Thistles Among The Wheat
Preaching
Preaching the Parables
Series II, Cycle A
Object:
He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; 25but while everyone was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. 26So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. 27And 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?' 28He answered, 'An enemy has done this.' The slaves said to him, 'Then do you want us to go and gather them?' 29But he replied, 'No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. 30Let 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.'" 36Then 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." 37He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; 38the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, 39and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, 42and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!"
The parable of the weeds and wheat is intriguing. It raises a number of issues that are complex and can be confusing. Some resolutions of the issues are suggested while for others you need to look elsewhere for more adequate explanations. Some differences are found within the parable itself and the interpretation given to the disciples.
One of the issues is the question about the nature of the church. Does this parable apply to the church as part of the kingdom of God? If so, is the church a divine or a human institution? How should the church deal with differences and dissent among its members? Should a person ever be excluded from membership in the church? What kind, if any, of discipline should the church exercise? If so, when, why and how? Is the church intended to be inclusive so that it encompasses anyone who wants to belong? Or is the church exclusive, so that certain conditions are established for entrance into and continuing in membership in the church? It is the issue posed by Troeltsch in his description of the church as inclusive or the sect as exclusive. Which should be the true form of the church?
Another broad issue raised by the interpretation of the parable is the presence of evil in the church and in the world. Should the church advocate the eradication of the evil by destroying the perpetrators of evil? What is the role of the church in supporting attempts to remove the evil? It even raises the question of why a good and powerful God permits evil to persist in the world. Can we trust that God will ultimately overcome all evil? If so, when and how will that happen? How should the church and Christians behave toward the evil in the world during the interim until God brings the end of history, especially when evil seems to be overwhelming the good?
Context
The parable is one of three in the current series, all having a similar purpose in understanding the nature of the kingdom of heaven.
Context of Matthew 13
Three parables from an agricultural setting are given in succession in Matthew 13: the parable of the seeds and the sower for the previous Sunday, the parable of the weeds and wheat for this Sunday, and the parable of the mustard seed which interrupts the flow from this Sunday's parable and its interpretation in verses 36-43. Three additional parables are found in Matthew 13. They will be the Gospel reading for Pentecost 10.
Context of the Lectionary Lesson
The First Lesson. (Genesis 28:10-19a) Jacob is in flight after having tricked his brother Esau into giving him the inheritance in exchange for a mess of pottage. As he sleeps at night he has a dream of God's messengers ascending and descending from heaven. In the dream he gains assurance that he is in the line of Abraham and will be the recipient of the promise of his covenant. When he awakes he memorializes the place and calls it Bethel, the house of God.
The Second Lesson. (Romans 8:12-25) This lesson deals with the universal need for deliverance from sin. Those who accept God's deliverance will be his heirs. The Gospel account waits for the harvest. This passage waits with hope for a full deliverance of all creation.
Gospel. (Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43) The parable uses a story about weeds in the midst of wheat and Jesus' interpretation of it to the disciples. He deals with the issue of evil in the midst of the world and the church. It addresses God's prerogative in dealing with the eventual elimination of the evil.
Psalm. (Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24) The psalmist acknowledges that nothing can be kept hidden from God. God knows our innermost being. Though Jacob could flee from his brother Esau in the first lesson, the psalmist asserts that it is not possible to flee from God. Jacob in his flight also did not escape from God's presence. The psalmist concludes by praying for God to examine him and to lead him in the way everlasting.
Context of Related Scriptures
Daniel 12:3 -- An earlier use of the expression "then the righteous will shine."
2 Esdras 7:36 -- Mention of the furnace of fire.
Matthew 3:12 -- Another instance of gathering the wheat into the granary and winnowing the chaff with fire.
Matthew 18:15-20 -- The process for dealing with sin within the church.
Matthew 28:20 -- A favorite phrase of Matthew about "the end of the age."
Mark 4:26-29 -- Has some parallel ideas of wheat growing and harvested, but without the weeds growing in the midst.
Precis of the Parable
The parable tells of an incident that would be familiar to those who heard it. In a society which was basically rural and agriculturally related in character, the growth of weeds in the midst of a grain field would be common. Weeds growing in a field of wheat can still be seen where farmers do not use herbicides.
