21 March 2025
may understand the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, whilst those not initiated
into this holy secret would remain ignorant to the true meaning of the parable.
(See Mathew 13:11). This parable was given to encourage future generations of
believers that would eventually be sown as good seed throughout the world to
have hope and peace of mind despite the menacing machinations of the devil to
disseminate pseudo-Christians within Christian communities. The Apostle Paul
recounts such an event recorded in Galatians 2:4 “Yet because of false brothers
secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ
Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery”— English Standard Version. Luke
records this same event in Chapter 15:4-29 of the Letter of Acts. Jesus had
forewarned that Weeds or false Christians would eventually infiltrate the field of
true Christians he had sown at Pentecost 33 CE. In Philippians 1:14-18, Notice how
Paul describes the attitude of some as ‘envious, rivalrous, selfishly ambitious and
insincere’. He reiterates this in his letter to Timothy, in 1 Timothy 4:1,2: “Now the
Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting
themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of
liars whose consciences are seared,” English Standard Version. Paul goes on to
emphasize the sowing of weeds in the field of true Christians had already
commenced in his day when in 1 Corinthians 11:17-19 he says, “But in the following
instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for
the better but for the worse. For, in the first place, when you come together as a
church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, for there
must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you
may be recognized.” English Standard Version.
Paul the Apostle is well versed in the secrets or mysteries of the kingdom, as
he often attests to, as he does in 1 Corinthians 4:1: “This is how one should regard
us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” English Standard
Version. Paul has been initiated in these holy secrets or mysteries of the kingdom
and takes his responsibility very seriously, warning his and future generations of
true Christians as to the events that would occur following the deaths of the last
faithful apostles of Jesus. In 2 Thessalonians 1-10, Paul outlines in a prophetic
voice the details surrounding Jesus' parable of the weeds that would culminate in
the manifestation of the man of lawlessness, which Paul says was already at work in
his day. He further goes on to state that the then-living apostles acted as a restraint
over this spirit of lawlessness, and Paul concludes by emphasising that to protect
against this spirit of lawlessness, one must ‘Love truth and so be saved’.
Paul, in the aforementioned scriptures, has artfully superimposed many
elucidating details onto Jesus' parable of the weeds. This should serve to prepare
Christians of all generations, including our own, to expect multi-denominational
sectarianism as a product of the Devil’s meddling.
Important features of the parable of the weeds to keep in mind are as follows.
Firstly, the weeds would be left to grow together with the good seed. Secondly,
one would not be able to distinguish a good seed from a weed until harvest time.
Thirdly, only at the end of the age or with the return of Messiah would angels be
commissioned to remove all causes of sin and lawbreakers out from His kingdom
to be burnt in the fire. Lastly, then and only then would the righteous shine as the
sun in the kingdom of their Father. This moment of truth is described by Jesus in
Mathew 7:21-23 ‘On that day many will say to him they did many powerful works in
his name only to be rejected by Jesus as workers of lawlessness.’ On what day, one
may ask, is Jesus referring to? Jesus gives us the day on which he will sit on a
throne with his holy angels to judge the nations of the world (remember, the world
is the field that Jesus sowed with good seed, and the angels are the reapers). In
Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus borrows Ezekiel’s prophetic language as recorded in
Ezekiel 34:20-30 where fat sheep and lean sheep are judged, “Behold, I judge
between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats.” Jesus always speaks in
the voice of the prophets to imbue his words with authority. That Christians are in
view here is corroborated by reputable commentaries such as Meyer’s NT
Commentary “We should therefore return to the very old view (Lactantius, Instit. vii. 20; Jerome,
Euthymius Zigabenus), which, though it had been neglected in consequence of the prevalent
eschatology, was preserved by Grotius, the view, namely, that what Jesus is here depicting is the
judgment of Christians: περὶ τῶν Χριστιανῶν δὲ μόνων ὁ λόγος ἐνταῦθα, Euthymius Zigabenus,
who proves this, above all, from Matthew 25:35-36.
Jesus’ parable of the sheep and the goats, therefore, is further amplification
of events surrounding the deracination of weed-like Christians that have been
allowed to grow side by side over the centuries until his return as Judge. One will
note in the parable of the sheep and the goats many overlapping similarities with
terms, rewards and punishment as given by Jesus in the parable of the Weeds.
All this is to say that sincere Christians who seek fellowship with other
Christians must be mentally prepared to engage with Christianity as a whole as a
global field or body without the absolute certainty of which individuals constitute
a good seed and who is a weed when evaluating any and all (individual) Christians.
Paul the apostle highlights this dilemma in 1 Corinthians 4:3-5, “But with me it is a
very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do
not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not
thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce
judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the
things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.
Then each one will receive his commendation from God. As a caveat to the
aforementioned, Christians can and should condemn Christian institutions and
their practices that blatantly obfuscate or pervert in either practice or doctrine the
words of our Lord Jesus. It is the individual good seed or weed that one can not
and should not judge before the appointed time.
