November 8, 2015 Wheat & Weeds in the Kingdom Matthew 13.24-30, 36-43 I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Those are the words of Jesus Christ in Matthew 16.18. Those words have given Christians confident hope throughout history. Today, we need to hear those words. We know God keeps His promises. And one of the greatest promises are Christ s words I will build my church. Friends, do not doubt this promise. But more than that, claim this promise by receiving the grace of salvation in Jesus Christ. However, while this promise certain, a great war continues. Not a war against flesh & blood, but against unseen spiritual forces of evil. There have been times throughout church history and even today when Christianity has seemed to be at the end one may say only surviving on life support. Which is true, but the church is sustained by an eternal life support. To borrow a familiar line, the rumors of the church s demise have been greatly exaggerated! As we ve seen, Matthew 13 marks a change in the teaching ministry of Jesus. He begins to teach in parables but only explaining the parables to His true disciples. We saw this a few weeks ago in the "Parable of the Soils" and we see it again today in what the disciples refer to as the "Parable of the Weeds." In the "Parable of the Soils" we saw the difference response to the gospel. In the "Parable of the Weeds" we see another powerful lesson, but in both we see Jesus explaining what he will later tell Peter, I will build my church. Keep that promise in mind as we read this morning's text. One of my favorite TV series is Turn. It is a story based on the American & British spy rings during the Revolutionary War. There are visible enemies and invisible enemies. The visible enemies are those in open opposition & fighting. But there are also invisible enemies (spies) who pretend to be on one side, but are actually loyal to the other. You could call these spies false professors. As we read this parable we find these same groups. There are visible & true believers who follow Christ and there are visible unbelievers who are in open rebellion against God. But there are also false professors. Understanding the Parable 1. The kingdom of heaven in the world is like a field that includes wheat & weeds (vv.24-25). I note in the world because the kingdom of heaven/god in the world is different from the kingdom in eternity. How so? In a word sin. In the first week of our series we learned that the kingdom of heaven is the redemptive reign of God in Jesus Christ. 1
The kingdom of heaven is used to describe how God is asserting His authority in the redemption of sinners through Christ. The redemptive reign of God in Christ is infiltrating the world now, but His kingdom will not be consummated [or fully realized] until later when Jesus returns (David Platt). We live in a time period that is referred to as the already, not yet. In Christ s first coming He inaugurated His kingdom. This kingdom is advancing in the world in & through the church. That is our mission: to make disciples of Christ. In Christ s second coming, He will fully & finally consummate His kingdom when He returns to be with His church forever eternally condemning Satan & the spiritual powers of darkness. At that time sin will finally be defeated & removed from those who have put their faith & trust in Christ. Until that day we live between the times. In this time we still experience evil & struggle with the presence of sin. The kingdom of heaven in the world is like a field that includes wheat & weeds. 2. Jesus Christ is the Sovereign Landowner (vv.24, 38). In a general sense the entire world is Christ s kingdom. He is King. Even though many rebel against Him, all of creation is under His sovereign reign. Christ kingship is not based on our declaration, but His position. In other words, people don t make Jesus King. He is the King whether people acknowledge His Lordship or not. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through him and for him (Colossians 1.15-16). So, the world belongs to Christ. It is His. As the Dutch theologian, Abraham Kuyper, once wrote: "There is not an inch of any sphere of life over which Jesus Christ does not say, 'Mine'." But, Christ s kingdom on earth is under attack, not only externally but internally. This parable teaches us that not only will there be unbelievers outside the church, but there will also be false professors within the visible, earthy church. 3. The wheat & weeds represent the mixed composition of the visible church (v.24). There are those who outwardly (or visibly) identify with Christ but who are not inwardly (or invisibly) identify with Christ. While there is certainly some application of this parable to all unbelievers, it specifically refers to those who are false professors giving the appearance of being someone they are not. They say that they are loyal to Christ, but in truth they are not who they claim to be. The enemy plants weeds among the wheat. The weeds in Matthew 13 were not just common, easily distinguishable weeds. They were a type of weed (darnel) that closely resembled wheat. It was almost impossible to distinguish this weed from the wheat until the wheat matured & bore grain. However, by the time the wheat matured the weeds roots are so entangled with the wheat that the weeds could not be pulled without damaging the wheat (Carson). Therefore, in verse 30 the landowner tells is servants: Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers. He says there will come a time (at harvest) when the weeds will be 2