Some commentators raise the question as to whether the parable is a variant of the parable recorded in Mark 4:26-29 since the parable only appears in Matthew. In Mark's parable the point is that God gives the increase which results in a fruitful harvest. Perhaps Matthew expanded on the parable to explain the experience of the early church when it became evident that not everyone in the church acted purely.
A somewhat different emphasis is given in the interpretation in verses 36 to 43. Many commentators are inclined to believe that this interpretation did not come from Jesus. It seems to have more linguistic characteristics from Matthew than from the sayings of Jesus recorded elsewhere. The commentators speculate that the interpretation which seems to shift the locus of the field from the church to the world and introduces a second sower who accounts for the weeds as a deliberate act represents the experience of the later church.
Thesis: God is the judge of what is ultimately good and evil.
Theme: The experience of evil and good in history is ambiguous. Human perceptions of what is real and what appears as evil are not certain.
Key Words of the Parable
1. "Asleep." (v. 25) This term may be an echo of Mark 4:27. In both instances the growth took place while persons slept, so they cannot take full credit for the harvest. In the final analysis it is the work of God.
2. "Enemy." (v. 25) The interpretation in v. 39 describes the enemy as the devil.
3. "Weeds." (v. 25) The weeds were darnel (lolium termulentum). When they grew up they had a similar appearance to wheat, though they were slightly darker in color. They did grow as tall as wheat. Their seed was poisonous. Rabbis considered them as a perverted form of wheat.
4. "Slaves." (v. 28) Probably the disciples if from Jesus, or, if from Matthew, others in the later church who wanted to purge the church of all whom they considered unfaithful.
5. "Let them grow together." (v. 30) This is the main point of the parable. It calls for a measure of tolerance for sinners in the church, and later, as part of the interpretation, in the world.
6. "Weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned." (v. 30) An image of the last judgment. God had promised after the Noah experience not to destroy the world by flood. In the New Testament period, the final judgment was anticipated to be accompanied with destruction by fire. See, for example, 2 Peter 3:11-13.
7. "Then he left the crowds." (v. 36) The interpretation was not given to the multitudes but only to the inner circle of disciples.
8. "The Son of Man." (v. 37) The term sometimes referred simply to a person when used with the indefinite article, "a son of man." In this case where the definitive article was used, it denotes the title of the apocalyptic figure associated with the final outcome of history.
9. "The field." (v. 38) The figure is of a global nature, not the "world" as sometimes used in a missionary sense.
10. "Children of the evil one." (v. 38) Some commentators think this is a harsh judgment of the Jews.
11. "Evildoers." (v. 41) Literally from the Greek "doers of lawlessness."
12. "Weeping and gnashing of teeth." (v. 42) Except for a use in Luke 13:28, the phrase seems to be used only in Matthew. It appears elsewhere in Matthew 13:50, 22:13, 24:51, and 25:30, always as a transhistorical event.
Contemplation
Insights
1. The Age of Redemption vs. Judgment. Jesus came as an agent of redemption. His message was one of repentance, grace, and forgiveness. Only at the "end of the age" would Christ be an agent of judgment. Now in history is the opportunity to avert the consequences of judgment and to prepare to participate in the full glory of the heavenly kingdom when it is revealed in its fullness.
2. The Way of Invitation. The method Jesus used and to which he called his disciples was that of inviting all people to enter the kingdom of heaven. It is not the way of coercion, forceful conversion, or the destruction of those who decline the invitation or oppose the kingdom. Instead it is to woo them by the attractive power of the kingdom and to warn them of the death to which they are tending when they refuse the invitation.
3. Confidence in the outcome of history. The parable manifests a confidence about the working of God's kingdom in history. If the seed is sown, we can be confident that it will germinate without our having to force it. It will produce fruit and the harvest will come. We are not the servants who are to try to sort out the ambiguities of good and evil in history. Rather we are to sow the seed and wait in confidence that the harvest will come, that the good will endure beyond the fruits of evil.
4. Evil is found in the world. Dante in his Divine Comedy says the evil is an absence, excess, or distortion of a good. In a world created by God anything that is absolutely or totally evil could not be allowed to exist. Nevertheless, evil is real and we need to contend with it. We need to recover the good intended by the Creator from the evil. In the world and in history, evil exists and we need to participate both in the struggle to overcome it and to discover the good that lies beyond the evil. We do so in the faith that the good is more enduring than the evil because God is both good and powerful.
