Kaleo San Diego Church > Sermons > Wheat and Weeds Among Us

Wheat and Weeds Among Us

David Fairchild
Jul 20, 2008
Series: Encountering Jesus

TEXT

Matthew 13:24-30: "He put another parable before them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, "Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?" 28 He said to them, "An enemy has done this." So the servants said to him, "Then do you want us to go and gather them?" 29 But he said, "No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

Matthew 13:36-43: "Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.' 37 He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.'"

INTRODUCTION

The last few weeks we've been looking at the parables of Jesus from the Gospels. The word parabolē means to ‘come along side' or simply to compare one thing to another. Parables are stories and imagery that are earthy and yet are intended to convey a deeper meaning, a meaning that has to be worked out and thought through. They are concrete depictions of profound cosmic truth. This is why we see in the parables of Matthew 13 Jesus beginning by saying ‘The kingdom of heaven is like...' Jesus taught 55 of these stories that we have recorded in the Gospels.

This morning we're going to look at the parable of the wheat and the tares, or you might call it the wheat and the weeds. The parable is found in Matthew 13, verses 24-30, and Jesus' explanation of this parable is found in verses 36-43. It's always good when Jesus gives his own commentary on the passage so that we don't end up with bible codes and flying people as we chart out the end times.

Instead, Jesus teaches us about the kingdom of heaven, about the work of Satan, about His patience and our future hope as well as the world's future judgment. All of this is in this simple story. Let's look at it.

STUDY

THE PARABLE

Verses 24-26: "He put another parable before them, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.'

Remember, Jesus wants to teach those listening, especially his disciples, about the kingdom of heaven. This is his story, his way of making a profound and cosmic truth more concrete and understandable to them.

He begins by telling this story by comparing two kinds of work, the work of the land owner who sowed good seed in his field, and the work of an enemy who came at night and hated this man enough to sabotage all his work by sowing weeds among the wheat.

The word used for this kind of wheat is zizanion or what was called darnel at this time. This particular weed was destructive because it grew up and looked exactly like a wheat stalk so that you couldn't tell the difference between the two as they grew until the heads opened up. This weed carried with it a fungus that when the heads opened would be released in the field and could destroy the good crop.

This counter crop was indecipherable until it was responsible for producing the fruit of the wheat, then you could see it for what it was. Until then, however, it looked the same. Green, strong, growing at the same pace. But all the while it was sapping the nutrients from the ground and taking from the wheat.

Jesus doesn't tell us why this enemy did what he did, but this kind of agricultural sabotage was a way of destroying everything a farmer had worked for. It was a way to try and ruin him by going after his good work and destroying it.

This kind of sabotage was common enough that Rome instituted a law against it that carried a strong punishment if the enemy was caught. What is so spurious about this kind of sabotage is that it required that you save up seed from weeds (which no one did unless you wanted to sabotage another), and it was hard work to plant so many darnel seeds so as to destroy another's crops. He had to sow all night, perhaps with help, to accomplish this act.

The natural response from his servants was shock and confusion. They asked...

Verse 27: "And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?'"

This isn't really meant as an accusation as much as it is pure confusion. They're thinking, "I know he's a good farmer, and I know he wouldn't intentionally destroy his own hard work, so why, if he planted good wheat, is there so much destructive weeds choking out the good wheat?"

Verse 28: "He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.' So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?'"

The land owner immediately knows that this is the work of an enemy, not just an accident. He assigns blame where blame is due. An enemy of all my good work has done this.

The servants, desiring to fix the problem, ask their master if he wants them to go and pull up all the weeds. But he says...

Verses 29-30: "But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"

Now, think of the features of this parable. This parable is showing us:

I. The work of the farmer who sowed good seeds.

II. The work of the enemy who sowed a counter crop.

III. The patience of the farmer.

IV. The promise that the owner of the field will right what's wrong.

So what does all this have to do with the kingdom of heaven? Good question, that's the same question the disciples had. Let's look at v. 36.

