Should We Pull Out the Weeds?

Let both grow together until the harvest.

Holidays are a blessing. Especially when, like the holiday of Thanksgiving, we have a tendency to get together as family, reflect, be grateful, and maybe do a little reminiscing.

Not that long ago, Sue and I were doing plenty of reminiscing as we sorted through boxes of old photos, trying to consolidate for a relocation. She handed me a packet of pictures and said, “I think you’ll get a kick out of these.” As I began looking through the photographs of Andrew and Timmy and Philip when we were still living in Gettysburg (this was before our daughter Erin was born), I was struck not only by the thought of how much our family has grown, but by the memories of our home in Gettysburg. 

Many of the pictures were taken in the back yard. Let me tell you, that yard holds memories of it’s own. It wasn’t a large yard, but it was about three quarters wild flower garden. I love a beautiful flower garden as much as anybody–OK, maybe more than most– but this yard full of wild flowers gave me fits because I couldn’t tell a flower from a weed most of the time, until something on the plant bloomed. Sue and I always had a vague feeling that we should be doing something to maintain these gardens, but we didn’t know what to do. We were too concerned that if we started pulling weeds, we would pull up as many flowers as weeds.

Perhaps that is precisely the beauty of a wild flower garden, that one cannot tell the flowers from the weeds. Perhaps Sue and I fretted about maintaining those gardens for no good reason, especially if they were designed and planted to be maintenance free. Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from our wild flowers and from the parable that Jesus told about the Kingdom of Heaven. Don’t weed the wild flowers, because you might uproot the flowers with the weeds. 

Here is another story Jesus told: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. “The farmer’s workers went to him and said, ‘Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?’ “‘An enemy has done this!’ the farmer exclaimed. “‘Should we pull out the weeds?’ they asked. “‘No,’ he replied, ‘you’ll uproot the wheat if you do. Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles, and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn.’”

Matthew 13:24-30 NLT

What kind of sense can we make of this story about the wheat and the weeds? The disciples sure didn’t get it. So they had to ask Jesus for clarification.  

Then, leaving the crowds outside, Jesus went into the house. His disciples said, “Please explain to us the story of the weeds in the field.” Jesus replied, “The Son of Man is the farmer who plants the good seed. The field is the world, and the good seed represents the people of the Kingdom. The weeds are the people who belong to the evil one. The enemy who planted the weeds among the wheat is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world, and the harvesters are the angels. “Just as the weeds are sorted out and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the world. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will remove from his Kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. And the angels will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in their Father’s Kingdom. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!

Matthew 13:36-43 NLT

We hear that explanation and right away we begin to… wonder… about certain people we think are probably weeds, and we can’t quite figure just why would Jesus want to leave them grow among those of us who are clearly flowers? We may at least be tolerant of the weeds around us, until the Lord of the Harvest finally comes for us and the grim reaper comes for the weeds. 

What catches me in this is, whenever we take Jesus’ explanation of the story seriously, we wind up having a big problem with pride and judgmentalism, both prime weedy qualities. I have to be honest and tell you that I don’t think that this is the attitude that our Lord intended for us to take from this parable. What’s at issue here is not the ability to distinguish weed from wheat or wild flower. It isn’t a story intended to encourage us to hone our people discerning spirit. The issue is the confusing reality of the simultaneous presence of both wheat and weed in the Kingdom of Heaven, prior to the final harvest. I think what Jesus is saying is not just that there are weeds in the Kingdom as we know it now, but that we may be pretty surprised to know where all they crop up. Weeds can be masters of disguises, and we are not always able or even willing to recognize them.

The workers in the field had a natural question, if not a valid one. “Master, do you want us to weed the garden?” The appearance of weeds in the Kingdom is always hard for us to accept. It is important to note that the Master does not tell the workers to ignore the weeds, or not to be troubled by their presence, for it is indeed a disturbing thing. It is especially disconcerting when we realize that there are weeds in our own lives. Self-centeredness, greed, lying, envy, uncontrolled anger, quarrelsomeness... Need I go on? There are many weeds.

But the wild flowers of the Master are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self control. When we set out to grow these wild flowers ourselves, on our own terms or by our own power, we inevitably try and eliminate our weedy-ness by our own discernment and strength, and end up fertilizing the weeds of self-righteousness and pride.

The Master says, “let them grow together.” Not because the Master likes weeds, but because we need to understand who it is that brings life; who it is that eliminates weeds; who it is that makes wild flowers grow. It is Jesus. Jesus, who loves us. Jesus who accepts us; weeds, wild flowers and all.

This thanksgiving, admit to the Father your awareness of the weeds in your life and ask that by the power of Jesus, they might wither while, the Holy Spirit make the flowers grow wild. And the heavens will open up, God will smile and say, “request granted. I love you my child. Welcome home.”

Peace