5. The Field is the World. "America: Love it or Leave it," "They ought to go back where they came from" and "Yankee go home" are slogans often heard when persons do not agree with someone who speaks out against an injustice or an evil. The kingdom of heaven is not restricted by political boundaries set up by human institutions. The call to sow the seed is to go into all the world, to all of God's creation. It is all God's domain, and if we are members of his kingdom and are to sow the seed in faithfulness, our vision and our terrain is global in reach.
Homily Hints
1. Hope of Harvest. The parable offers an opportunity to consider the evangelism process, whether it is within the church family or as a mission outreach.
A. The Seed is Sown. What is the message of the gospel that needs to be given to people?
B. The Seed Grows. How does the church nurture the seed, but how do you let it happen without intervention?
C. The Harvest Comes. To what degree does the church screen out who becomes members and to what degree does the church accept members with the final judgment in God's hands?
2. The Kingdom Conquers Evil. People need hope in facing the mixture of good and evil.
A. Evils in the World.
B. Good in the World.
C. God Assures the Greater Good.
3. Evil is Self-Destructive. Here deal with why we should participate in the good and refrain from the evil.
A. Evil is Counteractive. Evil has no center of energy, no organizing principle. Instead, various evils act against each other in chaos that is self-destructive.
B. Good is Cumulative. Because God gives a center to good actions, they reinforce each other in a harmony of order. This means the power of a good increases the power of other goods and then in turn is increased by them also.
C. History Moves Toward Good Ends. Despite the apparently overwhelming evils of the moment, evil is transitory; only the good persists.
4. The Church's Responsibility for the World.
A. When are we Responsible for the World?
B. When do we Leave the World to God?
C. Tolerance for Some Mix of Good and Evil.
5. The Deceptive Nature of Evil. Just as the weeds at times look like wheat, so some evils are attractive because they look like a good.
A. The Deceptive Nature of Drugs. Why do people think drugs are good? What are the misleading aspects of them?
B. The Deception of Sex. Why is something as good as sex and as necessary for the future of the race so wrong when practiced promiscuously?
C. The Deception of Wealth. When does the pursuit of wealth become an evil?
Contact
Points of Contact
1. The Weeds in the Christian. We all have biological urges which help to maintain life and make us survivors. Yet the greatest good can become a great evil. For example, the sexual drive which helps to assure the survival of the race can lead to the most intimate and loving relationship between two people and lead to a caring, nurturing family. Yet the abuse of sex can lead to the most bitter relationships if fulfillment of the drive is perverted or abused. Crimes of passion are some of the most tragic.
2. Weeds in the World. A frequent puzzle for people is why good does not always seem to happen to people of faith while others seem to escape unscathed. People ask, why do I or a loved one suffer an incurable disease or a fatal accident? They need to prepare for the suffering of disease or a natural disaster, not only at the time when it occurs, but ahead of such events.
3. The Mystery of Growth. In the spring of the year what appears to be dead comes to new life. The work of the Holy Spirit operates in a similar way in the life of people. It is always something of a mystery as to how and when people are aroused to faith. We can work at teaching and preaching, yet people do not automatically respond. It is often surprising when some people seem suddenly to respond and begin to show unexpected promise.
4. The Illusion of Good and Evil. Our judgments of people can be fallible. Our knowledge of how people turn out and what brings change is faulty. Who would have thought that Saul when persecuting the church would become Paul, the greatest missionary in spreading the church to the Gentile world and leaving a body of literature to guide the church for future generations? If we call for the death of some person because of the appearance of evil, how do we know whether we will prevent the ministry of a significant agent for accomplishing God's will? We need a tolerance for the growth of the weeds and the wheat together because we cannot always know in the final analysis which is which.
Points to Ponder
1. Church Discipline. When, why, and how does the church exercise discipline? Three reasons are often given for disciplining church members: 1. To redeem the sinners. 2. To keep the church from being infected by the example of the sinner. 3. To protect the reputation of the church in the world. If the prime reasons become two and three instead of one, discipline easily becomes punitive instead of redemptive. If no discipline is exercised, it appears that the church is indifferent toward sin. How do you maintain the purity of the church and still allow for that sin that befalls all of us at times?