THE MEANING OF THE PARABLE

Verse 36: "Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, ‘Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.'"

The disciples didn't quite get what he was teaching or why he was teaching it. So they came to Jesus and asked him. This is a good model for you and me when we don't understand something that Jesus has taught. We should go to His word with humble hearts and ask what it means.

Verses 37-43: "He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.'"

Jesus explains the parable to his disciples by contrasting two kingdoms, two children, and two final destinies.

I. Two Kingdoms

Jesus is showing us that there are two kingdoms growing up side by side. This is significant because the entire parable is about the kingdom of heaven which is the kingdom of God.

So what is the kingdom of God?

Since the creation of the world, God has been a king over his people. He made us to know Him as both Father and King. Father in our relationship of sonship and King in our view of His rule, ownership and authority over our lives and all of creation.

Sin came into this world and was sown by God's enemy, an enemy that wanted to throw off God's rulership over him. This enemy, Satan, wanted to be like God and no longer wanted God to get his glory and instead desired it for himself. This enemy stood in the courts of God's throne and was given the high and holy position of leading all of God's angels in praise and adoration of God. His jealousy grew and grew until he desired a throne like God's to receive worship and glory for himself.

Since God never allows evil to stand in His presence, he cast Satan from Heaven and Satan was able to attract 1/3 of the angels to follow his quest for self-glory and self-worship.

His hatred for God was so intense that all of his energy and cunning ability has been set upon destroying what God has created as his prize possession. God sowed good seed into this world, seeds that are the sons and daughters of the King.

Satan, however, came along deceived the first son and daughter by causing them to question God's truth. In other words, he wanted them to question God's authority as King. He began to sow weeds by coaxing them to believe that God won't really punish them if they disobey Him. Our first parents trusted in the lie rather than God's authority and sin was unleashed in humanity.

Over and over again the people God had chosen for His own have to come face to face with the reality of evil in their own hearts and in this world. But God promises He's going to fix what the enemy has done by sending not just a good seed but THE good seed of the woman into this world who will come and crush the enemy and fix what is broken.

The entire OT tells of this struggle with sin and evil. The sins committed against God's people and the sins God's people commit against God, themselves and others. So pervasive is this sin, we're told all of God's good creation groans and waits for the day of liberation.

God promises them a King and a Kingdom. This promise runs throughout the Bible. It's anticipated in the promise to Abraham. In Genesis 12 God promises Abraham not only a people, but a ‘nation.' A nation, God promises, in which kings will ‘come from you' (Gen. 17:6).

When Israel began life in the Promised Land it was ruled by God through his word. But time and again the people did not walk in the way of obedience and love to the Lord's commands. They no longer wanted to accept the rule of God's word and so God judged them by handing them over to the surrounding nations. When Israel cried out in repentance, God sent leaders, called judges, to rescue them.

Yet even with judges rescuing them, they would slip back into forgetfulness and sin and no longer want God's rule as King over them. At the close of the book of Judges we're given a sad statement that everyone did whatever they saw fit in their own eyes and had no king (Judges 21:25).

They did have a King, but they didn't want Him. God was to be their King and was to rule over them with loving peace and gracious authority as they trusted Him.

But God's people ask for a king like the other nations and God warns them that if they put their hope in a human king they will become abused and will never find what only their true King can give them. God is their King, but they want to have their cake and eat it too.

God gives them a king with a warning, and soon enough this king would burden the people instead of bless them. So God promised them a True King, a King whose throne will never end, a king who will come and fix what's wrong with them and this world.

God promised a king after the line of David (2 Samuel 7). This king will be from David's offspring and his rule shall never end. His kingdom will be established forever.

Then, God's people over time continue to rebel and find themselves punished by God yet again and taken off into exile. God raises up prophets who come and declare hope to Israel that one day the king will come. He will punish their enemies and be for them the king they always needed. He will fix what they have broken.

