“Wait and See”June 14, 2015Mark 4:26-34

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from our great teacher and savior Jesus Christ, amen.

Over where we live in West Milton we have several large trees on the property. Someone in their infinite wisdom planted several right around the driveway where we park the cars. They were probably thinking of the shade the mature trees would one day provide for our enjoyment. I can’t speak to how many birds make their nests in the branches of a mustard shrub, but the branches of the maple trees beside our driveway harbor a wide variety. If the birds of the air make their nests in the branches of the Mustard shrub, how much more in the branches of mature Maple trees! I like nature and birds as much as the rest of you, but I’m not too thrilled with them making their homes in the branches above my parked clean pickup truck. They drop things on my truck that I take offense at…

Anyway, I was thinking about growth and how it occurs this week. What a great

topic for this Air Force retiree to talk to a congregation half filled with farmers… So, how does your garden grow? I’m sure most of you can educate me on the proper fertilizer, herbicides, and pesticides to use, or how much water is needed to ensure optimum growth and crop production. The botanists can explain to us the chemical reactions that are involved in the photosynthesis process. But beyond or deeper than all that, if we keep on asking how the growth process works we eventually get to the point that defies our science. The everyday mundane normal processes of life just happen and ultimately we give credit to God. I think at the core of these parables of seeds and growth the heavenly meaning behind these earthly stories is to recognize who’s really in charge here. Even in the smallest things like the growth of a tiny Mustard seed.

Jesus really liked to tell stories. We call Jesus’ stories Parables. The word Parable is a compound Greek word coming from Para, which means alongside and ekbola, which means to throw. So, technically a Parable is something that’s thrown alongside something else as a comparison. Jesus throws the growth of a tiny mustard seed alongside the Kingdom of God hoping we can see the similarity.

I was thinking about the Kingdom of God and parables this week and the wonder of a good fireworks display came to mind. To what can we compare the Kingdom of God. Well how about a fireworks rocket. I love fireworks and we go to the Air Force Military Tattoo almost every year. They do a fantastic fireworks display at the end of a

day filled with live music, airplane fly overs, and a festival atmosphere open to the public. If you like patriotic events this is the granddaddy.

We’ve set off our share of fireworks in our back yard over the years. These little rockets seem small and insignificant, but wait and see - they become something much greater than you would ever expect. In our scriptures today both Ezekiel and Jesus compare the Kingdom of God to something small that becomes something great. Ezekiel compares the Kingdom of God to a tiny little tree sprig. God plants that sprig, and it doesn’t look like much as it sits on top of a high mountain. But you wait and see – eventually it becomes the greatest, most amazing tree in all the world. Today God teaches us about his kingdom, and how he works. God does things that seem small in our eyes, to begin with. But the things God does turn out to be the greatest, most amazing things we could ever imagine. While living in our super-sized, larger-than-life world we’re tempted to want more, bigger, and better stuff. We look around at what others have; our own stuff doesn't seem to measure up, we feel sad, neglected and unloved. In all sorts of ways "sin, death and the devil" taunt us, "Is that all you get?" There’s got to be more, you deserve it!”

Time and time again scripture has stories of abundance that arise out of seeming scarcity— today’s tiny mustard seeds and the small tree sprig planted on a mountaintop. Other bible stories tell us about a boy's lunch of bread and fish that fed 5000 people, a shortage of wine at a wedding at Cana transformed by Jesus into a

great celebration with wine to spare, and an Old Testament story where a meager jar of oil and some meal lasted throughout a famine. The biggest story of a small beginning takes place on a dark Friday when trembling disciples were shaken to the core and how those few scared followers of Jesus grew in faith and changed the world! Perhaps when we look longingly at our empty hands or glance in the mirror with self-pity, then we need God to remind us it’s not about us or the size of our contributions.

God continues to bring much more than we could ever have anticipated from our meager offerings. God continues to bring new life out of old bones and we still don’t know how. We finished reading Tuesdays With Morrie this week. Morrie was a college professor who died from ALS. His favorite student from many years ago began visiting his old professor on Tuesdays. Toward the end of Morrie’s life on their last visit the student, Mitch Albom, noticed that Morrie was unshaven. In all the years he had known Morrie, he had never seen him unshaven. Mitch noticed that despite Morrie’s frail, withered body, now reduced to not much more than skin and bones, his whiskers continued to grow. New life was continuing despite being surrounded by a dying body. How can we explain such everyday miracles?

To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God? When Jesus was born, he didn’t look like much - a tiny baby born to a poor Middle Eastern family. Even as Jesus carried out his ministry, he didn’t look like much. Sometimes he would perform a miracle, but most of the time he talked about

things that people didn’t care about – he talked about repentance and faith and the life to come. When Jesus died on the cross, he didn’t look like much – very unimpressive, as he died between two common criminals on a Friday afternoon. His early followers didn’t look like much either – a group of uneducated fishermen and tax collectors who didn’t fit in with the rest of society. Ah, but wait and see.

Today, you and I might be tempted to look at Jesus, to look at His church, and think to ourselves, “I am not impressed. This doesn’t look like much to me.” We look at our world today, and often times, it’s hard to see the greatness of Christ. We look at the state of Christianity in our world today, with all of its problems, and it’s hard to see the greatness of Christ. We look at our own lives – all of our own problems, and it’s hard to see the greatness of Christ. But we wait, and see…

The secret to seeing God’s greatness is focusing on things you can’t see. The prophet Ezekiel told Israel to focus on the future – something they could not see – and there they found God’s greatness. Verse 23: “On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it; it will produce branches and bear fruit and become a splendid cedar.” God is talking about Christ, and his kingdom here. Someday, it will grow, God says. “Birds of every kind will nest in it.” God is talking about people here. People of every kind will become a part of God’s kingdom. People from all over the world, every nation, every background, every kind of personality and every social status. Look to the future,

Ezekiel told the people of Israel, and you will see the greatness of God’s kingdom.

When fireworks are lit off at night, it doesn’t look like much to begin with – a small white dot quietly sailing up into the night sky. But then it reaches its peak, and it explodes with a loud boom, and the dark sky is filled with a beautiful color and design, all from one small firework… When you first meet Jesus, he doesn’t look like much. When you first have contact with his Word, it may not seem like much. But wait and see – after dying, Jesus rises from the dead. After meeting Jesus in God’s Word or here at Worship or through a trusted friend, the Holy Spirit works on your heart, and that’s when the fireworks begin. You begin to believe this man Jesus really is God. You realize his death wasn’t just a sad injustice, it was all part of God’s master plan designed to take away your sins. And someday, when you look into the sky, you will see something greater than the greatest of all fireworks displays. You will see Christ coming again in all his glory, with all the saints and angels behind him, coming to take you to be with him forever.

Until that day let’s not focus on all life’s troubles. Instead, let’s focus on God’s Word, and let the Holy Spirit show you what Christ has done for you – look at what Christ has promised to you – and look at what Christ has waiting for you. Things may seem small now, but wait, God says, and you will see.

Wait and see, God says, wait and see. The fireworks are coming. Amen.