Susan Lafferty
Weeds never quit. They sprout on the edges and in the thick of things.
I pull them out. Easily. Their small roots dangling with dirt. Then I cast them aside in the trash.
The next day, coming back from my walk, I check the state of the yard. Weeds. More of them.
They are relentless. Through drought and flood. In season and out of season. Crowding out the chosen plants.
Wheat and tares in a field in Israel.
A losing battle
One year we fight a particularly hardy type. Practically overnight our yard is filled with tall spiky monsters and their thick stems. We’re in a losing battle.
A neighbor driving by, pulls over and relates his own story. Encourages us to call in the experts. “They know what they’re doing.”
So we do. And pretty soon the weeds are gone. The grass is growing.
Masquerade
Another year we face a different challenge.
Disturbing. Harmful, even.
Some of these weeds come disguised. Their leaves matching the leaves of legitimate shrubs. Behind our current home, poison ivy masquerades in the midst of the ivy.
An allergic reaction just waiting to happen.
Parable
Reading through the Bible chronologically, I land in the Gospels. And in the Gospel according to Matthew, there it is. A parable about weeds. The Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds, to be exact.
The explanation and message from Jesus catch me by surprise. Perhaps because I’ve been looking for weeds lately. And plotting their demise.
The Son of Man sows the good seed—children of the Kingdom—in His field, the world. The devil sows weeds—children of the evil one. At night. While everyone is sleeping.
And they sprout. The wheat and the weeds. The good and the evil. Growing up together in the field.
Let them grow
I think of the poison ivy intertwined with the ivy under the pine trees. They look a lot alike. My untrained eye can’t discern the difference.
The servants in the parable are instructed not to pull out the weeds. Because they might accidentally pull out the wheat.
This intrigues me.
“When you gather up the weeds, you might also uproot the wheat with them. Let them both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I’ll tell the reapers; Gather the weeds first and tie them in bundles to burn them, but store the wheat in my barn.” (Matthew 13:29-30)
At the end of the age
In His interpretation of the parable, Jesus says the Son of Man will send out His angels. At the end of the age. “And they will gather from His kingdom all who cause sin and those guilty of lawlessness” (Matthew 13:37-43).
The message about the end of the age settles in. The day of reckoning. When wheat and weeds are separated.
Until then, there are weeds.
Warning
Paul writes the Colossian church. Warning them about deception. People deceiving believers through arguments that sound reasonable.
Weeds slipping in where they least expect them.
“Be careful that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit based on human tradition, based on the elemental forces of the world, and not based on Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)
Weeds among the wheat. Online or face to face.
Forceful. Compelling, even. But empty.
Ongoing battle
So, we stay alert. Asking for discernment of the masquerades among us. It’s clear I can’t be in charge of identifying weeds or wading in the weeds.
I’m not the expert.
So I keep looking to the One who is. The One who knows. The One who sees the true intent of the heart.
He is watching both the weeds and the wheat.
Exposing the darkness. Revealing the light. Teaching us to stand firm in the Truth.
Abiding in the Vine
Even in the atmosphere of our day and age, the wheat continues growing. As Paul describes in Colossians 2:6-7.
“So then, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, being rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with gratitude.”
Rooted. Abiding in Christ, the true Vine. Built up in Him. Established and standing firm on His Truth.
Bearing fruit.
Living by faith.
What about you?
What has the Lord taught you about the weeds and the wheat?
Posted at: https://susanlafferty.com/2019/11/10/weeds/