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1. Prepare
   Cradle a seed in your palm as you talk to God about his plans and dreams for the seed that is you.
2. Bible reading: Mark 4:21–34

   A Lamp on a Stand

    ²¹ He said to them, "Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don't you put it on its stand? ²² For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open. ²³ If anyone has ears to hear, let them hear."

       ²⁴ "Consider carefully what you hear," he continued. "With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more. ²⁵ Those who have will be given more; as for those who do not have, even what they have will be taken from them."

   The Parable of the Growing Seed

    ²⁶ He also said, "This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷ Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. ²⁸ All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. ²⁹ As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come."

   The Parable of the Mustard Seed

    ³⁰ Again he said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. ³² 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."

       ³³ With many similar parables Jesus spoke the word to them, as much as they could understand. ³⁴ He did not say anything to them without using a parable. But when he was alone with his own disciples, he explained everything.

3. Explore the Bible
   God’s mysterious ways
   Consider Jesus’ keynote address: ‘The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!’ (Mark 1:15).
   
   Our ‘response-ability’ (see yesterday’s study) to respond to the good news is stressed once again by Jesus (vs 23–25). But even the disciples, who had responded in faith, would find that during much of Jesus’ ministry this kingdom boasted a very modest presence. Jesus offers two more parables, demonstrating that appearances are often deceptive and that God’s ways are both mysterious and marvellous.
   
   Dream big
   Kids love to take things apart and see how they work. But not everything in life can be appreciated in this manner. Dissecting a rose destroys a thing of beauty; the magic of romance evaporates if you break it down into its component parts.
   
   Once the seeds of the good news take root in receptive soil, fruitfulness will follow; God’s kingdom will flourish. We are not called to understand how this happens, only to believe it and anticipate it (vs 26–29).
   
   ‘The birds of the air’ (v 32) was an expression denoting the Gentile nations. Although they were an insignificant minority in the mighty Roman Empire, Jesus challenges his disciples to dream big as they anticipated the great fruitfulness God would bring about through humble beginnings (vs 30–32).

   
4. Respond
   Prayerfully dream a ‘big’ dream for God, with God.

   
5. Deeper Bible study
   Jesus again urges the people who are flocking to him to listen to him, really listen (v 23). What this means is now becoming clearer. His ‘hidden’ and ‘concealed’ (v 22) message will only be revealed to those willing to take the risk of faith and follow him. Mark is telling us something very important and often forgotten: genuine Christian learning is only possible for committed disciples with a passion to live as Jesus wants them to live.
   
   Real theology, therefore, is lived theology, resulting from obedience and the constant exercise of faith. We don’t set the terms of engagement: Jesus does. ‘Our part is to listen and act, and then listen and act again and again … We are invited to follow along when we only have an inkling of where we are going.’¹
   
   Jesus must have intended the parables of the growing seed and mustard seed to be a source of sustenance and strength to his disciples in every age. They remind us that, regardless of how it may sometimes seem, the work of the kingdom is constantly under way – ‘night and day’ (v 27). ‘There is a hidden energy at work below the surface, as the gospel message is preached and enacted.’² The work of the kingdom, like a mustard seed, will grow out of that which in human terms looks tiny and of little significance.
   
   Do you yearn and strive for that day when no child will die prematurely, when human society will be just and fair, when there will be no more pain and no more tears, and when the time of death and decay will be over (Isaiah 65:17–25; Revelation 21:1–5)? Then take heart, for it is the Holy Spirit who plants this yearning within you, and Jesus is the guarantee that this day will come to pass.
   
   1 Kernaghan, Mark, p100
   2 Donald English, The Message of Mark, IVP, 1992, p101