Hạt cải và men làm bánh mì có thể dạy cho chúng ta những gì về vương quốc của Thiên Chúa?
Như chúng ta biết hạt cải là hạt rất nhỏ, nhỏ nhất trong các loại hột. Nhưng khi hột được gieo vào đất tốt đã được cuốc xới bón phân tốt, nước tưới đầy đủ, hạt cải nhỏ bé sẽ nẩy mầm và phát triển lớn lên thành bụi lớn và thu hút được nhiều loài chim, vì sự chăm sóc, tưới bón của người trồng, nên dù hạt cải đen nhỏ, đã trở thành vườn cải tốt tươi với cành lá xum xuê đến nỗi chim trời có thể làm tổ. Vương quốc của Thiên Chúa cũng tương tự. Nó bắt đầu được chớm nở từ sự khởi ban đầu rất nhỏ nhen trong trái tim của người chúng ta bằng sự tiếp nhận Lời của Thiên Chúa.
Hành trang để được vào nước trời cũng giống như là bột men làm bánh, Đó là đức tin, đức tin được chớm nở trong trái tim của mỗi người chúng ta bằng sự tiếp nhận Lời của Thiên Chúa. Đức tin đó hoạt động vô hình và gây biến chuyển và đổi thay từ bên trong, Men là một tác nhân mạnh mẽ của sự thay đổi. Một cục bột còn lại chính nó vẫn chỉ là một cục bột. Nhưng khi men được thêm vào để bột bánh được phồng lên và khi đút vào lò nướng đó sản xuất bánh mì thơm ngon và đó là chủ yếu cho cuộc sống đối với con người.
Đức tin sẽ biến đổi những ai đã được đón nhận cuộc sống mới mà Chúa ban cho vì khi chúng ta dâng lên Chúa cuộc sống của chúng ta. Thì cuộc sống của chúng ta sẽ được biến đổi bởi sức mạnh của Chúa Thánh Thần đấng đang ngự trong chúng ta. Thánh Phaolô có nói, "kho tàng này, chúng tôi lại chứa đựng trong những bình sành, để chứng tỏ quyền năng phi thường phát xuất từ Thiên Chúa, chứ không phải từ chúng tôi. (2 Cô-rinh-tô 4:7). Hãy đặt niềm tin của chúng ta vào sức mạnh và sự biến đổi của Chúa Thánh Thần
What can mustard seeds and leaven teach us about the kingdom of God? The tiny mustard seed literally grew to be a tree which attracted numerous birds because they loved the little black mustard seed it produced. God's kingdom works in a similar fashion. It starts from the smallest beginnings in the hearts of men and women who are receptive to God's word. And it works unseen and causes a transformation from within. Leaven is another powerful agent of change. A lump of dough left to itself remains just what it is, a lump of dough. But when the leaven is added to it a transformation takes place which produces rich and wholesome bread when heated – the staple of life for humans. The kingdom of God produces a transformation in those who receive the new life which Jesus Christ offers. When we yield to Jesus Christ, our lives are transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. Paul the Apostle says, "we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us" (2 Corinthians 4:7). Do you believe in the transforming power of the Holy Spirit?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit and transform me into the Christ-like holiness you desire. Increase my zeal for your kingdom and instill in me a holy desire to live for your greater glory."
Jesus said, “What is the Kingdom of God like? To what can I compare it? It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden. When it was fully grown, it became a large bush and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.” Luke 13:18–19
This short parable should speak to many people far more than they realize. It should be a source of great encouragement to us all as we seek to build up the Kingdom of God through apostolic works.
The mustard seed is very small. At first, when someone holds it in their hand, they may not think much of it. But if they did plant it under ideal conditions, that seed could grow into a tree upwards of 20 feet tall.
Jesus uses this parable to teach us many lessons. One such lesson is that of our apostolic works of charity. When you think of the call of being an apostle for the Lord, spreading the Gospel to the ends of the earth, what comes to mind? Perhaps the first thought is of those who have been entrusted with a very large, public and vibrant ministry. In this case, it is easier to see the good fruit born of one’s apostolic works. But what about you? For most people, they may strive to love and serve others in every small way they can, and they fail to see the abundance of good fruit born from their efforts. When this happens, some may become discouraged and lose zeal for the spreading of the Gospel.
If this is you, then consider the mustard seed. Planting this small seed is representative of much of our apostolic endeavors. God calls us to do small acts of kindness, share our faith in subtle and even hidden ways, serve out of love even when it is unnoticed, and to do so without ceasing. Do these small acts bear fruit for the Kingdom of God? If you believe this parable of the mustard seed, then the answer must be a resounding “Yes.”
Many times in life, we will never see the full effects that our actions have on others. Our negative influence will affect them far more than we realize. And our loving acts of charity, by which we share our faith, will also affect people far more than we realize. Believing in the message of this Parable of the Mustard Seed should lead us to believe that planting those small seeds of faith, through our charity, virtues, and words, will indeed bear an abundance of good fruit, far more than we may ever know, until we enter the glories of Heaven.
