Matthew 13.24-30,
36-43, Romans 8.12-25 & Isaiah 44.6-8
We heard that Jesus
explained the parable to the disciples. It is one of the very few that he explained in detail…’The
one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; 38the field is
the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the
children of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sowed them is the
devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.’
So there you have it and there’s nothing that any preacher can do to
improve upon that. But, hopefully we can take the explanation and consider what
it means for each one of us personally. Jesus has given us an important
framework and it’s important to be faithful to this exactly.
Maybe it helps to start in the field, and it’s a good time of year to do
so as many crops are showing their ears if we walk around our local
countryside, but whilst there may be a dominant crop there’s also plenty of
examples of where unwanted seeds have germinated among them.
What Matthew most likely refers to, however, is tares, darnel or cockle,
a noxious weed that closely resembles wheat and is plentiful in Israel. The
difference between the weeds and wheat is evident only when the plants mature
and the ears appear. The ears of the real wheat are heavy and will droop, while
the ears of the darnel stand up straight. It’s not a weed for the impatient
among us then, it has to be given space, light and nutrients to grow, before it
can be recognised for what it is.
You may have already noted that Jesus doesn’t say who the slaves represent
in his explanation to the disciples. Maybe he feels they will obviously assume
this role themselves, or perhaps he wanted it left open so that all who
followed could identify with them.
Let’s ask a couple of questions of ourselves and see whether anything
aligns. Has anyone among us ever felt frustrated that God doesn’t step in to
stop evil which appears to thrive like weeds, despite the best efforts of good
people in every community. Has anyone among us ever felt that they know exactly
which people are causing all the problems and felt that they would like to see
them weeded out and punished?
Botanical pun intended, this seems to be a perennial problem for Jesus’
followers. Generation after generation have their over zealous ‘weeders’ for
want of a better description, who are certain that they know their weeds from
their wheat, despite the fact that our parable makes it very clear that hasty
decisions to root out the weeds is likely to cause damage to the entire crop.
After all many people will have sprayed weed killer only to kill the healthy
plants as well as the invasive stinging nettles.
Our reading of St Paul’s letter to the Romans explains how we belong to
God as free people, not those trapped in slavery and fear but people who have
received a spirit of adoption, by God. Despite this we can find this freely
given love hard to accept, perhaps trapped by old ways or feeling unworthy.
The slaves in our parable are keen to act. Perhaps we identify with them
when they appear anxious, fearful or inadequate, thinking that they will be
blamed for the fact that the crop has become contaminated by weeds. In doing so
they behave like enslaved people stuck in a mindset that struggles to accept
the love and forgiveness which is theirs. They focus too much on the immediate,
the now whereas their master recognises the problem, but also knows that there
will be a long term solution. The longer they live and work with their master,
the more they will learn to think like him and trust in his judgement, learn to
behave as children of God and not like slaves.
Our parable reminds us that evil persists in our world, direct
opposition to the teachings of Jesus, often hidden amongst what we perceive to
be good. Whilst none of us are perfect, if we are for Christ, then we also have
to be workers keen to ensure God’s Kingdom can co-exist and, in places, even
thrive among ‘the weeds’.
Even
though Jesus has identified who the key players are in the parable to his
disciples we are still left with feeling that ‘he has done it again’. If we
attempt neat explanations we risk being a bit like the people who rush to
identify problems and implement hasty solutions.
I
feel that Jesus wants this to be something we need to explore and then live out
every day, making the best judgments that we can. I think that Jesus is telling
us that we had better get used to living with ambiguity, living with both the
wheat and the weeds until the day of harvest when they may be separated in God’s
time.
There
may be some of us who are literally struggling with the identification and
efficient extraction of actual weeds at this time of year but there will also
be more difficult decisions that we each are wrestling with. How best to care
for loved ones, whether to fix the mortgage and for how long, what’s the best
course of action for a medical condition, what will be the best school for
children and grandchildren. Each of us will have situations where the best
course of action isn’t clear, yet we know that doing nothing, avoiding any
decision, is not an option.
We
know from experience that we don’t always make the best decisions and there is
no certainty that everything will turn out well in the short term. But whatever
happens we do know that God will be with us to the end and that he will hold
us, our decisions, their consequences and our lives together in his love. And
in the meantime we can pray for, support and serve each other the best that we
can. We can make this church a community of people who are slow to judge, a
place where all are welcome to bring their confusion, their difficult choices,
the ambiguity in their lives before God to seek his forgiveness and guidance.
Matthew wrote this part of the Gospel aware that fledgling churches were
struggling in many ways. He wants them to relate to God’s time, to be
encouraged and keep the faith when an easier option would be to give up.
The words we heard from the Prophet Isaiah came at a time when many
wouldn’t have blamed the Israelites from giving up on God and frankly
everything else, based upon their lived experience.
The Babylonians had destroyed and plundered all that assured the
Israelites of their place as people chosen by God including the temple,
monarchy and homeland.
The many false gods promoted by their enemies may have appeared to
triumph and it seems that they need a reminder of who their God is.
Yahweh declares, “I am the first and I
am the last; besides me there is no god” (Isaiah 44:6b). There can be no other
object worthy of worship, there is no other source of life and freedom, no other
redeemer, no other King. Despite their suffering the Israelites could still
trust in God.
In short, despite whatever we see
around us that goes against God he remains unchanged, unwavering in his love
for us.
Jesus makes clear that it’s not for
us to decide who is ‘in’ or ‘out’ as far as God is concerned. After all remember
the assurances Jesus gave to the penitent thief crucified alongside him, when
the authorities had condemned him and all around had written him off, ‘today
you will be with me in paradise’.
So what might we take away from
today? Well, for one thing if anyone says your garden is overgrown or full of
weeds just tell them you are doing what Jesus taught you and that they should
go and read the bible where there’s sound teaching about not rushing to pull them
up.
It’s so easy to be influenced by the
press and news channels that get most space, the online influencers who know
how to shout loudest and hard to go against the flow when most voices are
against us. Yet, history reminds us how societal judgments have repeatedly failed
to align with God. The prostitutes and tax collectors as well as many
considered unclean by ancient society were among those Jesus chose to align
himself with, however costly. And only this week politicians recognised the
previous wrongful treatment of LGBT people who bravely served in our Armed
Forces which affected both unknown and well known figures including Dame Kelly
Holmes.
Jesus reminded us again and again
that God’s judgments may take us by surprise. So let’s be slow to condemn
others and instead focus our efforts on making his kingdom a reality for those
we live alongside .
Amen
Kevin Bright
23 July 2023
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