So the people wait and wonder when this king will arrive and when His kingdom will come. They hope and pray that this king and Kingdom will arrive to liberate them. So they wait. They wait for 400 years of silence. No prophets from God come, but the words that God has already spoken. They wait and wait and wait for the coming king.

Many try and raise up to declare themselves as king and try and mount a military to overthrow Rome's rule, but they ultimately fail. Each false messiah and king who rises up dies and stays dead. They gather a small group and ultimately fail in their attempts.

One day Jesus comes into town and declares in Mark 1 that the kingdom of God is at hand, repent and believe! The kingdom has come because the King has come!

Jesus demonstrates His authority over people, in his teaching, over evil spirits, over sickness. He even exercises his authority by forgiving sins. He has authority over the natural and supernatural world and over death itself.

God's Kingdom has broken in because God's King has come. But why is there still oppression? Why is there still evil? Why don't we experience the kind of military liberation we were hoping for? These are the kinds of questions the Jews had because they didn't understand how Jesus was bringing about His kingdom.

Then in Matthew 13, Jesus gives several parables that talk about how the Kingdom is growing but is small and hidden. One day it will be the largest of the trees. The reign of God is in some ways hidden now, yet experienced by His people. But one day he will come back and rule over everything.

In this parable, He's teaching that the crops, two kingdoms have been at work. One is the true kingdom, one is false. One brings life, joy, peace and fellowship with God, the other is counterfeit and brings only death and destruction.

Also, instead of the kingdom only being a military conquest, Jesus teaches us that it is growing by the loving hands of the farmer who continues to plant good seeds of His children and this kingdom is growing, but like wheat, with time. It can't be stopped, it won't be stopped, but it's growing slowly as God exercises His patience.

Jewish expectations were right: the Kingdom of God will come in great power and glory. But first it has to come in a gracious way to offer pardon to all of God's enemies.

Aren't we just like the Jews? Don't we want God come back and get rid of all of the evil and enemies of His? Don't we want Him to open a can on everyone who shakes their head and fist at him? We want him to come and nuke the neighborhood don't we? This shows us that we're just as misled as they were.

Jesus is teaching them that God has been patient. We know from the rest of God's word that we were at one time weeds ourselves before we became wheat. We were growing up right alongside the good wheat He had sown, but we were counterfeit. Oh, we looked like the real thing, but it wasn't until God broke through our hearts with His Spirit and Gospel that we saw we were in an opposing kingdom.

His patience and grace towards us allowed us to enter into His kingdom.

His followers wanted Him to act faster and in a more decisive way. Even though He showed His authority in all the ways I mentioned, they wanted Him to show off His authority by destroying what they perceived to be their true enemy, Rome.

Jesus understands that the true enemy which He's come to defeat isn't Rome; it's their own hearts and the great enemy which Jesus said He saw "fall like lightening from heaven," Satan himself (Luke 10:18).

A purely military victory won't fix their real problems. Their own history shows this again and again. Even though their oppressors are overcome and they are freed, they slip back into bondage and slavery in sin again. They need new hearts and they need a Savior and King who is willing to die to secure this for them.

Jesus has come to bring so much more than they were expecting. They don't need a new king like the king of Sweden (which we all know is run by Abba! C'mon, dancing queen? It's right there!). The kind of Kingdom Jesus is bringing is something more different than they've ever seen. It's an entirely new administration, a new order of things.

1) It's an upside-down kingdom. Jesus brings in an entirely different set of values in contrast to the kingdom of this world, in which the poor, the sorrowful, and the persecuted are above the rich, the powerful, and the recognized. Why? Because Jesus came to empty himself of his glory. Though he was rich, he became poor. Though he was a king, he served. Though he was the greatest, he made himself the servant of all. He triumphed over sin by giving up his rightful rule and gave himself in sacrificial service. He won through losing everything. This is a complete reversal of the way the world thinks. The world values power, recognition and status. The gospel, however, creates a new kind of servant community, a new kind of people who live under the loving rule of their king for the benefit of others in sacrifice and service.