2. What are the Limits of Means to Oppose Evil? Are some means of eliminating evil also evil? Can we ever use evil means to cast out evil? When do we become guilty of playing God if we try to eradicate evil by destroying the evildoer? Do we leave the outcome of evil in history in God's hands, or do we take some actions against evil, but refrain from seeking final solutions to evil in history? When do we set bounds on our actions and leave the harvest to God's wisdom and power?
3. Are the Weeds Only in the World? Does the parable only have reference to how we deal with sin inside the church, or does it have reference to the world and the church? If it only has reference to the church, or both to the world and the church, what are the implications for the actions of the church in toleration of the mixture of weeds and wheat?
4. Our Mission to the World. To what extent should Christians be involved in trying to deal with evil in the world? Should the church be engaged in social action: solving problems of unemployment, homelessness, crime prevention, drug addiction, overpopulation, and similar issues? Is the church concerned about the amelioration of evil by minimizing violence, correcting violations of human rights, eliminating injustice, and working to avoid environmental degradation? Or is it the church's task only to preach the gospel and seek the conversion of persons, and to leave the problems of society to other agencies? Is social change a hopeless endeavor since evil and sin will continue to exist along with the good in history?
5. Heresy and Dissent. What is the role of heresy and dissent in clarifying truth? Have not the disagreements of the past helped the church to arrive at a better understanding of Christian doctrine? How do we deal with heresies to use them constructively for the faith and not destructively?
Illustrative Material
1. The Seed of the Word. Including New Testaments, booklets and tracts, the American Bible Society (ABS) reported that it distributed 15,000 pieces to those who survived the midwestern floods of 1993. They were active from North Dakota to Missouri, supporting church groups, disaster relief agencies, the Salvation Army and community groups. The ABS also distributed 21,000 pieces after the January 1994, Los Angeles earthquake.
2. Planting the Seed. In 1994 permission was granted to evangelical Christians in Iraq to organize Bible studies in the public schools. The Ministry of Religion also arranged with the Bible League to receive materials. According to The Church and The World, 2,000 Bibles were recently shipped to local churches.
3. Eradicating Weeds. In the sixteenth century in the Netherlands, a church dispute arose. As it became increasingly severe, two groups separated with each excommunicating the other. An issue to be settled was the use of the substantial church building. The two groups finally agreed to build a wall down the center of the sanctuary. Both parties continued to worship in the building, but a wall separated them!
4. Separating Weeds and Wheat. Some church groups have sought to keep a pure church by excommunicating those with whom they do not agree. In one instance it went to such an extreme that a leader excommunicated everyone but himself and his wife.
5. A Bad Harvest. In the Middle Ages the Spanish Inquisition tried desperately to root out all heresy. Many persons were burned at the stake in so-called auto-de-fes. Some historians have proposed that after the Inquisition executed many of the best people the impoverishment of Spain lasted for centuries and that accounts for its slow progress into a modern society.
6. Planting Thistles. "The Meanest Man"
He carried thistle seeds in his pocket,
and now and then dropped some on favorable ground --
favorable, that is, to his personal dislikes --
and pushed them in with his heel.1
7. Choosing the Right Seed. On July 29, 1994, a former Presbyterian pastor, Paul Jennings Hill, shot abortion doctor John Bayard Britton and his escort Herman Barrett and wounded Barrett's wife June in the arm in Pensacola, Florida. A later report indicated that Paul Hill was in part influenced in his action by the Rev. David Trosch, a Catholic priest who was removed from his parish by Mobile Archbishop Oscar Lipscomb because he was advocating the slaying of abortion doctors. The priest owns two guns, a .22 pistol and a .20 gauge shotgun. He has never used them to kill anything other than a bird on one occasion. The report said, however, that he has weapons that may be a graver danger than his guns: that is, his mouth and his clerical collar. The Rev. Trosch earlier had paid to advertise a cartoon that showed an anti-abortionist shooting an abortion doctor with the caption "Justifiable Homicide." The Rev. Trosch is known to have been friendly with Paul Hill after the earlier shooting of another doctor in Pensacola. Some would hold Trosch equally responsible for the deaths of Dr. Britton and Herman Barrett and the wounding of June Barrett.
