We concluded our series on “The Power of a Story” at Gateway Church in Austin. This look at the parables of Mark 4 is part of a longer look at the Gospel of Mark that started in January and will take us to Easter.
The mustard seed, known for being the smallest of all seeds, grows into a large tree. This parable holds profound lessons for us about the nature of God’s kingdom, spiritual growth, and the surprising impact of even the smallest acts of faith. The Kingdom of God is like that small mustard seed—it’s unstoppable, it’s growing, and it’s destined to become something of eternal significance.
Digging Deeper:
Work through the following questions and scriptures on your own or get together with your group, spiritual running partners, or family to talk through what you are learning.
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Message Notes:
As you know, recently I had a chance to be part of a team with 12 of us from Gateway South Austin who went to India to serve with our partner – Impact India 360.
- It’s amazing as they demonstrate the love of Jesus to their neighbors who are Hindu or Muslim with the hospital we helped them build. There have been 10,000 babies delivered in this hospital over the past 10 years!
- They also have a home for senior adults who would have nowhere else to live.
- The founder Jaya Shankar loved to say that they were showing the love of Jesus to people in their city from the womb to the tomb.
- They have a thriving church that meets on campus with hundreds of people coming every Sunday.
- They have a ministry training school that has sent out graduates to plant 200 churches. Some of these pastors are going into towns where there is not one single church. In 2023, your giving helped fully fund 4 of these pastors in their efforts for the entire year!
- They have a sewing school for women who desperately need a way to make an income.
- They have a school with 180 children. 60 of them live in the neighborhood and come to school there. 120 of these kids live on campus. 30 of these children are orphans. 90 of them have a parent who may not be able to care for them.
- They have a college fund started by Robert and Kimberly Watson-Hemphill from Gateway South Austin which has helped 100 kids go through college!
The campus is amazing! But it wasn’t always that way. Just 25 years ago there was just a husband and wife with a call from God to bring Jesus to their community.
Today we are going to talk about how we should never underestimate small beginnings.
We are in a series looking at the power of a story. Jesus told stories called parables that have continued to make an impact – the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son, and so many more. These are known even outside of those who follow Jesus.
He spoke in parables to help him make his point. These parables are like a rohrshach test as those with spiritually open ears could hear and understand the meaning and those who were closed minded could not.
This was especially important at this time in the early part of his ministry. Jesus had much he wanted to do and he wanted to spread his message far and wide before he confronted the religious leaders who would oppose Him and eventually take him to the Roman authorities to kill Him.
So let’s read through this brief parable about the mustard seed.
“Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.” – Mark 4:30-34 NIV
So just a reminder about the meaning of the kingdom of God.
The kingdom of God is where Jesus reigns. When we choose to follow Jesus, the Kingdom of God is within us. As we live out our faith and bring God’s love and kindness and presence, we can expand His invisible Kingdom to others in our lives.
Even now, Jesus reigns over this new Kingdom at the right hand of the Father!
God’s Kingdom has a vast, far-reaching impact. The Kingdom starts small, like a mustard seed, but grows into something expansive and impactful, providing shelter and blessing for many.
Consider the size of a mustard seed:
Consider the size of a mustard tree:
Consider that story I shared at the beginning about Impact India 360. The Kingdom of God has carved out a section of a town in Rajamundry, Andra Pradesh, India!
The message of Jesus has traveled around the world for 2000 years as people of faith shared God’s love in word and in deed. They have built hospitals, schools, churches, and cared for children and seniors, housed those needing shelter, fed the poor, offered counseling for couples, families, and individuals and so much more.
Now that we’ve established what the Kingdom of God is, let’s go back to see what Jesus said the Kingdom of God is like.
“It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth.” (Mark 4:31)
The mustard seed, known for being the smallest of all seeds, grows into a large tree.
A principle we can draw from this for our lives is this:
Don’t underestimate small beginnings.
This parable holds profound lessons for us about the nature of God’s kingdom, spiritual growth, and the surprising impact of even the smallest acts of faith.
The Kingdom of God is like that small mustard seed—it’s unstoppable, it’s growing, and it’s destined to become something of eternal significance.
Don’t be discouraged by what seems invisible or insignificant. Your quiet prayers, the small acts of kindness, the seeds of faith planted in others—these may seem small now, but they hold the potential for great transformation in God’s kingdom.
Faithfulness over a long time has a huge impact.
Just like small adjustments in our diet or in our willingness to exercise, can have a significant impact over time, the same is true for us spiritually.
If you commit to trying to live out your faith through:
- Daily time with God.
- Weekly time in community.
- Regular acts of serving others.
- Consistently giving financially.
- *BLESSing others often
You will be amazed at how you will grow and the impact you can have with others!
Let’s look at the next verse in this parable:
“Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants.” (Mark 4:32)
Here’s another spiritual principle we can draw from this story:
In God’s Kingdom…
God can turn the Ordinary into Extraordinary
Don’t underestimate your “ordinary” moments. God can take your small steps of faith, your simple acts of obedience, and transform them into something far greater than you could ever imagine.
