Lutherville, Maryland 21093
Rev. Earl E. Mason
Office (410) 825-4840 Parsonage (410) 825-4718
E-mail pastor@stjohns-lutherville.org
|
Lutherville, Maryland 21093
Rev. Earl E. Mason |
|
|
Worship
St. John's offers you and your family your choice of traditional or contemporary worship services. Both are offered weekly. Church school is taught with each service and nursery is available for small children.
Sunday Worship 10:30 a.m. Sermon -- The Mustard Seed
Matthew 17:20b: "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as
a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there'
and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."
The other day I found myself contemplating the mustard seed. It is so
small that it is difficult to see, and yet it grows to a shrub that is
sometimes 14 feet high. And inside that little seed is the genetic code
for a huge bush which the scripture says is large enough for birds to
make their nest in it.
And then I considered: when we're conceived, we are even smaller than
that mustard seed. Inside that new being is the genetic code for all of
what you become. Nothing new is added as you move through life, only the
things universal to human beings: You have to have nourishment. You have
to have shelter. You have to have oxygen. These are provided in the mother's
womb, and hopefully secured throughout life, for without them you die.
Nothing new is added to your genetic code. Whether your hair is going
to turn gray or whether it is going to fall out is all in that one-celled
person. It's there! We have been intricately and marvelously made, and
it is the work of God.
My second thought, as I considered the mustard seed, had to do with
faith. In Matthew, Jesus challenges his followers to have faith like a
grain of mustard seed. Last week I talked about the power of the Holy
Spirit. This week, I ask you to consider how we might use the power of
the Holy Spirit to take that grain of mustard seed and spread it around,
share it, make it grow.
Within you is the mustard seed. It grows. It becomes the bush that houses
birds. But there is still another step. Unless the mustard seed reproduces,
it becomes extinct.
So it is with our faith. Faith starts small and it grows just like this
mustard seed and grows into something which is even larger than us. It
becomes a journey - a walk toward holiness to the place where our faith
grows just like the mustard seed. And while we embrace this journey, we
can share the words and lessons of scripture with others who are seeking.
Through the Holy Spirit, God works through His words and through us, and
others come to know about our Lord. And like the birds seeking shelter,
others will come to know that they may find shelter here when their faith
is weak. When they have no strength of their own, they will know that
we can provide a place to give them rest.
So let's send out our seeds of faith. Perhaps a simple invitation for
someone to join us at church. Perhaps more. But remember, the mustard
seed puts out lots of seeds, but they don't all grow. So keep in mind,
all the invitations we send out aren't going to bear fruit. However, for
us to fully receive the completion of our faith, our growth of faith,
we need to reach out and share it with others!
And finally, the last thing I think of when I contemplate the mustard
seed is probably the most important to me. It is certainly the most comforting
and helpful in times of trouble.
God cares so much for that mustard seed that he gives it everything
it needs, provides a place for it to grow, and uses it to care for other
creatures. Isn't it marvelous how God works? If God cares that much for
a mustard seed, how much more will he care for you, his children.
Now God can't shelter us from all harm. As parents, we would like to
be able to do that for our children, but it is not always possible. So
it is for God. But God cares for you. God loves you. God wants to surround
you with that love. And He will. Know that when things are difficult,
God is there. God will never abandon or forsake you. God really loves
you, for you are not just a mustard seed, you are children of God.
O, Lord, sometimes when we are blown around like dust by all the things
that seem to be controlling our time and our lives, help us remember that
you are still in control, that you are still God. Especially help us remember
that you are there as a loving, caring parent who will be with us in all
adversity, in joy and in sorrow. We rejoice in your presence. In the name
of Christ. Amen.
|
Matthew 13:31-32: He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven
is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though
it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest
of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come
and perch in its branches."
Prayer: