Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time B Mk 4,26-34

Indeed, the parables of the Lord Jesus on the “germination of sown seed” and the “mustard seed” point to the “Kingdom of God” (Mark 4: 46,30).

The Lord Jesus takes parables from the peasant environment, which today’s man easily understands. In parables, he points to the growth of the kingdom of God. Each of them wants to say something. The parable of the germination of the sown seed emphasizes the power of growth, which is hidden in the grain itself. It is not the farmer who gives the strength to germinate the grain, nor does it affect the gradual growth, that it is “first the stalk, then the ear, and finally the full grain in the class” (Mark 4:28). However, this does not mean that the farmer is not to blame, yet he must cultivate the ground and sow the grain. Whether man “sleeps or gets up, night or day, the seed germinates and grows, and he does not know” (Mark 4:27). Jesus thus points to the kingdom of God, which is governed by his own truths, which is not the fruit of technology. Thus, the kingdom of God has a period of germination, growth, maturation, and harvest in society, as well as in every human being. Often man and even society do not realize it. God has His ways of realizing His plans. In the second parable of the mustard seed, Jesus wants to emphasize that what seems small and insignificant to a man when he grows up outgrows everything that man himself wanted to do. And the harvest? This is the time of God, but the fruit of the effort serves the man who worked to do God’s will. The lazy servant loses even the little he has received and is justly punished; the industrious servant will hear the words of praise and reward: “Correct, good and faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few; I have set thee over many; enter into the joy of thy master” (Mt 25:23). The peasant in the parable not only does what he is supposed to do but is also filled with trust in God. Apostle St. In his second reading to the Corinthians, Paul writes: “We are still full of confidence … because we live in faith … we strive to please him, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive retribution for what he did while he was in the flesh. Whether good or bad ”(2 Cor 5: 6-10). The apostle does not want to have power over the weather, nature; he only wants to do what God asks of him. St. Paul writes, “I have planted, Apollos watered, but God has increased” (1 Cor 3: 6).
The truth hidden in these parables is proof of faith. After two thousand years, we have evidence of Jesus’ care for the Church. Our faith should be greater than that of the early Christians. We are witnessing that the number has grown from a few thousand to more than a billion people. The Church, founded by the Lord Jesus, has gone through various stages of prosperity and persecution. He’s here today. He lives. Today, Jesus also addresses us with these parables. Our life is to answer the words of the Lord Jesus. Jesus wants from each of us an answer to his words. The answer is yes or no. Accepting his teachings and rejecting his teachings. God never resigns from man’s behavior, even though the man would stand above his abyss. God does not forsake him but expects man to accept him as his Lord and God. This obliges us that when we hear the words of Christ, we are obliged to carry them out in our lives. He who knowingly and voluntarily rejects the teachings of Christ is excluded from the kingdom of God. The Church represents on earth the “germination and beginning” of the Kingdom of God (cf. CCC 541). The kingdom of God is ready for all who do the word of God. At the end of time, the kingdom of God will reach its fullness. Then the righteous will reign with Christ forever, glorified in body and soul. Then God will be “all in all” (1 Cor 15:28).
It is necessary to realize that the Church conveys to us the truths that we are to fulfill in our lives. For this Church has spaces, churches, where the growth of our faith helps especially. The Lord Jesus appointed the Apostle Peter as the visible head of the Church. His successors, the popes, and with them all the bishops are teachers of faith and morals. It is a gift we have received from God. It is our duty to accept the gift. The giver of grain is God. We have to accept the grain of faith. This means allowing God’s word to grow in us. We are obliged to keep everything that is commanded to us. We do not know the day or the hours of our death. We should always be ready because we do not know our harvest day. Each grain has a different length of its vegetation. God does not want anything from us beyond our power. We are obliged to renounce all evil, sin. With each of us, God has a plan on earth. God has given us a Church that teaches us, leads us to a goal, the kingdom of God. We know that there are many difficulties and obstacles on this path. We have changed in the weather in nature. A man should seek the will of God and fulfill it in his life. One must not resign. He has hope in the Church.
Have you experienced anything like this? The man was looking for a place to find peace for his soul. He once entered a church where a priest and his believers prayed, “We neglected the things we were to do and did what we were not to do.” Then the man sighed and said quietly, “Thank you, God, for being found a way … “
It would help if you gave up your pride. Pride is a cocoon that does not belong to God’s role. Pride and every sin will prevent you from entering the kingdom of God. Man is invited to live in connection with God and grow into a bushy tree, the “Lebanese cedar.”
One parable about present-day life tells us that animals have gathered and complained to people that they are robbing them of many things. “They’re taking my milk,” the cow said. “They’re taking my eggs,” the hen said. “They’re taking my meat,” the pig said. “They’re hunting me to take my fat,” the whale said. And so on. Finally, the snail spoke. “And I have something they would like more than anything else. Something they would have robbed me of if they could. I have time.”