Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Eagle Rock Presbyterian Church
Sermon – Genesis 28:10-19, Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
July 20, 2008
This month we have been following the exploits of Abraham’s family as told in the Book of Genesis and at the same time looking at Jesus’ teachings through parables. We should always remember that Jesus was an excellent Old Testament scholar. Today we will be looking at Jesus’ parable of the wheat and the weeds which I believe was inspired by the story of Jacob and Esau. So this morning we will be looking at a familiar story in Genesis through the lens of the teachings of Jesus in a parable.
But before we begin, will you pray with me. Lord Jesus speak to us now as you did to the crowds so many years ago. Help us to understand the difference between the wheat and the weeds and what you want us to do about it. We want to follow you into eternal life in the presence of the glory of God. So teach us this day what we need to do. And we pray this in your glorious name, amen.
Matthew 13:1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2 Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables,
Matthew 13:24-30 24 He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. 27 And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, 'Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?' 28 He answered, 'An enemy has done this.' The slaves said to him, 'Then do you want us to go and gather them?' 29 But he replied, 'No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. 30 Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"
Matthew 13:36-43 36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." 37 He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; 38 the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, 42 and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
Rebecca and Isaac had it made. They had become very wealthy and were retiring to beach front property on the Mediterranean. They were living the Late Bronze Age dream, but there was one little problem, their twins. The two boys fought all the time. Jacob was a schemer who would lie and cheat to get what he wanted. Esau had all the advantages of being the first born but when he was told to visit Uncle Laban and find a wife from among his cousins he refused and married a couple of Hittite girls instead. Their parents were naturally quite upset over all of this.
The problem was that God had made a promise to Isaac’s father Abraham. In this promise God said that Abraham and Sarah’s descendants would form a mighty nation, more numerous than all the grains of sand in the sea. To fulfill this promise one of the boys, either Esau or Jacob would have to be the father of this great nation. Given their behavior neither deserved this honor; neither knew of the LORD God of their father and grandfather. So who would be chosen, and by whom?
Rebecca wanted to choose Jacob. She loved Jacob very much and wanted him to succeed. So she helped him in all his scheming against his brother. But the result was that Jacob was now alone in the dessert running for his life. Isaac wanted to choose his firstborn, Esau, whom he loved very much, but because of his failing eyesight he was unable to prevent Jacob’s scheme to steal his birthright. So neither Rebecca nor Isaac was able to choose who would receive God’s blessing and promise because the only one able to choose who will receive the blessing of God is God.
As Jacob slept in the desert, he saw the angels of God shuttling between heaven and earth. In this dream God spoke to him and extended the promise he had made to Isaac and Rebecca and to Abraham and Sarah before him that he would be the father of a great nation that would spread like the dust to the four corners of the earth. God was choosing Jacob before Jacob even knew who God was.
Jesus must have remembered this story of the angels moving between heaven and earth when he explained the parable of the weeds to his disciples. Jesus knew that on that day when the angels descend to the earth their mission will be to gather up everything that causes sin and all the evildoers. Jacob witnessed this final Day of Judgment in his dream. He saw the angels descending and ascending to heaven, carrying off the damned to the fires of hell.
Jacob had a choice to make. He could continue in his rebellious ways and in the final days be carried off like weeds to the furnace. Or he could turn the LORD, the God of his father and grandfather and worship him. Jacob with filled with fear and awe as a result of his vision. He knew that the LORD had come to him and the ground where he lay was holy. God’s justice required that sinner like Jacob should be carried off by the angels to eternal punishment. But Jacob was given a second chance and with it an important choice to make.
Jacob made his choice. He took the stone he had slept on, anointed it with oil and consecrated it as the House of God. By this action he indicated his choice. His rebellion would stop and he would turn to the LORD God in worship. By doing this Jacob accepted the promise God had first made to his grandfather and the responsibility of being the father of a great nation.
Today we have no lack of evildoers. Our community is plagued by the sale of illegal drugs and gang violence. This past week I attended a meeting with other clergy at the Los Angeles Police Station for North East LA. Captain Lance Smith and Sergeant Danny Roman told us what the police were doing about gangs, the drug trade, and violence in our community. Recently they arrested many of the leaders of the Avenues Gang who had turned Drew Street into a drug marketplace. The police, by pulling weeds, have been able to reduce the violence and killings a little. But they know that their efforts are not enough. No amount of weeding out sinners will ever deliver us from sin. So another strategy is needed.
The churches in North East LA have come up with an idea. On Saturday, August 16, 2008, Christians from churches all over our neighborhood will assemble at 10:00am at the intersection of York and Figueroa to declare God’s intent to bring “Peace in the North East”. At 11:00 we will march down York to Eagle Rock Blvd asking God to bless our community by removing the weeds of gang violence and drugs. The members of the gangs in our community will be given a choice. Worship the LORD, as Jacob did, or be pulled up like a weed and burn in a fiery furnace.
None of us can know for sure if we are the wheat or the weeds. Is our fate to burn in the fires of hell, or will we live for eternity in the glory of God? The choice is for anyone with ears to listen. We can turn our backs on God and live lives of sin. If we choose this route be warned. The weeds of sin will be gathered up by the angels and cast into the furnace of hell. But if we turn toward God and worship the LORD then the promise of Jesus is that we will live for eternity in the glory of God.
So today you have a choice. Live the way you have been living. Pridefully assert that you are right and God is wrong. Refuse to worship God and follow Jesus. And wait for the day when you will be gathered up like weeds for the fire. Or, worship the LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Turn away from sin and follow Jesus wherever he may lead you. If you love the Lord your God with you whole heart you will be blessed far more abundantly that you have ever imagined.
Years later Jacob returned home to meet his brother. He left his children with their mothers and went alone to meet Esau. Jacob came with great gifts, bowed seven times and expected to die for all the scheming he had done. But when Esau saw his brother returning there were tears in his eyes. Both he a Jacob wept at the joy of seeing each other after so long. Esau had every right to kill Jacob on the spot. But he was filled with the love of the LORD God of his father and grandfather and knew the importance of forgiveness.
God is waiting for you to return to him. Turn away from sin right now and you will be welcomed home with tears of forgiveness into the loving arms of God.
Lord, God of Jacob, we have been sinners all our lives. We do not deserve to be in your presence this day. But we have confessed our sins and turn to you in worship. Forgive us we pray and accept us as your children. Lead us away from the temptation of sin. And allow us to live in your glory forever, amen.
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