3rd Week in Ord. Time, Friday – 27th January 2023 — Gospel: Mark 4,26-34
Growth without Human Intervention
Jesus being a very good teacher used ordinary seed parables to make the people understand easily about what He spoke. He used the parable of the growing seed and the parable of the mustard seed. Both teachings concern the mystery of “the kingdom of God” (vv.26,30). Both these parables begin with the sowing of seed in the ground, and both describe the beginning and final stages of the process of growing seed. Parables are different: the first one focuses its attention on the interim stages of growth, whereas the second focuses on the final outcome. The parables emphasize the power and potency that is in the seed itself. The seed inevitably grows and matures independent of any action on the part of the farmer. Nothing is said of the many activities normally done by the farmer, like ploughing, tilling, watering, weeding and fertilizing. Jesus teaches that God’s reign is not a human achievement. It does not depend on the understanding or actions of his disciples. The parable encourages to continue sowing the gospel in the world, even when we don’t see many results.
