The tares stand out and above the wheat
While walking through farm fields in France last May, I found a perfect scene to illustrate Jesus Christ’s parable of the tares and the wheat.
If you aren’t familiar with Jesus’ story, here it is:
Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” Matthew, 13:24-30, NKJV.
Readers of this story often wonder why the farmer has to wait until harvest to pull up the tares. The reason is because the tare plants are indistinguishable from the wheat in the early stages of growth. The plants look the same with a casual glance. But as the wheat and tares grow over the coming weeks, the tares start to stretch out above the wheat. As you can see in the picture, they easily stand out up and above the wheat in the later stages of development. At this point it’s easy to spot then and remove them from the field.
So, when you’re not sure what is good and what is bad in a field of your life-work at the moment, be patient. Eventually, the bad, or tares, will become so apparent that you can’t help but see the difference. And you’ll know what to save and what to rip out and eliminate.
The picture is so good and brings out the tares so distinctively. Yes Evan, at times we need to be patient and look into the areas of our life which hinder our growth. We need to periodically observe our thought and watch out if we need to weed out tares and allow only wheat, only goodness to grow in our thought.
Error is so subtle and would slyly enter our thoughts and unknowingly start growing alongside. I had one such experience and after self examination and a friends help was able to identify and get rid of the tares of hard feelings which were growing in my thought.
So kind of you to share the picture and throwing more light on the parable of the wheat and the tares.
What a wonderful picture to illustrate the tares and the wheat parable. And I love this line:
“So, when you’re not sure what is good and what is bad in a field of your life-work at the moment, be patient. Eventually, the bad, or tares, will become so apparent that you can’t help but see the difference.” Appreciate your insight, Evan.
Living near wheat fields, I’ve seen many scenes like those in the photo and am so grateful for your insights Evan. I have one or two things going on at the moment where it is not clear whether they are wheat or tares. I see now i can wait for them to develop and it becomes clearer whether they need uprooting or not! Thank you, Evan, for this, and every other day’s spiritual insights.
Thank you. there is more time than we imagine to sort the tares and wheat.
No, there is no more time!!
A simple but significant point that I often wondered about. Those who find goodness need not to standout to bear much fruit but can be patient, waiting on God’s direction and guidance to move forward. While the vanity of selfishness exposes the error of self deception above the fruitful work the true laborers of love, mercy, compassion bring to the field of life. Thank you Evan for pointing out the real value to this parable. Your post are most valuable to my learning as the other’s comments carry great value as well. I really look forward to these daily post to start my day.
Thanks, Evan! Beautiful picture to illustrate the tares and the wheat! Self-examination is not easy and if we are in doubt about what we need to see and eliminate in our thought, heart and life, we can always humbly ask God to remove our shortcomings…..”Create in me a clean heart, Oh God, and renew a right spirit within me…..”
I have always been very interested in Christ Jesus’ Parable of the Wheat and the Tares.
For our Sunday School class, we use two sheets of clear plastic to help us understand the meanings of this teaching. On one we drew some stalks of growing wheat, and the other we drew some weeds (tares). Putting the tares on top, the two SEEM to mingle. But we are learning that the Wheat, representing God’s ideas, remain pure, separate, and unaffected by the weeds. We are also learning that, in Science, it is God’s job to remove errors of belief from human consciousness, in HIS time and way. The two never actually mingle: as Mrs. Eddy teaches: “Entirely separate from the belief and dream of material living is the Life divine…”
I looked up “chaff” in the Concordances and found:
“All mortal beliefs will be purged and dissolved in the crucible of Truth, and the places once knowing them will know them no more forever, having been swept clean by the winds of history. The grand verities of Science will sift the chaff from the wheat, until it is clear to human comprehension that man was, and is, God’s perfect likeness, that reflects all whereby we can know God.”
Miscellaneous Writings, pg 79, by Mary Baker Eddy
This is such a wonderful parable and I had forgotten the farmer telling his workers to wait…
This seems to be one of the main lessons of this idea.
Thank you Evan….
Spiritviewfan your comment is very succinct and needs to be understood, the two never mingle…
Knowing this of the illusion should make this part of the work so much easier…
Blessings to all…
“No rest for the wicked …and the righteous don’t need it…”
I also thought of another idea: As we mature spiritually, we start to see that some things that we used to think of as acceptable in our lives and thoughts and actions are suddenly seen as not so good. We have grown spiritually enough to now have outgrown some things, so they “stand out” as never before. Or, as Paul put it: “When I was a child, I acted as a child, but now that I am a man, I can put away childish things.” (Or something like that……)
Well said Bevi, with time all is revealed, more easily discerned, relatively speaking…
Thank you Evan. Like Grace, I too loved your last paragraph: “So, when you’re not sure what is good and what is bad in a field of your life-work at the moment, be patient. Eventually, the bad, or tares, will become so apparent that you can’t help but see the difference.”
Bevi your second post has, as Paul said it would, truly played out with me: “We have grown spiritually enough to now have outgrown some things, so they “stand out” as never before. ” So grateful for this enlightenment.
Back in the 1950s, we had 20 acres of wheat and my dad took me into the field of wheat and showed me the difference between the wheat and the tares; when the wheat is filled with the golden wheat, if seem to have the spirit of humbles, for it head is bowed low, but the tares stand tall as if they are god themselves.