Sunday's Message: The Parables of the Gospel of Matthew (Weeds with the Wheat - Matthew 13:24-30)

During the months of October and November, we're discussing the following parables unique to the Gospel of Matthew:

• October 8 - Wolves & Fig Trees (Matthew 7:15-20)
• October 15 - Weeds with the Wheat (Matthew 13:24-30)
• October 22 - The Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 13:44-48)
• October 29 - The Two Debtors (Matthew 18:23-35)
• November 5 - Laborers in a Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16)
• November 12 - Two Sons (Matthew 21:28-32)
• November 19 - The Wise and the Foolish (Matthew 25:1-13)
• November 26 - Sheep from Goats (Matthew 25:31-46)

On Sunday, we focused on the parable of the weeds with the wheat, Matthew 13:24-30. A recording and a copy of the sermon are below. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel at 10:00 a.m. (EDT)

Well, I think we can safely say that we’re definitely in Fall. Of course, I understand that we officially entered the season about three weeks ago, but I’ll tell you, it feels as though we’ve crossed the Rubicon this past week, and we just aren’t going back. I mean, for my darling wife, the temperature is now officially chilly although I choose to call it brisk. And fallen leaves are starting to pile up and those still on the tree seem to be hanging on for dear life. And maybe, just maybe I can move my lawn mower back to the basement and just let the grass go until sometime in late March. And you know, when you combine that with college football reaching its midpoint, hockey starting and the World Series just around the corner, it may be time to pack up the shorts and flip-flops and dig out the boots and coats. Autumn is here, and winter is coming. 

And as I mentioned last week, during this fall, at least up until Thanksgiving, we’ll be focusing on the parables found only in the Gospel of Matthew. And we started by looking at a couple that dealt with wolves and fig trees, two little stories that remind us that false prophets, you know, wolves in sheep’s clothing, have always been around the church and that they can cause a lot trouble but that they can also be identified by the fruits that they produce. Now, that’s what we did last week.

And this morning, we’re looking at another parable found only in Matthew, namely the parable of the weeds with the wheat, a story that I believe can teach us a lot about the presence and nature of evil. And I’ll tell you, given what happened and is happening in Israel and Gaza, I think this focus is not only appropriate but incredibly timely. Of course, I believe everybody here this morning knows exactly what I’m talking about. Hamas, a terrorist organization that’s been active in Gaza for years, launched an attack on Israel, killing at least 260 innocent people attending a music festival, while also taking a whole bunch of hostages. And in response, Israel launched a military attack on Gaza, leveling entire neighborhoods and killing over 1,400 people, more than 60% of them women and children. Now that’s what’s going on in the Middle East, and I’ll tell you, when you combine that with what innocent folks are facing in Ukraine and North Korea, well, I think we can say that we have more than our share of evil people in our world right now. Sadly, they’ve become a part of life in 2023. 

Of course, the presence of wicked men and women, man, that’s not new. I mean, all you have to do is read about the Killing Fields in Cambodia or the gas chambers at Auschwitz or the plantations along the James River as well as thousands of other examples throughout human history to know that evil people aren’t just an invention of the twenty-first century.

And I’ll tell you, we’re going to focus on those people this morning, because I think they’re the point of this story Jesus offered his disciples. You see, for the rest of this message, we’re going to look at the passage itself and talk about three lessons that I think we can take from the parable of the weeds with the wheat.

Now, as to the parable itself, this was what the Evangelist Matthew wrote:

Jesus then told them this story:

The kingdom of heaven is like what happened when a farmer scattered good seed in a field. But while everyone was sleeping, an enemy came and scattered weed seeds in the field and then left.

When the plants came up and began to mature, the farmer's servants could see the weeds. The servants came and asked, “Sir, didn't you scatter good seed in your field? Where did these weeds come from?”

“An enemy did this,” he replied.

His servants then asked, “Do you want us to go out and pull up the weeds?”

