When Jesus came preaching and teaching, healing and performing all sorts of miracles, he made it known: “The kingdom of God is at hand!” And it was. Through his miracles, wonders, and works, he was giving people a glimpse of the rolled-back curse, a taste of the eternal kingdom that is surely to come. He was coming after the kingdom of darkness and exerting his rule over it. Through his preaching and teaching, he opened the eyes of people’s hearts to know the hope of their calling, their glorious share in the inheritance with Jesus and all the saints, and the great power of God who raised Jesus from the dead. God was indeed on the scene, and he was on the move.
Jesus wants us to understand more fully and more deeply what the kingdom of God is, how it works, and what it accomplishes. That’s he moved his Spirit to inspire Mark to record these parables that Jesus told. Yes, these parables in Mark 4 are meant to help us understand the kingdom of God, how it works, what it does, and even how we ought to respond to its coming. It’s an important chapter. It’s one of the few places in the gospel of Mark where he records the teachings of Christ.
We’re wrapping up this part of the book of Mark this week, and with Jesus as our teacher, we will ask the question: “What shall we say that the kingdom of God is like? What parable shall we use to describe it?” We’ll be considering Mark 4:30-34.