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33 Another parable He spoke to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened. 34 All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, 35 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world." ~ Matthew 13:33-35
Today, we continue our study of the fourth of seven parables found in Matthew 13. This is also the last parable in Matthew 13 spoken by the Lord Jesus to the crowd. The remaining three, dealing with the inner secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, were spoken only to the disciples. Both the parable of the mustard seed and today's parable speak about the incredible influence the gospel has in any context. The parable of the mustard seed and the parable of the leaven both reveal the importance of small beginnings or humility. The Lord Jesus utilized these two parables together in order to describe the kingdom of God in its guaranteed ultimate greatness in the hearts of people. It was Watchman Nee who once said, "I must first have the sense of God's possession of me before I can have the sense of His presence with me."
In the Old Testament God told us in advance through the prophets that the kingdom of God would ultimately come to our sin-sick hearts. When the Lord Jesus Christ came to this earth as a baby, He came as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The Jews didn't expect this. Instead, they expected Him to come as the Lion of Judah who will rule the world with a rod of iron. Of course, this is yet to happen. Since Israel had missed His first coming, they were not ready to yield their hearts and souls to Him. This will be the point of the Tribulation and one-third of Israel will be saved through that seven year period of chaos that is almost here. The Jews problem was they didn't expect Him to do it the way He did it. But God's ways are not man's ways. From the very beginning God had promised to not only bless Abraham and his people but also the Gentiles with an intimate and personal relationship with Himself. We will always find ourselves in error when we evaluate God on the basis of our understanding alone.
The first two parables in this chapter describe the nature of God's kingdom. There will always this side of heaven be those who receive His kingdom and there will always be those who reject it. In the second set of parables, the parable of the mustard seed and the parable of leaven, the Lord Jesus taught about the power of God's kingdom. Whereas through the parable of the mustard seed the Lord taught that the believer and the unbeliever must be allowed to exist together until the time of the fullness of the Gentiles has come about, the parable of the leaven emphasizes how God's kingdom permeates the hearts of the broken and the willing.
In this parable the woman took leaven and hid it in three measures of meal which is the equivalent of about 30 pounds. Leaven is a single-cell organism, only visible under a microscope, that people use to bake bread. It sparks a fermentation process that causes a solid, dense ball of dough to rise into a soft loaf. Its effects begin after we mix together flour, water, and yeast. It consumes and breaks down sugars present in the dough, releasing carbon dioxide and alcohol, which produce air bubbles that cause the dough to rise, becoming airier, and thus making the dough tastier and more edible. The leaven illustrates the power of the kingdom of God. A small amount of leaven produces a massive amount of dough. This illustration reminds us that the kingdom of God begins small but due to its permeating nature, it changes the hearts of people from the inside out.
So, the true Christian life is Christ living in us. The work of the enemy of our souls is always from the outside in, whereas the work of the Lord will always be from the inside out. After God plants His leaven inside our soul He always works from the inside out. And, God always blesses us with others in mind. God's life planted in us makes us increasingly alive to Him. Vance Havner once said, "The first discovery a Christian needs to make is that he cannot of himself live the Christian life. Living the Christian life is not so much our responsibility but our response to His ability." This is why the Lord throughout the Scriptures implores us to focus on Him and His abilities rather than ourselves and any change that may come about in our lives over time.
While most believe the secret to the Christian life is self-perfection, it is not. No, the secret to the Christian life is the freedom of the presence of God in our lives to do what He pleases. Whereas our old life ended at the cross of the Lord Jesus, our new life began at His resurrection. Since we cannot can earn God's favor unto salvation, we cannot achieve spiritual growth through our own efforts to become "better" people. Self-reliance often leads to pride and a diminished reliance upon God. The essence of the Christian life is about receiving and responding to God's grace, His unmerited favor and His transformative power. Christian discipleship calls for denying oneself and following Christ, rather than focusing on self-improvement. It is only by His grace that we are enabled to growth in faith in His ability to produce His character in, to and through us. Our hope is realized by us through Christ in us who is our ultimate hope.