________
1. Millen Brand, Local Lives (New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1975), p. 334.
The parable of the weeds and wheat is intriguing. It raises a number of issues that are complex and can be confusing. Some resolutions of the issues are suggested while for others you need to look elsewhere for more adequate explanations. Some differences are found within the parable itself and the interpretation given to the disciples.
One of the issues is the question about the nature of the church. Does this parable apply to the church as part of the kingdom of God? If so, is the church a divine or a human institution? How should the church deal with differences and dissent among its members? Should a person ever be excluded from membership in the church? What kind, if any, of discipline should the church exercise? If so, when, why and how? Is the church intended to be inclusive so that it encompasses anyone who wants to belong? Or is the church exclusive, so that certain conditions are established for entrance into and continuing in membership in the church? It is the issue posed by Troeltsch in his description of the church as inclusive or the sect as exclusive. Which should be the true form of the church?
Another broad issue raised by the interpretation of the parable is the presence of evil in the church and in the world. Should the church advocate the eradication of the evil by destroying the perpetrators of evil? What is the role of the church in supporting attempts to remove the evil? It even raises the question of why a good and powerful God permits evil to persist in the world. Can we trust that God will ultimately overcome all evil? If so, when and how will that happen? How should the church and Christians behave toward the evil in the world during the interim until God brings the end of history, especially when evil seems to be overwhelming the good?
Context
The parable is one of three in the current series, all having a similar purpose in understanding the nature of the kingdom of heaven.
Context of Matthew 13
Three parables from an agricultural setting are given in succession in Matthew 13: the parable of the seeds and the sower for the previous Sunday, the parable of the weeds and wheat for this Sunday, and the parable of the mustard seed which interrupts the flow from this Sunday's parable and its interpretation in verses 36-43. Three additional parables are found in Matthew 13. They will be the Gospel reading for Pentecost 10.
Context of the Lectionary Lesson
The First Lesson. (Genesis 28:10-19a) Jacob is in flight after having tricked his brother Esau into giving him the inheritance in exchange for a mess of pottage. As he sleeps at night he has a dream of God's messengers ascending and descending from heaven. In the dream he gains assurance that he is in the line of Abraham and will be the recipient of the promise of his covenant. When he awakes he memorializes the place and calls it Bethel, the house of God.
The Second Lesson. (Romans 8:12-25) This lesson deals with the universal need for deliverance from sin. Those who accept God's deliverance will be his heirs. The Gospel account waits for the harvest. This passage waits with hope for a full deliverance of all creation.
Gospel. (Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43) The parable uses a story about weeds in the midst of wheat and Jesus' interpretation of it to the disciples. He deals with the issue of evil in the midst of the world and the church. It addresses God's prerogative in dealing with the eventual elimination of the evil.
Psalm. (Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24) The psalmist acknowledges that nothing can be kept hidden from God. God knows our innermost being. Though Jacob could flee from his brother Esau in the first lesson, the psalmist asserts that it is not possible to flee from God. Jacob in his flight also did not escape from God's presence. The psalmist concludes by praying for God to examine him and to lead him in the way everlasting.
Context of Related Scriptures
Daniel 12:3 -- An earlier use of the expression "then the righteous will shine."
2 Esdras 7:36 -- Mention of the furnace of fire.
Matthew 3:12 -- Another instance of gathering the wheat into the granary and winnowing the chaff with fire.
Matthew 18:15-20 -- The process for dealing with sin within the church.
Matthew 28:20 -- A favorite phrase of Matthew about "the end of the age."
Mark 4:26-29 -- Has some parallel ideas of wheat growing and harvested, but without the weeds growing in the midst.
Precis of the Parable
The parable tells of an incident that would be familiar to those who heard it. In a society which was basically rural and agriculturally related in character, the growth of weeds in the midst of a grain field would be common. Weeds growing in a field of wheat can still be seen where farmers do not use herbicides.
Some commentators raise the question as to whether the parable is a variant of the parable recorded in Mark 4:26-29 since the parable only appears in Matthew. In Mark's parable the point is that God gives the increase which results in a fruitful harvest. Perhaps Matthew expanded on the parable to explain the experience of the early church when it became evident that not everyone in the church acted purely.
