Harvest Time
[Matthew 13:24-30]
When a farmer sows seeds in spring, what is on his mind? Surely, the farmer is thinking about the harvest in autumn and diligently sows the seeds in spring. The reason the farmer sows seeds in spring and works hard is precisely because he eagerly anticipates the fruits of the harvest (cf. Jam. 5:7) during the autumn harvest. In the Bible, there are several individuals mentioned as farmers: in the Old Testament's Genesis, Cain (4:2), Noah (9:20), and Isaac (26:12) are mentioned as farmers. Additionally, Boaz (Ruth 2:3-16) and Shagrai (Zech 13:5) were also farmers. While Shagrai is known as a prophet, he explicitly stated that he was a farmer by profession (v. 5). In the New Testament, in John 15, Jesus likened God to a farmer, saying, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser" (v. 1). Furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 3:6, the God who becomes a farmer is described as the one who causes the church to grow: "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth."
Today, looking at the passage in Matthew 13:24-30, Jesus uses the analogy of 'wheat and tares' in front of his disciples. As he speaks of this analogy, he comes to verse 30 and instructs to let the wheat and tares grow together until the harvest. He is talking about the harvest time. Centering on this aspect of today's passage under the title "Harvest Time," I would like to meditate on the teachings that the Lord gives to our church.
First, let's consider what Jesus is talking about with the "wheat and tares."
Look at Matthew 13:24-26: "He put another parable before them, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.'" In this parable, what Jesus is referring to as "wheat" is the "good seed" sown in the field (v. 24). Initially, it sprouts, then later produces stalks, and eventually yields the grain, which refers to the fruitful crop (kernel) (Mk. 4:28). Here, the good seed, as explained in Matthew 13:36-43, is sown in “the field,” representing this world, by the Son of Man (v. 37), who is Jesus himself. The good seed specifically represents the sons of the kingdom (v. 38). Who are the sons of the kingdom? They are the true believers, Christians, who, through the church, spread the gospel of Jesus Christ in this world. The seed of the gospel is planted in hearts like good soil, and these Christians live a life bearing fruit by believing in Jesus, not only obtaining eternal life (Jn. 3:16) but also having their citizenship in heaven (Phil. 3:20). These true believers have genuinely received the word of God in their hearts, resulting in a transformed life (Jam. 1:13, 1 Pet. 1:23). Transformed individuals live in Christ, for Christ, looking to Christ alone (Park).
So, who does the "tares" refer to? Look at Matthew 13:38 – “The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one.” Here, Jesus states that the tares are the sons of the evil one. These sons of the evil one are individuals who, in contrast to the sons of the kingdom who receive the word of God in their hearts, listen to the words of the devil and obediently follow evil ways (Park). The reason for this distinction is that the enemy who sowed the tares in the field is none other than the devil (v. 39). Reflecting on this passage, I recalled Jesus' explanation of the parable of the sower, specifically the seed sown by the wayside, which we meditated on in Matthew 13:1-9. Look at Matthew 13:19 - "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path." Here, the evil one refers to Satan (Mk. 4:15) or the devil (Lk. 8:12), who purposefully snatches away the word of God sown in hearts like the wayside, with the aim of preventing them from believing in Jesus and obtaining salvation (v. 12). Based on this context, when thinking about Matthew 13:25, where Jesus speaks of the "tares," the sons of the evil one (v. 38) refer to those who do not believe in Jesus, individuals who have not received salvation, in other words, unbelievers. In today's passage, Jesus uses the parable to describe the tares as the sons of the evil one, who listen to the devil's words and obediently follow evil ways – they are unbelievers. In verse 41, Jesus provides additional clarification about these sons of the evil one: "The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers." This statement indicates that the tares, the sons of the evil one, are individuals who practice wrongdoing and engage in unlawful activities.
These sons of the evil one are false ones, and Satan has sown them within the church. These false individuals manifest their identity to some extent within the church. There are several characteristics of false individuals within the church: (1) They are not born again and, therefore, do not understand the influence and guidance of the Holy Spirit. (2) They do not truly hate sin and do not genuinely repent of their wrongdoing. (3) They love the world more than the kingdom and are inclined towards worldly pursuits. (4) Hypocrisy, cunning, and pride drive their way of life. (5) At times, they may outwardly advocate for truth and integrity, but their focus is not on God but on the world and the flesh (Park). These false individuals within the church receive false teachings, portraying themselves as outwardly righteous and good while, internally, engaging in contrary actions (Park). Such individuals, with a contradiction between their outward appearance and inward reality, are false believers within the church. These false believers mix with true believers. So, when and where does Jesus say the enemy, the devil, sowed this tare? "While everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat" (Mt. 13:25). Jesus states that the enemy, the devil, sowed the tares while everyone was sleeping, meaning discreetly, without people being aware. In other words, the enemy, the devil, secretly infiltrated the sons of the evil one among the sons of the kingdom, and this could imply that the devil subtly introduced false believers into the church without the true believers being aware (Park). This suggests that Satan sows false believers within the church, infiltrating them discreetly, aiming to deceive true believers. Currently, Satan is clandestinely infiltrating false teachers into the church to mislead true believers with false doctrines. Jesus has already warned that false prophets will arise and deceive many (24:11). He prophesied that many would come in His name, claiming to be Christ, and deceive many (v. 5, Mk. 13:6). Look at Matthew 24:24 - "For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect." Their purpose is to deceive true believers and lead their hearts away from the purity and truthfulness towards Christ (2 Cor. 11:3).