“No!” he answered. “You might also pull up the wheat. Leave the weeds alone until harvest time. Then I'll tell my workers to gather the weeds and tie them up and burn them. But I'll order them to store the wheat in my barn.” [Matthew 13:24-29, CEV]

Now that’s the parable itself.

And you know, if that’s all we had, the interpretation, well, that would sort of be up for grabs, wouldn’t it? But I’ll tell you, that’s not the case with what we just heard. You see, unlike most of the parables Jesus offered, this one he explained. Just listen:

After Jesus left the crowd and went inside, his disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the story about the weeds in the wheat field.”

Jesus answered:

The one who scattered the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seeds are the people who belong to the kingdom. The weeds are those who belong to the evil one, and the one who scattered them is the devil. The harvest is the end of time, and angels are the ones who bring in the harvest.

Weeds are gathered and burned. That's how it will be at the end of time. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather from his kingdom everyone who does wrong or causes others to sin. Then he will throw them into a flaming furnace, where people will cry and grit their teeth in pain. But everyone who has done right will shine like the sun in their Father's kingdom. If you have ears, pay attention! [Matthew 13:36-43, CEV]

Now that’s what Jesus said; therefore, there’s really no mystery about the message of the parable itself. In other words, if we believe that Jesus knew what he was talking about, we know exactly what it means, don’t we?

And I’ll tell you, based on this explanation, I think there are three important lessons we can learn from the weeds with the wheat. For example, first, I think it’s pretty clear that, according to Jesus, evil people are present in our world. I mean, remember, that’s what he said the field represented; it’s not just the church but the entire earth. And according to what he said, in this world the Son of Man planted good seed, you know, people who belong to the kingdom,  while the evil one planted seeds that grew into weeds, in other words, folks who belong to him. Now that’s how Jesus described the field, and I’m talking about the world in which we live. And you know, I think Jesus expressed this same kind of reality when, a little later in this gospel, he warned his disciples about what they should expect after the resurrection. He said, 

You will be arrested, punished, and even killed. Because of me, you will be hated by people of all nations. Many will give up and will betray and hate each other. Many false prophets will come and fool a lot of people. Evil will spread and cause many people to stop loving others. But if you keep on being faithful right to the end, you will be saved.” [Matthew 24:9-13, CEV] 

Now that’s the kind of the world Jesus said his disciples should expect.

And you know, it’s just as true now as it was then. I mean, whether we like it or not, evil people are still present in our world; they always have been and they always will be, right up to the time God recreates his universe. And even though we don’t like it, this reality is often beyond our understanding and certainly beyond our control. And for that reason, we shouldn’t be surprised when evil people and perverse systems do horrible things to others as well as to the world entrusted to our care. But I’ll tell you something else, we also shouldn’t be discouraged that, no matter what we do, evil people often seem to acquire far more power and influence than they should. And I’ll tell you why. Frankly, we lack the power to bring justice to all those who are wicked. But you know, based on the parable, even that makes sense, you know, that we lack the power to pull a Henry Jekyll and isolate evil. We can’t do it. I’ll tell you, they grow a lot of grain in eastern Montana and when I was living out there I knew a lot of farmers and spent a lot of time on their farms, and in those five years, I never saw one single stalk of wheat pull up one single weed. And we, my friends, are the wheat, and wheat just can’t pull weeds. Nope, according to this parable, I think we’re going to have to accept the fact that evil people are present in our world, and that’s the first lesson we can learn.

