| Sermon, June 20, 2004 |
| "A place to call home." |
| "The Interpretation of the Weeds" Parables of the Kingdom, Part 5 [1] Matthew 13: 36-43 Rev. Matthew M. Fry |
As we continue to experience The Word of The Lord together, Let us Pray. Gracious and
Glorious God, we give you thanks that you are always speaking a new word to us. Your voice
has been heard in the prophets, in the Bible, and is heard today through the Holy Spirit. Speak
again, so that we might hear and know you more. Speak Lord, your servants are listening. If
these words are not Your Word, may they be forgotten and come to naught. But if they be Thy
Word, may they adhere to our hearts, forever transforming us from glory into glory, into the
creatures you would have us be, Thou who art our Rock and Redeemer, Amen.
Glorious God, we give you thanks that you are always speaking a new word to us. Your voice
has been heard in the prophets, in the Bible, and is heard today through the Holy Spirit. Speak
again, so that we might hear and know you more. Speak Lord, your servants are listening. If
these words are not Your Word, may they be forgotten and come to naught. But if they be Thy
Word, may they adhere to our hearts, forever transforming us from glory into glory, into the
creatures you would have us be, Thou who art our Rock and Redeemer, Amen.
I preached a sermon on the weeds 3 weeks ago, on the 30th of May, Memorial Day weekend,
and it caught more attention than most of my sermons. I said then that we would wait until now to
have a sermon on the interpretation of the Weeds because the gospels so often put material between
the telling of a parable and the eventual interpretation of it. So now we get to the sermon about the
interpretation of the parable, and many folks had questions about what to do with the parable of the
Weeds in the first place. The problem with the parable of the Weeds is that Jesus tells a story
about good and evil, sewn field and weeds, and Jesus says that when the enemy sows weeds, the
preferred response is to let it be. Jesus is telling them a parable about good and evil, a parable of
the kingdom, and says that the preferred response to evil is to do nothing. Which is strange and
foreign. We are programmed to root out evil, to get rid of it, and to not have to suffer from it any
more. Unfortunately, Jesus tells this parable of the Weeds, saying that the preferred way of dealing
with evil is to let it be, and what are we to do about that. So today, we talk about the interpretation
of the weeds, and its not going to get any better folks. If you were annoyed then, you will
probably be annoyed today as well. I’m sorry. I wish I could take this thing and make it into what
we would like it to be, but I can’t. I’ve got to let the living God speak through it. Sometimes it
convicts, especially when I am sure I am doing God’s good work.
and it caught more attention than most of my sermons. I said then that we would wait until now to
have a sermon on the interpretation of the Weeds because the gospels so often put material between
the telling of a parable and the eventual interpretation of it. So now we get to the sermon about the
interpretation of the parable, and many folks had questions about what to do with the parable of the
Weeds in the first place. The problem with the parable of the Weeds is that Jesus tells a story
about good and evil, sewn field and weeds, and Jesus says that when the enemy sows weeds, the
preferred response is to let it be. Jesus is telling them a parable about good and evil, a parable of
the kingdom, and says that the preferred response to evil is to do nothing. Which is strange and
foreign. We are programmed to root out evil, to get rid of it, and to not have to suffer from it any
more. Unfortunately, Jesus tells this parable of the Weeds, saying that the preferred way of dealing
with evil is to let it be, and what are we to do about that. So today, we talk about the interpretation
of the weeds, and its not going to get any better folks. If you were annoyed then, you will
probably be annoyed today as well. I’m sorry. I wish I could take this thing and make it into what
we would like it to be, but I can’t. I’ve got to let the living God speak through it. Sometimes it
convicts, especially when I am sure I am doing God’s good work.
I saw a shirt recently when I was at Montreat. It wasn’t on sale at the store, it was on one of
my fellow conference participants. I tell you this because it will cover how I feel we are to deal
with evil. The shirt said this. “Love them all. Let God sort them out.” I think that is to what we
as humans and as Christians are called. For what God will do with it, we turn to the Parable of the
Interpretation of the Weeds. But even by letting that slip, I’m getting ahead of myself, and letting
you see the wizard behind the curtain well before we are to the end of the yellow brick road.
my fellow conference participants. I tell you this because it will cover how I feel we are to deal
with evil. The shirt said this. “Love them all. Let God sort them out.” I think that is to what we
as humans and as Christians are called. For what God will do with it, we turn to the Parable of the
Interpretation of the Weeds. But even by letting that slip, I’m getting ahead of myself, and letting
you see the wizard behind the curtain well before we are to the end of the yellow brick road.