Reflect, today, upon your duty to daily plant the smallest seeds of faith and love. Do not get discouraged if your efforts do not bear abundantly obvious fruit. Simply commit yourself to the planting, over and over. Take delight in sowing the seed of faith and see this as your mission. If you do this throughout your life, from Heaven you will look back and be amazed at how God powerfully brought forth His Kingdom through those seemingly insignificant acts of faith and love.
My glorious King, You desire that Your Kingdom grow far and wide through our efforts of love. Please do use me, dear Lord, to plant Your seeds of faith and charity every day. May I never tire of these apostolic endeavors and may I always take great delight in serving You and building Your Kingdom in every way I can. Jesus, I trust in You.
Opening Prayer: In today’s psalm you remind me of the experience of your Chosen People in exile. How could they have continued to hope in your promise of redemption when they found themselves oppressed and helpless in foreign lands for decade after decade? And yet, you did fulfill your promise, and wonderfully brought them back, and then their mouth was filled with laughter and their tongue with rejoicing. I often feel that I am in exile, far from my true homeland. My heart aches for lasting peace and joy. And I come to you this day to renew my hope in you and to ask for the grace I need to continue my journey through this valley of tears.
Encountering Christ:
Visualizing the Invisible: Christ’s parables make visible in our minds realities that, in themselves, are invisible. They are, in a certain sense, echoes of his own Incarnation, through which the invisible God became visible in Jesus. We need these parables. The invisible realities are the ones we most need to keep firm as the reference points of our lives. If we can’t visualize them somehow, we tend to forget them, and we lose those reference points. That’s when we get lost and go astray. We should love these parables, then, as fuel for our hope, the hope that propels us forward on the journey of life. As St. Paul mentions in today’s first reading: For in hope we were saved. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance (Romans 8:24-25). This virtue of hope is in short supply in our postmodern, secularized world. That world is shortsighted; it expects perfect happiness to result from the right combination of consumer products, digital popularity, exercise routines, and entertainment subscriptions. It has no place for, and no way to comprehend, the inevitable sufferings that come to us in this fallen, sin-ridden world. But in Christ, we can both accept and comprehend them. We know they come from the brokenness of human nature and human society, and we know that in Christ even the most twisted brokenness can be redeemed. Turning back to St. Paul in today’s first reading: I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed for us (Romans 8:18).
The Mustard Seed: The parable of the mustard seed allows us to visualize the future fruitfulness of our seemingly small actions on behalf of Christ. Most of what happens in the Church is small by the world’s standards—a sprinkle of water at baptism, a word of absolution in confession, a host of unleavened bread at Communion. And yet, contained in these small realities is the actual grace of God. The same goes for our small prayers, our small sacrifices, our small, hidden acts of virtue. These are tiny, from the world’s perspective—not worthy of even a footnote in the annals of the relentless 24/7 news cycle, let alone a headline. And yet, hidden within these tiny acts of faith and responses to God’s grace is a great future, just as the tiny mustard seed contains in potency the largest of shrubs. Contemplating this comparison will enable us to continue committing ourselves to the small things, the things that don’t appear in the headlines, but the things that will be fruitful for an everlasting Kingdom.
The Leaven in the Dough: The parable of the leaven in the dough allows us to visualize the hidden and transforming power of faith, hope, and love, of the grace and truth brought into the world by the Gospel. The leaven literally disappears within the mass of dough. In comparison with the dough, its weight and volume are insignificant. And yet, the entire loaf is affected by that leaven. It is changed and transformed. Just so, Christians living their faith authentically may be indistinguishable on the outside from their
neighbors, their coworkers, their comrades, while their witness, their mere presence, gradually works a transformation not only of their inner circles, but even of entire communities, societies, and cultures. How important it is for us to contemplate this image and believe in the hidden power of God’s grace! When the enemy of our souls can’t get us to rebel against God through mortal sin, he will try to distract us from the fruitfulness of day-by-day fidelity to grace by stirring up obsessions with “headline-worthy” events and decisions over which we have no influence at all. If we spend all our energy and attention there, the dough within our grasp will never receive the leaven God wants to give it through our humble and courageous faith.
Conversing with Christ: I cannot see you, Lord, but I believe in you. I cannot see all the results of my efforts to serve you and build up your Kingdom, but I believe that none of those efforts will be in vain. I cannot see all the graces I receive when I go to Mass and confession, but I believe they are there, at work in my mind and heart like leaven in the dough. Thank you, Lord, for teaching me with these simple, beautiful parables. Help me to savor them, to allow their truth to feed my hope so that I never stop working joyfully with you to advance your Kingdom.
Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will perform one act of kindness or Christian witness without looking for any immediate recognition, result, or recompense, knowing that in so doing I am spreading leaven and planting seeds.
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