Jesus teaches that the Word of God is a seed that will grow the kingdom of God (Luke 8:11). In another parable, Jesus expands this understanding when he lets us know we have an enemy who, at the same time, is planting seeds that are full of weeds. In other words, the devil is doing his best to disrupt the kingdom of God by growing weeds that disrupt the church. Jesus is teaching us that we are in a constant battle between good and evil.
“Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.” Matthew 13:24-25 (NASB)
The interesting part of the parable is that, when the landowner’s workers ask if they should pull the weeds, they are told to leave them in place. The problem is that the weeds are so completely intermingled with the other seeds, it’s impossible to remove them without destroying some of the good crop as well. The landowner’s solution is to wait until the time of harvest to separate the good from the bad. Keep in mind, Jesus is talking about growing the kingdom of God and the field with the good and bad seeds right here on this earth.
“But he said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn.” Matthew 13:29-30 (NASB)
Clearly Jesus intends for us to live amongst the weeds of those who are under the devil’s influence. God has complete power over the devil, but for some reason he is allowing him to cause disruption in the lives of believers as they grow into the kingdom of God. In the end, the weeds planted by the enemy will be destroyed and followers of Jesus Christ will be the Lord’s harvest.
Jesus teaches that there is some value in weeds. He also wants us to know that he ultimately has complete control over these weeds and at the appropriate time they will be fully eradicated. For reasons we may never fully understand, there seems to be value in this cross-contamination. Our preparation for the life beyond, must depend on this experience of sorting through good and evil on a daily basis.
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:21 (NASB)
Jesus has allowed this world to evolve in such a way that we are constantly called upon to choose good over evil. Good is our power over evil. Jesus is allowing the weeds to grow so that we might have unlimited opportunities to do good.
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