Scriptures: Wisdom of Solomon 12:13, 16-19; Psalm 86:11-17; Romans 8:12-25; Matthew 13:24-30,36-43
Reflection by Rev. Kathryn Snelling, Deacon
8 Pentecost July 19,2026
Almighty and gracious God, open our ears to hear your word and open our hearts to receive it. In the name of he who is the Word, the truth and the life, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
I expected that you noticed I didn’t read the full portion of scripture we had today, but stopped when Jesus had finished telling the parable and had gone back into the house.
And that was intentional.
Because I would like us to sit with just the parable this morning and not the explanation, the allegory offered in the text.
I know it’s hard to un-hear something we have heard over so many years, but l would like us to try.
And this is not to say that the allegory offered in the text isn’t viable. It certainly is and there is truth there.
But in general, Jesus did not give explanations to his parable. He left it with; “Let those with ears, listen.”
That’s one of the beauties and challenges of parables and gives them their timelessness.
Every generation hears it within the context of when it was first spoken and in the context of the world of their own times and perhaps even from where they are in their own lives.
So, please join me in exploring this parable.
Jesus uses common items and events in his parables that people could easily relate to. Things and circumstances his listeners would be familiar with.
How many of you grew up around wheat fields?
I did not. Growing up in southeast Alaska, the closest wheat fields are thousands of miles away. So other than seeing pictures and reading about it, my knowledge of wheat was scant.
So I decided I should look up wheat and refresh my knowledge about the plant and how it grows. See what that might offer in reading and understanding this parable.
And I did learn a few interesting facts;
— Wheat seed does not need a well fertilized soil to grow in.
Unlike here, where serious gardeners gather the seaweed and fish heads and work it into the soil to add more nutrients to it before they plant — wheat grows in the soil as it is - it just needs to be well tilled and raked out so there are some groves for the seed to fall into and germinate. And after it is established it doesn’t even require regular or frequent watering.
— And one more thing, the wheat will get what it needs to grow and produce grain in spite of the weeds. The wheat will outcompete the weeds.
And now the weeds. Our translation from the New Revised Standard Version uses the broad term weeds, while in other translations such as King James they are called tares and others they name the weed - the darnel.
The darnel is a weed that looks very much like wheat and so much so that it is very difficult to tell the difference when it is first growing.
And if that wasn’t sneaky enough, the darnel wraps its roots around the roots of the wheat.
And darnel is very poisonous to both humans and animals.
Which is something that the farmer apparently understood about the plants, but not so the workers.
They are ready to go into the field and pull up the weeds. So it is fortunate that they checked in with the farmer first. If they had acted on their own it would have caused a worse situation by damaging the wheat.
So perhaps there is a message in this. That before we assume we are right, we make sure our hearts and actions are in line with our Master.
So what about the farmer? How would you describe him, what attributes would you apply?
wise - knew his business - patient - willing to wait, give it time - flexible - didn’t panic, no knee jerk reaction
It’s something to note here what he did not do - he did not accuse the workers with any wrong-doing - such as, “you didn’t tilled the soil deep enough” - or
He knew what the seed was and where it came from; “an enemy has done this.”
Any other thoughts to add at this point?
So the wheat and weeds are left to grow together.
What happens when the wheat is ripe?
Now I also read that wheat turns a golden brown and the heads get heavy with the ripped grain and that causes the wheat head to bend over.
The darnel, on the other hand, turns black when it matures and stays straight so it towers over the wheat. Showing itself for what it is. Making it easy to tell it from the wheat.
One can fool the eye for a while but the truth shows in the end.
So harvest time comes.
And who does the farmer send into the field to harvest? The Reapers.
Not the workers — those who tilled the soil and planted the wheat.
But reapers who are under the authority and instructions of the farmer. And have the skill to separate the weeds from the wheat.
I was chatting with a couple of friends last week and one was telling us how she had been busy weeding her garden and she had more to do —- and the other friend spoke up and said;
”You know, a weed is just another flower growing in the wrong place.”
It is a saying I have heard before. And it kept surfacing as I pondered this parable.
Using the wider term of “weeds” and not just “darnel”, widening my thinking.
It could be that more than one weed was growing among the wheat. Ones that weren't poisonous. But whose final outcome and worth are not recognized.
And if we look at the parable allegorically - meaning you give a persona to each of the characters in the story - and the wheat and weeds are characters - and say the wheat and weeds are people - we know that unlike seeds, which can only grow into the plant they came from - humans can change, with God’s help.
We see examples of this in the Bible and throughout history.
Can you think of some examples?
We read a portion of his letter to the Romans this morning. Saul from Tarsus, persécuter of the new Jesus followers, became Paul the Apostle to the Gentiles.
Another is John Newton the author of the hymn Amazing Grace. He was a slave trader and later became an outspoken abolitionist against slavery.
And we all probably know of people who have struggled - struggled against addictions to substances or harmful activities, or of being led down a wrong path. And through hard work and conviction and help, they have overcome and changed.
So perhaps there is another harvesting - or maybe it’s a winnowing - one that is done only by the farmer.
The farmer says that all will be taken care of at harvest time. I will see to it.
I think Bishop Mark summed it up nicely in his reflection, and I quote:
Weeding can be a dangerous activity: an exercise in judgement, bias, control; a violence against what one sees as out of place or unknown; unrecognized or believed to be wrong.
Perhaps this is why Jesus suggests that weeding be left to angels - to himself, the master gardener.
Let the business of growing and bearing fruit be ours, the work of weeding be left to divine love.
Unquote
Ultimately, from beginning to end, the farmer is in charge of the field. Weeds and all.
Amen