Leaven

Introducing the Parable of the Leaven

We are currently speaking about the parables of Jesus. About three weeks ago, Nolan and I shared about the purpose of parables. Two weeks ago, Alf talked about the seed. Last week we broke and had a special Mother’s Day about the women’s role in the river. But today we’re continuing on with our parables series, and the parable for this week that we’re going to talk about is the parable of the leaven.

Jesus spent a huge portion of his ministry teaching through parables. Almost everywhere he went he told stories that revealed deeper truths. And one thing you begin noticing quickly is that many of those parables begin with the same phrase: “The kingdom of heaven is like.” Why did Jesus speak this way? Because he was not simply trying to give people religious information. He was revealing what life with the Father actually looked like. He was helping people understand the kingdom of God.

This matters because when we understand the kingdom, we begin to understand the Father’s heart and his nature and his ways and how we are meant to live as his sons and daughters. The kingdom is not simply a place that we go someday eventually down the line. It is the culture, the nature, and the rule of heaven expressed on earth here now.

In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says, “Seek first the kingdom of God.” He’s actually talking about not worrying – don’t worry about all these things. And then he says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you.” But there’s a reason why we are supposed to seek the kingdom of God above all else. Because whatever kingdom influences us the most will shape the way that we think, we live, we love, we respond, and we see ourselves.

Now, every kingdom has a set of guidelines or characteristics that define it. There’s usually a culture within a kingdom – values, priorities, ways of thinking, a certain ruler. The kingdom of this world, the one that we currently live in, teaches us that we should strive for our worth, that we need to protect ourselves, that we need to prove ourselves, that we need to compete, that we need to be scared of not having enough, that we need to fear lack, that we need to pursue status, and that we need to seek control.

But Jesus came revealing a completely different kingdom. It’s a kingdom led by a perfect, loving Father. And in this kingdom, love is greater than fear, humility is greater than pride, serving is greater than controlling, identity is greater than performance, and relationship is so much greater than religion. This is why the parables matter – they’re not just random moral stories. They’re windows into the heart of the Father, and invitations for us into another way of living.

In this short parable we’re going to talk about today, Jesus reveals something powerful about how the Father’s kingdom works in us. It’s not loud. It’s not forceful. It’s not through pressure. It’s quiet, and it’s deep, and it’s transformative. It happens from the inside out.

Matthew 13:33 and What Leaven Is

Let’s turn to Matthew 13:33. That’s what this whole message is about today. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.” That’s it. This is the scripture we are talking about today.

Do you guys know what leaven is? How many hands up – how many know what leaven is? Okay, there’s a number of you.

Demonstrating with a Sourdough Starter

I actually brought some leaven today. This is a sourdough starter. It is flour and water – that’s it. That’s how it started. Flour and water, and I allowed it to sit. I allowed it to ferment. It collected bacteria and yeast from the air – good bacteria, good yeast from the air. And as it consumes the flour, it creates gas, which allows the dough to rise and become light and airy and puffy. There’s a whole science to it – I’m really all about mixing it all together and just trusting that it works.

This morning I fed it, and it came up to the elastic line. You can see it hasn’t risen very much, but it will. I made this in preparation for making bread tomorrow, and tomorrow this is going to be all the way up to the top. But it happens slowly. And even after this rises, I’m going to have to mix it in with some flour and water and salt, and it’s going to take a number of hours until the bread is actually ready. It’s not a quick thing. It happens slowly. It happens quietly. It happens when no one is watching.

A small amount of leaven will permeate, or invade, dough and transform it. Typically in the Bible, leaven is used to reference negative aspects of life – “beware of the leaven of the Sadducees,” beware of people who are complaining and judging, because those kinds of things can grow and multiply inside a group of people. We’re actually warned to beware of the negative aspects of something invading and permeating. But in this scripture, it says the kingdom of heaven is like leaven. That’s interesting. Why does Jesus use it as a positive thing? Well, we are going to take a look at that.

Hidden Formation Over Public Display

Nobody watches dough rise and sees dramatic movement immediately. That process is hidden. It’s gradual. It’s quiet. And yet transformation is happening the entire time. The Father often works this way in our lives. Often we want visible breakthrough right now – God, fix this now, change me instantly, show everyone what you’re doing. And it’s not that he can’t do that. But there is something about hidden formation that the Father values over public demonstration.

David was formed in secret before he became a king. Joseph was formed in hardship, and even prison, before he led a nation. Jesus spent thirty hidden years before three years of public ministry. The Father is not focused on a platform. He wants relationship with you. And sometimes we think nothing is happening because nobody is seeing it. But can I tell you that heaven celebrates the hidden transformations that happen inside your heart? The Father can heal your wounds quietly. He restores identity privately. And he speaks truth into hearts when no one else hears it. That hidden work matters deeply to him. He’s not trying to create performers. He’s not looking for superstars. He’s raising sons and daughters. And a good father cares more about who his kids are becoming than how impressive they appear. Intimacy is built in the hidden places. You guys – never, ever mistake hidden seasons for abandoned seasons. Even when you cannot see it, the Father is still working.

Transformation From the Inside Out

Going back to Matthew 13:33: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.” Leaven changes dough from within. That’s what happens. Jesus could have used many examples for the kingdom, but he intentionally chose something that transforms internally first.

