard seed.

As Jesus hangs on the cross,

the glory of the kingdom will be hidden,

just like the yeast.

And yet,

just as Jesus teaches his followers

in these parables,

it will grow.

See, the cross, if you like,

is the moment where

the gospel seed is planted in the garden.

The cross, if you like,

is the moment where the gospel yeast

is hidden in the flower.

But Jesus' promise to his followers

is that slowly,

surely,

over the months,

over the years to come,

his kingdom will grow.

From the small to the great.

From the hidden to the visible.

And as we look back

at Jesus' promise to his followers

2,000 years ago,

wasn't he telling us the truth?

From the 11 apostles

and the handful of others

left after Jesus died

and rose again,

right the way through the centuries,

where millions and millions of people

have come to place their faith

and trust

in the cross of Christ.

So you can go and see

what remains

of the Roman Empire

sitting in the British Museum.

And whilst you're there,

you can have a look at

what remains

of the Babylonian Empire as well.

A lot of it has been

very well,

very carefully preserved

for us to go and see.

Even more carefully preserved

is the kingdom of Christ.

preserved by him.

And if you want to go and see it,

you just need to look around

about you at church

on a Sunday morning

or a Sunday evening.

The kingdoms of the world crumble.

The kingdom of Christ continues.

Carries on.

And so as I draw things

to a close this evening,

let me suggest just two ways

in which this parable

should shape,

should adjust

our gospel expectations

as a church family.

The first one is this.

When we feel tempted

to think that the kingdom

of Christ looks defeated,

it looks beaten,

these parables

show and remind us

that Jesus' kingdom

is actually in reality

growing unstoppably.

I know the frustration

of meeting up with somebody

who is struggling

with a particular issue,

who needs generous applications

of the gospel.

They listen

and then they go right back

to doing what they were doing before.

I know the frustration

of looking at sin

in my own life

and thinking,

I will never ever

do that thing again.

And then I do it

within the hour.

I know the frustration

of trying to reach out

with the good news

of Jesus

towards those

who just aren't interested

and every single time

feeling the pain

that comes with that.

When we look at the life

of an individual,

when we look at the church

in this country,

when we think of a mission

partner overseas,

we think to ourselves,

this just looks so weak,

so small,

so hidden.

Jesus' response is,

just wait until

what you see in eternity.

Jesus' kingdom

is growing spectacularly

into an eternal kingdom

that will offer shelter

and provision

for anyone

who would seek to enter.

In that sense,

we need to be

very, very careful

that we don't listen

to our senses

too much.

Or rather,

that we listen

to God's word

and what Jesus has said

over what we often see

and hear

and perceive

around about us.

That's the first thing.

The second thing is this.

When we feel tempted

to think that

the kingdom of Christ

should actually

be moving quicker

or faster

than it currently is,

these parables

show and remind us

that the growth

of Jesus' kingdom

will not always

look impressive

or sudden.

That's such a big

encouragement for me

and for any one of us

who are trying to press

the truth of the gospel

either onto our own hearts

or onto the hearts

of those

that we know and love.

And I think at times

it's easy to be tempted

to think,

should we be doing

things quicker?

Should this be moving

faster than it is?

I've been reading

through a gospel

with this friend of mine,

with this brother

or sister

from the church family

for the best part

of two years

and it just doesn't look

like anything is happening.

Should we be trying

something else

to maybe just

speed things up?

Is there something

that we're missing out on

that other churches

are doing

and enjoying

the fruit of that

but we're missing out?

Well, Jesus would say

that if you are doing

his kingdom work,

then growth

will not always

be quick.

His kingdom

has broken in.

He has defeated Satan.

He has liberated us

from sin

and sickness

and will do

for eternity

in the future

but kingdom growth

is gradual

in our lives,

in our world.

So my encouragement

from these parables

is not to lose heart.

His power

is undeniable.

He will reign forever

and his eternal kingdom

will grow.

It will grow spectacularly

but it will grow slowly

from our perspective

at least.

And with all that

being said,

let me stop there

and let me pray

and pray that God

will give us

these gospel expectations

that Christ would want us

to have

for his kingdom.

Father, we thank you

for Jesus' honesty here

and we thank you,

Father,

for Jesus adjusting

our expectations

so that they are

in line with his.

And we thank you,

Father,

that we can

know with certainty

that Jesus' kingdom

will grow

from that which

often looks

small and unimpressive

and weak

but it will grow

into something

that provides

and nourishes

everyone who belongs

to it.

Thank you,

Father,

for the guarantee

that despite what we

often see around

about us

in our world,

your kingdom

will grow

and will reign

forever.

So please

help us to keep

going,

help us to keep

growing in you

and please help us,

Father,

not to be distracted

or to be persuaded

by the world

around about us

but instead

to trust in you

and to trust

in Jesus' kingdom.

Thank you

that you have saved us

for an eternity

with you

where we will know

all of this

forever.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.