But second, I think the story and explanation also reminds us that, in spite of this fact, God is still in control. I mean, he’s the farmer in the parable, isn’t he; you know, the guy who owns the field. And when the servants want to do a little weeding, the farmer has the authority not only to say “no” but also to explain why he didn’t want a bunch of workers tromping around the field and yanking out weeds. As a matter of fact, the farmer was the one who would, when the time was right, send out other workers into the field to harvest the wheat and to deal with the weeds. In other words, in spite of what might be going on in the world at any given time, God is still in charge, he always was and he always will be. And in his time, not ours, he’s going to hold those who are evil accountable for their wickedness: period, close the book, Elvis has left the building. God is in control, and I’ll tell you, that’s why I believe Jesus could say this to his disciples a little earlier in this Gospel: 

Don't worry and ask yourselves, “Will we have anything to eat? Will we have anything to drink? Will we have any clothes to wear?” Only people who don't know God are always worrying about such things. Your Father in heaven knows you need all of these. [Matthew 6:31-32, CEV] 

You see, I believe Jesus wanted his disciples to recognize that, regardless of what they might be facing, God hadn’t become distracted nor had he stepped away from his throne nor had he thrown up his hands and abandoned his universe. No, despite the presence of evil people, God was still the Lord. And in my opinion, that was what Jesus wanted his disciples to believe.

And I’m telling you, I think that’s exactly what he wants us to believe as well. You see, like it or not, there’ll continue to be evil people who launch missiles that kill those who are innocent just like there’ve been evil people in the past who’ve slaughtered millions because they didn’t expose a certain ideology or come from a certain ethnic group. Sadly, there will continue to be seeds planted by the evil one who will murder and destroy, abuse and enslave. But based on what Jesus taught, we shouldn’t let their presence cause us to forget that God is still the Lord and that both his freedom and love are perfect and that he will hold accountable “everyone who does wrong or causes others to sin.” [Matthew 13:41b, CEV] You see, despite the unavoidable presence of evil people in our world, we can trust that God is still in control, and that’s the second lesson we can learn.

And third, according to this parable, I think our job is crystal clear and here it is: we’re here to grow and be productive. You see, we are wheat; that’s exactly what we are. We’re not farmers who control the field. We’re not the servants who are champing at the bit to pull a few weeds. And we aren’t the workers who’ll be bringing in the sheaves, not according to this parable. Instead, we are stalks of wheat that started out as seeds planted by the Son of Man, and when you get right down to it, we really have only one job to do, and that’s to grow and to be productive. And because, as we talked about last week, we know that a tree can be judged by its fruit, we’ve been planted in this field to produce something that’s good. Now that’s our purpose; that’s our reason to be. And I’ll tell you, if we have any confusion about how we might do that, you know, how we might prove that good seeds grow into healthy stalks that produce a lot of grain, I mean, if we’re not sure about what we should be doing in order to be the men and women we were planted here to be, maybe we should take seriously the most important and the most comprehensive command given by Jesus Christ: 

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. This is the first and most important commandment. The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments. [Matthew 22:37b-40, CEV]

Now this was what Jesus said.

And brothers and sisters, this is something we can do. Right here and right now, we can choose to show love both to God and to others, including those whom we don’t like, even those whom we don’t think deserve it. And as individuals and as a community, we can decide to confront the abusers while comforting the victims and to challenge the slavers while freeing the enslaved. You see, this we can do, but not because it’s easy or profitable or risk free. No, instead we can show love because it’s the right and godly thing to do. In fact, we can stand up and reach out and speak up, trusting that the Apostle Paul knew what he was talking about when he wrote to the Romans, “Don’t let evil defeat you, but defeat evil with good.” [Romans 12:21, CEV] You see, as good seed, it’s our job to grow and be productive, and in my opinion, that’s the third lesson we can learn. 

And I’ll tell you, given what’s happening right now in the world, learning this kind of stuff, man, I think it’s pretty important, isn’t it? I mean, as we read about terrorists who launch missiles and explode bombs in order to kill those who are absolutely innocent, we need to remember that evil people are present in our world. And despite those dictators who invade their own neighbors and starve their own people, we need to remember that God is still in control. And even when those evil individuals and perverse systems make us so angry we want to spit or so discouraged we want to quit, we need to remember that our job is to grow and be productive. You see, these three things we can know, because Jesus told a story about the weeds with the wheat. And next week, we’ll look at three other parables found only in Matthew and discuss the Kingdom of Heaven.