A somewhat different emphasis is given in the interpretation in verses 36 to 43. Many commentators are inclined to believe that this interpretation did not come from Jesus. It seems to have more linguistic characteristics from Matthew than from the sayings of Jesus recorded elsewhere. The commentators speculate that the interpretation which seems to shift the locus of the field from the church to the world and introduces a second sower who accounts for the weeds as a deliberate act represents the experience of the later church.
Thesis: God is the judge of what is ultimately good and evil.
Theme: The experience of evil and good in history is ambiguous. Human perceptions of what is real and what appears as evil are not certain.
Key Words of the Parable
1. "Asleep." (v. 25) This term may be an echo of Mark 4:27. In both instances the growth took place while persons slept, so they cannot take full credit for the harvest. In the final analysis it is the work of God.
2. "Enemy." (v. 25) The interpretation in v. 39 describes the enemy as the devil.
3. "Weeds." (v. 25) The weeds were darnel (lolium termulentum). When they grew up they had a similar appearance to wheat, though they were slightly darker in color. They did grow as tall as wheat. Their seed was poisonous. Rabbis considered them as a perverted form of wheat.
4. "Slaves." (v. 28) Probably the disciples if from Jesus, or, if from Matthew, others in the later church who wanted to purge the church of all whom they considered unfaithful.
5. "Let them grow together." (v. 30) This is the main point of the parable. It calls for a measure of tolerance for sinners in the church, and later, as part of the interpretation, in the world.
6. "Weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned." (v. 30) An image of the last judgment. God had promised after the Noah experience not to destroy the world by flood. In the New Testament period, the final judgment was anticipated to be accompanied with destruction by fire. See, for example, 2 Peter 3:11-13.
7. "Then he left the crowds." (v. 36) The interpretation was not given to the multitudes but only to the inner circle of disciples.
8. "The Son of Man." (v. 37) The term sometimes referred simply to a person when used with the indefinite article, "a son of man." In this case where the definitive article was used, it denotes the title of the apocalyptic figure associated with the final outcome of history.
9. "The field." (v. 38) The figure is of a global nature, not the "world" as sometimes used in a missionary sense.
10. "Children of the evil one." (v. 38) Some commentators think this is a harsh judgment of the Jews.
11. "Evildoers." (v. 41) Literally from the Greek "doers of lawlessness."
12. "Weeping and gnashing of teeth." (v. 42) Except for a use in Luke 13:28, the phrase seems to be used only in Matthew. It appears elsewhere in Matthew 13:50, 22:13, 24:51, and 25:30, always as a transhistorical event.
Contemplation
Insights
1. The Age of Redemption vs. Judgment. Jesus came as an agent of redemption. His message was one of repentance, grace, and forgiveness. Only at the "end of the age" would Christ be an agent of judgment. Now in history is the opportunity to avert the consequences of judgment and to prepare to participate in the full glory of the heavenly kingdom when it is revealed in its fullness.
2. The Way of Invitation. The method Jesus used and to which he called his disciples was that of inviting all people to enter the kingdom of heaven. It is not the way of coercion, forceful conversion, or the destruction of those who decline the invitation or oppose the kingdom. Instead it is to woo them by the attractive power of the kingdom and to warn them of the death to which they are tending when they refuse the invitation.
3. Confidence in the outcome of history. The parable manifests a confidence about the working of God's kingdom in history. If the seed is sown, we can be confident that it will germinate without our having to force it. It will produce fruit and the harvest will come. We are not the servants who are to try to sort out the ambiguities of good and evil in history. Rather we are to sow the seed and wait in confidence that the harvest will come, that the good will endure beyond the fruits of evil.
4. Evil is found in the world. Dante in his Divine Comedy says the evil is an absence, excess, or distortion of a good. In a world created by God anything that is absolutely or totally evil could not be allowed to exist. Nevertheless, evil is real and we need to contend with it. We need to recover the good intended by the Creator from the evil. In the world and in history, evil exists and we need to participate both in the struggle to overcome it and to discover the good that lies beyond the evil. We do so in the faith that the good is more enduring than the evil because God is both good and powerful.
