The Sower
OPENING PRAYER:
Loving Father, I am many things to many people, but in your sight I am your child. Thank you Lord.
The Parable of the Weeds Explained
36 Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”
37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 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, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears, let them hear.
REFLECT:
Listen to this song: ‘So the Lord plants justice, justice and praise / To rise before the nations till the end of days’ (The Sower’s Song by Andrew Peterson © 2015 Centricity Music).
Jesus reveals the spiritual reality that when God is at work, there is also a malicious enemy who wants to bring down or contaminate what is being built up (v 39; see also v 28). However, the parable of the weeds – as with the parable of the sower – shows that the kingdom will still produce a plentiful harvest, despite opposition. The disciples receive this further teaching and explanation from Jesus (26), but their reaction is not written about this time. What reaction do you have to the idea of opposition?
This parable helps us visualize what it means for the kingdom to have started with Jesus’ arrival as the anticipated Messiah (the seeds being sown), and yet still to be waited for in all its fullness (v 41; see also v 30). Evil activity growing alongside God’s kingdom will be brought to an end. The contrast is stark between punishment (v 42) and being in the kingdom with the Father (v 43). Have you thought much about Jesus as judge? How does reading this passage affect your relationship with God and those around you?
APPLY:
Meditate on these verses: ‘As the rain and the snow come down from heaven … watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth…’ (Isaiah 55:10-11).
CLOSING PRAYER:
Lord, I know the Christian life is not a playground, but a battleground. I rejoice in the victory I have in Christ and pray for vigilance in my daily life.
WORSHIP:
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