What Trees Can Teach Us About God and His KingdomSample

The Kingdom of God is like a tree

The ‘kingdom of God’ or ‘kingdom of heaven’ is not an easy concept to understand. After all, we can’t (yet) see it with our physical eyes or compare it to human kingdoms we know. It is something spiritual, and its fullness has not yet come.

In order to explain what this kingdom is like, Jesus told his hearers a couple parables. Each parable sheds light on some characteristics of the kingdom of heaven, that might increase our understanding step by step. One of them compares God’s kingdom to a grain of mustard seed. It is very small; nobody would pay much attention to it. That’s a striking parallel with Jesus’ mission and the coming of his kingdom. Many people would expect this kingdom to appear with spectacular apocalyptic signs and God’s judgment over evil. But no, Jesus’ kingdom grows quietly, almost unnoticed. Jesus doesn’t seem especially important and has no political influence at all. Many people don’t even recognize Him as the promised Messiah, let alone as the Son of God.

And yet, God’s kingdom will become like a big tree. Part of that promise has already come true: millions of people have accepted Jesus as their King! Their hearts and lives have changed. The worldwide church has grown enormously. And we can be sure that the fullness of God’s kingdom, when Jesus returns as King of the universe, will be glorious and majestic indeed.

Do you accept Jesus as your King?