I spent a lot of time with this
parable. It was one of my projects in a class that I took on parables. One
thing we learned about parables was that some were open ended; meaning, there
was not a full explanation for the parable and that gave us a way to look at
how the parable reaches out to the least, last, lost, and lonely. There are
many parables that are like that. But, then there are the parables like this
one. In this parable there is not a lot of reaching out or being creative;
because, in this parable, just when you think there is room for creativity;
Jesus comes along and spoils the whole thing by explaining what the parable
means. I was a little bummed out that this parable I got for my project was so
cut and dry.
As I read through this parable this
week, something popped into my mind. “Is this parable really as cut and dry as
I think?” Yes Jesus explains to us that everything in this parable has a role
to play; the ground is the world, the wheat is the children of the kingdom, the
weeds are the children of the evil one, the sower was the devil, and the angels
are the reapers. What happens is that Jesus tells us that the Son of Man will
send angels to gather the weeds and they will be thrown out and my favorite
line is “there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” It does seem pretty cut
and dry, doesn’t it? I don’t think so.
It is not so cut and dry because
there can be a lot of questions: Who are the weeds? Who are the wheat? Those
seem to be what I would call the “bottom line” questions. Meaning, I don’t need
to know anything else other than those two questions to go on in my life and I
will be fine. Therein lies the problem. We think we are supposed to know or
decide who are the weeds and who are the wheat. That is a problem because it is
NOT for us to decide who plays which part.
Jesus tells us that the Son of Man
will send the angels to do the reaping. This parable- Jesus-tells us that this
is all up to God. It is not for us to decide who is good, who is bad, who are
the insiders and who are the outsiders? When we start assuming that that is our
job, we start to turn away from God and from the Good News of Jesus Christ. We
do that because we assume that we know better than “the Son of Man” or that we
have been given powers by God to make that determination.
Believe it or not, that is Good
News! I don’t know about you but I feel a sense of relief knowing that I don’t
have to determine who are the good, the wheat, and who are the weeds, the bad.
I don’t have to worry about who is in and who is out; because don’t we all have
enough to do in our own lives and worry about rather than having to make
decision that big? I mean, one of the things that we realize from this parable
is the question “are we, ourselves, wheat or weeds?” That’s right! We have to
check who we are in this whole picture. We are not immune from this parable because
we read it on a Sunday morning or simply because we attend church.
God gave us the ability to think and
evaluate situations. We have the ability to gather information and look at
goals, agendas, abilities and then go and make a decision based on the
information that we have gathered in the direction or path to take. Sometimes
we make good decisions and sometimes not so good decisions. The point is that
we cannot be sure that we are weeds or wheat at any given time.
While we may not know for sure at
this point in time, we can still live in the hope of being wheat. We can still
live in the hope of being children of the kingdom. The big question is “How do
we do that?” One of the ways that we do that is by looking to our scripture
readings more than just on Sundays. We begin, if you have not already started,
on a journey through scripture. Read a part of the bible that interests you, if
not the whole scripture. Look at what these faithful people have written about
their experiences with God. Read God’s Word and hear those words speak to you.
Next is to pray about God’s word.
Pray for God’s word to enter your ears and into your hearts. It is one thing
for the words to appear in front of your eyes, but to hear them and taste them
is a whole different thing. When you hear Jesus words that “this is my body,
given for you” and “this is my blood shed for you” those very words can change
your life and I most certainly hope they do. I hope and pray they tell you that
you are a worthy child of God given the gift of Christ; and, I hope it causes
us all to live our lives differently. Lastly, God’s word is to be shared.
You
don’t have to walk up to someone and say “I am here to share God’s word with
you” and then proceed to quote scripture. Sharing God’s word can be as easy as
listening to someone that is hurting. Offering to keep someone in prayer as
they struggle, inviting people to church or letting them know that there are
people that care.
Our
world is being turned upside down with all the things that are going on. Wars,
planes being shot down, and children fleeing and showing up seeking help. There
are all kinds of people screaming angry and hateful things at one another in
the newspaper, on radio, and on television. Not once have I heard the words and
maybe this is where pastors come in. Maybe it is the pastor’s calling to ask
the question “what does scripture tell us to do with the stranger, or alien, or
in the wake of tragedy? It is an appropriate question because that can help us
try to live as wheat…to live as children of a loving God who invites, as Jesus
says, “all who have ears to listen.”
The
point is that in order to be wheat, we will never know that answer until we
meet the God who created us. What we have been doing in this community is
hearing the Word of God by feeding the hungry, sending first aid and school
kits, clothing, household items, and prayer shawls into the community and the
world. We have been sharing our blessings with others.
Today
we celebrate Connie as she ends one chapter of sharing her blessings to begin
another chapter. We give thanks to God that we have had the blessing of her
being with us for so long and sharing her gift of music and leadership with us.
Through her gifts she has brought the gift of worshipping God through the gift
of music and with choirs she has brought a sense of God’s presence to our time
together and for that we give thanks and praise to Jesus.
Today,
this parable calls us to look at ourselves. Reflect on who we are as children
of God and what we are called to do in this, earthly and broken world. We are
called to seek God’s guidance in our words and in our actions.
AMEN!
AMEN!
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