Who are You Going to Be? A Tare or Wheat?
I love the depth of meaning contained in the parables of Jesus. It never ceases to amaze me how you can read the parables over and over again and walk away with a new understanding or appreciation for God’s Word. The Bible is the only book in the whole world that you could read 1,000 times and still learn something new every time!
My son and I read through the parable of the tares and the wheat. The truths contained in this simple parable are mind blowing and vital to understanding the kingdom of God. This parable can be found in Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43.
Matthew 13:24-30 (KJV)
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:
25 But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.
26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.
27 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?
28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
30 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.
This parable is so beautiful because it tells us a lot about the kingdom of God. Thankfully, the disciples asked Jesus for the meaning of this parable and Jesus’ response was recorded so that we do not nee to guess at the meaning.
Matthew 13:37-43 (KJV)
37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.
40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.
41 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;
42 And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
There were a couple of truths that my son and I discussed in relation to this parable. These truths are not necessarily epic. They are simple indeed, but vitally important.
1. There are only two types of people in the world: tare and wheat
Notice that there are only two seeds sown: the tares and the wheat. The wheat is sown by God and therefore represent the children of God (Christians) and the tares are sown by Satan and therefore represent the children of Satan. There are only two options. Those that are owned by God and those owned by Satan. You cannot be both a tare and a wheat. We want to be both sometimes, but that is just not possible. If you are not a good seed, then you are a bad seed. If you are not producing fruit, then you are not of the kingdom of God. As Christ says in Matthew 24:6: “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”
In today’s society, we see self-proclaimed “Christians” saying that they belong to Christ, but they don’t live like it. The fact is, they are not Christians at all. It doesn’t matter if they think they are Christians, it is what God thinks! If you are living like the tares, then you are one. You don’t get to be both. So, choose now: who will you be? A tare or a wheat? A good seed or bad seed?
Why is this important? Look at the end of the parable! The tares are worthless. They are bundled and then burned and the wheat is taken into the barn. The children of Satan will eventually be cast into hell. Only the children of God will be saved.
2. Judgement and reward are coming
Judgement may be delayed, but it is coming. Eventually, the tares will be destroyed. They are merely still growing in order to protect the wheat. It is the long-suffering of God that allows them to continue for now. But make no mistake, the judgement will come. The harvest must be completed. We tend to get comfortable and forget to live in the reality that there will be a harvest!
Peter addresses this complacency in 2 Peter 3:4-9: “And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” Judgement is going to come. It took 120 years for the flood to finally come after God announced it, but it did come. People will scoff, but they do not understand God’s long-suffering. From God’s perspective, a thousand years to us is a day to God.
3. God allows the tares to exist to protect and grow the wheat
A common question that people have regarding God is ‘why does God allow bad people to exist?’ This parable addresses that question! He does so for the sake of the wheat. When the tares and the wheat first sprout, they look the same. It is not until they mature that we can actually tell the difference between them. One produces fruit/grain and the other does not. If the reaper were to immediately try and separate out the tares from the wheat, he could not do so. He would likely pluck up the wheat along with the tares. But once the plants mature into adult plants, they are easily distinguishable and able to be separated.
So, get this. We all look like tares originally. But, God allows us to mature into a wheat or a tare. This does mean that the tares do grow too, but the harvest of wheat in the end will be much greater. That is how great God’s love for us is. He is patient for the sake of His own. As Peter says in the verse above in 2 Peter 3, God doesn’t want anyone to perish. He wants to give us a chance to be wheat! I am so thankful for a God who is patient with us. So while we must put up with tares in this world for now, God has a plan and eventually, He will separate out the tares to be burned.
Which are you? A tare? A wheat? God has given you today to make a choice. He is patient, but He will not wait forever. The harvest will be collected eventually. Choose to be a wheat. Be fruitful not worthless!