Explanation of the Parables of the Mustard Seed and Yeast

Parables are what they are, parables. They are stories whose meaning is not in the story itself but alongside them. The word “parable” comes from two Greek words, “para” which means “beside, alongside” and “ballein” which means “to throw”. In other words the real meaning of the story is accompanying only the story, thrown or put along with the story.

How to Get the Meaning of a Parable

Who then decides the meaning of the story in a parable? The obvious answer is the one who gives out that story. That is why when the disciples asked Jesus the meaning of a parable, he gladly acceded because he knew what the meaning of his parable was. He did not say, It is up to you to interpret my parable. His answer rather showed that he knew the meaning and he wanted to express this meaning by the explanation of the parable he narrated.

In the same way when we want an explanation of the parables of the mustard seed and the leaven, the only one who knows the real meaning of these parables is Jesus, the one who uttered them.

We cannot ask therefore, What is the explanation of the parables of the mustard seed and the leaven? Jesus did not give any explanation. There is none.

On the other hand there have been many explanations of these parables throughout the centuries. They are not the explanations of Jesus but they are explanations of men and women who profess some kind of relationship to him, a disciple, a minister, a leader in his church.

Two Kinds of Explanation

Basically there are two kinds of explanation of these parables given by these men and women. One set of explanation says that they describe how the church had small, insignificant beginnings symbolized by the smallest seed known to the Jews, the mustard seed, and the indistinguishable leaven of the dough, but which grew to a great organization eclipsing the Roman empire and the governments of the nations.

The other set of explanation sees the parables as pointing to the corruptions that would enter the church later on, the birds on the tree from the mustard seed symbolizing the corrupt church leaders and the leaven symbolizing the corruption which like the leaven could not be easily detected in the church and could not be taken out, since leaven is a symbol of corruption in the other passages of the Bible.

An Explanation According to the Spirit of Jesus

Now a question may be posed: Who can give an explanation of these parables according to the meaning which Jesus intended? The obvious answer is his Spirit who continues to live with us. And when we ask this Spirit, the wonder of it is that he gives different explanations to different people, according to their need.

Here then is my explanation according to the light the Spirit of Jesus gave me. This is not the only valid explanation. You may have your own explanation and it may just be as right as mine.

First of all in explaining something we have to give the context or the circumstances surrounding a passage.

In the parables of the mustard seed and the leaven there are two different contexts. In the Gospels according to Matthew and Mark they are within a group of parables given while Jesus was teaching from a boat. However in Mark's Gospel the parable of the leaven is not given. In Luke's narration these two parables are inserted in a story after Jesus cured a woman in a synagogue during a Sabbath. They are given by Luke after a demonstration of the power of the Kingdom of God by curing the woman who was bound by Satan for 18 years.

The contexts tell us that for Mark and Matthew these two parables are just part of the group of parables. They are therefore to be understood within that group of parables. But for Luke these parables tell us about the operation of the Kingdom of God.

Secondly, here Jesus is talking about the Kingdom of God, not about the church. Jesus did not say, The church is like a mustard seed. But he said, The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. The two, the Kingdom and the church, are different realities. So this parable does not refer to the church, its beginnings and spread, but to the Kingdom of God.

Thirdly, Jesus was talking about a seed. And in the preceding explanation he said that the seed is the word of God. So also we can safely say that the mustard seed represents also the word of God which is sown in the hearts of people. It grows there. Then you follow this with the parable of the leaven as the gospel writers arranged it that way. The leaven produces its effects on the three measures of flour.

There are commentators who point to the great quantity of these three measures of flour. How can a small leaven act on these three measures of flour? It is just too much for that small amount of leaven. Why did Jesus not just say, "a measure of flour"? Why did he specify "three"?

Our explanation is that the leaven here still refers to the word of God. This word of God mixes with our total personality, influencing its three components: body, soul, and spirit. We have here an indication that even Jesus knew that we are composed of body, soul and spirit, in contrast to the teaching of Aristotle and his followers who taught that we are composed only of body and soul.

Fourthly, Jesus was not referring to the rise of an organization or Christendom. He said that the kingdom of God is within us. Thus these parables refer to the action of the Kingdom within us. The kingdom grows within us, so that others can find shelter through our love for them.

In summary then we can say that these parables of the mustard seed and the leaven refer to the seed of the Kingdom of God which is the word of God planted in our heart and grows within us and influences our whole personality, transforming our body, soul, and spirit.

The Kingdom of God is like the mustard seed, an ever growing reality making us bigger and bigger in the sight of God and is like an unnoticed, but effective transforming agent, making us like God in our whole being: our body, soul and spirit.

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Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.

What Does It Mean for the Christian to "Die to Self"?

If you are a Christian you might have died already although you do not know it yet. Yes, your death may already be a reality but you are still alive, reading this article. I will prove to you that you have already died by two illustrations. If after reading these two illustrations, you agree that you have died already, then you and I will confirm that indeed you are already dead to self. You are then a Christian who has died to self.

