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BURIED TREASURE: Exploring The Parables Of Jesus

by J. W. Jepson, D.Min.

Copyright © 1997 by J. W. Jepson

All rights reserved, including the right to grant the following permission and to prohibit the misuse thereof:

The Author hereby grants permission to reproduce the text of this article, without changes or alterations*, as a ministry, but not for commercial or non-ministry purposes.

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7.

THE QUIET REVOLUTION

The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.

--Matthew 13:33

THE QUIET REVOLUTION

Long ago, Roman fathers had the "right" to decide whether their newborn children would live or die. Ancient Phrygians commonly sold their own children as slaves. In one part of the world until modern times widows were burned alive on the funeral pyres of their deceased husbands.

But something has changed all that and many things like that wherever its influence has permeated society. What is it? What has made the difference? The kingdom of God.

Jesus talked about the moral influence of the kingdom in the parable of the leaven, the twin of the parable of the mustard seed. He gave these parables first to the multitude gathered on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and later in a synagogue in Judea.

The mustard seed parable illustrates the outward, visible growth of the kingdom during the present age. The parable of the leaven emphasizes the inward, invisible moral influence of the principles of the kingdom.

Like so many other parables, it also suffers from over-interpretation. The woman does not signify anything in particular. She is merely part of the structure of the parable. Neither do the three measures of meal represent three of anything. It just happened to be the usual amount for the average family. The leaven is what is important.

Leaven was not yeast. Rather, it was a sour dough. When something was needed to lighten the bread, some juices were added to a piece of old dough to activate it, and the piece was placed in the new lump of dough.

In Scripture leaven is usually a type or symbol of the corrupting power of evil. But such is not the case here. Here leaven is used in a good sense to signify the principles of the kingdom of God residing in the Church and therefore affecting society in a positive way.

In this parable Jesus defined the kingdom of God in this present age as spiritual. It is the moral rule of God in the hearts and lives of believers living in a society that is spiritually dead.

The kingdom is not a product of society, but was introduced into society from Heaven. It came in quietly, almost unobserved. It went largely unnoticed by the kingdoms of this world. Jesus said, "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: neither shall they say, Lo here! or lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you" (Luke 17:20,21).

He also said, My kingdom is not of this world" (John 18:36). It penetrates not by force but by influence. It is not a corporation on the stock exchange, or an organization to be joined, or a system to be promoted.

Jesus was not a noisy revolutionary. "He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets" (Matthew 12:19). But His power liberated the woman bowed down with a spirit of infirmity, silenced His enemies, and filled the people with joy. Thus the stage was set for Him to repeat the parable (Luke 13:20,21).

The parable of the leaven emphasizes the quiet, steady influence of the kingdom and its message. In this showy, promotional, media-conscious time we need to be reminded that the primary mode for the dissemination of the faith is personal influence. We need public proclamation, of course, but truth diffuses mainly through relationships. Life touches life, and each life that is changed changes society by that much. When enough lives are changed, the cultural structures themselves are bound to change.

Now Jesus did not teach that the whole world will be saved. Neither did He teach that sinners will improve. In fact, sinners will get worse and worse (2 Timothy 3:13).

What the Lord taught is that the principles of the kingdom will permeate society, leavening it, lightening up the intolerable weight of its selfishness.

"Opiate of the people"? Not the kingdom of God! Its spiritual and moral ferment disturbs the "lump." The principles of the kingdom active in believers who are present in any social system will force that system to react. It was so in the life and ministry of Jesus. It was so in the early days of Christianity. It is so today.

Listen to this--"These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city" (Acts 16:20). "These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also" (Acts 17:6).

Wherever Christian principles influence public thinking, there the kingdom is having an effect. Wherever these principles bring about a modification of public opinion, customs and laws, there it is leavening the lump.

The influence of the leaven is in the lump, not on it. The kingdom grows by influence, not by force. The positive moral ferment produced within society by the kingdom comes from the dynamic of changed hearts and lives. We leaven the world by being in the world. There is no monastic isolationism in the Great Commission!

But though we are in the world, we are not of the world. Jesus prayed, "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil" (John 17:15). The leaven influences the lump, not the other way around. If the principles of the kingdom are alive and active in us, we will affect our world, but the world will not corrupt us.

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4).

If the world is corrupting you and squeezing you into its mold, if you are compromising and going along with the crowd, if your life does not have a spiritual impact on those around you, the principles of the kingdom are not alive in you. You need to submit to the King and let Him bring His kingdom into you.

God has not called us to be an ingrown sub-culture, but an effective counter-culture. As the principles of the kingdom work in us, we will affect our social environment. Our lives will confront it and overcome it. We will disturb it, challenge it, force it to react, modify it, bring life to it, and neutralize some of its corrupting influence.

It is bound to happen. "For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power" (1 Corinthians 4:20).

So each of us who profess to be Christians must ask ourselves, "What is my influence on others? Is the kingdom of God in me? Does it go wherever I go? Is my life leavening my world---my home, place of business or employment, school, community? Am I willing for God to put me in a position where I can make a difference? Do people know what I stand for, and does that have an impact on them?"

Yes, this gospel shall be preached in all the world, including our own personal world.

"But why do I have to be around so many ungodly people?" you ask. Because you are their light and their salt. You bring the kingdom of God to them. You are the leaven in that place. Your life and witness, your faith and victory, bring the principles and power of the kingdom of God into that "lump."

Liven it up! "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost" (Romans 14:17). Because you are there, the kingdom is there. Let that make a difference. Let them see things in you that are not of this world--righteousness, peace and joy!

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8. The Joy Of Discovery

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