Parable of the Mustard Seed
This parable is fabulous at explaining how our faith can grow. This parable is found in both Godly Play and Young Children and Worship books. |
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Parable of the Mustard Seed
Have you ever seen a mustard seed? The mustard seed is one of the smallest of all seeds. The mustard seed is so small that you can hardly even see it. Some people have necklaces that have one of these tiny mustard seeds inside of a piece of glass. They wear this necklace as a symbol of their faith in God. Do you know why the mustard seed is considered a symbol of faith?
One day, Jesus was talking to his disciples when one of them turned to him and said, "Lord, increase our faith." Jesus answered and said, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you." Can you imagine what it would be like to have that kind of faith?
There is a story about a man who read this verse in the Bible and decided to put it to the test. He had a large tree in his front yard, so he went out to that tree and said, "In the morning when I wake up from my sleep, I want you to be gone." That night the man went to bed. When he woke up the next morning, he went to front door, opened it, and looked out into his front yard. "Just as I thought!" the man said. "It's still there."
The man didn't have mustard seed sized faith, did he? In fact, he didn't have any faith at all. When he told the tree to be moved, he never expected it to happen. The man misunderstood what Jesus was trying to teach his disciples.
Jesus was not suggesting that you go around trying to move trees just to prove that we have faith. What Jesus was trying to teach his disciples -- and what he wants us to learn -- is that it doesn't take a great faith to produce great results. Why? Because the results don't depend on us, they depend on God, and the size of our faith.
This week’s Sunday School Lesson is about stepping out in faith. Faith that can begin as a tiny mustard seed yet can grow exponentially. Let the mustard seed remind us to never doubt the mighty power of God.
Have you ever seen a mustard seed? The mustard seed is one of the smallest of all seeds. The mustard seed is so small that you can hardly even see it. Some people have necklaces that have one of these tiny mustard seeds inside of a piece of glass. They wear this necklace as a symbol of their faith in God. Do you know why the mustard seed is considered a symbol of faith?
One day, Jesus was talking to his disciples when one of them turned to him and said, "Lord, increase our faith." Jesus answered and said, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you." Can you imagine what it would be like to have that kind of faith?
There is a story about a man who read this verse in the Bible and decided to put it to the test. He had a large tree in his front yard, so he went out to that tree and said, "In the morning when I wake up from my sleep, I want you to be gone." That night the man went to bed. When he woke up the next morning, he went to front door, opened it, and looked out into his front yard. "Just as I thought!" the man said. "It's still there."
The man didn't have mustard seed sized faith, did he? In fact, he didn't have any faith at all. When he told the tree to be moved, he never expected it to happen. The man misunderstood what Jesus was trying to teach his disciples.
Jesus was not suggesting that you go around trying to move trees just to prove that we have faith. What Jesus was trying to teach his disciples -- and what he wants us to learn -- is that it doesn't take a great faith to produce great results. Why? Because the results don't depend on us, they depend on God, and the size of our faith.
This week’s Sunday School Lesson is about stepping out in faith. Faith that can begin as a tiny mustard seed yet can grow exponentially. Let the mustard seed remind us to never doubt the mighty power of God.
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