Story of the Mustard Seed and the Yeast WELCOME back to our amazing series on the wonderful Parables= of Jesus. Today, we’ll spotlight two of them—about the Seed and the Yeast. Both of them have one message: God likes small. He likes big too. He’s a big God. And He built a big universe. But our problem is we tend to over- like big. And we downplay small. Which is a big mistake. This is God’s powerful word for you. Let me begin with a story. In Cubao, Quezon City, there are a few department stores scattered in Metro Manila. But the first-ever “supermall” that was built was SM City North... Man, it was mind-blowing. My first thought: Was I still in the Philippines? Do you know that to this day, SM City North is the biggest mall in the country? (Trivia: Second is Megamall and Third is Mall of Asia.) SM City North has half-a-million square meters. That means the mall is as big as Vatican City. SM City North has 1,100+ stores, 5,000+ parking slots, and before the spread of the Coronavirus Disease started in 2019 (COVID-19) half-a-million persons walked through its doors every single day. If you’re asking, “Where did this massive complex of buildings come from?” The answer is riveting: Everything started with one idea. One day, a guy by the name of Henry Sy, a 12-year-old kid from Xiamen, landed in Manila. Years later, his family returned to China, but he stayed on. In 1958, he had this idea—to start a shoe store called “Shoe Mart” in Quiapo, Manila. Fast forward today. SM has 75 malls in the country, plus 8 in China. They also own the biggest bank in the Philippines. Small is big. That house you’re in started very small. It started with an idea. A thought. A design. Later on, an engineering blueprint. That phone or laptop you’re using to listen to this talk started with an idea. Someone dreamt of that machine. Every book that has been written, every song that has been sung, every organisation that has been built started with an idea. Which reminds me of what Paul said, “...we take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV) And would you believe? Even the Kingdom of God started in the same way... One Idea Starts a Movement Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” (Matthew 13:31-32 NLT) Here’s a photo of a mustard seed. Pretty small, right? Here’s what happens if you plant the seed and allow it to grow. Before we continue reading, declare this: “I’m God’s mustard seed.” Jesus adds a bonus parable that has the same message: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that

The Story of the Treasure and the Pearl WELCOME to our great “mining expedition” into the Gospel of Matthew. Today, I want to preach the simple message, “I found something more valuable.” Declare this powerful line. Truth: Every decision boils down to value. Why do you spend on a family trip instead of a designer bag? Because you value your relationships. Why do you walk around the village instead of binge-watch Netflix? Because you value your health. Whenever you can’t make a decision, it simply means you don’t know what is important to you. You haven’t found what is more valuable. The two short parables today are about making such value judgements. Jesus said, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that a man discovered hidden in a field. In his excitement, he hid it again and sold everything he owned to get enough money to buy the field. 45 Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. 46 When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!” (Matthew 13:44-46 NLT) Welcome to Talk 3 of our series OG Tales, Story of the Treasure and the Pearl. In Talk 1, we mentioned that the Jesus parables are not like Aesop’s fables. They’re not just simple stories with a nice lesson, like “Be good” or “Respect the Elderly” or “Cleanliness is next to Godliness”. Honestly, that’s how most people read the Bible. Most see the Bible as children's stories. But may I invite you to graduate and go deeper? To read the Bible in context. To use the eyeglasses of the original Biblical authors. Let me repeat what we said two weeks ago: Aesop’s Fables will tell you to be good, but the Parables will tell you to follow Jesus—and He will be the One to make you radically good. The Star of The Story Is... Friend, if you read the parables in context, you’ll realize the parables are all about Jesus. Let me give you one example. Whenever people read the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37), the take-home message is, “Be kind to the Suffering.” And that’s absolutely right. But what was the context? When did Jesus say this parable? The Pharisees were asking Jesus why He was hanging out with tax collectors and drunkards and prostitutes. So, Jesus told them this parable. Point: Jesus is the Good Samaritan. And that the tax collectors and sinners were the wounded person on the road. It’s the same with the two parables we’re unpacking today. They’re all about Jesus. Jesus is the Hidden Treasure. And Jesus is the Pearl of the Great Price. I have one penetrating question for you: Are you willing to give up anything for Jesus? If you can’t answer that question with a resounding yes, that’s fine. Confession: There were many times in my life when I couldn’t either. I had so many attachments I couldn’t let go.

