"PARABLE OF THE WHEAT AND THE TARES"

July 31 Parable of the Wheat and the Tares  Matthew 13:24-30

Good morning from Pastor Glen Brock, Baptist Tabernacle Church, Wendell, North Carolina… “Another parable put He forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”(Matthew 13:24-30)  “Holy Tares” we could call them...for they ARE in the church, but NOT in the Body of Christ.  Will everyone who goes to church go to heaven? Will every member of the local church make it? I would like to think that if the rapture occurred on a Sunday morning during the main service, of any evangelical Christian fellowship, that the room would be completely emptied, but according to this parable that would be highly unlikely. It’s a simple parable, but carries with it a profound truth. This simple truth goes like this: A farmer sowed good seed on good ground, but while he slept an enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat. A tare is a poisonous weed which looks a lot like wheat in the early stages. If eaten by a person or an animal, nausea would occur, convulsions, and in certain circumstances, even death! This was a spiteful act of malice. The enemy had nothing to gain, except to ruin the wheat crop of the farmer. When his workers realized what had been done they asked the farmer if they should begin removing the tares, and he said “no, it’s easier to tell the difference at harvest time. We’ll bring the wheat into the barn, but we’ll separate the tares into bundles and burn them.” It’s not difficult to understand what the Lord Jesus is saying by way of this parable. Let’s dig a bit deeper into the applications and the results of these things… The sowing, the growing, and the mowing [that is, reaping]!                                              Folks; Jesus is the farmer; and the wheat are the believers. Wheat and Christians have some things in common: Wheat doesn’t have a deep root system. Wheat doesn’t go very deep, compared to how high it gets. It’s easily pulled up and uprooted. I could say it like this: wheat is not firmly attached to this world. The same ought to be true of us when it comes to this earth.  Wheat doesn’t last very long. Wheat grows and ripens, bears its fruit, and quickly passes off the scene. And when we get saved, we grow in grace, bear what fruit God wants us to bear, and quickly fade away. I don’t know how long you and I will live, but until God is through with us, not a hair of our heads can be touched, and after God is done with us, no anchor in the world can hold us here. God has not left us here to take up space, but to accomplish specific things for Him, and to bear fruit!  Wheat grows upward and dies downward. And we ought to become more and more alive to things above, and dead to that which is below. The Apostle Paul said, “set your affections on things above, not on things on the earth.” Wheat has a head which when mature begins to bow. What a beautiful picture! The head of wheat becomes full of grain and slumps over. Bearing more fruit for the Christian should not lead to pride, but to humility. But for many, success doesn’t cause the head to bow, but the nose to rise!   Then, there is the sowing of the weeds. Verse 25 says, “The enemy came by night and sowed these tares right among the wheat.” I believe that they could be described as the “children of the wicked one.” Remember that the next time you hear someone trying to reconcile Islam with Christianity, making the common statement—“remember, we’re all God’s children!” This is a common belief, that all humans, on the earth, are God’s children. No! THAT IS NOT TRUE! We’re all God’s creation, but not all His children. Jesus told a group that they were of their father, the devil. There are 2 family lines on this earth. Some have been born once, and others twice. Ye must be born again. Jesus is the way. That sounds narrow and politically incorrect. I have no desire to be narrow except for where God the Creator is narrow. And I’d rather be Biblically correct than politically correct! So we’ve got children of God and children of the devil together in the field of the world, and the interesting thing is that they both look very much alike outwardly. What are we being taught here? The devil attacks the kingdom of God by infiltration, and by planting imitators in the church. They may not know they aren’t the real thing, and the others may not know, but Satan surely knows, as does God! They are counterfeit Christians. Paul called them “false brethren.” They are fakes, phonies, but eventually their true colors show thru. In the meanwhile, they can be poison to a church. There are over 160 million members of churches in America today. Are they all born again? I truly wish! What a Christian nation we would truly be, and we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in today. Abortion is on the rise, teen pregnancy, divorce, suicide, drug and alcohol use, and I could go on… and I’m talking about the church as well as the world, because the statistics are virtually the same in every category whether you’re looking at the world or the church! Billy Graham said his greatest mission field has been the roll books of churches. He cites that of the many thousands saved under his ministry, 70% are church members. They were tares among the wheat, but they got saved! Remember, God is going to do some “Mowing” or “Reaping,” and I pray that you are in the Wheat pile and not the Tares pile. One will be gathered into the Barn and the other pile will be burned! Remember, the tares look and act like wheat. They carry their Bible, pray, sing the songs, may even have a job in the church…but what are they trusting in for salvation? Sadly, in many cases, they trust in their being a good person, or a church member, baptized, or a Sunday School Teacher, and sadly, even a Pastor! If there’s any doubt as to whether you’ve genuinely been born again, then you need to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Examine yourself whether ye, be in the faith! I’m not trying to shake anyone’s faith, but to proclaim the truth of Jesus’ parable for your sake! If you have assurance, then who am I to doubt it? But if you doubt it, who am I to give you assurance? The Lord may return at any time…you don’t have all the time in the world…the ‘mowing’ is imminent. God is the reaper and the truth is indeed ‘grim’…he will thrust in His sharp sickle and harvest the earth. He alone is capable of telling the difference correctly, and on that day it will be too late. The respectable thing to do is make sure you are saved, while there is time!! What God does with you, depends upon what you do!  It Always has, It Always will!!  To God Be the Glory!  Stay Strong, Stay Focused…Remember, THE BEST IS YET TO BE!