One final example reported in scripture should serve to encourage us in our
endeavour to find truth and fellowship within the global body of Christians is
found in Revelation chapters 2-3, where Jesus addresses the seven churches of
Asia Minor. It is notable to read in the words of our Lord when describing the
spiritual condition of these churches, things such as false apostles, the synagogue
of Satan, Satan’s throne, the teaching of Balaam, the Nicolaitians, the woman
Jezebel, Sexual immorality, food sacrificed to idols and that some congregants
were neither cold nor hot. What consolation does the Lord give to those in the
seven congregations who remain faithful lovers of truth? Revelation 2:24-29
answers this question, “But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this
teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I
say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I
come. The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will
give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when
earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my
Father. (See Psalms 2:8,9)
It is noteworthy that Jesus, nowhere in his council to the congregations, says
explicitly to leave the congregation due to their inherent corruption and departure
from the truth. Rather, Jesus’ words are explicit that all truth-seeking Christians,
no matter where they should find themselves, have an individual responsibility to
keep their vestments white in his sight. It is incumbent on all honest-hearted
Christians today, as in the first century, to assume their responsibilities and
develop a heart of wisdom to be found a good seed at harvest time. This is the
great challenge our Lord Jesus set before us in the parable of the weeds if we are
to conquer as he conquered, to grow within the global field of Christianity side by
side with weeds or false Christians without growing weak or being discouraged or,
worse yet, choked to spiritual death.
To whom should we go if we are feeling isolated and alone in our Christian
journey? John 6:68,69 tells us, “Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall
we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to
know, that you are the Holy One of God.” Also, Jesus' words in Mathew 18:20
should encourage us even when our fellowship is small: “For where two or three are
gathered in my name, there am I among them.” We must not feel compelled to
pertain to a large institutionalised church structure to be found approved by our
Lord at his return. The parable of the weeds should give us pause and reflect on
the nature of Christianity as a whole; it is not the denomination one belongs to
that will save rather, it is a heart sown with good seed which grows despite the
immediate context of its environment that will receive the promise to shine like the
sun in the Kingdom of their father.
Let us abandon the futile quest to find the right and true Christian
denomination out of all the sectarian and so-called Christian denominations,
rather, with Godly wisdom, practice discernment and prepare ourselves for the
reapers at harvest time to be found as wheat, fully grown mature Christians
without making comparisons and resist the urge to judge over other individual
Christians whether they are wheat or weeds.
The parable of the weeds and the good seed
How to find peace as a Christian within the multidenominational sectarianism of Christianity.
Jesus gives Matthew 13:36-43, The parable of the weeds, to his elect so theymay understand the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, whilst those not initiated
into this holy secret would remain ignorant to the true meaning of the parable.
(See Mathew 13:11). This parable was given to encourage future generations of
believers that would eventually be sown as good seed throughout the world to
have hope and peace of mind despite the menacing machinations of the devil to
disseminate pseudo-Christians within Christian communities. The Apostle Paul
recounts such an event recorded in Galatians 2:4 “Yet because of false brothers
secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ
Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery”— English Standard Version. Luke
records this same event in Chapter 15:4-29 of the Letter of Acts. Jesus had
forewarned that Weeds or false Christians would eventually infiltrate the field of
true Christians he had sown at Pentecost 33 CE. In Philippians 1:14-18, Notice how
Paul describes the attitude of some as ‘envious, rivalrous, selfishly ambitious and
insincere’. He reiterates this in his letter to Timothy, in 1 Timothy 4:1,2: “Now the
Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting
themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of
liars whose consciences are seared,” English Standard Version. Paul goes on to
emphasize the sowing of weeds in the field of true Christians had already
commenced in his day when in 1 Corinthians 11:17-19 he says, “But in the following
instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for
the better but for the worse. For, in the first place, when you come together as a
church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, for there
must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you
may be recognized.” English Standard Version.
Paul the Apostle is well versed in the secrets or mysteries of the kingdom, as
he often attests to, as he does in 1 Corinthians 4:1: “This is how one should regard
us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” English Standard
Version. Paul has been initiated in these holy secrets or mysteries of the kingdom
and takes his responsibility very seriously, warning his and future generations of
true Christians as to the events that would occur following the deaths of the last
faithful apostles of Jesus. In 2 Thessalonians 1-10, Paul outlines in a prophetic
voice the details surrounding Jesus' parable of the weeds that would culminate in
the manifestation of the man of lawlessness, which Paul says was already at work in
his day. He further goes on to state that the then-living apostles acted as a restraint
over this spirit of lawlessness, and Paul concludes by emphasising that to protect
against this spirit of lawlessness, one must ‘Love truth and so be saved’.
Paul, in the aforementioned scriptures, has artfully superimposed many
elucidating details onto Jesus' parable of the weeds. This should serve to prepare
Christians of all generations, including our own, to expect multi-denominational
sectarianism as a product of the Devil’s meddling.
Important features of the parable of the weeds to keep in mind are as follows.
Firstly, the weeds would be left to grow together with the good seed. Secondly,
one would not be able to distinguish a good seed from a weed until harvest time.
