The Mustard Seed

“He put another parable before them saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches” (Matthew 13:31-32). 

Jesus tells this story about a man who planted a mustard seed in his field. Now the mustard seed is a very small seed that may be considered insignificant and incapable of producing a large growth. However, when grown, the mustard seed is larger than all the other plants around it. This simple little story about a seed actually provides some great encouragement. 

Small beginnings can have great outcomes

A temptation may be placed upon Christians (especially new Christians) is that the impact we may make will be too small to matter. However, this is simply not true. In Mark 12 when Jesus sat down and watched as people put money into the treasury, he watched as a poor woman put in two coins. While this may seem insignificant, Jesus said she put in more than all of the rich because she offered up everything she had. These two small, insignificant coins live on today as a valuable lesson. Surely the woman and her two coins were small beginnings but it produced a great outcome. 

Faith and Growth

The parable told by Jesus underscores the power of faith. Just a tiny mustard seed had the ability to grow into a large tree. This parable should encourage people to nurture their faith, knowing that it will grow and produce results beyond expectations. 

The Mustard Seed Was Far From Insignificant