And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!” And the Lord said, “If you have faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea’; and it would obey you.
Luke 17:5-6
Introduction
Something that struck me about this passage is that it begins very similarly to Matthew 17:20 by comparing faith to a mustard seed, while differing in the result. In Matthew, Jesus had just descended the mount of transfiguration when He was asked to cast a demon out of a boy whom His disciples were unable to help. The Lord sent the demon away, prompting these disciples to ask why they were unable, to which Jesus replied, “if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move.” (Matthew 17:20)
Here there is a specific mountain in view, and it is in response to their inability to drive out a demon. But in Luke, Jesus’ comparison of faith to a mustard seed comes with a command to a tree in light of His disciples’ unwillingness to forgive.
The mulberry tree
While the driving out of demons is dramatic, Jesus came to deliver His people from the bondage of sin through forgiveness (John 3:17). His work on the cross is what secures forgiveness for all who believe, and His call to those who believe is to forgive others. We see this in the preceding passage. To forgive a transgression against you requires you to forgo some debt owed to you. It is a root for you to draw out and discard; a loan without repayment.
The small amount of faith Jesus references here is enough to draw an entire mulberry/sycamore tree (the same tree Zaccheus climbs) out by its roots, and to plant itself in the hostile saline environment of the sea. This particular type of tree is native to the arid regions of the Levant, and so it has extensive deep and sprawling root systems. Hostility and bitterness is like this, driving deep into our souls where it draws our attention and adoration. When we are wronged, we long for recompense so much we end up treating it like the idol it is.
Be drawn up
But faith is what heals us, and we are able to love because God first loved us (1 John 4:19). When the Spirit awakens the heart of a believer unto faith (1 Corinthians 2:14), He allows us to be pleasing to God through faith (Hebrews 11:6), and to truly forgive others the way He has forgiven us. In this way the mulberry tree is drawn up out of our hearts and planted in the sea where it dies from lack of nutrition. True forgiveness is only possible through faith, and our ability to forgive derives from His gracious gift on Calvary. Practice this base level of Christian charity in every infraction and you will do well.
May the Lord bless you and conform you into the image of His Son.
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