The wheat and Tares
Notes
Transcript
14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Thrust in Your sickle and reap, for the time has come for You to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.” 16 So He who sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped. 17 Then another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud cry to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.” 19 So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs.
36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.” 37 He answered and said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40 Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
I. God’s Promises are True.
I. God’s Promises are True.
A. For the righteous.
A. For the righteous.
When the Bible says Jesus is Lord, it means over everything.
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
We should never for one moment think that He is less than what the scriptures say, nor is He in anyway deficient in His Lordship.
Our obligation as disciples of Christ is to know Him and as much about Him, as we are able!
Our life long study of the scriptures, from the time we are born of God, till the time of our glorification, should be filled with knowing and obeying our Lord.
We see here in Revelation that He will lead the judgment of God, which is a promise to us His faithful servants.
He is the sower of the wheat in Matthew’s parable , and He is the Reaper of the tares in Revelation.
He is here in our text not the Lamb at the throne, but the Lord of the Harvest!
Some scholars think this to be another angel. Leon Morris believes this because he cannot see Christ needing to be told to reap by an angel. I do not agree with this, because Jesus told us ...
36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.
So it would make perfect sense for the Father to send an angel to His Son who is poised and ready for this day.
This is important to note, because it shows the side of Him that we like the world overlook , when all we see is His meekness.
To everyone of us who suffer for righteousness’ sake, He here represents the promise to us that our labor and trial is not in vain.
B. For the wicked.
B. For the wicked.
His promises are equally true:
For He will not turn away any that come to Him.
There is no sin too big or bad that He cannot forgive.
Something I mentioned in the daily devotions of 1 John: people categorize sin, but God calls it lawlessness. Therefore sin separates people from God, and condemns them to hell, regardless of how serious or small.
The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses all sin.
II. God’s Wrath is Sure.
II. God’s Wrath is Sure.
A. For the wicked.
A. For the wicked.
He will perform everything He said He would.
He will hold them in contempt:
4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.
He will return with a rod of iron:
9 You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ ”
He will judge them and send them to the lake of Fire, Rev. 20
He will unleash His wrath upon them:
12 Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.
There will be nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, no way to assuage His wrath.
God is longsuffering yes, but He is just!
But, as sure as God’s wrath is for the wicked, it is as sure...
B. For the righteous.
B. For the righteous.
Now look at what Paul says to the Thessalonians :
9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Wait a minute: didn’t I just contradict myself?
If God has not appointed us to wrath, than how can I state that the wrath of God is also sure for the righteous?
There is an important doctrinal position that I want you to grasp!
It has to do with the imputation of sin upon Christ and the transference of the wrath of God.
God’s wrath was poured out on Jesus.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
2. God’s wrath was experienced by Jesus.
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
3. God’s wrath was appeased by Jesus.
9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
Systematic Theology 2. The Sufferings of the Saviour
His suffering was consecrated suffering, increasing in severity as He approached the end. The suffering that began in the incarnation finally reached its climax in the passio magna at the end of His life. Then all the wrath of God against sin bore down upon Him.
Our Savior, Lord and King, took the wrath of God upon Himself so that you and I could receive Mercy and Grace.
We were bought and paid for with a price, free from the penalty of sin and death, free from the slavery of sin, but for what?
24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
We are not free to serve ourselves.
We are the bond slaves of Jesus Christ!