Worship Service – July 19, 2020

Our scripture this week is from Matthew 13:24-30 and 36-43

Matthew 13:24-30 · The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds.

24 Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

28 ” ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 ” ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time, I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ “

Matthew 13:36-43

The Parable of the Weeds Explained

36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”

37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where 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.

This is the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.

What to expect as good soil.

Dear Church Family & Friends,

In verse 24,the phrase” The kingdom of heaven is like. “introduces six of seven parables in chapter 13. The parable of the sower, that we read last week. We learned that there are four types of soil represented.

The four types of soil represent different responses to that message. People respond differently because they are in different states of readiness. Some are hardened and others are shallow others are contaminated by distracting worries, and some are receptive, they are “The good soil”(Matt.13:23).

All the parables in this chapter teach us about God and his kingdom. They explain what the kingdom is really like as opposed to our expectations of it. “The kingdom of heaven” is not a geographic location but a spiritual realm where God rules and where we share in his eternal life. We join that kingdom when we trust in Christ as Savior. When we choose to be “good soil “.

In the parable of the weeds and the parables to follow, Jesus is telling us what to expect when we become part of the kingdom of heaven. In our text today, Jesus told a parable in which a farmer sowed good seed in his field. But while he was sleeping, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat. When the wheat sprouted, the weeds also appeared. His servants came to him and said, “Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where did the weeds come from?”

“An enemy,” replied the farmer. The servants asked, “Do you want us to go and pull them up?”

“No,” he answered, “because when you pull the weeds, you may root up the wheat as well. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time, we will collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then we will gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.”

So that we understand more clearly, the weeds that Jesus spoke of , while speaking to the crowds, was probably darnel.

The act of sowing weeds in another man’s field as a form of revenge was so common in Jesus’ day that there were laws prohibiting it. Wheat and darnel look identical until they ripen, at which point the wheat head looks vastly different from that of the weed.

In verses 37-39, Jesus tells the disciples and us that the one who sowed the good seed is the son of man. Jesus himself. The seed he sowed , was the offer of salvation through his death on the cross and those who believe in him.(John3:16) They are the good seed. The field is the world. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, those who don’t believe, the temptations of this life. And the enemy who sows them is the devil.

The implication of the parable is clear: There are good and bad folks in the world. The good folks are followers of Jesus ; the bad folks are followers of the devil. And it is not our job to judge which is which ,to pull out the weeds .One day there will be a judgement when the good folks will be separated from the bad.

I pray for those , who turn out to be a weed, rather than wheat. Their destination is the fiery furnace. That is the plain, straightforward message of this parable. But there is an issue that this parable does not address.

GOOD FOLKS SOMETIMES DO STUPID THINGS.

Have you ever noticed that sometimes people do really dumb things? Why do they do things like that? Our experience tells us that life is not as simple as the parable indicates. There are not people in white hats who always do good things and folks in black hats who always do bad things. The folks in white hats sometimes make dreadfully bad choices. Allowing the weeds to influence them. They make stupid choices in their walk with Christ and in their words.

Someone has made a list of “Politically Correct Ways of Indicating Stupidity.” Perhaps you have heard or used some of these. They’re quite creative. Speaking of someone who has done something really dumb, we might say:

He’s a few clowns short of a circus . . .

A few fries short of a Happy Meal . . .

A few peas short of a casserole . . .

He doesn’t have all his corn flakes in one box . . .

The wheel’s spinning, but the hamster’s dead . . .

His antenna doesn’t pick up all the channels . . .

His belt doesn’t go through all the loops . . .

The elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floor . . . He is several cards short of a full deck . . .

If he had another brain, it would be lonely . . .

Missing a few buttons on his remote control . . .

The lights are on, but nobody’s home .

Why otherwise good people allow themselves to get trapped in self-destructive patterns of behavior is beyond our understanding.

This parable reminds me of every time I weed whack around Bonne’s flower gardens. I am never certain of what is planted on purpose and what are weeds. I would like to till up all of it and start fresh. But then the only thing that would grow is the weeds. So, what should we expect as good seed? How do we provide good soil?

In this parable God tells us what we should expect as good soil and how to provide good soil for the seed that He planted in us.

1.God has a plan that He is working out over time (be patient!).

We live in a world where tragedies and accidents occur every day and where injustice and violence still wreak havoc in people’s lives. Where is God and why doesn’t He do something? The Parable of the Wheat & Weeds teaches us that God does have a plan for this world and He is working to accomplish it. However, it is unfolding over time and that means there’s some waiting to do, something we find difficult. Jesus is teaching us patience – the patience of a God who chooses to delay His judgment. God is not in a hurry and we must be prepared to trust Him and wait for His time. In the end, God will win and good will overcome evil.

2. There is an enemy at work in the world (be alert!).

Alongside the power of the Kingdom another power is at work seeking to disrupt God’s plan. The action of this enemy, the devil, is a prominent feature in Jesus’ ministry. This parable presents us with a worldview that accounts for and is not surprised by evil in the world. It also teaches us that evil will not be completely removed until judgment day but that does not mean that we should not fight against evil in all its forms in the meantime – in our own lives, in the church and in our society. This awareness calls us to live lives on spiritual alert while avoiding the extremes of being ignorant of the devil’s schemes or of becoming overly preoccupied with his activity.

3. God alone is the judge of all people (be humble!).

Right from the beginning of history there have been two seeds or two generations of people – the righteous and the wicked. We find our place in either group not by birth, by fate or by our good works but by our response to the grace of God that He shows toward us in unique ways. God desires everyone to be saved and to become His children. Each person will ultimately choose to be either for God or against God and will be treated accordingly. However, in the meantime it is vital that we do not get caught up in determining who is IN and who is OUT. God alone knows the human heart and He will be their judge, not us. Wheat and weeds look remarkably similar…until the time of harvest when their true nature is revealed. In fact, Jesus hinted that we may be surprised who is in and who is out. We ourselves are a mixture of wheat and weeds – people in desperate need of the grace of God. This should cause us to be humble in our approach to other people. When it comes to judgment we must avoid caricatures of God that turn Him into either a sadistic monster ready to unfurl His wrath on people or into a soft grandparent who still give the kids chocolates even after a day of continual misbehaving. God has revealed Himself as a supremely loving, wise, beautiful, holy, just and true God. It is that combination of attributes that we must learn to see when it comes to the matter of judgment.

4. We are called to partner with God’s purpose (be fruitful!).

In the Parable of the Wheat & Weeds, we are the seed. God plants His people in His field – this world – and He desires us to be fruitful for Him. A partnership mentality helps us avoid the extremes of apathy (thinking that God will do it all) and of a messianic complex (thinking that we will fix the world and rid it of evil all by ourselves).

So, what are we to expect when we provide good soil ?

We can expect and know that:

God has a plan. Be patient.

We can expect and know that :

There is an enemy in the world. Be alert.

We know that:

God alone is the judge of all people. Be humble.