Jesus is the Master Teacher. In His earthly ministry He used things that an agrarian society readily understood as he taught in parables. On one occasion He said, “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.”[1] So, why did He draw upon a mustard seed to teach us? Let’s explore.
First, the mustard that the Lord is referring to is likely the black mustard plant. It can grow in the harshest desert regions in the Middle East with less than 8 inches of annual rainfall and prolifically. I took the picture above to show you the environment where we found a number of mustard trees, then, I will turn the camera to show you the trees.
Dr. D. Kelly Ogden was accompanying us as he showed us the trees. They generally grow to be about 9 or 10 feet tall, very large for an herb, especially from such a tiny seed. Heber C. Kimball talked about the nature of the mustard in the desert west, when they had moved into the Valley of Great Salt Lake. “[This work] will spread and increase from this time on, and this work is bound to increase and spread abroad, and all hell cannot pull it down…Why, bless you, it is like the mustard seed: you know it is most troublesome to get out of the garden. You get vexed with it and go and kick it about, and by that means you make ten thousand more little mustard trees. Well, you know they drove us far away into these mountains; and now see the multitude of little mustard trees that are growing up!”[2]
As our colleague, Isaac Calvert, was also picking the mustard pods off the tree, we were all fascinated to see what we could learn from this. We had seen the necklaces throughout Israel with the little glass vial and a mustard seed inside, but at this point we had not seen where those mustard seeds came from. Dr. Ogden took some of the pods and crushed them into his hand to show us the size of the mustard seeds.
Literally thousands of seeds emerged from the pods he crushed. It was fascinating. I will zoom in so that you can see even closer what we were seeing that day.
Joseph Smith taught, “This figure [the mustard seed] is given to represent the Church as it shall come forth in the last days…Let us take the Book of Mormon … let us behold it coming forth out of the ground, which is indeed accounted the least of all seeds, but behold it branching forth, yea, even towering with lofty branches and God-like majesty, until it, like the mustard seed, becomes the greatest of all herbs. And it is truth, … and God is sending down His powers, gifts, and angels to lodge in the branches thereof.”[3]
Later on, the Lord went further to say that if we as individuals can “have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”[4]
The Lord invites us to take that seed of faith, even that tiny seed of faith, put our trust in Him and let that faith grow. “The Lord understands our mortal weakness. We all falter at times. But He also knows of our great potential,” President Russell M. Nelson taught. “The mustard seed starts small but grows into a tree large enough for birds to nest in its branches. The mustard seed represents a small but growing faith. The Lord does not require perfect faith for us to have access to His perfect power. But He does ask us to believe.
“Start today to increase your faith. Through your faith, Jesus Christ will increase your ability to move the mountains in your life, even though your personal challenges may loom as large as Mount Everest.”[5]
Now you can picture this.
Notes:
[1] Matthew 13:31-32.
[2] Journal of Discourses, Remarks by President Heber C. Kimball, Delivered in the Bowery, Great Salt Lake City, Afternoon, July 5, 1857.
[3] The Prophet Joseph Smith, Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith (2007), 301.
[4] Matthew 17:20.
[5] Nelson, Russell M., Christ is Risen; Faith in Him will Move Mountains, April 2021 General Conference.
HelenCJuly 29, 2024
I think I keep weeding my mustard seeds! My big struggle is letting God do His Part while I patiently do mine.