Exodus 7-8
Matthew 15:1-20

“The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray.” —1 Peter 4:7 

Throughout the Gospels, we can find that Jesus often speaks to the crowd in parables. In one of His teachings, He says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed ears, then the weeds also appeared. The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ ‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up’ ‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: first collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn’” (Matthew 13:24-30).

Jesus offers no interpretation of this parable, so after the crowd left, His disciples asked Him for an explanation. Jesus replied, “The One who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels” (Matthew 13:37-39).

The people listening to this parable were Jews who were suffering under regime after regime for centuries. They anticipated the arrival of the Messiah to herald the new day dawning where evil and wickedness would be overthrown. They expected a conquering king to throw off the Roman occupation and to liberate them. What Jesus’s parable reveals is the “now and not yet” activity of God in the world.

The parable shows that the evil one is actively planting his own seeds. We remember that in the beginning, right at the creation of humanity, the truth of what Jesus speaks was revealed: Satan deceiving and leading humanity away from God in an attempt to be God. In other words, one is drawing us to God and the other is drawing us away from God. We do not need to look around for long for this truth to be evident to us. As we survey the news and media, we see that society is filled with tremendous good, love and compassion, while at the same time, horrendous things too.

Yet, we know and have hope that the day of harvest is coming and Jesus will come to separate the weeds from the wheat.

Precious Jesus, I look forward and anticipate the day of harvest, the day of Your return, where You will separate the weeds from the wheat. Praise You!