³⁰ Again [Jesus] said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? ³¹ It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. ³² Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.” Mark 4:30-32

My side lawn used to house three ENORMOUS trees that stood in a perfect row. Two flanked the driveway and the other stood by the little parking spot next to the garage. I agreed to have them TAKEN DOWN because they had signs of rot and were encroaching on the buildings.  

Many people in my congregation thought they were walnut trees but NONE produced nuts and one had thorny branches and enormous white sprays that attracted SWARMS of bees in the spring. I was curious so I did some research.  Whoever planted those trees in our yard either didn’t think it through or they had a twisted sense of humour.   If I’m right [I’M RIGHT], one tree was a honey locust and the others were a ‘tree of heaven’ pair.  HILARIOUS.  I’ll tell you why.  All three trees created prolific seedlings not only in our lawn and flower beds but also in those of our neighbours and, in fact, the whole village.  They were invasive and grew with great speed. The roots went DEEP and held FAST.  It took A LOT of work to dig up their roots and pull them up from the ground. There were SO MANY little saplings springing up that it felt like a PLAGUE.  It was IRRITATING and NO amount of hard work could STOP them from growing.  

Once someone told me that it was a pastor who did the planting. The house has always been owned by the church I serve and their pastors traditionally take up residence in it. I guess the pastor responsible thought AFFLICTING the parsonage with a tree named after the promise of honey and the plague of locusts from the Bible was FUNNY.  At any rate, the whole tree thing seemed clearly  PLANNED. The honey locust dripped sticky, messy sap on the roof of the garage and the sidewalk and, although the other two trees were tall and appeared to reach HIGH into the heavens, they were a stubborn, HELLISH nuisance. Amusing, right?  I was pretty sure I hated those trees.

The scripture I preached a couple Sundays ago was Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed.  I couldn’t help but think of THESE trees.  A mustard plant begins as a small, inconsequential seed, hidden in the ground. Some varieties can RISE up to be a very LARGE bush. They aren’t REGAL looking or anything, just very ORDINARY, naturally occurring plants that grow like WEEDS.  I’m no farmer but I know that the LAST thing a crop needs is tree-like weeds that steal sunshine and invite a bunch of birds and pests to pick around. Yet Jesus compares the mysterious in-breaking, sweeping [firmament- dimension-precinct-dominion-realm-‘kin’dom] Kingdom OF GOD to a mustard seed.  An IRRITANT. 

Those trees had grown like weeds.  Even though they were uprooted, SOMEHOW through the miracle of nature, their offspring always continued, and, TO THIS DAY, pop up EVERYWHERE – through the boards of our deck, pushing into the bottom of our trailer, lodging tightly between the walls of the house and the steps.  Those trees left a LEGACY of irritants, seeds with aggressive SWARMING behaviour and the ability to TRANSFORM landscapes by sprouting and spreading despite our best efforts to STOP them.

Jesus teaches that the kingdom of God is LIKE THIS.  It pops up everywhere and spreads like weeds whether we TRY to stop it or not.  

What does this mean for us who CHOOSE to put our energy towards the growth of GOD’S hopes and dreams for humanity and creation?  How do we nurture the growth of human decency, justice and love? How do WE teach the way of humility and welcome diversity rather than stifle or silence voices that are difficult to hear? 

I consulted several dictionaries and thesauri to inform my understanding of weeds.  I was DELIGHTED to discover that the same concepts can be directly applied to our Christian concept of God’s in-breaking kingdom within us and among us.  Jesus knew what he was talking about.

The kingdom of God is like ‘a plant out of place.’  It is like a plant ‘that interferes with human activities.’ It is like a plant ‘whose perceived negative characteristics might appear to outweigh its positive characteristics’, OR a plant ‘whose positive characteristics have not yet been discovered’!!!

