Mark Vol. 1 - Week 12 (4:21-34)
Mark 4:21-34
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The Growth of the Kingdom
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Mark 4:21-34 〰️ The Growth of the Kingdom 〰️
This week's passage presents us with two more parables and examples from Jesus. The opening words of verse 35 are, "He also said to them..." indicating that this is one continual teaching from Jesus. He gives multiple examples regarding the Kingdom of God and who His people are to be. Again, Jesus does this to limit how much is openly taught about the Kingdom of God to those opposing Him. If the legal or religious authorities knew exactly what Jesus' ends were, they likely would have crucified Him earlier. We saw in 3:6 that the religious leaders were already incredibly angry with Jesus' crusade to flip the religious system on its head. They likely would have tried to move a little quicker if they knew just what Jesus was getting at in preparing His followers to evangelize and disciple others.
In v21-25, Jesus' example might sound like a limited metaphor, but if we consider what Jesus is teaching about and how the original hearers would have understood it, we're opened up to multiple layers of meaning and purpose for the disciples and us as followers of Jesus. When Jesus talks about the lampstand, the first thing that might come to mind is a lampstand like Lumiere in Beauty and the Beast. A tall candlestick-type stand with multiple sections for candles or lamps. But this wasn't the kind of design Jesus was talking about. Rather, the lampstands more commonly found in the 1st-century Middle East were small, round, and made of clay. The dish had a hole in the top on one side, and a wick came out that was fed down inside and was soaking in the oil.
Jesus was teaching the disciples several things here with this simple metaphor.
An unlit or covered lamp has no use
Being a light in the world uses us up
To remain alight for Jesus, we must soak ourselves in Him
Jesus used this example to communicate these truths, as those listening would have heard it and understood. We live most, if not all, of our lives by electricity, and we're not controlled by the natural rising and setting of the sun. For better or worse, the advent of the light bulb changed how we live and the rhythms by which we go about our lives. For us, a candle is primarily used as an accessory or decoration or for its aroma. It's rarely a household appliance or tool for us, but for those in Jesus' day, it was a fixture in the home and their primary lighting method after dark. Those around Jesus and readers up until about 150 years ago would have understood how ridiculous it would be to hide or not use a lamp.
With this in mind, we can understand why Jesus used this example. He wanted those listening to know that rightly following Him would mean wringing it out for the Kingdom and being "used up" as the lamp uses up oil. This also means not hiding away from the world but abiding in Him (John 15:4-5) as the wick is continually soaked in the oil. For us, remaining in Jesus means living a life of prayer, continually steeping in God's Word, and being transformed by it.
As we continue in the passage, we read two teachings about seeds. In this time and place, the culture surrounding Jesus thrived and lived on agriculture. Teachings and parables about farming, plants, and nature would have been familiar to anyone listening. It would have made sense to them. Jesus says, "The kingdom of God is like...seed on the ground," and that "the seed sprouts and grows, although [the farmer] doesn't know how" (v26-27). Here, Jesus tells us that the growth of His Kingdom isn't up to us. The Lord knows when and how and is the only one responsible for His Kingdom growing and changing the world. However, we are still called to scattered seeds. We are called to spread the Gospel of Jesus, and the growth will follow according to His will. This is where we can peacefully rest assured that our salvation isn't dependent on what we do but on what Jesus did. Again, this is the reason why Jesus spoke using metaphors and parables. We talked about this a few weeks ago, but this was why Jesus spoke and taught in parables. Salvation by faith rather than works totally undid what the Jews believed and what the religious leaders profited socially and monetarily from.
In the last portion of this passage, Jesus teaches with an example yet again, and this one is regarding the Kingdom as compared to a mustard seed. Here, Jesus says that the Kingdom of God is "like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade" (Mark 4:31–32). Jesus is reaffirming the reality that it's the Lord who expands the Kingdom and we, as disciples of Jesus, to scatter and plant the seed.
As we get into discussion this week, we'll talk a little about how we can abide in Jesus in relation to v21-25. It feels like a stretch to go from the lampstand example to abiding in Christ, so feel free to read the above paragraph out loud to everyone so we can get a sense of the immediate context in which Jesus was speaking. We'll also chat a little bit about how it might be a relief to know that we're not the ones solely responsible for building God's Kingdom. When Jesus left, he gave His followers authority and promised He would be with us to the end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20). The one thing for us to remember when guiding discussion with our people is that the opposite extreme to legalism and believing justification by works is apathy and refusing to scatter the seeds of the Gospel. We want to be a people marked by love and obedience to Jesus, which means scattering seeds and trusting God to grow them in the soil. At the end of the day, we can't will the growth of the Kingdom any more than we can will a mustard seed to grow.
Discussion Questions
What stood out to you from the passage?
Does anything in this passage remind you of another part of Scripture?
Do you have any questions?
Why do you think Jesus used the example of the lamp? What does that mean for us?
Read v24 again. How does that serve as a connection between us and the example of the lamp?
Read John 15:4-5. What does it mean to "abide" or "remain" in Jesus?
Can one (or two) people explain the two parables in v26-32?
What does it look like to "scatter seed on the ground" like in v26?
What comfort can we have in knowing that we aren't solely responsible for the salvation of others or growing the Kingdom of God?
Read Matthew 9:35-38. How does this relate to the parable of the growing seed?