So, hear now The Word of the Lord as it comes to us in Matthew. Listen for God’s Word
for you today. Matthew 13.36-43. The Grass withers, the Flower falls, but the Word of the
Lord endures forever…Thanks be to God.
for you today. Matthew 13.36-43. The Grass withers, the Flower falls, but the Word of the
Lord endures forever…Thanks be to God.
The Gospels display Jesus as a very human, and often fiery, character. Maybe this is
because the writers know how the story ended, that Jesus was turned over to the authorities,
and was killed. So maybe the writers played up his human fiery side, lest we miss why he was
turned over in such a manner. So sometimes the result is that we can easily forget the
enthusiasm with which the crowds listened to him. He was dynamic and colorful, with
wonderful illustrations. He was part teacher, part entertainer, and folks loved to listen to him.[2]
because the writers know how the story ended, that Jesus was turned over to the authorities,
and was killed. So maybe the writers played up his human fiery side, lest we miss why he was
turned over in such a manner. So sometimes the result is that we can easily forget the
enthusiasm with which the crowds listened to him. He was dynamic and colorful, with
wonderful illustrations. He was part teacher, part entertainer, and folks loved to listen to him.[2]
So, in this section, he moves inside with just the disciples. Point by point, he ticks off a list
of what would seem to be complete obvious correspondences between the details of the
agricultural tale he has told and the kingdom’s contest with evil. Most readers, of course, have
found it not only acceptable, but gratifying; it’s always nice when the teacher’s explanations jibe
neatly with the pupil’s guesses and secret desire for his meaning. But biblical scholars have
almost always been driven up the wall by it.[3]
of what would seem to be complete obvious correspondences between the details of the
agricultural tale he has told and the kingdom’s contest with evil. Most readers, of course, have
found it not only acceptable, but gratifying; it’s always nice when the teacher’s explanations jibe
neatly with the pupil’s guesses and secret desire for his meaning. But biblical scholars have
almost always been driven up the wall by it.[3]
It’s so different than the manner in which Jesus seems to speak in this section. This section
seems like a parable of judgment, through which I preached last summer at this time, which
come much later in the Gospels than this. In fact, most of the parables of judgment occur
during holy week, which isn’t hard to understand. His parables of judgment are not abstract
treatises on the theology of the last things; instead, they are vivid stories told by a totally
committed dying Messiah who is also wrestling with the obvious fact of the rejection of his
sacrifice by nearly everyone around him.[4]
seems like a parable of judgment, through which I preached last summer at this time, which
come much later in the Gospels than this. In fact, most of the parables of judgment occur
during holy week, which isn’t hard to understand. His parables of judgment are not abstract
treatises on the theology of the last things; instead, they are vivid stories told by a totally
committed dying Messiah who is also wrestling with the obvious fact of the rejection of his
sacrifice by nearly everyone around him.[4]
So, I, like the scholars and students of the bible, reject this as a pre-parable of judgment. I
go back to the theory that Jesus again throws the people here a dog biscuit. Jesus knows what
they want to hear, and begins to give them what they want, but qualifies what he says in the
end. On quite a few occasions, Jesus does and/or says things that are best understood not as his
own opinion of what is called for in the circumstances but as concession for those with whom
he is dealing. If you would like examples, consider these. The healing of the demoniac boy in
Matthew 17.14-23, when Jesus’ disciples can’t cast out the demon, the boy’s father pesters
Jesus to cure him; so Jesus answers, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long do I have
to put up with you?”, and then proceeds to heal the boy anyway. Or consider the wedding at
Cana as found in John chapter 2. You remember the story. His mother informs him that they
have no wine, and he says “What have I got to do with you, woman? This isn’t my time.” I
guess he thought, I will serve no wine before my time. But then he turns the water into wine.
