plants are misleading. The weeds and wheat look alike when they have just sprouted. The mustard seed looks small and unremarkable before planting. But over time, growth reveals the true character of each. The mustard seed becomes a large plant that is beneficial not only for itself, but for the birds who come and nest in its branches. Does that sound familiar? It should! Look back at the reading from Tuesday. This is the same language that Ezekiel used in talking about the small shoot of a cedar tree that God would plant. However, Jesus is playing on the contrast between the mighty cedar tree that the people would expect to grow tall and strong, and the tiny mustard seed that exceeded expectations. Both are examples of expectations that are overturned—a common theme of Jesus’ preaching. The third parable in this passage overturns even more expectations. Yeast is a metaphor for influence that spreads beyond where it first begins. Scripture often refers to yeast as a negative influence, such as in Mark 8:15 and Luke 12:1 where Jesus told his followers to be on the lookout for the yeast of the Pharisees and Herod. Yeast was expected to be thoroughly cleaned out of homes before Passover, representing a break with the past life of slavery in Egypt. However, here Jesus uses the example of yeast to indicate that the spreading influence of this small, unseeable organism can be a positive influence on the world. The kingdom of God may be hidden, but its influence spreads and grows over time.
The parable of the weeds and wheat can be disturbing, but taken together with the other parables, the message seems to be this: God is sowing a new thing that will grow into greatness. Sometimes it looks like the enemy has won the battle because the weeds are growing faster than the wheat. But in the end, God’s workers will recognize and collect the good and healthy, and destroy what is unhealthy and unfruitful.
Maturing in Faith
baggage that I am carrying along. This is true both of physical items—books, clothes, memorabilia— and emotional ones. I have to be careful not to take negative feelings about people I have known in the past into the future to new settings. If I take the time to look within, see where I need to forgive, and move on, I can allow the Holy Spirit the opportunity to clear out some of the weeds in my own life, even before the final harvest. Take some time to reflect on your life. Are you holding on to old grudges? Are you still hurt by an old betrayal? Have you needed to apologize for something and just never gotten around to it? Maybe it’s time to go weeding. It’s never too late to allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, bringing good seed to harvest.
Let’s face it, folks, we are getting older. Some of us have been Christians a long time, though others— even the more mature in years—might be new to the faith. Jesus has planted good seed in us, but if we are honest with ourselves, there is probably some bad seed that has grown as well. We might have scattered some bad seed ourselves along with the good seed of love, grace, and Kingdom work. When we were younger, it wasn’t always easy to tell how a decision would work out, what the consequences—both intended and unintended—of a particular action might be. With age, however, comes a welcome perspective. It’s not yet the time of the final harvest in cosmic terms, but as I do get older, I think I am better able to weed out the things in my life that are not fruitful. Since I move quite a bit (as a pastor), I am learning to see what things are necessary to my well-being and what things are just excess
62
Christian Living in the Mature Years
9781501830860_INT_60 to 62 SUM18.indd 62
1/8/18 2:01 PM