Story of the Weeds and Wheat WOULD you believe? We’ve been mining the Gospel of Matthew for one year and two months now. And to think that we’re still in the 13th chapter-- 15 more beautiful chapters to go. Oh, what great spiritual gold have we unearthed! By the way, we call our series OG Tales because we’re going back to the original tales of Jesus—the parables. And the parable we’re about to unpack today is one of the most profound parables of Jesus. Warning: You’re going to ride a submarine today. We’re going to dive deep into the depths. Hang on! Rule: Always Read In-Context Today, I’d like to preach the message: There are situations that we want to handle, but we shouldn’t because we’re trespassing God’s responsibilities. And we must learn to let God handle them. Jesus begins the parable in this way: The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. (Matthew 13:24 NLT) Who is this farmer? To answer this question, we must read the Bible in context. Based on the storyline of Matthew, this parable is about Jesus who was sowing good seeds-- by befriending sinners, touching lepers, healing the sick, and feeding the hungry. Today, as we speak, I believe the same Jesus is planting good seeds in your life. Right now. He is befriending you, touching you, healing you, feeding you. Jesus is loving you. Receive Him! But as real as Jesus is in your life, the presence of evil is real too. Which is our first of five powerful lessons. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. 26 When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. 27 The farmer’s workers went to him and said, "Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’" 28 "An enemy has done this!" the farmer exclaimed. (v.25-28) Who is the enemy? Once again, go back to the context. What was happening during that time? Even with all the good work that Jesus was doing, the Pharisees wanted to kill Jesus. Isn’t that evil? Friend, look around you. There are people who do really bad things. Think of how tyrants oppress the poor. Or despots who massacre millions. Or drug lords and human traffickers and corrupt politicians. Sometimes, the badness is soooo bad, something tells you it’s not just human anymore. There’s an evil force at work. We cannot help saying either, “An enemy has done this!” Note: There are hyper-spiritual people who see the Devil behind every street corner. I’m not that kind of a person. I’m at the opposite end of the spectrum. I’m such a skeptic. But even if I’m very cautious towards these matters, I still believe the enemy is real. War is evil. Corruption is evil. Poverty is evil. When we forget the suffering of others, that

Story of The Sower WELCOME to Feast at Home! I pray that the Holy Spirit will use our time together to speak a powerful word into your life. Today is the day we start a new series called OG Tales. The acronym OG is slang for Old Gangster or Old School. It refers to somebody incredibly, exceptionally authentic, so in a sense we’re using OG to mean Original Tales. I believe God has two powerful messages for you today. Here’s the first one: “God will meet you where you are.” Perhaps you’re hurting right now because someone has betrayed you and you’re listening to me with a broken heart. Or perhaps you’re feeling down because your business is not earning or your finances are not picking up or your savings are being depleted and you’re confused whether you should continue or shift to another business. Or perhaps your family members are not in speaking terms. And there’s so much heavy emotional baggage in your relationships. Or perhaps you are sick and you’re in need of healing. Or perhaps you’ve fallen. You’ve sinned. Again. And you want to stand up but you feel so frustrated with yourself. Wherever you are right now, whatever storm you’re facing, whatever burdens you carry, believe that God is not sitting on the throne, waiting for you to come up to Him. Instead, He is going to you. He is visiting your place of need. God will meet you where you are. This is the message of the Parables-- which is what our new series is all about (more on this later). And this is the core message of the Parable we’re going to talk about today—The Story of The Sower. You Don’t Go to God,God Goes to You! Matthew says, “Later that same day Jesus left the house and sat beside the lake. 2A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat. Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore. (Matthew 13:1-2 NLT) This set-up was normal in ancient times. They had no microphones and loudspeakers then, so speaking from a boat on a lake facing a hillside provided great acoustics. But in saying this, Matthew was also establishing here that at this point in the story, Jesus could no longer preach in the synagogues. Religious leaders wanted him dead. So, He preaches by the lakeside and roadside and hillside to people who—like Him—were not welcome in church: the lepers, the poor, the sinners... So, as early as this time, Jesus was already challenging the tradition or notion that church can be done only in the temple. He was showing that church can be done outside. Just like our Feast Light for our jeepney drivers. Up to now, they still meet to do fellowship, to hear the Word of the Lord on an open street in Makati during the Coronavirus Pandemic. I repeat: God will meet you where you are! God is