31 October 2017 - the hope we knead

To what can I compare it?
It is like a mustard seed that a man took and planted in the garden.

The Kingdom of heaven starts small. It's growth is hidden.

Again he said, "To what shall I compare the Kingdom of God?
It is like yeast that a woman took
and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour

The process is almost invisible to an observer until the results are seen. This can be frustrating. Even if we aren't control freaks we like to know that we're heading in the right direction. We like to see results as vindication of our choices. But the Kingdom is more about trust than trial and error. It is more about faith in the one who gives the growth than any special skill we ourselves possess. It seems to only become more true as we grow in holiness. God works within us in ways that is by necessity hidden from our awareness. But the thing that is not hidden, or should not be, is that God is indeed at work. He is with us because he promises to be.

When it was fully grown, it became a large bush
and the birds of the sky dwelt in its branches.

We await the full grown bush and the leavened dough. We await the glorious freedom of the sons of God. A common pitfall for us is to use our suffering as an indication that we're doing something wrong. But it is not necessarily so. It might be. If we suffer because we fail to follow God then that is not a good thing. But rather than trying to change course as a response to our suffering let us instead try harder to follow God. The actual inner workings of the Kingdom are too hidden for any other approach to work. This is why we need hope.

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.

We know that the glorious freedom of the children of God awaits us even if right now we feel suffering. We don't have to get into competition with that suffering to bring about the kingdom ourselves. Instead we trust in God whole will one day set creation itself free from slavery to corruption and give us the freedom for which we long. We cling to him.

Although they go forth weeping,
carrying the seed to be sown,
They shall come back rejoicing,
carrying their sheaves.