First Illustration: From the Banyan Tree

There is a tree that does not grow out of the soil. It grows out of the branch of another tree. Its seed alights in that branch and germinates there and produces roots that go down to the soil. In a matter of time--many years--this tree which grew out of the branch of another tree kills the host tree and now becomes the only tree that is visible.

The name of such a tree is banyan, sacred to many religions and in many regions of the world. It is believed to be a dwelling place of gods and spirits.

I give this illustration because in a similar way that is what happened to humanity or the human race. Humanity is like the host tree of the banyan tree. When Jesus came and joined himself to this humanity he germinated and grew from that humanity. Like the banyan seed he did not germinate from the soil, like Adam, but from the body of Mary his mother. His body was like our body but it was this body which would be instrumental in transforming the whole of humanity into his image as son of God. This was the body that was transfigured into a glorified son of God.

Eventually like the banyan tree this Jesus so transforms humanity that the old humanity would no longer be visible but only his kind of humanity, one that is completely obedient to God. The transformation has already begun and is continuing in the lives of those who accept this reality. We do not have to list down here the names of those so transformed from all walks of life, in all kinds of denomination or churches. The list of saints is endless.

When Jesus therefore came into the womb of Mary his mother he began as it were to put to death the old humanity, just as the banyan seed begins the process of putting to death the host tree as soon as it has germinated in the branch of that tree. He finally finished putting to death this old humanity during his death when his body which is like that of ours died. In other words the old humanity has already died with the death of Jesus.

Since you and I belong to this old humanity which died already with the death of Jesus, then you and I have already died in our old humanity. And this happened centuries before you and I were born into this world.

Of course I do not expect you to understand this reality immediately. There is someone else, not me, whose work it is to make you understand this reality, the Spirit of Jesus. The banyan tree is only there to help us illustrate this reality.

Second Illustration: From the Structure of the Human Body

The second proof is similar to the first one, but this time it comes from the structure of the human body.

In the language of organizational management we usually refer to the president as the head of an organization. This is only an analogical use of the word "head". What we mean by this is that the president is the one who is in charge of the overall operation of the organization.

It is believed by Christians that Jesus founded a church or gathering of believers and that he is the real head of this church. But this church is not just an organization. It is an organism, a society that grows from within. It has dynamism of its own, unlike that of an organization which depends on some kind of board of directors or trustees. An organization can be dissolved by its board, but an organism cannot be so dissolved. It goes on living.

Since the church is an organism it is like a human body which is also an organism. Now Christians believe that the head of this organism called church is Jesus. So Jesus is an organic head, he is like the head of a body. This is why Paul the Apostle referred to the church as the body of Christ.

And here is where we have a fitting analogy or illustration. When Jesus died he died as the head of this church. If he died as head, then his body also died, for you cannot have a dead head and a living body. When the head dies the body also follows.
Thus when Jesus died, we as members of his church died already with him. This is represented fittingly by baptism which is properly administered by immersion. Going under water signifies our death and burial with Christ.

That is why in the prayer during a funeral, the Catholic minister (priest, deacon or lay person) says, "In baptism he (the deceased) died with Christ, may he share in his resurrection." He already died before his physical death, the first death was signified or represented by baptism.

We Have Already Died

What does all this lead us to? It leads us to the reality that we Christians have died to our self, whether we understand this or not.

For a Christian therefore to "Die to Self" means that he or she has already died to self through the death of Jesus. This is the reality. To appropriate this reality means that he accepts the death of Christ as his own death also. To understand this is another matter. To live it is still another matter. To give witness to others that this has indeed happened already is the result of living out this reality.

Not a Matter of Controlling our Desires

To die to self does not mean that we control our sinful desires, as we read in many books or hear from many sermons. It is acknowledging that we have died with Christ in his death, asking God the Spirit to make us understand this reality, and enabling us to witness to this reality.

To die to self is the work of God himself in us. It is not the result of our effort to kill our sinful or egoistic desires. To die to self is not to kill our ego by our own efforts. We cannot do it.

Dead to Self You Now Live a New Life

If you agree that this is the meaning of "to die to self", then you agree that you have died already. You and I confirm that indeed you are already dead to self. You are then a Christian who have died to self. Slowly but surely you are being transformed into the image of the resurrected Christ by the power of the Spirit, not by your will power. Your old self has died with Christ and a new self, the self of Jesus himself, is given to you and grows in and through you.

What Paul said to the Colossian Christians will be applied to you, “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”

Click Here!

Here are my other blogs which may be of help to you:

http://bit.ly/spiritworld for knowing more about spirituality or spiritual realities

http://bit.ly/alterhealthcare for your health

http://bit.ly/novotrends for learning about the new trends around us

http://bit.ly/bepaidonline for earning some income from the Internet

Here are your links to download the e-books for FREE. To download a copy of A NEW CHRIST by Wallace D. Wattles click this website http://bit.ly/anewchrist. To download a free copy of A NEW EARTH by Eckhart Tolle click this website http://bit.ly/ebookanewearth. I hope that you enjoy reading these free e-books and profit much from them, as I have also profited greatly from them.