Daily Thought

Having spoken about the responsibility to sow, the Lord now teaches that disciples ought to disseminate received truth. There is only one suitable place for a lamp and that is on a lampstand! Do nothing to obscure the truth that has been committed to you. Listen to God, v. 23. Communicate what you hear, and there will be further enlightenment, v. 24. Fail to impart your knowledge, and that knowledge will be lost to you, v. 25.

The next little parable has various cogent applications, but the interpretation has to do with the growth of God’s kingdom in this world. From small beginnings it moves to eventual maturity without any human instrumentality. The Creator has put agricultural laws in place that are beyond human understanding. Similarly, the development of His kingdom defies the human intellect. He Himself superintends it through its various stages of growth; it is all a divine work.

The parable of the mustard seed is a wake-up call. Presently, God’s kingdom is a sphere of profession in which Satan is active. ‘The fowls of the air’ have featured earlier, and were interpreted as illustrating the work of the devil, vv. 4, 15. The great monstrosity that we call ‘Christendom’ harbours a great variety of satanically-inspired error that corrupts the pure gospel of Christ, and compromises devoted Christian living.

Verses 33 to 34 contain a practical lesson for preachers. He spoke ‘as they were able to hear it’. Paul also tailored his ministry to suit the spiritual condition of his hearers; spiritual babies cannot digest the strong meat of the word, 1 Cor. 3. 1, 2. We have to be sensitive to the needs of audiences. In this passage, the disciples were enlightened privately, and today, as possessors of the Spirit, we have the capacity to understand what is obscure to the unregenerate mind, 1 Cor. 2. 14.

At verse 35, the narrative switches back to activity and miracles, the first being the stilling of the storm. The weariness of Christ demonstrates His true manhood, and yet His power over the elements is evidence of His essential deity. At a practical level, let us be encouraged that He cares for us in the storms of life, and that if He so wills, He can calm these storms.