Wheat and Weeds

31Oct
Jesus 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.” 
-Matthew 13:24-30


Does this parable send a little chill down your spine? After all, if you have even a bit of self-awareness, you will recognize that there seem to be some weed-like things growing in your life. And if you’re prone to morbid self-reflection, you might even imagine yourself as “all weed”. Destined to be bundled up and burned at harvest time! 


But hold on a minute. Jesus’s parables are rarely what they seem at first reading (or hearing, as originally intended), so let’s take a closer look. We are all, everyone one of us, complicated, complex human creatures. Made in God’s image, yes, but also inheritors of Adam and Eve’s poor decision-making. We are both things at once. One hand reaching towards Heaven, the other anxiously grasping for safety and security and power and control. As we grow towards spiritual maturity, as we grow towards a deeper appreciation of our True Self, we will find a Self that lives in the expansive freedom of seeking and serving Christ in all persons. It is then that the wheat of our Heavenly nature will begin to choke off the weeds of selfishness and fear so that our True Selves might be seen and known with ever greater clarity. But you know what? That process will never be complete this side of the grave. Even in the best of us, there will always be at least a few residual weeds. 


So now imagine that here we are at Harvest Time. Each one of us our own unique combination of weeds and wheat. Pardon me while I mix metaphors here, but let me observe along with the Apostle Paul in the 13th chapter of 1st Corinthians, that we now live our lives seeing through a glass dimly, but at harvest time, we will see Christ face to face. And Christ, the keeper of the field in which we all grow, will have his reapers bundle all our weeds together and throw them onto a refining fire. The wheat, our True Self, the Self that God created in God’s own image, will remain. The refiner’s fire, pure and holy, will liberate the True Self for life in the Eternal Presence.

There’s the promise in the parable. All that keeps us from living in the freedom of life with Christ will finally be removed. But we ourselves can also do a little weed pulling along the way. Daily practice of prayer, regular participation in your worshipping community, commitment to serving Christ in your neighbor, speaking with kindness rather than contempt, and above all giving thanks to the Creator for all the blessings of this life. Such a life begins to choke off the weeds and allows the wheat to flourish. May it be so for you and for me.


Musical Reflection - In the Fields of the Lord - The Porter's Gate


Almighty God, whose loving hand hath given us all that we possess: Grant us grace that we may honor thee with our substance, and, remembering the account which we must one day give, may be faithful stewards of thy bounty, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

- Collect for the Right use of God's gifts, BCP

HopeGospelPentecost

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