His Kingdom and Weeds

I am continuing my reading from Matthew's Gospel. It seems the the whole of the thirteenth chapter is about the Kingdom of God, and Jesus speaking in parables about its characteristics and value. Again, the good news is about the Kingdom of God being established in their midst and was one of the core messages of Jesus, so it is worthwhile spending considerable time understanding His teachings about it.

This morning I am considering the other parable of the sower, Jesus' next teaching on the Kingdom - Matthew 13:24-30 NIV:

[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 uproot 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.’ ”

This is such an interesting parable, for it is clearly demonstrates how unlike man God is. First, from a purely kingdom perspective, what King would ever knowingly allow His enemies lies and false fruit to exist and grow in the same territory of His kingdom? Most earthly kingdoms are about territory and geography. The kingdoms have very specific boundaries and those borders are usually the focus of much discussion and even conflicts of force. Here the King cares more about the new little plants than He does about His borders or appearances of His kingdom. One would think that allowing the weeds to grow would seem to be weakness on the part of the King, but He chooses mercy over judgment. He was clearly not concerned about His ability to have a pure and fruitful harvest.

Secondly, what man would choose to wait until the harvest to separate or deal with the weeds? From a farming perspective, allowing the weeds to grow, means that resources that should be available to the good seed are being used by the weeds, this is one of the reasons that farmers pretreat for weeds then spray again once the plants are mature enough to deal with the weed-killer. The way to maximize the yield of the harvest is to minimize anything else growing in the same field, as early as possible. The King again chooses to trust in His seed's fruitfulness and in His ability to separate weeds from good seed at the harvest.

Finally, Jesus explains the parable as follows - Matthew 13:37-43 NIV:

[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 people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people 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 blazing 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. Whoever has ears, let them hear."

A few last thoughts, the Kingdom is clearly defined as being about people, not specific territory. This is one of the reasons the Jews, in general, couldn't grasp the message. They were looking for a national kingdom with territory, government and a King on earth, and the Kingdom of God is found in people. Jesus said the Kingdom is within us. Second, this is somewhat parallel to the story of Noah, except the promise is to not destroy the world or the people, but to bring them to a point of final judgment. Third, we see God's heart for people. He would rather allow confusion and misperception than bring judgement upon us all. He truly desires all to come to a point of fruitfulness (salvation). Fourth, the separation or judgment will be related to the fruit that is produced. It will be that which distinguishes wheat from weed. Finally, one thing that is unique here, and although not mentioned by Jesus, something we know to be true, namely that weeds can become wheat. It is a matter of faith and belief that causes a weed to become wheat, and as such allowing the weeds to grow all the way to the harvest provides the most merciful response to that which the enemy has sown in lies and deceit.

Lord, thank You for Your great mercy and Your absolute faith in Your ability to produce a bountiful harvest in and through our lives. I pray that You will continue to provide deep understanding of Your Kingdom realities in our lives.