Those are the most famous, but there are others, such as the coin in the fish’s mouth in
Matthew 17, which is most often understood as a half-serious, throwaway miracle to shut up the
yapping of the tax authorities. The raising of Lazarus in John 11, Jesus is irked and upset at the
prospect of having to do it on account of the crowd hanging around. Heck, in Mark 7.27, Jesus
even mentions throwing things to the dogs. He calls the Syrophenician woman a dog, which
may be an inside joke between her and himself. The real “dogs” are those whose super orthodox
theology would never have the Messiah contact in any way the Greeks.[5]
go back to the theory that Jesus again throws the people here a dog biscuit. Jesus knows what
they want to hear, and begins to give them what they want, but qualifies what he says in the
end. On quite a few occasions, Jesus does and/or says things that are best understood not as his
own opinion of what is called for in the circumstances but as concession for those with whom
he is dealing. If you would like examples, consider these. The healing of the demoniac boy in
Matthew 17.14-23, when Jesus’ disciples can’t cast out the demon, the boy’s father pesters
Jesus to cure him; so Jesus answers, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long do I have
to put up with you?”, and then proceeds to heal the boy anyway. Or consider the wedding at
Cana as found in John chapter 2. You remember the story. His mother informs him that they
have no wine, and he says “What have I got to do with you, woman? This isn’t my time.” I
guess he thought, I will serve no wine before my time. But then he turns the water into wine.
Those are the most famous, but there are others, such as the coin in the fish’s mouth in
Matthew 17, which is most often understood as a half-serious, throwaway miracle to shut up the
yapping of the tax authorities. The raising of Lazarus in John 11, Jesus is irked and upset at the
prospect of having to do it on account of the crowd hanging around. Heck, in Mark 7.27, Jesus
even mentions throwing things to the dogs. He calls the Syrophenician woman a dog, which
may be an inside joke between her and himself. The real “dogs” are those whose super orthodox
theology would never have the Messiah contact in any way the Greeks.[5]
So, Jesus doing something that he knows others want him to do, and doing so with a
frustrated roll of the eyes, is not something out of the ordinary. It makes him more human. He
knows that his hearers, the disciples in this case, long to hear eschatology. They want clean cut
answers, they want it to be easy. You can hear his thought process. “O….kay, you’re dying to
mess up what I’ve said, so I’ll do that for you. This way you get two parables for the price of
one: the first is mine, in which I said that the farmer God tells the workers not to dare uproot the
weed, because they will be sure to pick up grain with it as well. But this second one is all
yours. You think this is an interpretation, but it’s really a parable. Chew on it all you like.
Maybe some day it will dawn on you that it’s not exactly the world’s best bone.”
frustrated roll of the eyes, is not something out of the ordinary. It makes him more human. He
knows that his hearers, the disciples in this case, long to hear eschatology. They want clean cut
answers, they want it to be easy. You can hear his thought process. “O….kay, you’re dying to
mess up what I’ve said, so I’ll do that for you. This way you get two parables for the price of
one: the first is mine, in which I said that the farmer God tells the workers not to dare uproot the
weed, because they will be sure to pick up grain with it as well. But this second one is all
yours. You think this is an interpretation, but it’s really a parable. Chew on it all you like.
Maybe some day it will dawn on you that it’s not exactly the world’s best bone.”
Jesus didn’t need biblical critics to tell him not to explain the parables; he knew instinctively
not to do it. That’s probably why his explanations never seem to come right after the parables
themselves. When he did give explanations, he did so with such a heavy hand that the results
were almost as good as the famous spoofing allegorization some critic made up for the parable of
the Good Samaritan: the critic said, the man who fell among thieves is the human race; the
Samaritan is Christ; the oil and wine are the two Testaments; the inn is the holy united church;
the innkeeper is the Pope; and the two pence are the two sacraments, baptism and communion.
When the critic was told he had omitted the beast upon which the Samaritan transported the
wounded man, the person replied, “Oh right, the donkey: the donkey is the person who made up
this interpretation of the parable.”[6]
not to do it. That’s probably why his explanations never seem to come right after the parables
themselves. When he did give explanations, he did so with such a heavy hand that the results
were almost as good as the famous spoofing allegorization some critic made up for the parable of
the Good Samaritan: the critic said, the man who fell among thieves is the human race; the
Samaritan is Christ; the oil and wine are the two Testaments; the inn is the holy united church;
the innkeeper is the Pope; and the two pence are the two sacraments, baptism and communion.
