The Seed Growing Secretly

Mark 4:26-29

And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground;

And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how.

For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.

But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.


Interpretation: This one gave me very little to go on. The Savior didn't offer an explanation and the Apostles didn't ask for one. Again, these are just my thoughts and ideas so the chances of me being wrong are quite high but here goes.

The seed cast into the ground - the kingdom of God. This one is a given because it says in verse 26 "So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground")

A man casting the seed - I don't think this is the Savior because the man wakes up and is surprised at the growth of the seed. The Savior would know exactly what was going on with the seed. Since the man didn't know, I think he was an ordinary man casting seeds - like a missionary.

The man sleeps for a time but I'm not quite sure for how long. It says, "And should sleep, and rise night and day," Does this mean it took one day for the seed to grow from seed to ear? I mean the farmer is quite surprised so it must have been quick. Or the farmer ignored the field thinking there were no seeds there or forgot he planted a seed there and so was surprised that anything grew there at all. Either way, the growth of this particular seed had nothing to do with the man (another reason why this man couldn't have been the Savior. He would know what is going on with His own Kingdom.)

So then the man harvests the crop - Missionary work resumes, people are baptized, covenants are made.

Application: Two things came to my mind as I thought about this parable. 1) The stories of early missionaries to England. Those missionaries showed up armed with truth and righteousness and baptized entire congregations of believers. It's like they were just waiting for those missionaries to show up and baptize them. 2) I think of my brother and his mission in France. The guy jokes about how he baptized no one but "planted seeds". A temple in Paris is now being built. Would he have seen that coming twenty some odd years ago when he was there?
   The point is we can plant seeds, and we should plant seeds, but it is the Lord that makes the seed grow. This is His gospel and His work. He knows where the harvest is ready and where to send us to get the work done. But ultimately it is His work. Our job is to do the missionary work that the Lord has asked us to do and have faith that the Lord will work on the hearts of men in the field.

"A Great Work Done In that Land" by Ronald K. Esplin

"Harvest in Herefordshire" by David J. Whittaker