5. The Field is the World. "America: Love it or Leave it," "They ought to go back where they came from" and "Yankee go home" are slogans often heard when persons do not agree with someone who speaks out against an injustice or an evil. The kingdom of heaven is not restricted by political boundaries set up by human institutions. The call to sow the seed is to go into all the world, to all of God's creation. It is all God's domain, and if we are members of his kingdom and are to sow the seed in faithfulness, our vision and our terrain is global in reach.
Homily Hints
1. Hope of Harvest. The parable offers an opportunity to consider the evangelism process, whether it is within the church family or as a mission outreach.
A. The Seed is Sown. What is the message of the gospel that needs to be given to people?
B. The Seed Grows. How does the church nurture the seed, but how do you let it happen without intervention?
C. The Harvest Comes. To what degree does the church screen out who becomes members and to what degree does the church accept members with the final judgment in God's hands?
2. The Kingdom Conquers Evil. People need hope in facing the mixture of good and evil.
A. Evils in the World.
B. Good in the World.
C. God Assures the Greater Good.
3. Evil is Self-Destructive. Here deal with why we should participate in the good and refrain from the evil.
A. Evil is Counteractive. Evil has no center of energy, no organizing principle. Instead, various evils act against each other in chaos that is self-destructive.
B. Good is Cumulative. Because God gives a center to good actions, they reinforce each other in a harmony of order. This means the power of a good increases the power of other goods and then in turn is increased by them also.
C. History Moves Toward Good Ends. Despite the apparently overwhelming evils of the moment, evil is transitory; only the good persists.
4. The Church's Responsibility for the World.
A. When are we Responsible for the World?
B. When do we Leave the World to God?
C. Tolerance for Some Mix of Good and Evil.
5. The Deceptive Nature of Evil. Just as the weeds at times look like wheat, so some evils are attractive because they look like a good.
A. The Deceptive Nature of Drugs. Why do people think drugs are good? What are the misleading aspects of them?
B. The Deception of Sex. Why is something as good as sex and as necessary for the future of the race so wrong when practiced promiscuously?
C. The Deception of Wealth. When does the pursuit of wealth become an evil?
Contact
Points of Contact
1. The Weeds in the Christian. We all have biological urges which help to maintain life and make us survivors. Yet the greatest good can become a great evil. For example, the sexual drive which helps to assure the survival of the race can lead to the most intimate and loving relationship between two people and lead to a caring, nurturing family. Yet the abuse of sex can lead to the most bitter relationships if fulfillment of the drive is perverted or abused. Crimes of passion are some of the most tragic.
2. Weeds in the World. A frequent puzzle for people is why good does not always seem to happen to people of faith while others seem to escape unscathed. People ask, why do I or a loved one suffer an incurable disease or a fatal accident? They need to prepare for the suffering of disease or a natural disaster, not only at the time when it occurs, but ahead of such events.
3. The Mystery of Growth. In the spring of the year what appears to be dead comes to new life. The work of the Holy Spirit operates in a similar way in the life of people. It is always something of a mystery as to how and when people are aroused to faith. We can work at teaching and preaching, yet people do not automatically respond. It is often surprising when some people seem suddenly to respond and begin to show unexpected promise.
4. The Illusion of Good and Evil. Our judgments of people can be fallible. Our knowledge of how people turn out and what brings change is faulty. Who would have thought that Saul when persecuting the church would become Paul, the greatest missionary in spreading the church to the Gentile world and leaving a body of literature to guide the church for future generations? If we call for the death of some person because of the appearance of evil, how do we know whether we will prevent the ministry of a significant agent for accomplishing God's will? We need a tolerance for the growth of the weeds and the wheat together because we cannot always know in the final analysis which is which.
Points to Ponder
1. Church Discipline. When, why, and how does the church exercise discipline? Three reasons are often given for disciplining church members: 1. To redeem the sinners. 2. To keep the church from being infected by the example of the sinner. 3. To protect the reputation of the church in the world. If the prime reasons become two and three instead of one, discipline easily becomes punitive instead of redemptive. If no discipline is exercised, it appears that the church is indifferent toward sin. How do you maintain the purity of the church and still allow for that sin that befalls all of us at times?
