By Jon Beaty
Have you ever wondered why Jesus allows both converted and unconverted Christians to co-exist in His church? Unconverted Christians talk the talk, but don't walk the walk. Unconverted Christians cause problems. They are uncommitted to the mission, they introduce strange doctrines, and their behavior confuses and discourages others while tarnishing the church's reputation. They have a form of godliness but deny God's power (2 Timothy 3:5).
To address this problem, Jesus told the Parable of the Wheat and Tares.
Understanding the Parable
In Matthew 13:24-30 and 36-43, Jesus tells a story of a farmer who sows good seed in his field. While everyone sleeps, an enemy comes and sows weeds (tares) among the wheat. As the plants grow together, the farmer's servants notice the weeds. They ask if they should pull them out. The farmer, however, instructs them to let both grow together until the harvest.
Jesus later explains the symbolism:
- The seed sower is Jesus
- The tare sower is Satan
- The field is the world
- The good seed (wheat) are children of God's Kingdom (converted Christians)
- The tares are children of Satan (unconverted Christians)
The Problem of Mistaken Identity
Jesus emphasizes the importance of conversion in Matthew 18:3 (NKJV): "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven."
This conversion is the key distinction between the wheat and the tares. How can we distinguish between wheat and tares?
When we're looking at people who call themselves Christians, our ability to identify whether a person is converted isn't reliable. We can't reliably read people's motives without a close examination of their heart.
On the surface, it looks easier than it is. The farmer's servants thought so. But the farmer refused to let the servants pull out the tares, "lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matthew 13:29-30 NKJV).
This instruction challenges our natural inclination to restrict, criticize, judge and remove people from the church who don't fit our ideas of what a real Christian looks and acts like.
Jesus provides direction on addressing open violation of the Ten Commandments in the church. Addressing open sin is a specific problem that is different than that created by what Jesus describes as wheat and tares growing together. I won't go into it here. Matthew 18 and 1 Corinthians 5 lay out the principles for redemptive intervention when a Christian's sins become
known by others.
When converted and unconverted Christians occupy the same space, Jesus tells us they are indistinguishable from each other. What and tares share pews in church, serve alongside each other in ministry, and stay home on Sabbaths to watch sermons on TV.
Consider this: How you relate to the person you suspect is an unconverted Christian may expose the condition of your fruit.
When church people don't meet our expectations, what should we do? With Bible in hand, and submission to the Holy Spirit, we are well-equipped to examine our own heart and how we act toward them.
The Characteristics of God's Servants
When wheat and tares occupy the church, converted Christians will discover that some of their own fruit isn't quite ready for harvest. The unconverted Christian's lukewarm spirit, tendencies to embrace strange doctrines, and seemingly selfish actions can trigger the converted Christian to think and act in ways contrary to the Spirit. These experiences should drive us to dive deeper
into God's Word, and to pray for submission to the work of the Spirit on our hearts.
Drawing from his wisdom and experience planting and mentoring churches, Paul offered this counsel to Timothy, his younger companion in ministry: "Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will" (2 Timothy 2:23-26 ESV).
In contrast to the natural impulse of the farmer's servants offering to pluck tares out from the field, Paul gives us a description of what Jesus' servants should be doing:
- Avoiding quarrels
- Showing kindness to everyone
- Teaching patiently
- Enduring evil without retaliating
- Correcting opponents gently
When the time of harvest comes, what matters is whether our lives bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-33), referenced here in Paul's instruction to Timothy. Jesus' parable indicates that this fruit is how His angels will know whether who is a wheat or a tare.
Good fruit is a gift imparted when we receive by faith through grace the promised Holy Spirit. We can't acquire these characteristics any other way. This is a gift we all need.