The Wheat and the Tares

Yesterday I quoted from Matthew’s gospel the parable from Jesus about the good seed and the weeds, better known as the wheat and the tares. We saw yesterday how the weeds will be gathered first to be burned, an indication, I think, that the ones taken away at Christ’s coming will be the wicked, and not the righteous as so many today put forth.

The entire account of this parable in Matthew 13 includes verses 24-30 (the parable itself) and verses 36-43 (the parable explained). I will quote the explanation of the parable here and make three observations. To get the full context of this subject, read Matthew 13:24-30.

Here is the parable explained by Jesus:

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to 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 is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the close of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

Observation one: The field is the world, not the church.

Someone commented here yesterday and told me in no uncertain terms that the field in this parable is the church, and even said, “sounds like deceptive false teachers vs the true church to me.” This is a good example of the importance of letting Scripture speak for itself, instead of making a ‘to me’ interpretation. Jesus is clear in His explanation that the field is the world. Period. The field is not the church, and while there are certainly false teachers who have crept into the church unnoticed, while there are certainly weeds operating within the church, the church is not supposed to have anything in it but wheat.

This is a major distinction between the Old and New Covenants. Under the Old Covenant, the true church was within the larger group of the nation of Israel. Everyone under the covenant did not know the Lord. Under the New Covenant, however, ‘they will all know Me‘, declares the Lord. This is, sadly, an area where our Paedo brothers and sisters continue to blur the lines (by knowingly baptizing unregenerate people into membership) which, under the New Covenant, were supposed to be blurred no longer. The church, the Bride and body of Christ, is to be holy and pure and undefiled. She is not to be mixed with weeds.

This is also what church discipline and accountability are designed to prevent. If the field in the parable is the church, then church discipline would be a practice going directly against the instructions of the sower in this parable, who said to leave the weeds alone.

Observation two: The Kingdom is here and now, but not quite yet.

Notice in verse 24 of Matthew 13 how Jesus begins the parable by saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in His field”, and then he explains on down in verse 38 that, “the field is the world”. Jesus is ruling and reigning as we speak (or, as I type and you read). And if He is reigning now, then He must already have a kingdom in which to reign. That kingdom is in existence right here and now on earth, but it is not yet fully realized. According to Jesus’ parable here, the full realization of the kingdom of heaven will come when He sends forth His angels to gather out of His kingdom (the field…the world…here on earth) all the weeds, and will gather them together to be burned.

Observation 3: The weeds have always been weeds, the good seed has always been good seed

What I am about to say may grate against my Arminian friends, but the truth still remains that the weeds were weeds even before they sprouted, and the good seed was good seed even before it sprouted. Look at what Jesus says in His explanation of the parable. He explains that, “The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil”. Does this not clearly state that the weeds have been weeds from the beginning, even before birth? Is this not in agreement with God’s words in Romans 9 when he said, “Jacob have I loved, but Esau I hated”? Is this not what Jesus was referring to in John when he declared to those who could not hear his message, “You are of your father, the devil”, and “You do not believe because you are not of My sheep”?

Similarly, Jesus describes the good seed when He says, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom.” The good seed is the sons of the kingdom. They have always been ‘good seed’, even before their regeneration. Now, before you jump all over me, listen to what I am saying. The good seed, prior to regeneration was, by nature, children of wrath even as the rest. But, they were never children of wrath, for they were sown by the Son of Man. They were good seed before they were ever planted, not after they made a decision.

So, there are at least three things we see from the explanation of this parable. The field is the world and not the church (the church is not to have weeds in it), the kingdom is already here and now but not quite yet (as evidenced by Jesus ruling and reigning now, but has not yet removed from this world all that offends Him), and the weeds and good seed have always been what they show themselves to be (the weeds were, are, and always will be sons of the devil, and the good seed was, is, and always will be sons of the kingdom).