Kingdom of Heaven, part 4

The Power of Small Beginnings 

If you had been the parent of Mahatma Gandhi, you likely would not have imagined that your child would one day become one of India’s most influential leaders. Abraham Lincoln’s family probably never dreamed that he would rise from humble beginnings to lead a nation through one of its greatest crises. And few could have predicted that Martin Luther King Jr. would become one of the most recognizable voices of the American civil rights movement. What makes each of their stories so remarkable is that they began in ordinary, even difficult, circumstances with little indication of the impact they would one day have. Yet through perseverance and purpose, each became a world-changing figure. Like these three, many great leaders have not allowed impossible odds and small beginnings keep them from accomplishing mighty works for the benefit of mankind. 

When Jesus compared the growth of Christianity to the unimportant, insignificant mustard seed, He was foretelling the future. Matthew 13:31-32 “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” 

Ask a farmer and they will tell you the tiny, by themselves, insignificant seeds are possibilities for the future. From the possibility within the seed, a promise exists. Planted, watered, and cared for, crops grow into a bountiful harvest and provide for future needs. 

 For hundreds of years after the death of Christ, persecution and hatred affected every believer. Death for many was their accepted fate. Yet from its humble beginnings, came a movement that has impacted every segment of society. 

Much of the vitriol against Christ followers has never disappeared from our world. Every day, countless followers of Christ suffer, even risking death for their beliefs. Yet it does not stop the spread of the word. 

Just as Jesus spoke of the mustard seed growing from a small insignificant seed into a magnificent tree, so Christianity has fulfilled that promise. Together, through our prayers and commitment to spreading the Gospel, we can keep alive the possibilities for the future. Yes, even the possibility of those considered insignificant becoming world changers. 

What is stopping you?