Living in the Spirit
July 26, 2020
Scripture Reading: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52
He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.’
He told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’
‘The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
‘Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
‘Have you understood all this?’ They answered, ‘Yes.’ And he said to them, ‘Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.’
The Kingdom of Heaven:
- Provides a home for every kind of bird.
- Is more valuable than any treasure we otherwise might invest our time and energy to gain, including beautiful jewels.
- Is diverse and inclusive with God’s angels, not us, as the judges in the final analysis.
We are called to be those scribes trained to yield a world using God’s design encompassing the richness of the past acts of God, and the newness of innovation as the Spirit leads us. We are to tend our fields growing wholeness, oneness, and justice and discovering and enabling the hidden treasures within ourselves and all our neighbors. I believe God would be overjoyed at the end of the age if God’s angels went forth to separate the evil from the righteous and found nothing to throw away because we had done our job well.
Prayer: Lord, enable us as scribes trained to do our part in building the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.