God’s kingdom is like growing up with Jesus

Every day we’re asking four questions about part of the Bible. Today Bern Leckie answers:

What did I like about today’s passage?

Have you ever noticed that only someone who really understands how something works can explain it to an eight-year-old? I think that’s about how old I was when I first remember Jesus’ pictures of the kingdom of God starting to make sense.

I would not now say that I was fully a Christian at that point. I happily accepted the label “Christian”, I went to church, believed in God and generally trusted teachers. What else is there to being Christian? I think I was “ever hearing but never understanding.” Looking back, I must have heard the gospel dozens or hundreds of times. I thought it made sense, but it did not define me until I was ready to hand authority over my life from myself to Jesus.

When I did that, in my mid-teens, I remember developing a sudden appetite for Jesus’ words and pictures. I still love how many of them are about food. You may have noticed that I like food. I am very glad that Jesus can speak to me about the workings of heaven through pictures of stuff that grows and tastes good, among other things.

Religion can appear to be a man-made, elaborately constructed thing. But God’s kingdom as Jesus describes it is organic, full of life and naturally growing. It’s the same with our faith. I’m happy to accept that I was always a child of God, ready to accept Jesus’ authority at a point in my personal growth that God knew and prepared me for, like others in this story.

Like Peter, I would love to follow Jesus on the water, but my stretches of faith can feel like they end with a splash. Thankfully, I don’t think Matthew tells that story to embarrass Peter or tell us that his faith journey ended with failure. It’s quite the reverse. Jesus was right – small things like our beginnings of faith grow when we are in the right place, with Jesus.

What did it show me about Father God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit?

God’s work with people is more like farming than simply teaching. He knows that we can grow, just as his kingdom grows from small beginnings to into something which can support communities. God chooses to change the world through faltering people like Peter and us.

What am I going to do differently as a result?

I want to get better at encouraging other people whose faith may feel small and weak to them but has the potential to grow strong in the presence of Jesus and the willingness to exercise it. I feel that there might be opportunities to do this within my family or school community. Many have different faiths or sources of hope, so Jesus is not always well understood or welcomed, but I want to live in faith that his love will grow on them.

Who am I going to share this with?

I need to pray and look out to find good opportunities to do this.