Parable of Tares

Matthew 13:24-30  36-43

Matthew 13:24-30 - 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.

Matthew 13:36-43 - Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 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.

I.        The way it is.

A.     God caused good.

1.       Genesis 1 and 2 - God created the heavens and earth.

2.       Genesis 1:28 - God intended man to live eternally on this populated earth.  God gave this command before sin came into this earth.

a.      God told man to replenish the earth (populate the earth).

b.      All the children of Adam and his wife would be wheat.

c.      There would be no tares among them at all.

d.      Sin had not yet entered the world.

e.      Genesis 1:31 – “And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.”

f.       Matthew 13:25 – the tares were sow after the wheat sowing was finished, and men were sleeping (taking rest) from their labors.

g.      Satan fell sometime between Genesis 2:25 and 3:1.

h.      Never believe that Satan fell between Genesis 1:1, and 1:2.

i.        There was no death until Adam brought sin into the world.

j.        There were no fossils until after death came into the world.

B.     The wheat are the elect of God (children of God), the tares are the children of the devil.

1.       The idea is false that declares “God voted for you, Satan voted against you, and you cast the deciding vote.”

a.      Satan was not a registered voter – he wasn’t eligible to vote – he had not yet sinned, therefore would not vote against you.

b.      You are not allowed to vote.  If you did vote, and your vote would count, that would mean you were equal to God, and that Satan was equal with God.

2.       God knows those that are his.

a.      John 10:14-16 – “14  I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”

b.      John 6:44 – “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

c.      Ephesians 1:4 – God chose his people (wheat) before the foundation of the world. – “…he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:”

d.      I Peter 1:2 – “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”

e.      Wheat is always wheat, tares are always tares.  They can’t be changed back and forth.

f.       There is such a thing as lost sheep and saved sheep.  Then there are goats, who will never be saved, but continually butt against Christ, and his Word.

3.       Polluted seed.

a.      Matthew 13:26 – When the wheat and tares brought forth fruit, then the truth of their substance was known.  “But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also.”

b.      Genesis 4:1 – “And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.”

1)      When Cain was born (was little) he looked like a child of God.

2)      It wasn’t until he was grown and on his own, that his true substance became known when he murdered his brother Abel.

c.      Matthew 13:20-21 – “But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.”

1)      The recipient of this seed is a tare, reflected by:

2)      He has no root in himself – no indwelling Holy Spirit.

3)      Tribulation and persecution causes him to be offended.

4)      Romans 8:35 – “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”  Tribulation and persecution comes to every believer, but true believers don’t get offended at the Word of God.  We are overcomers.

4.       The inward seed.

a.      Luke 22:31 – “And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:”  Satan wanted to get at the inward kernel, which is salvation, but the prayers of Christ kept it from happening.

b.      The tare in Matthew 13:20,21 has no root with himself – no seed – no salvation.

c.      The inward seed causes the wheat to “bow its head” when it is mature, just like the indwelling Holy Spirit brings about humility in the heart and life of the true believer.

d.      Tares don’t “bow the head” because there is no inward seed in them.

5.       Matthew 5:5 - The meek shall inherit the earth.  It might be asked, "Who would want the earth?"  Well, when Christ gets through replacing it with a brand new earth, the meek will!

6.       We shall reign on this earth during the millennium.  Christ will be the king.  This will be revealed in some of the other parables.

7.       II Peter 3:10-12 - This earth shall be destroyed.

8.       Revelation 21:1,2 - New heaven and new earth - We shall dwell on this new earth for eternity.

9.       God's plans accomplished in spite of sin.

C.     Evil is always present (now) Matthew 13:25,26.  The enemy sows tares while the saved take their needed and deserved rest.

1.       Genesis 4:3 - Cain is a murderer.

2.       Genesis 6 - Wickedness in Noah's day.

3.       Genesis 12:4 - Abraham had Lot.

4.       Exodus 12:38 - Israel had the mixed multitude.

5.       John 6:70,71 - The first church had Judas (and Jesus was with them!)

6.       Acts 5:1-11 - The first church had Ananias and Sapphire (and the Holy Spirit was with them!).

7.       III John 9 - Diotrephes (Son of Zeus) was in this church.

8.       I John 2:18,19 - The early church had many Antichrists in them.

9.       Acts 20:29, Matthew 7:15-20 (verse 13) - Evil people will feast (worship) with us.

10.   Jude 12, II Peter 2:10-22 (verse 13) - Evil people will feast (worship) with us.

D.     How do they get into churches?

1.       John 13:21-30 - Judas betrayed Christ, yet fooled all the apostles.

2.       Matthew 7:15-20 - They appear as sheep, but they're wolves.

3.       Acts 20:30 - by speaking perverse things.

E.      How do you tell the difference?

1.       Don't go by what they say - go by what they do.

2.       By their fruits, ye shall know them.

3.       Compare cockle burrs and tomato plants.

a.      rice and wild rice.

b.      wheat and tares.

II.     What are we doing to do?

A.     Mark 16:15 – “…Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”  Preach the gospel to every creature.

1.       It is not our job to try to find the wheat or the tares.

2.       God’s Holy Spirit does that.

3.       Don’t try to discover who the wheat is, or the tares is.

4.       Preach the gospel.

B.     Psalm 73.

1.       Know that they are going to perish from this earth.

2.       Don't worry about them.

3.       They have the very best they'll ever have - hell is waiting for them.

4.       We have the worse we'll ever have - God is waiting for us.

C.     Keep on bearing fruit (Matthew 13:26).

1.       The reason the tares showed up was because of the wheat bearing fruit.

2.       The wicked of this world will always be with us.

3.       John 17:15 - Jesus didn't pray that we be taken out of the world, but that we be kept from the evil of this world.

