Sermon Tone Analysis

Wheat and Tares

Ron Dunn

Matthew 13:24-30, 36-42

 

Open your Bibles to read in Matthew chapter 13, starting in verse 24.

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.'"

And then Jesus interpreted that parable for the disciples and for us in verse 36.

Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, "Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field."

He answered and said unto them, "He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.

The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."

Back in the February issue of the New York Times book review on the front page they reviewed a book that by its title caught my attention immediately.

The title of this book is, 'Why Did the Heavens Not Darken' written by Arno Mayer.

Now this is not a religious book and it is not written from a religious standpoint.

The man who wrote it is not necessarily a professing Christian nor would he profess to be a very religious man.

The book deals with the Holocaust, the "Final Solution".

The opening words of the article are these, "Given the enormity of the crimes perpetrated by Nazi Germany during World War II the title of Arno Mayer's new book raises the question that many people will have asked themselves as they remember and try to comprehend the Holocaust.

Our task would be less difficult and agonizing if the heavens had actually darkened.

Since they did not, we must search for the answer elsewhere."

Now it was interesting to me because this is not a religious book, not necessarily written by a religious man, has no religious purpose to it; and yet, in a sense, God is indicted by the very title.

"Why did the heavens not darken?" is the same thing as saying they should have.

Which is the same thing as saying, "Why didn't God do something?".

It is amazing that even people who do not themselves profess to be Christians have built into them some kind of sense of justice that God surely should have done something.

Why did the heavens not darken?

Why didn't God at least show his disfavor?

I mean the heavens didn't even grow dark.

Maybe it would have been too much to expect God to come down and have ended the whole thing, but at least He could have frowned a little bit by letting the heavens darken.

That way at least we would know that God was saying that He didn't like what was going on.

But for all practical purposes, God ignored the whole business.

Therefore, the author is saying the explanation of what happened is not to be found in God and God has nothing to say about it so we have to look elsewhere.

Actually the author is asking the same question that the servants in our parable are asking.

They said, "Lord, were do all these tares come from?"

It is the 'Parable of the Wheat and Tares'.

I think it is interesting and significant that later on when they ask the Lord to explain this parable to them you will notice they don't say anything about the wheat.

They say, "Lord, what is the parable of the tares?"

Now the parable was a parable of the wheat and the tares, the good and the bad.

But what stuck in their minds was, "Give us an explanation of the tares."

The fact of the matter is that there is good and evil in the world, but nobody ever questions the good.

Nobody ever says, "Why is there good in the world?"

Have you ever noticed that?

Instead they always say, "Why is there evil in the world?"

The only time we question God is when something bad happens; like insurance companies...all of these hurricanes, tornados, and other "acts of God".

We never seem to question God when anything good is going on.

Several years ago in our home town there was a young man that was killed in an automobile accident.

He was not a Christian and none of his family were Christians.

But one of the members of our staff was asked to take care of the funeral.

So he went by the home of the mother where the family was gathered together to make preparations.

As he prepared to leave he said, "Could we have just a word of prayer?"

The mother burst out and said, "No!

Absolutely not!

No praying in this house.

God killed my son so there will be no praying in this house."

When he told me this story later I said, "You know, I bet it's the first thought she's given to God in years.

I'll bet that when that boy was born she didn't say, 'Praise God He's given me a son.'

But when something happens to him, now God comes on the scene."

The disciples aren't interested about the wheat.

R.

C. Sproll says we sing the song Amazing Grace but it's not Grace that we are amazed at; we think we disserve that.

It's justice that we're amazed at.

Nobody ever says, "Why is there good in the world?"

We always say, "Why is there evil in the world?"

And it's a good question.

You see it's a question that Christians ask.

I've said many times that being a Christian gives you problems that you otherwise would not have.

Faith and believing can be a burden.

We talk about all the wrong that's in the world and how can it be that God can stand by and let the Holocaust happen.

How can God stand by and let thousands and thousands of people die and children starve to death?

You and I question and try to reconcile this.

How can there be a good God?

If I were an atheist it wouldn't give me a problem at all.

I would say, "That's the way the cookie crumbles; that's the way life is; welcome to the real world.

There is no justice.

There is no God anyway.

Some people are lucky and some are not."

You could go on and you wouldn't have a problem at all about it.

But the moment you believe in God and put your faith in a good, righteous, holy, and sovereign God; you have a problem.

The atheists have a very good argument folks.

If there is a God then why is there so much evil in the world?

Where did these tares come from?

"Lord, didn't you sow good seed in your field?" 

 

"Yes."

"Well then, where did these tares come from?"

Have you ever asked yourself that question?

"Lord, I've sowed good seed in my home; so where did these tares come from?"

I was in a meeting not long ago and there was a young man giving his testimony.

He talked about how wonderful it was to have a Christian mom and dad; and how wonderful it was that his mother didn't work at an outside job.

His mom and dad were there and he thanked them publicly.

He went into long detail about how it was the influences in the home that made him what he was; the fact that he was a Christian in the service of the Lord.

It was interesting, yet there was another young man there who was serving the Lord whose home was broken and he had lived under a bridge.

How do you explain that?

How do you explain that here is a young man who doesn't have all the things the books say that a child has to have?

Yet look at what God does in his life.

We've all seen parents that have done everything that they know to do.

They read their Bible, go to church, pray, and tithe.