In The Shade

 

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK

IN THE SHADE

Mark 4:30-32

30 Again he said, "What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? 31 It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. 32 Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade." 

NIV

Is Jesus really asking them to describe what the kingdom of God is like? Is he asking them to come up with a parable to describe the kingdom, or was he just asking a rhetorical question with the intent of answering it? Well, we do know that he did answer his own question and he used the mustard seed as an example. We are very familiar with this parable and its application is pretty straight forward. It does not matter how small we start out in our walk with the Lord. When we first were saved, we may have simply sat and soaked in the pew for some time. We also may have spent many hours just reading the Bible learning all the stories of the Old Testament. If some were like me, and never opened the Bible prior to accepting Jesus, the words brought forth revelation after revelation about the faith, struggles, and victories of many of the men of Old Testament times. There was more than enough to identify with and to learn from. Then when we read through the New Testament our eyes were opened to a host of truths we have never before even thought were possible. The fact is that although our faith, our trust in the Lord started out in a small way, it grew and grew faster and faster and our faith became so great that we could not help but offer the shade of Christ to those birds flitting around our branches. Yes, that would make us like the kingdom of God, but then we are members, citizens of this kingdom, and living stones being built into the temple of God. So in some sense, we are or we represent the kingdom of God here in this time on the earth. We always sing those songs like, “I want to be like Him, all I want is to be like Jesus” or we profess that we are Christian, taking on the name of Christ, a Christ-ian, one who is a follower of Christ. Yet as the kingdom of God or at least the representative of his kingdom we all are hidden under the shadow of his wing.

Ps 91:1-2

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust."

NIV

The other application for us in a personal way is that we are resting in the shadow of the Almighty and the heat, the wind, the storms that prevail all around have no effect on us for we are in the shade of the Almighty and His kingdom.