separated from the wheat, but now is not the time. For now the wheat & weeds must grow together. a. The wheat are members of the kingdom (vv.37, 38). Jesus sows the good seed of wheat in the field. Jesus is a good farmer and He does not plant bad seed in His field. b. The weeds are imposters in the kingdom (vv.38-39). Satan plants bad seed of weeds in the field. In his great deception, he plants false "Christians" among true Christians in order attack God s work. Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. 15 So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as servants of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11.14-15). Here s what we need to know Wheat is wheat and weeds are weeds. True believers are believers. The true church is the church. This is not talking about losing salvation. It is describing the deadly & deceiving acts of Satan s warfare against the church. In this world weeds will be among the wheat and the weeds look like the wheat, but they are not. The difference is true allegiance vs. mere association. Imposters are associated with the kingdom, but they are not allegiant to the King & His kingdom. Jesus speaks of these imposters in Matthew 7.21-23: Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name? 23 And then will I declare to them, I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. The invisible church is called invisible because the real state of an individual s heart, the condition of his or her soul is beyond the scope of anyone s vision, except God s. We look at outward [visible] appearances, but God looks on the heart [the invisible]. We all know of people whom we thought were dedicated Christians, but in the end they departed the faith and repudiated everything to do with it. As John tells us, They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. The possibility of deception is always there because we cannot know what is in the soul of another person (R.C. Sproul). The present kingdom (the church) is not a perfect representation of the future kingdom. We are still sinners. Imperfect people. And imperfect people do not join together to make a perfect church. There are no perfect churches. In this world, there is no perfect expressions of God s kingdom. As D.A. Carson writes: The church on earth will always be a mixed community. 4. At the final judgment Jesus will remove imposters from His kingdom (vv.41-43). 3
Judgment is certain and coming. That day is a day of infinite dread for those who oppose Christ, but, it is a day of infinite joy for those who are redeemed in Christ. Applying the Parable 1. Have a biblical expectation of the church in this life. We should not expect the local church to be something that Jesus said it would not be. Don t expect the local church to be something it cannot be namely perfect. It cannot bear that weight. And Jesus did not intend it to. 2. Stop looking for the perfect church. Church-hopping = imperfect people looking for a perfect church. 3. Start serving in the imperfect church. 4. Show compassion, not condemnation. Until Christ returns, the church is to be God s instrument of gracious compassion, not judgment. Christians are not qualified to infallibly distinguish between true and false believers. The church is called to preach and teach against sin and all unrighteousness, but, in doing that, its purpose is not to judge but to win souls, not to punish but to convert sons of the evil one into sons of the kingdom (John MacArthur). a. Personal evangelism b. Discipleship The family of God is where people should find lots of gospel, lots of safety, and lots of time. In other words, the people in our churches need: multiple exposures to the happy news of the gospel from one end of the Bible to the other; the safety of non-accusing sympathy so that they can admit their problems honestly; and enough time to rethink their lives at a deep level, because people are complex and changing is not easy (Ray Ortlund). c. Church discipline This parable does not refer to church discipline. Matthew 18 is clear that the church has the God-given responsibility to address open & rebellious sin in the church. The purpose of church discipline is not to remove weeds, but to reveal wheat. A true Christian will respond to Christian discipline with repentance & reconciliation. A false Christian (an imposter) will respond with denial & rejection. 4
5. Know that Christ s judgment delayed is not justice denied, but grace offered. The presence of evil in the world & even weeds in the church is not evidence that the God s kingdom is not advancing. It is just the opposite; it is shows that the Word of God is true and that Christ is building His true church in the world. The kingdom comes with limitless grace in the midst of an evil world God is sowing a people and we are called to respond (Snodgrass). How do you respond? 5