Watch for how God works through the everyday to create something extraordinary.
Take a look at the next verse…
“With such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” (Mark 4:32)
Here’s another spiritual principle we can draw from this parable:
In God’s Kingdom…
God can go Beyond the Expected
The tiny mustard seed grows not just for its own benefit but to become a source of blessing to many.
As God’s kingdom grows in us, it’s meant to expand outward to others. We are called to welcome those who need refuge, to offer a place of shade and peace to the weary.
For those of you who are new around here, you may have noticed earlier we spelled the word BLESSing with all capital letters and there was a little asterisk next to it. If uiu were wondering what that was, let me explain.
This is code for advancing the kingdom through our relationships. We don’t knock on the doors of strangers or try to impose our faith on others. Instead we look for ways to truly care for others regardless of what they look like or what they believe or how they vote. We treat everyone as a neighbor should be treated.
For those of us who follow Jesus, we want to be a BLESSing to our neighbors, our co-workers, our families, and our friends by doing the following:
B.L.E.S.S.
- Begin with prayer
- Listen to discover their needs
- Engage with them (share a meal, connect intentionally)
- Serve them
- Share your story
For more, see the book B.L.E.S.S. by David Ferguson
Think for a moment. Who has invested in you spiritually? Who is the person that helped you first find faith? On the count of 3, let’s say out loud that person’s name. Ready? One… Two… Three…
Think about this for a moment. God loved you so much that He brought that person into your life.
Now consider God loves your neighbors, coworkers, family, and friends, and He’s brought you into their life so that you could be an encouragement and light to them.
And remember don’t underestimate the small things, God can turn the ordinary into the extraordinary, and God can go beyond what is expected!
After BLESS in the message, I’m going to add the following:
When you share your story, be sure to let the person know how they can become part of the kingdom of God.
Maybe you are here today and wondering that very thing.
Two of my favorite verses to help with this include:
“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” – Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT
Or how about this one?
“If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” Jew and Gentile are the same in this respect. They have the same Lord, who gives generously to all who call on him. For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”” – Romans 10:9-13 NLT
There are no magic words.
There are no works you need to do. Religions tell you what you must do to get to God. Religions have been known to be controlling and destructive.
But that’s not the message of Jesus and His Kingdom. Jesus didn’t come to start a religion. He came to show us the way to a relationship with God.
Simply believe.
Simply choose to trust.
If you need to do so, it’s ok to ask God to give you the faith to trust him.
Not only does God invite us to say “yes” to His invitation to follow Him, He enables us to live a life that inspires others to follow Him.
If you grew up going to church, you may have only heard half the story.
You’re a sinner and you need Jesus to go to heaven.
The full story is that God created all of us in His image. We were designed to partner with Him in the Garden of Eden, in paradise where God and humanity lived together. In His love He gave us freedom and in that freedom we chose to go our own way.
But God made a way for us as He chose a people and blessed them to be a blessing to all nations.
That blessing is found through Jesus who was God in the flesh.
Heaven is being in the presence of God. We can experience the presence of God even now and bring more of Heaven to where we live.
As part of the Kingdom of God we are bringing more of Heaven to earth. We are part of God’s redemption plan by loving everyone: life by life.
We bring redemption and renewal by helping others find faith, hope, and love. We bring redemption through the good works we do – not to get to God but out of gratitude for all God has done for us. We bring redemption when we let God bring beauty, goodness, kindness, peace, and joy to our world.
And then if you read the last two chapters of the Bible you will discover the full redemption story as Jesus will come back one day and make all things right. And there will be a new heavens and a new earth, humanity and God together again! And there will be no tears and no pain. And just like in the first two pages you discover a tree of life in the last two pages.
This is the full story. And we can be part of this story through a relationship with God and in His global family.
Let’s finish with these last couple of verses in this section.
“With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.” – Mark 4:33-34 NIV
Have you ever wished you could have been there with Jesus when he explained everything?! Don’t you wish Mark included more of the explanations from Jesus for us to read?!
Well, we have so much clarity on so many things that we can spend the rest of our lives just working on those things and become more like Jesus and know what we need and to become the person God has created you to be!
At the same time, we have something even better than Jesus with us physically. He gives us His Spirit when we choose to follow Him with our whole heart. His Spirit! His Spirit can whisper thoughts in our mind! No one else can do this! We can measure these whispers by the Scriptures. When we follow Jesus we have access to the Spirit 24/7 365!
Finally, Jesus used parables strategically. There is power in His stories.
Let me ask you, what is the story your life is telling the world? Are people inspired towards faith, love, or hope when they spend time with you? If not, how is God guiding you to change that? In what ways do you need to find healing, serve, grow, or belong?
Together we can tell a story the world needs – a new Kingdom that is changing the world!