III.   The characters:

1.       Sower - God, not man.

2.       Good seed - elect.

3.       Field - World, not church (Cosmos)

4.       Enemy - Devil.

5.       Tares - Non-elect.

6.       harvest - End of age (Aion).

7.       Reapers - Angels of God.

8.       Barn - New Heaven (New Jerusalem).

9.       Servants - us.

10.   Furnace of Fire - lake of fire.

IV.  Verse 24 - Son of man putting saved (elect) in the world

A.     God puts saved in the world - Ephesians 2:1-5.

1.       God chose us - John 15:16,19.

2.       Book of life - Names written in from the foundation of the world - Revelation 13:8

a.      Our names written in heaven. Luke 10:20.

b.      Revelation 21:27.

B.     His world.

1.       Cattle on a thousand hills - Psalm 50:10.

2.       World belongs to God - Exodus 19:5, Psalm 24:1.

V.     Verse 25.

A.     Men slept.

1.       "not aware".

2.       Compare with Adam's fall - Genesis 3:1-7.

3.       Note that the scriptures didn't say God was sleeping.

4.       It is very evident to me that God wasn't sleeping because he knew who sowed the tares in the wheat field.

B.     His (God's) enemy came.

1.       The main enemy of Satan is not mankind.

2.       His main enemy is God.

3.       Satan is trying to get to God by getting at His people - the eternally elected.

C.     Tares sown.

1.       How many tares were sown?  Compare the number of saved and lost.

2.       Went his way - Devil has done his worse, now he will leave it to "nature".

VI.  Verse 26.  The difference in fruits are visible to the trained eye.  Can we discern Spirits?

A.     Similarity of wheat and tares.

1.       Similarity of cocklebur and tomato (when young) Denver Ferguson giving Margaret Drake young cocklebur plants, telling her they were tomato, and her growing them in her house.  Margaret's husband was a bean farmer!

2.       Rice and wild rice look very much the same, except to a rice farmer!

B.     Condition of soul known by fruits.

1.       John refused to baptize - Matthew 3:5-10.

2.       Natural fruit - Like apples, pears, oranges, etc.

3.       Sinful fruit - Works of the flesh - Galatians 5:19-21.

C.     I John 2:19 - John said if people had been saved they would not have left.

VII.            Verse 27.

A.     Servants - us.

B.     As to the question refer to Parable of the Sower - Matthew 13:3-8.

C.     People refuse to hear the Word of God - Matthew 13:10-17.

VIII.         Verse 28.

A.     The Lord's answer does not reveal anger, but a knowledge of the evil sowing.

1.       Who taught God? - Isaiah 40:13,14.

2.       God's knowledge - Isaiah 40:28.

3.       God is wiser than man - I Corinthians 3:18-20.

B.     The question shows man's obvious ignorance of heavenly things.

1.       Peter cut off the ear of high priest - John 17:10,11.

2.       Thomas not believing the disciples saw Christ after His resurrection - John 20:24-29.

3.       Peter denying Christ - Mark 14:27-31, 66-72.

IX.   Verse 29.

A.     Christ said to wait until the right time - His time, until the fulness of time.

B.     Jesus preached time fulfilled - Mark 1:15.

C.     When Jesus was born - Galatians 4:4

X.     Verse 30.

A.     Harvest - Each particular harvest (saved and lost).

1.       II Timothy 4:1 - God will judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom.

2.       Daniel 12:2 - Some will be resurrected to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

B.     Reapers - Angels - Verse 41.

C.     Tares are gather first:  Post Tributionalists often use this verse to state "confusion" about the order of events.  They state there is no rapture because in one place the Bible states that the lost are taken first and in another place, the saved are taken first.  This is the same principal used by people who don't believe in the security of the believer.  They say that in one place the Bible says "eternal" life, then in another place that you can lose your salvation.

1.       This is a gathering out of the kingdom of God (His earthly kingdom, not His heavenly kingdom), not which event takes place first: see the explanation in verse 41.

a.      Compare with Matthew 24:39 - The taking away is when God removes the tares from His kingdom, not that the lost are removed before the rapture.

b.      Compare with Matthew 24:31 - This is the final gathering together of all the saints of God into His kingdom.

2.       The kingdom of God is continuous.

a.      Psalm 24:1 - "The earth is the lord and the fulness thereof..."  The earth has always belonged to the Lord.

b.      Ephesians 2:1 - Satan is now the prince and power of the air, but  God has given him the authority to be.

c.      Revelation 11:15 - This is the time during the tribulation period when the kingdoms of this world are transferred back to God.  Compare Revelation 16:10 - Satan's kingdom still exits during this time, but God is slowly and surely destroying his kingdom.

d.      Revelation 20:6 - Christ shall rule 1,000 years, after which Satan shall be loosed from his kingdom in order to deceive the people who didn't want Christ to rule over them.

e.      Revelation 21:1 - Eternity will begin and the reign of Christ has no end.  Christ ruling from "sea to sea" is to be compared with Psalm 72:8 which states that Christ shall have rule from "sea to sea".  When Christ rules in eternity, He won't rule from "sea to sea" because the evidence of the flood of Noah's day will be removed.

3.       because lost are cast into the Lake of Fire first.

4.       Lost – Revelation 20:11-15.

5.       Saved - Revelation 21 & 22.

D.     Doesn't teach general resurrection.

1.       Not talking about resurrection, but final resting place.

2.       Resurrection is in John 5:28,29.

a.      II Timothy 4:1.

b.      Revelation 20:4-6.