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Results of Preaching—“The Fields . . . Are White for Harvesting”God’s Kingdom Rules!
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11 The parable of the mustard grain. A man plants a mustard grain. It then grows into a tree in which birds find shelter. (Read Matthew 13:31, 32.) What aspects of the growth of the seed are highlighted in this parable? (1) The extent of the growth is amazing. “The tiniest of all the seeds” becomes a tree with “great branches.” (Mark 4:31, 32) (2) Growth is assured. “When [the seed] has been sown, it grows.” Jesus does not say, “It may grow.” No, he states: “It grows.” Its growth is unstoppable. (3) The growing tree attracts visitors and provides lodging. “The birds of heaven come” and “find lodging under its shadow.” How do these three aspects apply to the modern-day spiritual harvest?
12. How does the parable of the mustard grain apply to today’s harvest? (See also the chart “Growing Number of Bible Studies.”)
12 (1) Extent of growth: The parable highlights the growth of the Kingdom message and the Christian congregation. Since 1919, zealous harvest workers have been gathered into the restored Christian congregation. At that time, the number of workers was small, but it grew rapidly. In fact, its growth from the early 1900’s to today has been phenomenal. (Isa. 60:22) (2) Assurance: The growth of the Christian congregation has been unstoppable. No matter how many layers of rocklike opposition God’s enemies placed upon the tiny seed, it kept growing—pushing aside all obstacles. (Isa. 54:17) (3) Lodging: “The birds of heaven” that find lodging in the tree represent many millions of righthearted individuals from some 240 lands who have responded to the Kingdom message by becoming part of the Christian congregation. (Ezek. 17:23) There they receive spiritual food, refreshment, and protection.—Isa. 32:1, 2; 54:13.
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