Friday of Pentecost 19

October 16, 2009

Today's Gospel brings us three parables from our Lord. The first is the parable of the weeds. Jesus tells the story about a man who sowed good seed in his field but while he and his men were sleeping the enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat. So when the plants sprouted up and bore grain then the weeds appeared at the same time. Then it became clear that an enemy had done this. The man's servants ask him if he wants them to go and pull out the weeds but he says, "No, let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn."

The second parable is about a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds but when it has grown it is the largest of all garden plants.

The third parable is about leaven that a woman put into three measures of flour so that it was all leavened.

What ties all these parables together? Is it not the fact that in all of them the kingdom of heaven is hidden? In the parable of the weeds the wheat (the kingdom) is hidden amongst the weeds. In the parable of the mustard seed it is hidden in its size until it is full grown. In the parable of the leaven it is hidden in the flour but with the result that the whole batch is leavened.

Jesus' point seems to be that you cannot tell where the kingdom starts and stops in this present age. You cannot say that just because a person goes to church on Sunday means that he or she is a member of the kingdom of heaven. Nor I think can you necessarily conclude that because a person does not go the church on a given Sunday that he or she is not a member of God's kingdom.