"Parable of the Weeds" - Living in between TWO Kingdoms.
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Good Morning, we are in a sermon series in the parables. This morning sermon is entitled living in-between two Kingdoms.
Charles Dickens in his classic book a tale of two cities - starts off the with the line , “it was the Best of times, it was the worst of times”
Dosnt that depict the it the times we are in.?
We living incredible times… especially when you think in terms of technology an medical advancements..…but at the same time we have seen natural disasters, pandemics, wars..
This is the tension we feel in life - there are these dichotomies in life.
Joy and sadness,
highs and lows,
Success and Failure
Ascent and Decline
Jubilation and Desolation
The best of times and the worst of times can exist simultaneously !
In scripture we find another tension - the tension of the kingdom of God..the kingdom of God that is here and the kingdom that is coming.. the kingdom now and the kingdom not yet..
At the time of Christ.. Israel was expecting a King that would deliver them from Roman occupation..
They were expecting the Messiah to establish an earthly Kingdom.. .. a kingdom in this world..
But Jesus came teaching another Kingdom - An intangible Kingdom -that was spiritual in nature..
In Matthew 13
there are several parables..where Jesus describes what his kingdom was like..
Jesus tells the disciples the parable of the sower- Where the sower generously sows seed in his field and some fell on the stoney ground, some among the thorns, and seed fell on good ground. The seed on the good ground multiplied.. some 30,60 and 100 fold…
Jesus then tells the parable of the mustard seed…(The mystery of the growth of the Kingdom)
The mustard seed being the smallest of all the seeds, but it grows larger tree - so birds come and nest in its branches..
Then we get the the parable of the weeds..
Where we are introduced to the conflict of two Kingdoms..
In the 5th Century…the church father Augustine wrote , “The City of God,”
Where he deals with tension between the “City of God and the City of Man.”
He wrote this at the time when Rome empire had embraced Christianity..but they were being attacked by the Barbarians — and the empire was crumbling… He wrote to help Christians make sense of it all...
Augustine warned against associating the church and the Gospel too closely with the cities and kingdoms of this world, cities that are all temporal and temporary and slated for destruction, hopelessly compromised.
Augustine said in contrast, Christians should identify themselves with the new Jerusalem, the city of the great King, the Jerusalem that is above, whose builder and maker is God....
This challenge that we have as Christian’s is living between two kingdoms.. We are in the world but not of the world.. Jesus said in John 18.36
“My kingdom is not of this world”
We constantly in this battle..between the temporal nature of this world and the nature of Gods eternal kingdom...
T/S How do we live between two kingdom — First we have to navigate ..
1. The tension of Good and Evil.
1. The tension of Good and Evil.
The tension between good and Evil has been the Struggle from the beginning of Creation-
When God created the World — He did it out of His goodness..
The Westminster confession says that,
“God created the world ‘for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom and goodness” Westminster Confession..
Calvin said that Creation is - “the theater of his glory.”
After each day of Creation God said that it was good…
Then on the six day God created man and placed them in the garden of Eden and gave them dominion over his creation…
God gave man a free will and they could eat form any tree in the garden, except from the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil…
Gods intention in creation was good.. that was that we would enjoy fellowship with him.. but paradise would be lost in the Fall.
The result of the fall.. is the tension of Good and Evil..
lets read our text..the Parable of the weeds..
Matthew 13:24–30 (ESV)
24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field,
25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.
26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.
27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’
28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’
29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.
30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
Jesus is preaching to crowd on the shores of Galilee.
Jesus teaches “What The kingdom of God is like...”
Jesus says something stunning… the Kingdom is here.. that his Kingdom was already inaugurated.
There is this immediate reaction of the people and the disciples.. How could Gods reign be present with the Evil that existed in Roman empire? How can these two kingdoms co-exist together? How can good and evil exist Side by side..
Jesus, “Set this this parable-before them”
He told the story of a man who sowed good seed into his field…
While his men are sleeping - his enemy came in and sowed weeds among the seed..
This was something that actually would happen in Rome....
Historians tell us that it was such a problem.. that they had to pass a law against it.
THE Enemy - who does the unthinkable… He tries to destroy the harvest..
Here is the thing about this particular weed.. That it looked like wheat and only when it matured could you see the difference!!
Scholars believe it was likely “Bearded darnel” - which resembles wheat, but when it matures it has these black seeds that hold fungus that can be quite toxic to humans...
The enemy is a master counterfeiter… He comes as an angel of light… He is called the deceiver and the father of lies… He is the master manipulator…
Agg (Problem):.
He has one goal and that is division…Division simply means a different vision… the enemy wants to give us a different vision of the kingdom.. different vision of this world..
Now the word “among” is a strong expression, it meant sow throughout the crop — there wasn’t one part the crop that was untouched.. not affected..
We have all been impacted by the fall
we see it at every level..
