THE SEED OF THE KINGDOM

11TH  SUNDAY  IN ORDINARY TIME – B

Mark 4:26-34

        

         There is something grand and mysterious in a simple seed that is planted on the ground.  In the midst of darkness surrounding it, the wonder of creation is at work.  The seemingly dead cotyledons inside the seed are touched by the perfect combination of all the elements in themselves together with their environs that empower life to start.  At the right time life triumphs and seeks out a passage through which it breaks through the deadliest and the darkest obstacles.  Nothing is too hard like the seed coatings that cannot be broken by the most gentle movements of a tiny plant inside the seed.  Once it makes its passage and pierces through the ground, the tiny creature is on its way towards the fullness of its being and perfection.   The seed growing by itself is a microcosm of the reality of the Kingdom of God in the world and in each person. 

         The seed of the Kingdom, albeit unseen, has been sown in the world permeating every fiber of humanity.  The same seed of faith was also sown in our hearts when we were baptized.   So we can say that the seed of the Kingdom is within the world and in each one of us.  Just like an ordinary seed, it has an inherent power that given the right atmosphere can grow into a tree.  That “energy” within the seed is called grace!  Because of the movement of grace, God is silently working within us to make it grow and bloom and bear fruit.  But God needs our cooperation because He does not want to impose on us and He respects our freedom of the will.  When we are able to work hand in hand with God, we cannot but see the blooming of that seed into  a tree of goodness within the world and ourselves.  St. Therese of Liseux, St. Faustina, St. Francis of Assisi are just some of our saints who were unknown to the world during their time and yet they became bigger than themselves.  They are examples of little seeds who later on revolutionised and transformed the world. 

        

Are we control-freaks? It’s good to plan and organize things otherwise there will be disorder and chaos.  But we can only do so much.  The best doctors in the world cannot add one single second once our time is up.   There is always an end even to the most genius of humanity simply because we are not eternal.    We cannot take full control of our life and the world because whether we like it or not, we are not indispensable!   God is in full control of everything, including ourselves!

At the end of the day when we go to bed, a seed somewhere is breaking through the darkness of the soil.  It continues to grow through the power deep within.   We don’t have to look for that seed anywhere because that mystery is happening in our own hearts.   We have that seed of the Kingdom in all of us; we just have to cooperate and trust in God as it grows into something grand and beautiful!