Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 NRSV
The Parable of Weeds among the Wheat How did the weeds get there? Who would do such a thing? They were placed by enemies! This was something the listeners would have been too familiar with as Feuding families and feuding groups were a part of the social landscape during the First Century. Being born into a given family, a person would have inherited a ready made set of friends and enemies. So in a known context what is Jesus trying to teach with this parable. This is the first of Matthews parables that begin with “The kingdom of heaven is like …”
Jesus is teaching against the building of boundaries and efforts to have and create a pure, exclusive communities. It is also a parable of the coming judgement and about not passing judgement. That Judgement is Gods business and will be settled in the end. Judgement is not for us to spend our time and energy on. The parable is realistic about the world we find ourselves in. It does not paint a rosy picture of the world as both good & evil present. It is one or the other, no sliding scale, it is Good and Evil, no in between, that reflects how Matthew saw things. There is an acceptance of this reality with no attempts to banish evil. That the bad is something that we have to learn to live with. This world with the good and the bad is the field in which we find ourselves. The parable is a reminder that the world, the family into which we were born and even the church has both good and bad that they are not always a trustworthy places.
The world has places of light, beauty, wonder and delight, but dark places of cruelty too. Families can cause deep pain as well as great joy. The church can be courageous one moment and petty the next. Good mixes in with the bad. Wheat and weeds together in the field. This does not mean we just give in. This is not a call to be passive in the face of evil. To ignore injustice in the world, violence in society or wrong in the church. Rather it’s a realistic reminder that we alone cannot get rid of all the weeds. We and other good people are to remain strong in love, compassion and justice. But it is with God that ultimately the weeds will be destroyed. Remember that evil is temporary only good endures. The parable ends with ‘the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom’. What a beautiful image. Just like winter sunshine breaking through heavy clouds.
The parable ends with a place of joy & hope. We live in an imperfect world and no human effort can completely get rid of the imperfections. That though was never our job. We have been given the task of living faithfully and as obediently as possible, confident that the harvest will come.
How can I live faithfully this week?