1. We see it at a global level.
1. We see it at a global level.
It is unfolding in real time...in the news… Think about what happening in Russian and Ukraine and Now Israel — Palestine… Currently there 10 officially recognized wars in the world.. 64 nations involved in violent conflicts..
2. We see it at the Community level.
There are …Social, racial, political, gender..division.
Division among Churches - doctrinal division, relational divisions..moral divisions.
Division at the family level..
3. We see it at a personal level..
Paul said the good I want to do I don’t do.. Paul talked about this thorn in the flesh..
Jesus points out .. that there is an Enemy who is behind all the evil…
He is sneaky… He comes in when least expect—(when we are at rest)
The enemy is at work our world.. He works in Nations, Communities, Churches- families — and he has one mission.
He sows discord…and division..division.. two different vision.. A different vision for the world.. different vision for the church… different vision for your family..
He comes to steal, kill and destroy.. and then he slips away.. That why PETER TELLS US..
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
.
Sometime we don’t see it in the moment..
As the harvest matures it soon become apparent - when the shoots sprouted - and it wasn’t wheat — it was weeds -
God desire is that we bear fruit… and the fruit remain… there things come into the harvest and hinder progress…
HOW DO WE DEAL WITH WEEDS?
When servants noticed that the harvest was full of weeds. They go to the master and asK “Didn’t you sow good seeds?”
How does the Master respond…HE simply says,“The enemy has done this”
The servants ask the master if he wanted Him to take care of the weeds..
Jesus says “No” - because in pulling the roots of the weeds there is a chance of uprooting the Harvest of Wheat ..
The roots of the weeds would be intertwined with the roots of the wheat, making it impossible to remove them without uprooting the wheat
Jesus says let them grow together.. ..and at harvest time the reapers will gather weeds first and put them in a bundle.. and at that time the weeds will be burned and the Harvest would be saved..
T/S How do we live between two kingdom — First we have to navigate ..
1. The tension of Good and Evil.
2. The Tension of Rewards and Punishment.
2. The Tension of Rewards and Punishment.
We live in a world where the is an app for everything —
They often work on Rewards and punishment - We have fit bits and apple watches that record our steps.. and track our healthy choices..
There is a now toothbrush that wirelessly tells a phone app that tracks how long you brush your teeth. It will send rewards and punishments based on brushing behavior.
There is also website called Bee-minder that will tally fines for undesirable behaviors like not flossing or staying up too late…
Both rewards and Punishments are motivators..
To be honest is easy to talk about the rewards than the consequences of our decisions. Everytime, I got to the dentist.. I am anticipating some encouragement about flossing!
After Jesus told Parable.. the crowd dismisses and Jesus and his disciples —goto a home nearby… most likely to the house of Peter..
Whee (Gospel):
The disciples left class feeling confused.. When they were alone they ask Jesus if he could explain to them the parable of the weeds…They were confused -How Good and Evil Co-exist?
Jesus spells it out..
Read
Matthew 13:37–42 (ESV)
37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man.
38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.
40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.
41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers,
42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Jesus pans out and gives his disciples the cosmic Picture — In His drama of creation there are various players.. Jesus gives us the list of “who is who in this Drama.. Jesus says..
The one who sower is the Son of Man.
The field is the world -
the good seed is the sons of the kingdom.
The weeds are the sons of the evil one,
The enemy who sowed them is the devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and
The reapers are angels
Jesus gives us an eschatological time line.. From Spring planting to Fall Harvest…There God good intention in creation — There is then the impact of the Fall -
In Genesis we are told that God completed creation ..
--The Enemy came into God’s garden and temped Adam and Eve to disobey God… Satan came disguised as part of creation… He came as a serpent a deceiver… He came and sowed weeds of discord in the God garden..
He told Adam and Eve ..that ate of the fruit They could be just like God..
They could be the masters of their own destinies.. Knowing the difference between Good and Evil …The offer was too good to be true..
When Adam and Eve ate of the fruit, they immediately lost their innocence… And, sin and death entered into God’s world...
Evil entered into God world…
It interesting that Christian Science Denies the existence of evil ..They believe that, suffering, sickness and even death don’t exist) - because we are all energy....
Their founder Mary Eddy Baker said
“Evil is but an illusion, and it has no real basis.”
Christian Science.
The Parable of the Weeds is a..“Crisis Parable.”
Where Jesus is warning to get our attention…about sin and judgement..
These are something of the “Uncomfortable Truth’s” —of the bible.
We might even wish they weren’t there!
But..
Jesus spoke with clarity in scripture about what is ahead.....
Jesus said.“Satan and all those who part of his Kingdom are destined for seperation from God and eternal torment”.
Jesus said there is a place designated - there will be a second death.. where there be regret of … “weeping” and “gnashing of teeth.”
How do we handle this text?
Some might remember the Rob Bell Controversy.. In 2011, he published ahi book, "Love Wins."
