And again He said, ‘To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.’ -Luke 13. Jesus speaks of the Kingdom of God in this parable. Ladies made bread for their families at this time in history, and they used a little bit of yeast. They even ground their own wheat. https://jewishmag.com/53mag/breadmills/breadmills.htm
The women would take their flour and mix in oil, salt, sometimes honey, and a little bit of yeast (leaven). To make the dough rise, you need yeast. Without it, you get flat, dense bread. The Kingdom of God is to permeate everything as we spread the good news, just like that little bit of yeast works its way through the dough.
TINY but Mighty with the Lord
A one pound loaf of bread needs a little bit of yeast, only a ¼ ounce. That’s not a lot of yeast, but when made properly, you get a beautiful loaf of bread. This should be encouraging to us, we may seem small, but as we spread the good news of Jesus, we can see great things come about.
I love to make homemade bread. It smells so good when it is rising and after it comes out of the oven, that golden crisp smell, is something wonderful. In the same way that’s what I can do as part of God’s Kingdom, I can help share a little bit of God’s goodness to this world and hopefully make something beautiful out of someone else’s life.
Are you faithful to the Lord, loving your husband & your kids, do you speak the truth in love, and help others? This way, others will “see” your good works and possibly get interested in becoming a follower of Jesus? Or are you giving off a stinky rotten vibe, that no one wants to be around?
Influence, influence, influence
Remember, we are to influence those we encounter. For example, even if a little bit of yeast is in a recipe, it will influence everything it touches. This should be true of us. The people we are around, should be affected by us as we live our lives for the glory of God.
Think about this lady in the parable and how she “hid” the little bit of yeast in the flour. We don’t have to be loud and showy as we “hide” God’s truth in others lives. To summarize, make a difference today, and hide some of God’s goodness in someone’s life, so maybe they will smell and taste the wonderfulness of God and want to be a part of the Kingdom.
This is a wonderful message to teach children. They are little but they are like yeast to the Lord. Their good acts will cause the kingdom of God to grow and make more yeast for the spreading of the GOOD NEWS.
I try to do similar in the cards and goodies that I send to others. Many times the recipients will say that I’m generous and I tell them that God was working through me to do something special for them. We all have to figure out a way that we can encourage others to want to join in our family of Christians. I love this example and it makes me want to make this bread so much! Thank you, Lisa for another beautiful Story.
I really appreciate this reminder about bread and leaven. I need to be mindful of this every day. Thank you.