Parables are much better...
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Parables are much better than scholarly dissertations! When I taught in the seminary in Nepal, there was a language and cultural barrier, which made academic instruction difficult, but parables can get across in almost any language. Only a few were difficult like marriage which was handled differently in Nepal, though it was much the same in Old Testament books when parents often selected a mate for their children. We had much more fun and it was more interesting to the students in class with parables and they got the point.
Many of my students came from farming communities and understood this parable. One had an enemy of their father who put some bad seed in one corner of his field and they knew how they felt about it. They also knew that they had to wait until the harvest neared to see the weeds begin to sprout. Then they knew an enemy had done this.
Some of us get impatient when God does not punish the wicked immediately, but this parable hints that we must wait until we see the fruits of their hurtful attempt. Only then should we pull them out and let God burn them. If we didn't wait, we might accidentally harvest some good plants and burn them. The fruits of evil don't always surface immediately, but it is obvious when they do. Only then can we separate the good crops from the weeds.
Jesus says this will happen at the end of the age. Does that mean when he comes again -- the second coming? We can sure see weeds blooming today. Are we supposed to wait and let God's angels do the harvest? It is not up to us. Be patient! In the meantime let the law courts handle it.
Offhand I can think of one way we can get rid of the weeds, and that is at election time. We can see good seed rise when we get praise for our good work in our job and maybe get a raise. I got a letter from a former member in another church telling me how much I had helped them in their marriage, for one.
Sometimes we need to have parables explained to us when we don't quite get the point. That is one reason we come to church to hear good sermons and good teachers in a Sunday school class.
Someday maybe you will be the one to explain a parable to your children. Then you can pray that the good seed will sprout.
Many of my students came from farming communities and understood this parable. One had an enemy of their father who put some bad seed in one corner of his field and they knew how they felt about it. They also knew that they had to wait until the harvest neared to see the weeds begin to sprout. Then they knew an enemy had done this.
Some of us get impatient when God does not punish the wicked immediately, but this parable hints that we must wait until we see the fruits of their hurtful attempt. Only then should we pull them out and let God burn them. If we didn't wait, we might accidentally harvest some good plants and burn them. The fruits of evil don't always surface immediately, but it is obvious when they do. Only then can we separate the good crops from the weeds.
Jesus says this will happen at the end of the age. Does that mean when he comes again -- the second coming? We can sure see weeds blooming today. Are we supposed to wait and let God's angels do the harvest? It is not up to us. Be patient! In the meantime let the law courts handle it.
Offhand I can think of one way we can get rid of the weeds, and that is at election time. We can see good seed rise when we get praise for our good work in our job and maybe get a raise. I got a letter from a former member in another church telling me how much I had helped them in their marriage, for one.
Sometimes we need to have parables explained to us when we don't quite get the point. That is one reason we come to church to hear good sermons and good teachers in a Sunday school class.
Someday maybe you will be the one to explain a parable to your children. Then you can pray that the good seed will sprout.
