Matthew 13:1-50 - A Run Through 7 Parables

Matthew 13 – A Run Through Seven Parables

In chapter 13 of Matthew we find a plethora of parables. In fact there are 7 and some say 8 different parables. Many people call this series of parables the kingdom parables because all but the first one starts out with “the kingdom of heaven is like”. What I would like to do tonight is simply draw out some truths we find in these parables. I’m not going to spend a lot of time explaining these parables but I do challenge you to go back and read them some more and seek to find what Christ was teaching rather than just look at the stories. Let’s pray then we will get started.

Matthew 13:1-9 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2 And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”[1] In verses 13-23 Jesus explained this parable to His disciples. I’m not going to read that tonight but I do want to point out some truths. First; this is not a parable about the sower or the seed. They are important parts of the parable but this is a parable about the soils (people). Second; The sower sowed without regard to the condition of the soil (people). He had no idea which person was ready to receive the gospel and which was not he simply sowed the truth of the gospel message to people. Third; Not everyone will accept the truth of the gospel. That is one of the toughest messages in all of the Scriptures. Fourth: When the gospel is received and believed there is fruit. Some of the “soils” may produce more than others but ALL will produce fruit. In the kingdom of heaven there are soils (people) who no matter how much the gospel is told to them they will not receive it. It falls on deaf ears, it also falls on people who think it sounds good but refuse to let it take root in their hearts, and it falls on people who are more concerned with the things of the world than they are with the Kingdom of Heaven. It also falls on fertile soil and it grows and produces fruit.

Matthew 13:24-30 24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”[2] Side by side in the Kingdom of Heaven there are wheat (true believers) and tare (false believers). They grow up side by side. The true believers are of God and the false believers are of Satan. Both the wheat and the tare are side by side in the kingdom. Wheat produces useful fruit (fruit of the Spirit). Tare produces harmful fruit (works of the flesh) It is not our job to remove the tare, leave that to the Angels of God. But you can know a tree by its fruit. We are not the judges appointed to judge between the “wheat and the tares” but we can rest assured that there is a judgment.

Matthew 13:31-32 31 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, 32 which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”[3] The Kingdom of Heaven seems to be small in the beginning but it will grow into something strong and viable in all conditions. Some things we can know is that the Kingdom of Heaven (Christ in you) will grow. When (not if) the Kingdom of Heaven grows then the cares of the world (birds), though they will come against it, cannot break it down and destroy it.

Matthew 13:33 33 Another parable He spoke to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened.”[4] The Kingdom of Heaven spreads and changes things. Leavening in bread causes it to become a new creation and so are you (2 Cor. 5:17). Being a new creation causes new behavior. When leavening (yeast) is added to flour you had better make sure the bowl is large enough because it will bubble up and try to leave the bowl. As new creation we should be bubbling over looking for opportunities to serve our Master.

Matthew 13:44 44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Kingdom of Heaven comes upon a person when he is not even seeking the things of God. But God reveals its value and makes him know that it is worth everything.

Matthew 13:4545 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, 46 who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.[5]

Sometimes the Kingdom of Heaven comes upon a person when he is diligently seeking something to fulfill his or her life. But when He finds it he knows that it is worth everything (If anyone would come after Me let him deny himself, take up his cross daily and follow Me [Luke 9:23]).

Matthew 13:47-50 47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, 48 which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, 50 and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”[6]

Jesus restates His parable of the Wheat and Tare with the parable of the dragnet. Together in the same net are good fish, usable to the fisherman (the just) and bad fish which are unusable (the wicked). The good and the bad are not to be separated now, just like the wheat and the tares. But the good and the bad will be separated. You cannot simply walk away from the gospel, there will be a judgment and you will have to face the gospel message after rejecting it. In the end the wicked will receive God’s judgment but Jesus has already received the judgment that the just deserve.

So in these parables we learn that the kingdom of heaven is like this: Not everyone is prepared to receive the gospel but still the seed of the kingdom of heaven must be sown. The good soil will receive it and the bad will not. The just and the wicked are in the world together (that is why we sow the seed of the gospel in the entire field). When the seed is planted and begins to grow it does not grow quickly but it does cause changes. The changes cause perseverance and makes one desirous to share the gospel message (bubbles over). In the end the just and the wicked that are in the world together will be separated. The wicked will receive the reward for their own lives while the just will receive the reward that Jesus earned.

So the question you must ask yourself is; am I good soil or bad soil? Am I wheat useful to my Lord or am I tare? Am I a good fish or a bad fish? Have I found that treasure that is worth everything, has all that glittered before lost its shine in the presence of the gospel message that Jesus died, was buried and rose again? These are questions that we all will have to answer. It would be wiser to answer them now than when there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. Let’s pray.

[1] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:1–9). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[2] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:24–30). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[3] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:31–32). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[4] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:33). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[5] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:44–46). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

[6] The New King James Version. (1982). (Mt 13:47–50). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.