Bible Passage: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
Pastor: Joel Jenswold
Sermon Date: July 23, 2023

Bulletin July 23, 2023

In the name of, and to the eternal glory of, Jesus,

Jesus was a renowned story-teller.  He didn’t tell fish-stories and tall-tales.  He told serious, instructive, thought-provoking little stories.  We know these stories as “parables.”  Perhaps you have heard this definition of a parable: a parable is “an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.”  There is a verse in the Bible that says of Jesus:  [H]e did not say anything to them without using a parable.” (Matthew 13:34)

 Parables help us understand difficult truths about the Kingdom of God.  Such is the case today.  We have before us what is sometimes called “The Parable of the Weeds and the Wheat.”  It addresses a question Christians sometimes have:  “Shouldn’t we do something to rid the earth of the wicked?”  There are examples in the Old Testament when the Lord called upon his people to purge the wickedness – and the wicked people – around them.  When the Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land, the Lord told them that he was going to use them to punish the wickedness of the Canaanites.  Should we be doing more of that? There is a lesson for us about this in our parable today.  The lesson is this:  Jesus will Take Care of the Weeds…and the Wheat.

 Jesus tells the story about a man who plants good wheat seed in his field.  But at night, his enemy overseeds the field with weeds.  For a while, it was impossible to know that such a thing had been done.  But as things grew, it became evident there were weeds among the wheat!  The owner’s servants are puzzled.  They come to their master.  “You planted good seed, didn’t you?  Where’d all these weeds come from?”  The master knows.  An enemy did this. (v. 28)

 The servants want to be helpful.  Do you want us to go and pull them up? (v. 28)  The owner is adamant.  No…because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. (v. 29)  When I was little, I would go with my dad to our garden.  He learned not to let me help with weeding when the plants were small.  I wanted to help, but I couldn’t tell a lettuce sprout from a weed and I would pull anything that was green and growing.  That’s what concerns the owner in our text.  Listen to what he says next:  Let them both grow together until the harvest.  At that time I will tell the harvesters:  First collect the weed…then collect the wheat. (v. 30)

When Jesus and his disciples get to the house, his disciples ask Jesus to explain this parable to them.  Jesus explains that he is the one planting the good seed.  The good seed are believers.  The field is the world.  This is the Kingdom of God: throughout the world, the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection is being scattered.  Everywhere, believers are “sprouting” and “growing” and producing fruits of their faith.  The Kingdom of heaven is near, and all around!

But wait!  Where…did these weeds come from? (v. 27)  Why do we see so many wicked in the Lord’s field?  Literally, there are people getting away with murder out there!  Jesus answers that for us:  The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. (v. 38b-39)  Jesus’ words make us think back to what the Lord said to the devil in the garden in the moments after the Fall into sin.  The Lord told the devil that there would be enmity – HATRED – between the seed of the woman and seed of the devil.  The devil has been planting and cultivating sin and evil and wickedness from that day on.  And all for one simple reason:  he is God’s arch enemy.  He hates God!  He wants God’s world to be overrun and overgrown with sin.

We go astray if we think the mission of the Church is to “pull weeds.”  We get off course if we think the Church Militant is to arm itself and “kill infidels.”  And there are examples of this type of thing in church history.  There have been times when the church hunted down those whose confession was less-than-pure, and they “pulled these weeds” by burning them at the stake, or in other horrible ways.  Unfortunately, sometimes, like a child helping dad weed the garden, the church pulled some wheat with the weeds.

Our text brings us up close to what in dogmatics is called the “permissive providence” of God.  The permissive providence of God states that, at present, God allows sin and wickedness.  He does not prevent people with bad intentions from doing bad things.  He does not suspend the laws of ballistics when bad guys shoot their guns.  He does not rearrange the laws of chemistry so fentanyl pills are harmless when sold by cartels.  The Lord does not have a “divine herbicide” that he uses now to kill all the weeds in his field.  God “permits” weeds to grow.  What the farmer said still applies:  Let [weeds and wheat] both grow together until the harvest. (v. 30)

Jesus will take care of the weeds, at the harvest.  At the end of time,  on Judgment Day, Jesus will send out his harvest-angels.  They will “weed out” out of the Kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.  Jesus will take care of the weeds.  They will be burned up.  Jesus’ use of the terms weeping and gnashing of teeth suggests how horrible it will be for weeds.

But, as with all good stories, this one has a happy ending! Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. (v. 30)  You are the righteous!  You have a given, gifted righteousness in God’s sight.  It is the righteousness of Jesus.  It is the “cleaness” of washed-away-sin in the blood of Jesus.  It is the imputed righteousness of Jesus’ holy life.  It is your through faith.  This righteousness makes you wheat.  And where the weeds will burn, the wheat will shine!  You will shine in the Kingdom of your Father forever.  No more weeds to contend with!  Just the enjoyment of God, forever!

We are not to “pull weeds” now, but there is one thing we can do to reduce the number of weeds in this world. Tell people about Jesus!  Tell people the good news about Jesus’ blood and righteousness.  Through this message, God does the impossible!  He changes weeds into wheat through faith!  Tell others of Jesus, that they too might shine on the great harvest day, when Jesus comes to take care of the weeds, and the wheat!

Amen.