The Kingdom of God is Like…

#3 Seeds (part 2)

Matthew 13

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.” ’ ”

We quickly see the similarity between the parable of the tares among the wheat, and the parable of the soils, for in both of these parables, there is

• a sower, there is a field,

• there is seed, and there are harvests.

But there are significant differences, too, as we shall see.

This second parable of Jesus is another, like the parable of the sower, in which Jesus does not leave us guessing at the interpretation. Later, at the request of the disciples Jesus explains it to us.

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.” (The revelation was not to everyone)

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!

This parable reaches back to the parable of the sower and picks up on the idea of spiritual warfare against good seed that falls among thorns, or is wilted by the heat of the sun, but Jesus goes further in saying we aren’t just “falling among weeds” but much more deviously, He declares that the Kingdom of God is under the direct attack of the enemy who would try to stop the advancement of the Kingdom by sowing poisonous seed/weeds in the world.

Jesus is saying to us, there is Warfare in His Kingdom. I’m reminded of another place where Jesus says,

[Mat 11:12 NKJV] – 12 "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.

[Mat 11:12 NLT] – 12 And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it.

Jesus doesn’t hide the truth from us. He is building His Kingdom – He is sowing good seed that can produce 30/60/100 fold. But at the same time, Satan is hard at work as well – sowing bad seed – evil seed – counterfeit seed which is contrary to the Kingdom.

So Jesus is warning us not to be surprised by Spiritual Warfare, but rather EXPECT it!

Key Symbols and Their Meanings

• The Sower (the Man): Jesus Christ (the Son of Man).
• The Field: The world. Which belongs to Jesus who “sowed good seed in HIS field”…  [Psa 24:1 The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,
• The Good Seed: True believers and Sons of God's kingdom. Genuine Christians
• The Enemy: The devil (Satan). Who is just as busy as God, sowing seeds of evil, discord, hypocrisy, false doctrine in the world (and in the church)
• The Weeds (Tares/Darnel): Deceptive false believers or wicked people influenced by evil. In real agriculture, poisonous darnel looks identical to wheat until the plants mature. So Jesus is saying that these aren’t just evil people like mass murderers, they are deceptive and look so much like real Christians that it is difficult to tell them apart
• Like Sheep and Goats
• “Lord lord, did not we… and Jesus will say, “I never knew you.
• The Servants: Disciples of Jesus.
• The Harvest: The end of the age. When there will be a final judgment and the true nature of all men will be revealed.

•  The Harvesters (Reapers): Angels

Main Lessons

• The World is Full of Both Good and Evil: Jesus doesn’t try to hide this. Even within his own disciples there was a Judas. Righteousness and wickedness grow side-by-side in the world. People cannot always tell who is good or bad just by looking at them early on.
• Even within the ranks of the Kingdom – those who profess to be Christians. Honestly, have you ever tried to find a Christian plumber, or contractor, or AC repairman so you knew you would be treated honestly, and got burned?
• Weekly we hear of another disgraced pastor.
• Jesus is telling us it will be this way so don’t be surprised; but also don’t doubt that no one will escape the final judgment.
• It also provides understanding as to why there is evil . Satan, the wicked one, plants those who are his offspring doing all kinds of wicked things. So don’t blame God for the evil Satan is sowing.
• Patience Over Premature Judgment: The landowner tells his servants not to pull up the weeds early because doing so would damage the delicate wheat roots. This warns humans to be careful how we judge one another as only God has perfect discernment.
• Ultimate Divine Justice: Sorting out good from evil is strictly the job of angels at the end of time, not the responsibility of people. Evil will face final judgment, while the righteous will be preserved
• We’ve all been there asking, Why bad things happen… wondering if justice will be done… why people seem to “get away with it”
• God wants us to know justice will ultimately prevail in His Kingdom – don’t doubt it

II. The Mustard Seed

[Mat 13:31-32 NLT] – 31 Here is another illustration Jesus used: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches."

• The Parable of the Mustard Seed is contained in all three of the Synoptic.
• In this parable, Jesus predicts the amazing growth of the kingdom of heaven.
• The mustard seed is quite small, but it grows into a large shrub—up to ten feet in height—and Jesus says this is a picture of kingdom growth.
• The point of the Parable of the Mustard Seed is that something big and blessed—the kingdom of God—had humble beginnings.
• How significant could the short ministry of Christ be?
• He had but a handful of followers,
• He was a man of no prestige and no money,
• and He lived in what everyone considered a backwater region of the world.
• The life and death of Christ did not catch the world’s attention any more than a mustard seed would lying on the ground by the road.
• But this was a work of God. What seemed inconsequential at first grew into a movement of worldwide influence, and no one could stop it

[Act 5:38-39 NLT] – 38 "So my advice is, leave these men alone. Let them go. If they are planning and doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God!"

• Later the Christians would be referred to as “those who have turned the world upside down”

3. The Exaggerated Growth of the Mustard Seed from the smallest of seed to the greatest of herbs in the garden is a Significant Theme in the Kingdom of God – that of great potential coming from small, humble beginnings.

• Who would have guessed a shepherd boy would become a king?
• Or that a baby born in a stable and laid in a manger would be the King of the World?
• Never forget how one small stone could take down a giant…
• Nor how one boys lunch could feed a multitude.
• Jesus started His church with Andrew, who had been one of John’s disciples. Andrew invited his brother Peter, and 1 became 2, and then 2 became the 12, and 12 became 70 and 70 became 120 and 120 became 3,000 and today estimates are there are 2.5 Billion Christians on the earth, the largest religious group, larger than Muslims or Hindus
• The Scripture teaches us not to despise the day of small beginnings [Zec 4:10 NLT]
• I want to encourage someone today…
• We are ambassadors of the kingdom…
• And there may be a ministry that God is calling you to, and you are thinking – that’s so small, so insignificant, why even bother?
• But I would simply remind you of an old song that says, “Little is much, when God is in it!”
• And on a much more personal level I want to just speak over some people today who aren’t necessarily struggling with a small ministry, but you are struggling thinking that YOU are small or insignificant. And I just want to tell you today that while the world may not see much in you – while others may have criticized you and told you that you were a nobody – Jesus sees tremendous potential in you, and the world has no idea what kind of greatness lies in you when you surrender your life to Jesus!

• Jesus goes on, not just to describe the plants unusual growth, but it’s influence - The influence of the kingdom in this world would be such that everyone associated with it would find a benefit—pictured as the birds perched on the branches of the mature mustard plant.
• The Kingdom of God is a place of safety and refuge; a place of healing and restoration; a place of provision and protection; a place of peace and joy; a place of abundant life for “whosoever will, let him come unto me”

5. The history of the church has shown Jesus’ Parable of the Mustard Seed to be true. The church has experienced an explosive rate of growth through the centuries.

• It is found worldwide and is a source of sustenance and shelter for all who seek its blessing.
• In spite of persecution and repeated attempts to stamp it out, the church has flourished.
• And it’s only a small picture of the ultimate manifestation of the kingdom of God, when Jesus returns to earth to rule and reign from Zion.