Thirdly, only at the end of the age or with the return of Messiah would angels be
commissioned to remove all causes of sin and lawbreakers out from His kingdom
to be burnt in the fire. Lastly, then and only then would the righteous shine as the
sun in the kingdom of their Father. This moment of truth is described by Jesus in
Mathew 7:21-23 ‘On that day many will say to him they did many powerful works in
his name only to be rejected by Jesus as workers of lawlessness.’ On what day, one
may ask, is Jesus referring to? Jesus gives us the day on which he will sit on a
throne with his holy angels to judge the nations of the world (remember, the world
is the field that Jesus sowed with good seed, and the angels are the reapers). In
Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus borrows Ezekiel’s prophetic language as recorded in
Ezekiel 34:20-30 where fat sheep and lean sheep are judged, “Behold, I judge
between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats.” Jesus always speaks in
the voice of the prophets to imbue his words with authority. That Christians are in
view here is corroborated by reputable commentaries such as Meyer’s NT
Commentary “We should therefore return to the very old view (Lactantius, Instit. vii. 20; Jerome,
Euthymius Zigabenus), which, though it had been neglected in consequence of the prevalent
eschatology, was preserved by Grotius, the view, namely, that what Jesus is here depicting is the
judgment of Christians: περὶ τῶν Χριστιανῶν δὲ μόνων ὁ λόγος ἐνταῦθα, Euthymius Zigabenus,
who proves this, above all, from Matthew 25:35-36.
Jesus’ parable of the sheep and the goats, therefore, is further amplification
of events surrounding the deracination of weed-like Christians that have been
allowed to grow side by side over the centuries until his return as Judge. One will
note in the parable of the sheep and the goats many overlapping similarities with
terms, rewards and punishment as given by Jesus in the parable of the Weeds.
All this is to say that sincere Christians who seek fellowship with other
Christians must be mentally prepared to engage with Christianity as a whole as a
global field or body without the absolute certainty of which individuals constitute
a good seed and who is a weed when evaluating any and all (individual) Christians.
Paul the apostle highlights this dilemma in 1 Corinthians 4:3-5, “But with me it is a
very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do
not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not
thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. Therefore do not pronounce
judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the
things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.
Then each one will receive his commendation from God. As a caveat to the
aforementioned, Christians can and should condemn Christian institutions and
their practices that blatantly obfuscate or pervert in either practice or doctrine the
words of our Lord Jesus. It is the individual good seed or weed that one can not
and should not judge before the appointed time.
One final example reported in scripture should serve to encourage us in our
endeavour to find truth and fellowship within the global body of Christians is
found in Revelation chapters 2-3, where Jesus addresses the seven churches of
Asia Minor. It is notable to read in the words of our Lord when describing the
spiritual condition of these churches, things such as false apostles, the synagogue
of Satan, Satan’s throne, the teaching of Balaam, the Nicolaitians, the woman
Jezebel, Sexual immorality, food sacrificed to idols and that some congregants
were neither cold nor hot. What consolation does the Lord give to those in the
seven congregations who remain faithful lovers of truth? Revelation 2:24-29
answers this question, “But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this
teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I
say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I
come. The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, to him I will
give authority over the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when
earthen pots are broken in pieces, even as I myself have received authority from my
Father. (See Psalms 2:8,9)
It is noteworthy that Jesus, nowhere in his council to the congregations, says
explicitly to leave the congregation due to their inherent corruption and departure
from the truth. Rather, Jesus’ words are explicit that all truth-seeking Christians,
no matter where they should find themselves, have an individual responsibility to
keep their vestments white in his sight. It is incumbent on all honest-hearted
Christians today, as in the first century, to assume their responsibilities and
develop a heart of wisdom to be found a good seed at harvest time. This is the
great challenge our Lord Jesus set before us in the parable of the weeds if we are
to conquer as he conquered, to grow within the global field of Christianity side by
side with weeds or false Christians without growing weak or being discouraged or,
worse yet, choked to spiritual death.
To whom should we go if we are feeling isolated and alone in our Christian
journey? John 6:68,69 tells us, “Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall
we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to
know, that you are the Holy One of God.” Also, Jesus' words in Mathew 18:20
should encourage us even when our fellowship is small: “For where two or three are
gathered in my name, there am I among them.” We must not feel compelled to
pertain to a large institutionalised church structure to be found approved by our
Lord at his return. The parable of the weeds should give us pause and reflect on
the nature of Christianity as a whole; it is not the denomination one belongs to
that will save rather, it is a heart sown with good seed which grows despite the
immediate context of its environment that will receive the promise to shine like the
sun in the Kingdom of their father.
Let us abandon the futile quest to find the right and true Christian
denomination out of all the sectarian and so-called Christian denominations,
rather, with Godly wisdom, practice discernment and prepare ourselves for the
reapers at harvest time to be found as wheat, fully grown mature Christians
without making comparisons and resist the urge to judge over other individual
Christians whether they are wheat or weeds.
