In chapter 4 Mark records 4 parables Jesus teaches and an account of the storm he calms.
The first parable Mark retells is the parable of the sower, one of the few that Jesus explains later to His disciples. In some ways it is not out of place in a modern context because most of us have some kind of framework for at least gardening so we can catch onto the general meaning. However understanding the middle eastern first century context does bring it a little more alive. Commonly agricultural land lay just outside the cities and towns. It wold be broken up into various plots by specific boundary markers, paths and roadways. Tools to make the land more usable and improve the quality of the soil were considerably more primitive so often farmers worked with the land as it came, rocky parts, pathways cutting through, thorn patches etc. In this context Jesus was a very directly reference something most would have had some kind of experience and frustration with. Perhaps part of the power of the parable is in the obvious question it raises. What is the condition of our heart like? But perhaps it also illustrates some of God’s sadness and frustration that not all of His “seed” scattered grows, isn’t that the ultimate farmers dreams that everything he sows, grows and reaps a harvest?
Jesus continues to encourage those who were listening to pay attention to God’s words using an illustration about putting a lamp on a stand so it can illuminate wherever it is. Before continuing to explain the Kingdom of God is like a seed, scattered and with the potential to grow unaided.
The parable of the Mustard seed is particularly interesting because Jesus seems to be driving at something a little deeper than perhaps face value reveals. His Jewish listeners would probably been somewhat puzzled by his choice of seed for the illustration. As most would have considered the mustard seed to be a weed due to its versatile and organic multiplication where unchecked. Similarly many may have been reminded of the tree Daniel dreamed about in Daniel 4 v 10-12, in which wild animals rested in its shade, birds nested and the whole world was fed. Could Jesus have been making a reference to the way his Kingdom grows, through a versatile and organic approach and the expansive and sustaining nature of His Kingdom by reminding them of the dream Daniel had?
After Jesus finished teaching in this way Mark notes he suggested to His disciples to take a trip across the lake. While they were sailing they suddenly found themselves in the middle of a violent storm. This was not uncommon for the sea of Galilee but and perhaps it was the stories of other’s experiences at the mercies of the elements that meant even the experienced fishermen among them were terrified. However Jesus seems to be comfortable in His own reality, asleep at the back of the boat. I wonder how many times it is the stories or fear of what we have heard happened to others that scares us the most. I also wonder why Jesus wasn’t paying attention to what seemed the clear and present danger at hand? Could it have been that the disciples need not have worried? They were in the presence of the one who created the elements, yet they still felt overwhelmed by the ferocity of the storm. Why did Jesus seem genuinely upset when they woke him? Our sneaky suspicious is it wasn’t because he is grumpy but perhaps just because he realised his friends hadn’t realised quite the extent of who he was and the authority that He embodied, not just spoke. When Jesus is present the storm cannot win once and for all, not just His words carry authority, He is the authority.