A lot of religion focuses on external behaviors – go and do this, act better, try harder, look more spiritual. But the Father starts with identity. He says, “Maria, you are mine.” He says, “Dave, you are loved.” He says, “Christie, you belong.” He says, “Louise, you are my beloved daughter.” He says, “Christian, you are my favorite son.” Real transformation happens when we encounter the Father’s love deeply enough that our hearts begin changing naturally. Behavior modification can temporarily change your actions, but it’s true love that actually transforms our identity.

This is why Jesus spent so much time restoring people before correcting them. He called Zacchaeus before Zacchaeus changed. He defended the woman caught in adultery before speaking correction to her. He restored Peter after failure and betrayal. God’s love becomes the leaven working inside of us, and over time, as we grow in our identity as his children, fear becomes peace, striving becomes rest, insecurity becomes identity, and shame becomes freedom. The Father’s goal is not polished religion. His goal is transformed children who reflect his nature. And just like the leaven, the Father transforms us from the inside out.

You Can’t Paint Over a Rotten Apple

You can put lipstick on a pig, but it is still a pig, right? You can take a rotten apple and paint it the most gorgeous candy-apple red, but at its core it’s still a rotten apple. And eventually what is inside will show. It will ooze out. The Father doesn’t paint over brokenness. He goes to the heart. He goes to the root, and he heals us from the inside out.

One Life Transformed Is Contagious

All right, let’s go back to Matthew 13:33 again: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.” The leaven mixed into the flour did not stay isolated. It spread until the whole batch was transformed.

Now, this “three measures of flour” – there are some differing opinions, but they estimate it’s between 50 and 60 pounds of flour. This right here is 22 pounds, so we’re talking two to three bags of this. A small amount of leaven mixed into a whole ton of flour changed and transformed the whole thing. And this is the nature of the kingdom of God. When sons and daughters truly encounter the Father’s love, it cannot remain contained. It’s just like if I left this too long, it would bubble over and make a giant mess. But the fact remains that what’s inside will grow out. His love begins affecting our minds and our hearts. It will affect our marriages. It will affect our parenting, our friendships, our workplaces, our church, our community, and the world. One transformed life is contagious. When you have an encounter with the love of God, you are changed.

The Father never intended for us – for his image-bearers, for those who are his sons and daughters – to simply be church attenders. He wants family resemblance. He wants us to resemble him, to look like him, to love like him, to give like him, to serve like him. Children naturally reflect their father and mother, whoever they spent time with. As we spend time with the Father, his nature begins growing in us and flowing through us – his kindness, his gentleness, his peace, his forgiveness, his compassion, all the fruits of the Spirit. The nature of God begins growing inside us, and as it does, the atmosphere around us changes – not through pressure, not through control, not because of forcefulness, but because we are transformed people carrying heaven in us.

Jesus said the leaven eventually affected the whole batch. The kingdom of heaven is working. It is transforming lives. It is permeating the world. We know how this story ends, don’t we? We know who has won. The Father always finishes what he starts. Even if you don’t see it, even if you aren’t aware of it happening right now, it is happening. The Father is at work. Sometimes transformation feels slow, but slow does not mean absent. Do not despise the small beginnings. Do not give up on the hidden growth that is happening in your lives. Do not underestimate what God is doing in you. His leaven, his love, his life is still working. You can count on that.

A Personal Story of Trust

I remember a time a couple of years ago when I was going through some particularly hard times, and I wasn’t sure that things were going to change, or that things were going to work out the way that I hoped they would. I remember the day, standing in my bedroom, where I said, “Father, I don’t know how this is going to work out, but I choose to trust that you are good. I choose to trust that you have my best interests at heart. I choose, even though what I’m seeing does not look like it, to trust that you are working all things in my life for good. I am choosing to trust that my life and everything that I am going through will bring you glory.” Even though what I could see in the natural was not that, I chose in that moment to put my faith and my trust in him, regardless of what happened. And I have to tell you, he worked things out better than I could have ever dreamed or imagined. He is a good God. You can trust him. You can step out and say, “Even though I don’t see it, I’m going to choose to trust him.”

Closing Invitation and Prayer

“The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.” The Father often works inside of us in quiet, hidden ways. He plants his life and his love deep inside our hearts, and patiently transforms us into secure sons and daughters who reflect him to the world.

Maybe today you feel unseen. Maybe you feel like nothing in your life is changing. Maybe the process of transformation in your life feels really slow. The Father has not forgotten you. He has not. His love is transforming you from the inside out. And as his sons and daughters, we become living evidence of his kingdom everywhere we go.

Can I call the prayer team up right now? Can I get you all to stand? If this parable today, if the words that I’ve shared, if the message has hit you in some way – if you feel stuck in a hidden season, if you feel like you’re striving for approval instead of living from sonship or daughtership, if you need a greater revelation of the Father’s love, if you want to say, “I choose to trust that he’s working even though I might not see it” – I’m going to ask you to come up and let our team agree with you and pray for you.

Father, thank you so much for your love. Thank you for speaking to us through your parables. Thank you that we have so much wisdom that we can draw on. Father, if we are ones who feel stuck in hidden places, if we feel abandoned, Father, if we feel alone, if we just don’t see you, Father, would you reveal yourself to us? Would you help us to stand firm on your truths? In Jesus’ name. If that’s you, come on up.