Note: The paragraphs below are an abbreviated form of the following resources that were developed as the dream of the Austin Mustard Seed was first taking shape. You are welcome to read/listen to them to these resources if you want to invest more time:
It is easy miss the impact of how these words would have been heard by Jesus’ original listeners. To our modern ears, the point seems to be fairly straight-forward. The kingdom of God might start very small, but over time it will grow to grand proportions. It makes perfect sense when seen through the lens of progress that modernity has placed before our eyes.
However, the parable, as Jesus told it, did not make sense. At least not if taken literally. Because mustard was so aggressive, it was considered to be unclean. One mustard plant could corrupt an entire garden. There were many restrictions on when and where mustard could be planted, if at all. Simply put, there is a good chance that the man planting the seed was doing something illegal. The mustard plant, both now and then, was often considered to be nothing more than a pesky weed.
What might Jesus’ intent be in comparing the kingdom of God to an unclean weed? This weed image can be helpful for us to think of what it means to be the church. It should not be perceived as the equal of the kingdom of God, but as a prime agent of it. The church is the most tangible expression of the kingdom of God.
We think of the church, like a weed or any other plant, as a living system. The science of living systems places an emphasis on the structure of smaller networks within larger networks. With Jesus’ metaphor in mind, the Austin Mustard Seed positions itself to be such a church — smaller and larger networks shaped around our culture and our patterns of life so that the Kingdom may thrive.
