St. Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
St. James says in his letter to the churches: “the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, submissive, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and without partiality. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by them who make peace”(James 3:17-18). This informs us as to the parable of Jesus, the wheat and the tares, which compares and contrasts the godly from the wicked. James is speaking concerning the godly, but the question arises--How do we differentiate between the wheat and the tares? Jesus says the field in which the seed is sown is the world. Jesus sewed the good seed, which would be the Christians. The Christians are the wheat which will bear good fruit. The evil one, Satan, sowed the bad seeds, which are the wicked of the world. One of the important points of the wheat and the tares is that this sort of tares that were sown are weeds. Not only are they weeds but they are called “darnel” which bears a striking resemblance to the wheat. To the untrained eye, the eyes of you and me who do not farm, the wheat and the tares may look the same, but the servants who are trained in farming can see the difference. One of Jesus’ points in all of this is that the differences are not easily discerned at first, but when it comes time for the plants to bear their fruit, it will suddenly become very noticeable that one plant, the wheat, will bring forth very good fruit, while the other plant the tares, will bear only bad fruit. The Christian abides side by side with others in the world who are not Christians. The Christian has to realize the dynamics associated with this. We may feel like the servants who are ready to pull the tares out right away. We may feel as though God should cast out the unbeliever from the world. The parable demonstrates for us that this would be dangerous for the church--for all the Christians. If the servants pulled the tares out, they would also destroy some of the wheat. So, Jesus says, the wheat and the tares shall be side by side until the end comes and the wicked and unbelievers perish in hell. The Scriptures are full of comparisons between the godly and the ungodly. The Bible paints the picture of what God’s people are to look like. The danger is that we live in and amongst those who do not worship the Lord. What this means is that God’s people need to ponder what it means to be godly. The Scriptures lay out for us the way of salvation and the ways of holy living. One of the things that we have to realize is that the Bible speaks concerning Jesus and salvation. This is the content of all preaching. In and amongst this preaching we see signposts that tell us how Jesus’ people abide in this world. Christians and the evildoers dwell in this world side by side. Given this fact Christians are to be careful lest they fall away from Christ and lose their salvation. If we are not on guard we could be pulled down into the abyss. Part of the witness of the Scriptures is that God speaks concerning what is holy in order that we may know the difference between being the wheat that bears good fruit versus the tare that looks like the real thing but isn’t. But what is the difference between us? King David sings a song in 2 Samuel. In that song David recounts his journey with the Lord. What is going on in between the lines is David is saying that his protection in this world came from God. David spells out what good fruit looks like. We could say, then, that David is describing for us the difference between the wheat and the tares. He is telling us what the good fruit looks like that differentiates us from the wicked in the world. David says that the Lord delivered him from Saul, the wicked one. David also says that he kept the ways of the Lord and did not wickedly depart from his God. It is at this point that we pause, as we remember David’s sin of adultery and murder. We ask ourselves “how can David say that he did not wickedly depart from his God?” His sin was a departure from his God. The answer lies in Jesus and His precious blood. David’s sin is washed away and remembered no more by God. This is how David can say what he said. When God removes sin, it is gone. In addition, David says a few verses later “God is my strength and power: and He makes my way perfect”(2 Sam. 22:33). The Lord makes clean our lives which have been stained with sin. If we were to read the whole chapter of 2 Samuel 22, we would note the difference between the wheat and the tares of this world. David, along with all of God’s saints, look to God alone for everything in life. David’s sole reliance and trust is in God alone. Coupled with this, God’s people are also merciful and loving. Love for God and love for one’s neighbor is the good fruit that springs forth from God’s wheat in the world. David even speaks to this in his song: “With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful, and with the upright man You will show Yourself upright. With the pure you will show yourself pure; and with the devious you will show yourself shrewed.”(vs. 27). Being a Christian in the world means that, having been washed in the blood of Jesus in Holy Baptism, he or she no longer lives for him or herself. The good fruit that comes at harvest is just as Jesus says: “Fear, love, and trust in God above all things....and love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” To abide in Christ means we worship God, serving and trusting in Him. To abide in Christ means we love others. We do not think about ourselves like the heathen do, but we become new and different. This is not easily done. The hard truth is that Jesus says in the parable that those who trap and scandalize and those who are practicing lawlessness shall be cast into the furnace of fire. Had David not repented, his sins would have remained and he would have perished. But, David’s song shows us the extent of God’s love. Because David recognized his evil and repented, he heard absolution from the mouth of the prophet Nathan. God removed David’s sin. David, then, lived his life confessing to God that “You have given me the shield of Your salvation: and Your gentleness has made me great”(2 Samuel 22:36). In other words, the good fruit that springs forth from God’s children is really the fruit that comes from Jesus. Not only does Jesus take away our sins to the point that we are pure in God’s sight, but He provides the fruit through the Holy Spirit who is implanted in us. It is in this same way that you find yourselves. Though your sins condemned you, Jesus came and took them away so that you can say with David: “God is my strength and power: and He makes my way perfect”(vs. 33). Along with this cleansing of Jesus that covers you, you are also planted by Jesus in this world in His love. You abide in His love now and forever. You rest in His mercy, and the good fruit that characterizes you shall come forth because of the Holy Spirit that dwells within you simply because you belong to Jesus and have the mark of the cross sealed upon you. The wisdom that comes from above of which James speaks, is the wisdom and substance of Jesus who enters you and abides with you even now. Amen. -- Rev. Chad Kendall Trinity Lutheran Church Lowell, Indiana www.trinitylowell.org http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=243282012833