2. What are the Limits of Means to Oppose Evil? Are some means of eliminating evil also evil? Can we ever use evil means to cast out evil? When do we become guilty of playing God if we try to eradicate evil by destroying the evildoer? Do we leave the outcome of evil in history in God's hands, or do we take some actions against evil, but refrain from seeking final solutions to evil in history? When do we set bounds on our actions and leave the harvest to God's wisdom and power?
3. Are the Weeds Only in the World? Does the parable only have reference to how we deal with sin inside the church, or does it have reference to the world and the church? If it only has reference to the church, or both to the world and the church, what are the implications for the actions of the church in toleration of the mixture of weeds and wheat?
4. Our Mission to the World. To what extent should Christians be involved in trying to deal with evil in the world? Should the church be engaged in social action: solving problems of unemployment, homelessness, crime prevention, drug addiction, overpopulation, and similar issues? Is the church concerned about the amelioration of evil by minimizing violence, correcting violations of human rights, eliminating injustice, and working to avoid environmental degradation? Or is it the church's task only to preach the gospel and seek the conversion of persons, and to leave the problems of society to other agencies? Is social change a hopeless endeavor since evil and sin will continue to exist along with the good in history?
5. Heresy and Dissent. What is the role of heresy and dissent in clarifying truth? Have not the disagreements of the past helped the church to arrive at a better understanding of Christian doctrine? How do we deal with heresies to use them constructively for the faith and not destructively?
Illustrative Material
1. The Seed of the Word. Including New Testaments, booklets and tracts, the American Bible Society (ABS) reported that it distributed 15,000 pieces to those who survived the midwestern floods of 1993. They were active from North Dakota to Missouri, supporting church groups, disaster relief agencies, the Salvation Army and community groups. The ABS also distributed 21,000 pieces after the January 1994, Los Angeles earthquake.
2. Planting the Seed. In 1994 permission was granted to evangelical Christians in Iraq to organize Bible studies in the public schools. The Ministry of Religion also arranged with the Bible League to receive materials. According to The Church and The World, 2,000 Bibles were recently shipped to local churches.
3. Eradicating Weeds. In the sixteenth century in the Netherlands, a church dispute arose. As it became increasingly severe, two groups separated with each excommunicating the other. An issue to be settled was the use of the substantial church building. The two groups finally agreed to build a wall down the center of the sanctuary. Both parties continued to worship in the building, but a wall separated them!
4. Separating Weeds and Wheat. Some church groups have sought to keep a pure church by excommunicating those with whom they do not agree. In one instance it went to such an extreme that a leader excommunicated everyone but himself and his wife.
5. A Bad Harvest. In the Middle Ages the Spanish Inquisition tried desperately to root out all heresy. Many persons were burned at the stake in so-called auto-de-fes. Some historians have proposed that after the Inquisition executed many of the best people the impoverishment of Spain lasted for centuries and that accounts for its slow progress into a modern society.
6. Planting Thistles. "The Meanest Man"
He carried thistle seeds in his pocket,
and now and then dropped some on favorable ground --
favorable, that is, to his personal dislikes --
and pushed them in with his heel.1
7. Choosing the Right Seed. On July 29, 1994, a former Presbyterian pastor, Paul Jennings Hill, shot abortion doctor John Bayard Britton and his escort Herman Barrett and wounded Barrett's wife June in the arm in Pensacola, Florida. A later report indicated that Paul Hill was in part influenced in his action by the Rev. David Trosch, a Catholic priest who was removed from his parish by Mobile Archbishop Oscar Lipscomb because he was advocating the slaying of abortion doctors. The priest owns two guns, a .22 pistol and a .20 gauge shotgun. He has never used them to kill anything other than a bird on one occasion. The report said, however, that he has weapons that may be a graver danger than his guns: that is, his mouth and his clerical collar. The Rev. Trosch earlier had paid to advertise a cartoon that showed an anti-abortionist shooting an abortion doctor with the caption "Justifiable Homicide." The Rev. Trosch is known to have been friendly with Paul Hill after the earlier shooting of another doctor in Pensacola. Some would hold Trosch equally responsible for the deaths of Dr. Britton and Herman Barrett and the wounding of June Barrett.
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1. Millen Brand, Local Lives (New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1975), p. 334.