He questioned the idea of a God who condemns people to eternal punishment in hell and instead proposed a view that emphasized God's love and grace, suggesting that ultimately, God's love leads to the salvation of all people… In other other he taught universal salvation..
The problem is that when you look at Jesus teaching — He spoke clearly on the issue of Heaven and Hell…
look at this graph — Theme of Punishment comes up… In the gospels.. more then any other place...
This series in the parables has really challenged me in my thinking about what Jesus really taught --- Jesus taught on hell— that at there is going to be a second death… but it is not anilation .. that will be eternal torment… this is a hard…thing to wrestle with.
John Stott said this about scripture..
We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of thought and behavior.
John Stott
What we need to know is the scripture — needs to not only comfort us but disturb us…
We all know how easy it is to get complacent… There is this natural movement… to status- qou… The problem is that when are complacent the enemy comes in...
We need to understand God justice… Jesus talked about the subject of hell so often.. that makes us uncomfortable… but the motivation is to always move us towards His kingdom..it is not the fear but it is the love of God that compels us..
T/S How do we live between two kingdom — First we have to navigate ..
1. The tension of Good and Evil.
2. The Tension of Rewards and Punishment.
3. The Tension of Judgement and grace.
3. The Tension of Judgement and grace.
Most of us have learned life lessons the Hard way --When I started off in ministry - we had this sound system that was dodgy to say the least… The sound board was on the balcony of the church… and once in while it would not work and so I learned that if you opened the lid and wiggled the connection it would work.. … but one Sunday before service… I went to fix the amplifier — but, I forgot to unplug it — and the church was filling up downstairs.. And got to experience 240 volts… the power pulled me in like a magnet.. lets say the people down stairs..heard something from upstairs…
I have only done that Once in my life… We learn from grace and judgement..
The purpose of Preaching and Parables.. to Bring us to the goodness and mercy of God..
The thrust of the Parables is to lead us to Salvation — at the heart of Jesus preaching Through out the the parables..
God is lavishly offering salvation to all. He is generously scattering the seed of the gospel everywhere. He is patiently waiting for us!
He wants us to take a hold of his eternal word. Plant it deeply and safely within the good soil, and watch it grow like wheat waiting to be harvested...
The point of the parable …is that the weeds don’t have to stay weeds....
Augustine wrote,
“Those who are weeds today may be wheat tomorrow.” Church Father Augustine
In fact each one of us was once a Tare at some point.. We were all bad seeds before know Christ…but for the grace of God..
.. Jesus prayed in John 17 his highpriestly prayer..
15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.
Jesus wants us to be in the World.. for the world.. in order to win the world.. ..
Ahha (Reversal):
God allows both the righteous (wheat) and the wicked (weeds) to coexist,
He waits until the very last moment..before bringing in the Harvest..
That is the Gospel - God desires than none perish that all come to the saving knowledge of Christ..
Jonathan Edwards said ..
Everything in the gospel is ordered by God to extend the maximum grace and mercy to His people.
Jonathan Edwards
“The Final Judgment” sermon (1741)
Jonathan Edwards
Yeah (Resolution):
Jesus ends the Parable with a Resolution to the tension..
There is a glorious promise of a glorious of a hopeful future - where the righteous will shine like the sun.
43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
Everything in this Parable points to this This great Resolution - There is a day when “The kingdom of this world shall become the kingdom of our God”
Everything is point to the Milenial Reign of Christ..
Christ has promised a golden age, and though earth and heaven pass away, His words shall not pass away;
Conclusion:
There is scene at of the life of Joseph that puts everything into perspective...
Joseph was highly favored by his Father -
He was the apple of His fathers eye…Jacob - Clothed Joseph with the most beautiful Robe… He stood out from his 11 brothers.. (but, this also made him a target)…
Throughout Joseph life he dealt with the tension of Good and Evil-
His brothers attacked Joseph and Threw into a pit - and sold him into Slavery… Purchased by Potiphar- Wrongly accused by Potiphar’s wife - thrown to prison… Forgotten in Prison and then promoted to Palace....
At the end of Genesis...There is this scene when Jospeh forgives his brothers..and shows them God’s goodness… There is this moment of embrace and repentance..
And Joseph says… …
What you intended for evil --- God used for Good!!
God’s plan was bigger… ultimately, His plan was to preserve the nation of Israel.. it is a beautiful scene of restoration… Joseph held his youngest brother and wept.. At the end of the age there is the greatest Reversal — What enemy intended for harm will turn out for his glory -
This morning — We need to take a moment and think about God justice..
—Maybe the HS is dealing with us -
Some us maybe in the place where we need to become wheat… Judgment is a motivator
Some us maybe God deal with tares…You are in Christ.. but you struggling to live for God… His grace is sufficient..
Each of us is in need of the Savior…today.
lets pray..