wheat and weeds

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! (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, NRSV)

We, as children of God, are wheat.

And the weeds are the children of the evil one.

God sows us into the world and the evil one sows evil into the world.

But to try and remove the evil from the wheat will cause the removal of some of the wheat before it is ready.

The only way to have the wheat be fully ready is to let it live with the weeds, knowing that when the harvest comes the wheat will be removed from the weeds and taken to be where God has always intended for them to be.

So know that God has a plan and the weeds will not live forever.

Let your joy show!

Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed, O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come. When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions. Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple. By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might. You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples. Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy. You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it. You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth. You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness. The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy. (Psalm 65, NRSV)

Praise is due to God for all of the wonderful things He has done for us. And that praise is a joy to us.

It is not a task we begrudgingly undertake. It is one entered into with joy and gratitude for all God has done for us.

So let your joy show and praise the Lord!

shall not return…

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. For you shall go out in joy, and be led back in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall burst into song, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress; instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle; and it shall be to the Lord for a memorial, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off. (Isaiah 55:10-13, NRSV)

God’s word goes out and will not return empty. It will accomplish what God intended for it to accomplish.

Meaning, with you or in spite of you, God’s will will have the effect God was looking for.

So know that God’s word works in and through our lives and will accomplish what God needs it to and it will not return to Him empty or before it has accomplished what it needed to.

laid bare

Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account. (Hebrews 4:12-13, NRSV)

There is nothing we can hide after the word of God has been introduced.

It is a fierce two edged sword that separates soul from spirit!

And everything is laid bare, standing naked before the Lord.

Once the word of God has come in there is nothing that we can keep from Him.

He knows all of your deep dark secrets, and He still loves you.

So let the word of God have it’s way in your life and know that will produce the best life ever!

resurrection

Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life. “Very truly, I tell you, the hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself; and he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not be astonished at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and will come out—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. (John 5:24-29, NRSV)

We talk about the resurrection to eternal life. Like eternal life is something we wait for…

But notice here in John that all people will be resurrected!

Those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation.

So we will all be resurrected but which will we get?

According to John here if you hear the voice of God and believe it you will do good and will get life, but otherwise, you will get condemnation.

So prepare for the resurrection!

Spirit

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you. (Romans 8:1-11, NRSV)

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus dwells in you, he will give your mortal body life.

Life is not lived in our fleshly bodies but through the Spirit of God. Life is lived in the Spirit.

Without God, there is no life.

Know God – Know Life!

No God – No Life!

So allow Him to live in and through you!

follow after God

If you follow my statutes and keep my commandments and observe them faithfully, I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Your threshing shall overtake the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the sowing; you shall eat your bread to the full, and live securely in your land. And I will grant peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and no one shall make you afraid; I will remove dangerous animals from the land, and no sword shall go through your land. You shall give chase to your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. Five of you shall give chase to a hundred, and a hundred of you shall give chase to ten thousand; your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. I will look with favor upon you and make you fruitful and multiply you; and I will maintain my covenant with you. You shall eat old grain long stored, and you shall have to clear out the old to make way for the new. I will place my dwelling in your midst, and I shall not abhor you. And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and you shall be my people. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be their slaves no more; I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk erect. But if you will not obey me, and do not observe all these commandments, if you spurn my statutes, and abhor my ordinances, so that you will not observe all my commandments, and you break my covenant, I in turn will do this to you: I will bring terror on you; consumption and fever that waste the eyes and cause life to pine away. You shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. I will set my face against you, and you shall be struck down by your enemies; your foes shall rule over you, and you shall flee though no one pursues you. And if in spite of this you will not obey me, I will continue to punish you sevenfold for your sins. I will break your proud glory, and I will make your sky like iron and your earth like copper. Your strength shall be spent to no purpose: your land shall not yield its produce, and the trees of the land shall not yield their fruit. (Leviticus 26:3-20, NRSV)

Why do we follow after God?

Is it to get something?

Here we read about those who faithfully keep the commandments and follow you will be blessed, but if you don’t obey and follow you will receive terror.

We are usually hard pressed to do something for long because of a reward, but all parents know that a reward will work. But is that the real reason we should follow, because we get something?

No, but does it hurt?

Good soil

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away.Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!” “Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23, NRSV)

How do we know if our life is good soil?

I think at different points in our lives all of us are each of the spots that Jesus refers to here.

We are the path because we hear Jesus speaking and we don’t understand it and the evil one or the world takes that word away.

We are the rocky ground when we hear and follow but then our old friends ask why are we doing that.

We are among the thorns when we hear Jesus clearly but the worries and concerns of this life get int the way of Jesus getting full control.

We are the good soil when our lives hear the word of Jesus and we follow after knowing that this world might offer things that look better now, but following after Jesus is what we were truly made for.

How do we do this?

If it were easy Jesus would not have given this parable, but anything worth having is worth going after, and Jesus will be there to pick you up and dust you off and place you back out there, when you are snatched away, on rocky ground or surrounded by thorns. He will be there to guide you.

So follow after Jesus and let Him make you good soil.

abounding

The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made. All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your faithful shall bless you. They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and tell of your power, to make known to all people your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures throughout all generations. The Lord is faithful in all his words, and gracious in all his deeds. The Lord upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down. (Psalm 145:8-14, NRSV)

The Lord is abounding in steadfast love.

What does that mean?

Love according to Merriam-Webster Online is (at least the definition that fits):

a:  unselfish loyal and benevolent (see benevolent 1a) concern for the good of another: such as (1):  the fatherly concern of God for humankind (2):  brotherly concern for others b:  a person’s adoration of God

And Steadfast according to Merriam-Webster Online is:

1a:  firmly fixed in place:  immovable b:  not subject to change the steadfast doctrine of original sin — Ellen Glasgow

2:  firm in belief, determination, or adherence:  loyal her followers have remained teadfast

So steadfast love is unchanging devotion or immovable concern. And abounding is existing in or providing a great or plentiful quantity. So there is no end to the unchanging devotion of God, who is good to all and whose compassion covers all that has been made!

So know we do not have to be perfect, we just need to trust the promises God made and know that He will always catch us when we fall, to set us back up and dust us off and send us back out to share His love!

how much more

He said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, strive for his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. (Luke 12:22-31, NRSV)

Do not worry!

Now that is easier said than done. I know it is hard. I have a new driver in the house and I worry every time she gets behind the wheel. Not because she can’t handle it or isn’t mature enough to be there. She can handle it and is ready to do this. I worry because of the things I can not control (as if I can control a 16-year-old!). The other drivers, the conditions under which she is driving. Not worrying is not easy.

But can any of us really change anything by worrying about it?

We can not keep our loved ones safe by worrying about what might happen to them. We can help them by praying that God would be with them.

We can help them and ourselves by remembering the care God gives to His creation and won’t He do that and much more for His children?

As the author says here, “Of how much more value are you than the birds!” You are of value to God. Remember that and don’t sweat it, because God has got this!