COMMON OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Let them grow together until harvest.

Today’s parable, which appears only in the Gospel of Matthew, might strike us as odd. Why would a landowner hesitate to remove harmful weeds from his field? But if Jesus meant for the landowner to represent God, maybe we can learn something about the way our heavenly Father looks at us and at the growth of his kingdom.

God is patient. Like the landowner in the parable, God is willing to wait to uproot the “weeds.” He accepts the existence of children of his kingdom and those who work against his kingdom. Why? Because, as we know from personal experience, people can change. So God is patient as he continually seeks to draw people to repentance.

God won’t risk losing even one “wheat” plant. The landowner understood that the weeds would wrap their roots around his wheat. So by pulling the weeds, he would risk losing the wheat, too. God won’t take that risk with his children. He wants each of us to have the chance to grow to full maturity in our faith.

God trusts the wheat to thrive. Waiting until harvest to remove the weeds would guarantee the full fruitfulness of the wheat. The landowner knew that his wheat was strong enough to survive competition from the weeds. Just so, our heavenly Father knows the grace and strength that he has poured out on us. So we can be encouraged by his trust—he will give us what we need and sustain us even in a world where evil and good coexist.

God will separate the weeds from the wheat at harvest. Just as the farmer eventually does make that separation, so God will judge each one of us. While he permits sin and evil to exist, he does not ignore it. There are consequences to our words and actions, and everyone will face them.

Our God is merciful. Our God is patient. Our God is just. Let’s praise him for his care for us!

“Father, thank you for the way you manage the ‘field’ of your kingdom.”

Jeremiah 7:1-11
Psalm 84:3-6, 8, 11
Matthew 13:24-30