Jesus Explained All Things
From Matthew 13:24-30; 36-40: He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, "Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?' He answered, "An enemy has done this.' The slaves said to him, "Then do you want us to go and gather them?' But he replied, "No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.' " Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
Farmers know that when wheat is fully ripe it bows with the weight of the grain. Weeds do not. Growing side by side, yet one bows and the other does not. Jesus knew that; He understood the ancient methods of farming and uses that knowledge to share His understanding of how good and evil people are present in the world even today. Using this parable to demonstrate that, Jesus spoke of the good intentions of the sower and the evil intentions of the one who came at night to plant weeds. Those working the field asked the householder if they should not go and pull out the weeds before they got any bigger. The answer was no, let them grow side by side. The householder feared the yanking of weeds might destroy some of the good crop. It would be at harvest time when the separation would come; weeds here and wheat there. The weeds would be burned and the wheat would be enjoyed for what it produced. This parable makes sense to those of us who have wondered how in a world created by God for good we find so many who do not yet know God nor seek Him. How can one make sense of those who kill, steal, and destroy? How can one see or hear news reports of so much evil in the world and wonder why God allows this? This is what Jesus is trying to explain in the parable found in this passage. Good and evil will exist side by side until the end of the world. The parable follows the parable of the sower from last week, and it again stresses that God is at work through us and others, in trying to win those who are not yet His. Yet, we know there will be those who choose not to follow God and choose to please only themselves. That does not diminish our work of trying to reach everyone we can; the urgency is still ever before us to reach just one more. Jesus says we do have an enemy, but we also know that we have a Savior.
"We have a Savior" is good news to a world that seems lost at times. We have One who provides life in the midst of death. We have a Savior to pull us out from the depths of wrong to bring us to the side of what is right. We have a Savior to lead us when everyone else seems so lost. We have a Savior who makes room for those who desire to be on the side of God. We have a Savior is light to a world trying to make its way through darkness. Here's the deal; don't let the thought of "We have a Savior" stay "out there;" make Jesus your personal savior, and then you can also say, "I have a Savior."
PRAYER: Come, Jesus Christ, into my heart again today. I need a Savior; I need You. I need You to help me from being lost, from doing what I hate, from being led down wrong paths. Help me to walk right next to You to the path that leads to life to the fullest, blessed by You. This I pray in Your name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