The Kingdom of heaven is like a weed.  It produces large numbers of seeds. These seeds ‘might remain dormant, but are viable in the soil for long periods of time.’  Perhaps the way of truth and love that we find demonstrated by Jesus IS undesirable in particular situations.  Maybe THAT way of living conflicts with our preferences, needs, and goals.  Surely a life lived speaking truth to power CAN be hazardous, unappealing, and difficult to control and simply unwanted in certain societal ‘environments’, but STILL the realm of God grows forth from our hearts, from the earth, and from the ever-blooming fruit of the Holy Spirit that animates EVERYTHING.

Did you know that some seeds of weeds have unique, God-given structures that ENABLE them to be transported and be easily spread?  For example, like burrs to CLING to animals?  The Holy Spirit is like a burr that clings to the seed, or even the seeds themselves that are consumed and SHAT OUT with ABANDON – ANYWHERE and EVERYWHERE so that God’s love spreads and propagates EVEN in unexpected and difficult places without us so much as lifting a finger to help it move along? SHAT OUT! I LOVE THIS VULGAR, EARTHY, ORDINARY TRUTH!

Soon after the parsonage trees were taken down we started to MISS them.  The inside of our parked vehicles became HOTTER.  Our deck and backyard had NO shade.  We LONGED for the visual of their branches waving and the sound of the breeze through their leaves.  NO more robins or squirrels nested in our front yard.  We MISSED the extra birdsong and the chatter.  In the spring when things started blooming, we missed the sweet locust tree and were grieved knowing we had DESTROYED a HAVEN for the bees that used to collect pollen from its blossoms’ and nestle into its bark for rest.  Those trees had grown like weeds.  The municipality said a new tree would be planted to replace them, a promise yet unfulfilled.  If I so-desired, I could simply allow the weeds to grow back. I’m seriously considering this!

The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, a weed, an irritant – like the honey locust and the tree of heaven – a real and present tangible LIFE that is ALWAYS open to us to experience and SHARE.  Following Jesus can be HIGHLY disruptive to our comfort and our entrenchment in the status quo.  Asking questions, seeking justice, taking risks for the sake of others – is HARD. It’s NECESSARY. The world needs US to be like that mustard seed – relentless in our mission to invite others into God’s love, into the way of humility, peace, and belonging.  

A weed will grow without our help, even if untended – gradually, mysteriously, even unnoticed until – WHOOPS, there it is. Likewise, the realm of God is always expanding. It grows not just to look nice – but to BENEFIT creation with shelter and security.  Perhaps it is an univited, unmajestic, nuisance to some, but to so many OTHERS it is a much needed reality providing shelter, safety, and happiness. 

Jesus says that seeds sprout and grow even though the farmer really has NO clue how this miracle happens.  The earth produces from itself.  The earth has the power of TRANSFORMATION.  Farmers have to trust the soil, the earth, the ground, the mystery.  The kingdom of God is the same.    The seeds grow on their own REGARDLESS of what we do.  The purpose of sharing the fruit of God’s metaphorical garden is simply to ENCOURAGE this love and growth in our tired world.  We are invited to sow the seeds God provides. Carry the burrs and spread the shit.  This is GOOD news. We don’t know how it all works.  The mustard seed doesn’t push up out of the ground as a full bush and neither does the kingdom of God! We have hope because the new life of the kingdom is already growing here and will carry us through to the harvest of eternal life when the kingdom is realized in its FULLNESS.  It’s IMPOSSIBLE to mess THIS up! The kingdom will keep on growing even amidst our mistakes, the growth of God’s kingdom CANNOT be uprooted.

Sometimes the irritants will get our goat – and sometimes we ourselves must be the irritant for justice and love to grow.  Maybe nobody WISHES for big old weeds – but I can’t deny that the pesky honey locust and the trees of heaven – in their fullness – provided sanctuary and a place for life to FLOURISH in HARMONY.  Let’s look at the seeds that have already been planted and recognize what they have done over time and will continue to grow in the future and let’s accept with CONFIDENCE, the invitation to continue sowing and our INCLUSION in the spreading of God’s expansive and unbidden love.