When the critic was told he had omitted the beast upon which the Samaritan transported the
wounded man, the person replied, “Oh right, the donkey: the donkey is the person who made up
this interpretation of the parable.”[6]
But enough. Jesus’ allegorizations make the point all by themselves. “Just as the weeds are
gathered and burned with the fire so will it be at the end of the age. The Human One will send his
angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and doers of iniquity.” In all
seriousness, that is what God will do. It would be a pretty poor New Jerusalem that couldn’t
manage to get such things off the streets. But yes, Jesus throws a dog biscuit to his disciples
here. But humans were not meant to live on dog biscuits. If the disciples really looked at what
Jesus said, they would spit it out sooner than you or I would spit out a plate of dog food. For
between the ultimate cleanup of evil and Jesus’ disciples misguided eagerness to get their version of
it going in high gear right now, Jesus will impose the dark, mysterious, incomprehensible,
unsatisfactory aphesis of his death, resurrection and ascension. You remember of aphesis, the key
word in the parable of the Weeds in the first place. The verb meaning to let be, to suffer, to permit,
and to forgive. Evil will be dealt with, but not in the manner that the disciples wish for. Even hell,
on this side of the resurrection, is a kind of aphesis, an eternal suffering of evil. Jesus tells the
disciples this quote interpretation, knowing that the story isn’t over yet. We can forgive the
disciples for not getting it, because we get to read this story in the light of the hill at Golgotha, and
in the light of the stone rolled away from an empty tomb.
gathered and burned with the fire so will it be at the end of the age. The Human One will send his
angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and doers of iniquity.” In all
seriousness, that is what God will do. It would be a pretty poor New Jerusalem that couldn’t
manage to get such things off the streets. But yes, Jesus throws a dog biscuit to his disciples
here. But humans were not meant to live on dog biscuits. If the disciples really looked at what
Jesus said, they would spit it out sooner than you or I would spit out a plate of dog food. For
between the ultimate cleanup of evil and Jesus’ disciples misguided eagerness to get their version of
it going in high gear right now, Jesus will impose the dark, mysterious, incomprehensible,
unsatisfactory aphesis of his death, resurrection and ascension. You remember of aphesis, the key
word in the parable of the Weeds in the first place. The verb meaning to let be, to suffer, to permit,
and to forgive. Evil will be dealt with, but not in the manner that the disciples wish for. Even hell,
on this side of the resurrection, is a kind of aphesis, an eternal suffering of evil. Jesus tells the
disciples this quote interpretation, knowing that the story isn’t over yet. We can forgive the
disciples for not getting it, because we get to read this story in the light of the hill at Golgotha, and
in the light of the stone rolled away from an empty tomb.
So we shouldn’t be surprised when this passage ends with Jesus saying, in the most
judgmental section of this chapter of Matthew, “Let those with ears, listen.” In other words,
“pay attention kids, not only to what I’ve just said, but also to what is coming up, cause you’re
going to need to hold on to your hat to experience it or believe it.”
judgmental section of this chapter of Matthew, “Let those with ears, listen.” In other words,
“pay attention kids, not only to what I’ve just said, but also to what is coming up, cause you’re
going to need to hold on to your hat to experience it or believe it.”
The grace of God will always triumph. The kingdom is here because of the grace of God.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
[1] This Sermon, and this series is based largely on the book by Robert Farrar Capon, The Parables of the
Kingdom. Awesome book, part of an awesome 3 part series, which includes The Parables of Grace and The Parables
of Judgment. Read them. The particulars of the book follow in this endnotes.
[2] Capon, Robert Farrar The Parables of the Kingdom, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids
Michigan, 1985, p. 125.
Kingdom. Awesome book, part of an awesome 3 part series, which includes The Parables of Grace and The Parables
of Judgment. Read them. The particulars of the book follow in this endnotes.
[2] Capon, Robert Farrar The Parables of the Kingdom, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids
Michigan, 1985, p. 125.
[3] Capon, p. 127.
[4] Capon, p. 128.
[5] Capon, pp. 128-129.
[6] Capon, p. 132.
[4] Capon, p. 128.
[5] Capon, pp. 128-129.
[6] Capon, p. 132.
| IMPORTANT After reading the translation: Click on the [X] in the box in the upper right corner of the translation window. That will close it. You will then return to the English version. |
| Posted June 21, 2004 |
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