2) It's an inside-out kingdom. The Pharisees and religious leaders put all the emphasis on outward appearance and external rules. But God is concerned with our hearts. The Gospel teaches that God has welcomed me in by grace, not by keeping his rules. He has loved me by giving his own son as a sacrifice for us so that I can be welcomed in as His own son. Since I'm accepted, I want to obey. Instead of the world's system which says "obey and you'll be accepted."

3) It's a forward-back kingdom. The kingdom of God is in two stages. At his first coming, he saved us from the penalty of sin, and gave us the presence of His Spirit. At the end of time he will come to complete what he began and save us from the presence of sin and evil. He will bring new creation, a material world cleansed of all brokenness. We live in light of this future reality. We share the good news, telling people about the gospel and calling them lay down their allegiances, lay down their false messiahs, and lay down their false lovers of their hearts and turn in faith to the One True King. We are able to help the poor and work for justice because we know that is God's will and eventually all oppression will be put down. We can forgive others who sin against us because we've been forgiven and we no longer have to vindicate ourselves because we know the One who is coming to vindicate us. We don't have to be the arm of judgment towards others because we know we were once sinners and ultimately only God can be the eternal Judge.

If God came first in power and judgment, none of us would be able to stand before Him. But God comes first as a sacrifice and takes judgment upon himself. Jesus comes first to bear the sword upon himself before He comes to bring the sword of judgment to all men. Jesus dies for his people so that they might experience his coming rule.

This is a totally different kind of kingdom the Jews had in mind and Jesus is giving us these parables to show us the difference.

II. Two Children (two types of humanity)

Verses 37-38: "He answered, ‘The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one.'"

Verse 37 and 38 show us the difference in the seeds. The good seed is the children of the kingdom, or in other words the children of the King. The others are the weeds which are the sons of Satan. Ouch!

Jesus basically places all of humanity in one of two categories. There are those who are His sons and daughters, and those who are children of the Devil. This flies in the face of post-modern sensibilities. It is not politically correct in the least. But Jesus loves us enough to tell us the truth.

Look, it's only arrogant or oppressive if it isn't true. But Jesus is making a truth claim. It's either true or it's not. It's not like he's saying, "You like rocky road and are the elect of God, and you like pralines and cream and are children of the devil." This isn't a matter of taste; it's a statement of fact.

What divides those who belong to the kingdom and those who belong to the evil one? The ones who belong to the kingdom are:

1) Sown by the Sower! (v. 37, 38) Our salvation is owing to God's grace and work, not our own. It isn't our efforts that caused us to be planted. We didn't plant ourselves. Jesus is the One who gave us life and brought us into His kingdom.

2) God is our Father! (v. 43) Coming into God's kingdom doesn't simply mean having a new King alone. It means having a new Father. He is calling us out of being orphans and into true sonship. It is intimate and close.

3) We are called ‘righteous.' (v. 43) Because of Jesus' righteousness, we're called righteous by God. He sees us as He sees His only, perfect, righteous Son.

4) We're given a promise of our future. (v. 43). God promises us future glory and desires that we begin to experience a taste of that now.

As true children of God, we no longer have to search after new masters. We no longer have to pursue approval from others. The only eyes in the Universe that really matter see us as completely accepted and loved, approved and cherished. To the degree we believe this, to that same degree we will experience more and more the power of His Kingdom in our own lives and community.

III. Two Destinies

The destiny of those who are children of the enemy is:

Verses 41-42: "The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

Revelation puts it like this:

Revelation 14:14-20: "Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, ‘Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.' 16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped. 17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, ‘Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.' 19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse's bridle, for 1,600 stadia."

The destiny of those who are children of the kingdom is:

Verse 43: "Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear."

Revelation 21:1-7: "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.' 5 And he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.' Also he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.' 6 And he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. 7 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.'"

Revelation 22:1-6: "Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be anything accursed, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And night will be no more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. 6 And he said to me, ‘These words are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.'"