Keep Sowing

When timing seems off or results seem impossible, just keep going.

Jesus keeps returning to images of growth and cultivation where seeds are scattered and fields develop quietly. Life emerges without much fanfare or control. In these parables, the work of the kingdom is not immediate. It unfolds over time, often unseen. The farmer sows and then waits. Growth happens beyond our management of it all. The point seems to be not mastery or perfection, but ongoing faithfulness and effort toward faithfulness. We see farmers who just continue to sow even when results are not yet visible. Or…even when we know the results may not yield plants for every seed thrown.

The parable of the mustard seed presses the point further. What begins as something small and unimpressive becomes a place of shelter and life. Not overnight, of course. But in due time. God is in no hurry. Jesus is reminding his listeners that God’s work does not depend on scale, strength, or certainty. The kingdom grows in ways that don’t exactly match our expectations and timelines. Development and cultivation allowed to grow not dependent on time, but kind of in its absence - this is the mark of God’s reign.

In James, we see a tension this may create for us. He is clear - as Jesus was - that the law matters. The Law names what is good and exposes what is harmful. But James refuses to let judgment have the final word. Mercy triumphs over judgment. In other words, the goal of God’s law is not condemnation, but restoration. If judgment becomes the end rather than the means, growth stops. Let those with ears hear.

These passages invite a posture of perseverance shaped by mercy. Is this a word for this moment? It’s a word for every moment.

We keep sowing not because we can control the outcome, but because we trust what God is working. We practice mercy not as an exception to righteousness, but as its fulfillment. The work before us is to remain faithful to the slow, patient labor of goodness, trusting that God is bringing life where we cannot yet see it. Actually, it’s not slow. That is a qualitative or subjective determination. We make something slow by our perspective or mindset.

It’s not slow. It’s God’s timing. Keep sowing.

Mark 4:26-34

Then Jesus said, “This is what God’s kingdom is like. It’s as though someone scatters seed on the ground, then sleeps and wakes night and day. The seed sprouts and grows, but the farmer doesn’t know how. The earth produces crops all by itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full head of grain. Whenever the crop is ready, the farmer goes out to cut the grain because it’s harvesttime.”

He continued, “What’s a good image for God’s kingdom? What parable can I use to explain it? Consider a mustard seed. When scattered on the ground, it’s the smallest of all the seeds on the earth; but when it’s planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all vegetable plants. It produces such large branches that the birds in the sky are able to nest in its shade.”

With many such parables he continued to give them the word, as much as they were able to hear. He spoke to them only in parables, then explained everything to his disciples when he was alone with them.

James 2:10-13

Anyone who tries to keep all of the Law but fails at one point is guilty of failing to keep all of it. The one who said, Don’t commit adultery, also said, Don’t commit murder. So if you don’t commit adultery but do commit murder, you are a lawbreaker. In every way, then, speak and act as people who will be judged by the law of freedom. There will be no mercy in judgment for anyone who hasn’t shown mercy. Mercy overrules judgment.

Prayer

God,

Cultivate in me a patience for your work. It’s hard. I want to put out all the fires, to pull up all the weeds. But I’m seeing that my effort to do so distracts me from planting seeds.

So make me a sower.

I see your loving justice in Jesus of Nazareth. Make me more like him.

By your Spirit & in Christ,
Amen.