Optimistic And Opportunistic

The most compelling and powerful message on the planet is Jesus’ Gospel of the Kingdom!  


The Progress in Numbers

According to recent missions research from the World Christian Encyclopedia, here are a few Christian growth statistics through the year AD 2000.  Consider it an update on Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed.  

The world population was 6.1 billion, with 650 million evangelicals.  The percent of believers in the world from the time of Jesus Christ grew to 2.5% by the year 1900.  Then, it doubled to 5% by the year 1970; and by the year 2000 it reached 11%, although unevenly distributed.

The annual population growth rate was 1.5% and the annual conversation growth rate for evangelicals was 0.4%.  This conversion growth rate was the highest among all religions, five times the conversion rate of Islam, while all other religions posted insignificant or even negative conversion growth rates.

Today, roughly 14,000 of 24,000 people groups have been reached with the Gospel.  It is conceivable to finish the 10,000 more groups in the not too distant future.  It is doable.  It is being done.  Today 99% of the world’s population currently lives in areas specifically targeted for church planting.

Jesus Predicts with a Parable

Luke 13:18–19 ESV ““What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his garden, and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.””

The mustard seed was a proverbial way of referencing something extremely small.  And the unique feature of this seed is that as a garden plant it becomes a “giant” 8-12 foot tall bush.
  One might even call it a “tree,” since birds can nest in it, and it grows far beyond all seeming expectations.  The power of the tiny seed is seen eventually in the growth of the tree.  It becomes large enough for birds to nest in its strong branches.

We learn a few things about the Kingdom of God from this image.  It will grow powerfully after Jesus’ death and resurrection (John 12:23-24).  The Kingdom will include many from among the Gentiles, as the birds possibly suggest.  And it will be a place of protection, rest, and shade for its members, both now and forever.

This is a somewhat surprising image, being that the strong and stately cedar tree is more often used for the Kingdom.  Perhaps this is to further teach that it will not come all at once, but will grow over time.  This parable is given for the purpose of explaining the small beginning of Kingdom yet its great ending.  

The common expectation was for a glorious cataclysmic appearance of the Kingdom, not the more subdued inauguration that Jesus the Messiah actually brought.  The point of the parable then is that the Kingdom of God may look small and insignificant and ineffective at the time of Jesus.  But, it will eventually become universal under the Davidic Messiah, Jesus, just as predicted, and now alluded to, in Ezekiel 17:22-24.

The Tree Keeps on Growing

We should be optimistic about these words of Jesus, because they have come true, and are coming true as we live and serve the Gospel.  Jesus is motivating us with this parable that the Kingdom has come, is growing, and soon will overtake the world at His Return!

When we proclaim the Gospel the mustard tree sprouts new buds, shoots out new branches, and strengthens its trunk.  When God saves sinners it is more birds coming to rest in the branches of Kingdom blessings.  

The Kingdom of God is not small any longer.  Now it is huge, reaching to the farthest people groups of the earth!  The Kingdom of God is not weak either.  It is taking over the world!  Our role as the Church and as each church is to be optimistic and opportunistic with Jesus’ Gospel of the Kingdom.