The Nature Of Present Church

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The Nature Of Present Church
Matthew 13:24-30, Matthew 13:37-43
July 17, 2005
The Rev. Kong Namkung

More than 35,000 American soldiers died during the Vietnam War. There were many reasons why many American soldiers died during the Vietnam War. One of the reasons was there was no distinction between good guys and bad guys among the Vietnamese. Americans could not distinguish bad Vietnamese from good Vietnamese. In many cases, if we cannot distinguish good from bad, genuine from imitate, angel from devil, and right from wrong, it causes us to have great harm.

I was very surprised to see a criminal’s picture when he was a young boy. He was so pure and clean. There was no potential for him to be a criminal in his future. Maybe since we were born with the original sin all human beings consist of good and bad sides. In the movie, “The Lord of Ring” Gollem has two different personalities. One side is good and the other side is evil whenever he said, “My precious!”

In today’s parable there are two different kinds of plants in the field. One is wheat and the other is tares. In this parable we know that the world is the field, the one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, Jesus, the good seed are the children of the kingdom, the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed the children of the evil one is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels.

Since the church is in the world, it is a subset of the world and it has some aspects of the mirror of the world. Therefore, today I want to talk about the nature of the present church.

Again, there are two kinds of the people in the world. Likewise there are two kinds of people in the Church. One is wheat and the other is tares. Let me explain a little bit about the wheat and the tares in the land of Israel.

The seeds of the wheat and the tares are similar in shape, size, and color. In their early stage the tares are identical with the wheat. So it is impossible for any of the Israelites to distinguish the one from the other. However, when both have headed out, people can distinguish them easily, but by that time the roots of the wheat and the tares are very intertwined that the tares cannot be weeded out without tearing the wheat out with them. Once both the wheat and the tares stay together for a few weeks, it is impossible to separate them without plucking up both. Both, therefore, must be left to grow together until the time of harvest. In the end, harvest time, the wheat and the tares must be separated because some tares are slightly poisonous. They cause dizziness and sickness and are narcotic in its effects. Even a small amount of some tares has a bitter and unpleasant taste.

So, during the harvest time, the farmers pluck up the tares first and throw away or bundle up the tares and put it into a fire and harvest the wheat. With this understanding I want you to look at the parable.

What do we learn from this parable?

The children of the kingdom and the children of the evil one coexist in the church. It means some of us are willing to be instruments of God while others can be used by the devil. Do not forget that one of Jesus’ disciples was used by the devil to sell his master and handed over Jesus to the religious authority. Whenever good people are doing their ministry, there are people who are used by the devil. The Bible tells us endless stories about this. After Adam and Eve listened to God’s command, they were tempted by the serpent. Jesus was tested by the devil in the wilderness. King Saul, who possessed the evil spirit, tried to kill David, who had followed the way of the Lord. Ananias and Sapphira, who were wiling to cheat other Christians, existed among the dedicated Christians in the early church history.

There is no distinction between the children of the kingdom and the children of the evil one. The church, the congregation, does not know the differences in the early age. The imitator of good Christians will be in a church and we will not know the difference, like how we can’t distinguish real gold chains and fake ones. We must beware of evil’s counterfeits.

	He has counterfeit Christians 2 Cor 11:26, “danger from false brothers and sisters.” There were many problems at the church in Corinth. One of the problems was false brothers and sisters. They sneaked into the church and confused the congregation. Paul, who was called to proclaim the gospel to Gentiles, had danger from false brothers and sisters.
	He believes a counterfeit Gospel Gal 1:6-9, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should proclaim to you a gospel contrary to what we proclaimed to you, let that one be accused.”
	He counterfeits the church Rev 2:9, “I know your affliction and your poverty, even though you are rich. I know the slander on the part of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.”
	At the end of the age, he will produce a counterfeit Christ Matthew 24:5, “For many will come in my name, saying I am the Messiah and they will lead many astray. “

The children of the evil one tries to harm, or persecute the children of the kingdom. The main goal of the evil one is to destroy God’s people, the body of Christ. And he uses God’s people to destroy the body of Christ. In Christians’ home, the devil has many occasions to use your spouse in order to destroy you. Sometimes he uses your children, or financial difficulties. He uses something that is very important in your life. He does not use something that is not important. Think for a moment about what you have said and what you have done to your spouse or the body of Christ. If you, intentionally or unintentionally, have harmed or persecuted the body of Christ, you were used by the power of evil.

The differences will show up as they grow together until the harvest. Not because God cannot get rid of the weeds early, but because God cares about the wheat. Unlike spraying “round up” to kill the weeds in our garden, God will not pluck the weeds up because it causes to pluck up the wheat too.

There will be time when the wheat and the weeds will be separated at the harvest time. The weeds will be burned, and the wheat will “shine like the sun in the kingdom of their father.” (verse 43)

How do we apply this lesson into our lives?

1. Be careful to discern between the children of the kingdom and the children of the evil one. A Christian may appear to be good and may in fact be bad and a Christian may appear to be bad and may yet be good. We are very quick to classify people and label them as good or bad without knowing all the facts. Here are ways about how you can discern the spirit of God and spirit of evil.

· The Bible tells you. It is like a roadmap. That is why the Bible is very important for you and I.

· If a person judge others in his/her own perspective, he/she is already in the judgment of God.

· If you do not know, ask others and the pastor.

The parable teaches us not to be quick with out judgments. If the reapers had their way in the field, they would have tried to tear out the tares and wheat as well. Judgment has to wait until the harvest comes. A man in the end will be judged, not by any single act or stage in his life, but by his whole life. A man may make a great mistake, and then redeem himself and, by the grace of God, atone, for by it making the rest of his life a lovely thing. A man may live an honorable life and then in the end wreck it all by a sudden collapse into sin. No one can see the whole thing in one person’s life and judge others with partial understanding of the person.

Do not judge others, but let God judge all. Do not be in the place of God. If you are judging others, you are in the seat of God.

Once you find out who the tares are and you know who you are.

	First of all, I encourage you to pray for the person before you do anything.
	Second, be thankful to God that you are not on that seat.
	If you are weak, don’t have any kind of relationships with the children of evil one, but cut them off from you and your family. No mercy.

Get closer and have fellowship with the children of kingdom.

Encourage and pray for the children of the kingdom.

In the novel 100 Years of Solitude, the author narrates the story of an entire village that experiences amnesia. Everyone is afflicted. People forget their names, their families, their histories, even the words for the simplest things in life such as chair, shirt and kiss. One teenager boy, however, still retains the capacity to remember and he decides to label everything in the village before it is too late. So he proceeds to put a name tag o every object in the village. After completing the task, he erects two signs at the entrance to the village. One sign announces the name of the village; the other sign reads, “God exists.” Like this boy we hold the name of the church, Cornerstone UMC, high and we also remember one more thing, “God exists” and he will judge you and I according to the fruits that we bear for the glory of God at Cornerstone UMC.

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Matthew 13:24-30

24 Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. 25 But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. 26 When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

27 "The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'

28 "'An enemy did this,' he replied.

"The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'

29 "'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'"
NIV

Matthew 13:37-43

37 He answered, "The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

40 "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.
NIV

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