There are both wheat and tares in the church. In the church, there are true believers, but there are also false believers. Just as wheat and tares grow together in one field, currently, within the church, both true and false believers are growing. True believers receive God's word, obey, and, through faith, continue to grow, leading lives that are increasingly transformed to resemble Jesus. They manifest Jesus' gospel and fragrance while expanding God's kingdom on Earth, participating partially in the heavenly life. On the other hand, false believers, receiving the devil's words, grow in unbelief and disobedience to God's word. They, instead, obey Satan's words, not only within the church but also outside, contributing to more evil actions and furthering the worldly corruption. In the end, true and false believers will each strive to establish God's kingdom and Satan's kingdom more dominantly in this world. To which kingdom do you belong? Are you a true believer?
Second, let's consider why Jesus instructed to let the wheat and tares grow together until the harvest and contemplate the reason behind Jesus mentioning the "harvest time" and when this harvest time occurs.
Why did Jesus say to let the wheat and tares grow together until the harvest? In today's passage, observing the parable of the wheat and tares, we see a scene where the servants, seeing both the good seed they sowed in the field sprouting and bearing fruit, inquire of the master, "Did you not sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?" (v. 27). The master responds, "An enemy has done this" (v. 28). The servants then ask, "Then do you want us to go and gather them?" (v. 28). What does the master say at that moment? Look at verses 29-30: "But he said, 'No, lest in gathering the weeds, you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time, I will tell the reapers, 'Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'" What is the significance of this parable? Why did the master instruct the servants not to pull up the weeds but let them grow together until the harvest? The meaning of this parable is that Jesus is instructing His servants, the angels, not to separate the false believers mixed with the true believers, but to leave them as they are. The reason is the concern that pulling up the weeds might also uproot the wheat. The meaning of this parable is that distinguishing between true and false believers within the church is not easy, and in the process of trying to separate false believers, there is a risk of unintentionally expelling potential true believers. The parable emphasizes the need to leave the judgment of true and false believers to the appointed time when only Jesus, as the judge, will have the authority to judge false believers. In summary, the message is that we are not in a position to judge who are the true believers and who are the false believers. Only the Lord has the authority to be the judge, and attempting to cast out false believers from the church may result in a significant mistake, as there is a possibility of mistakenly excluding potential true believers. Therefore, Jesus instructs in the parable to let both the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest, where the Lord will instruct the reapers to gather the tares first, bind them for burning, and gather the wheat into His barn.
Here, what does "harvest time" refer to? The harvest time is precisely the end of the age (v. 39), which signifies the time of Jesus' Second Coming, the final moment. On the day Jesus returns to this world, He will command His reapers, the angels (v. 39), to separate the wheat, the true sons of the kingdom, the children of God, and the citizens of the kingdom of heaven, from the tares, the sons of the evil one, the unbelievers, false ones, and those who practice lawlessness. He will do this separation (see: Mt. 25:32). The separation will be initiated by the angels, gathering unbelievers, false ones (false believers), and all those who practice lawlessness and evil, from among the true believers, the children of God, and the citizens of the kingdom of heaven. They will be cast into the unquenchable fire, the eternal fire of hell (verses 40-42). Look at verses 49-50: "So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." Thus, at the end of the age, during Jesus' Second Coming, it will be a day of judgment for the wicked, a day of eternal destruction. However, by God's grace, for true believers who have become righteous by believing in Jesus, it will not be a day of judgment but a day of salvation. Therefore, the true believers, the citizens of the kingdom of heaven, eagerly await the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, the Savior from heaven (Phil 3:20). The reason is that on the day Jesus returns, the Lord will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body (v. 21).
The end of the world is undoubtedly drawing near. Surely, the last days are approaching, and the time of Jesus' Second Coming is near. At that time, the Lord will clearly distinguish between the wheat and the tares. The Lord will command His angels to gather the tares, the sons of the evil one, and cast them into the eternal fiery furnace of hell (Mt. 13:42). Then, the Lord will gather the wheat, the sons of the kingdom, and store them in His barn (v. 30). Just like a farmer wielding a sickle to harvest the wheat, in the last days, the Lord will come to this earth to harvest the wheat (Rev 14:14-16). During the harvest, the Lord will gather the sons of the kingdom into His barn, into the kingdom of His Father (Mt. 13:43). There, the righteous sons of the kingdom will shine like the sun (v. 43). With this hope in mind, what should you and I do? The Bible, in James 5:7-8, tells us: "Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand." I pray that you and I may be patient and steadfast as we await the coming of the Lord.