Matthew 13:24-30
‘Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and left. And when the wheat sprouted and produced grain, then the weeds also became evident.And the slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No; while you are gathering up the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the weeds and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Interesting passage. As I was trying to figure out the message I looked through some commentaries. Barnes Notes on the Bible was helpful. Jesus is telling them a lesson about the future church. He makes several points. While the church does not produce hypocrites and deceived ones, they will be in the church. Jesus points out the the evil one puts them there. Barnes further says that while purity in the church should be sought after, but won’t be perfect. It’s not possible to prove that some are bad influences. So, Jesus’ point is to let them remain. He will work that out.
Some can be seen as bad influences and thus are candidates for discipline. What is that? Jesus explains it in Matthew 18:15-17, “Now if your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that ON THE TESTIMONY OF TWO OR THREE WITNESSES EVERY MATTER MAY BE CONFIRMED. And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, he is to be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” He gives the order. Speak to him privately, if he doesn’t listen, take more with you, if he doesn’t listen, he is asked to leave.
The difference between this one and the one we have an odd feeling about is the latter isn’t guilty. As long as they do no harm, they can stay. It’s not perfect, but a system that generally works.
Lord, thank You for Your governance. The way You lead the church and our lives. Thank You.