The Kingdom of Heaven is Like...
July 19, 2026. Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43. Pastor Leslie Nolin
In this passage of scripture, Jesus is saying, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while people slept, his enemy came and sowed weeds (bearded darnel) also among the wheat and went away.” This parable of the Kingdom of Heaven is among 6 other parables describing what the Kingdom of Heaven is like.
I would like to briefly put this parable in its context as the parable is explained.
Matthew 12 is filled with conflict as Jesus did not conform to the rigid religious requirements enforced by the Pharisees:
Jesus allowed his disciples to pluck grain on the Sabbath (v1-8),
He healed on the Sabbath (v9-14),
Jesus was accused of working by the power of Beelzebul (v22-32),
Jesus calls them “offspring of vipers” (v34), and “an evil and adulterous generation” (v39).
The religious leaders of the day did not represent what was truly the Kingdom of Heaven; Jesus, in seven parables, describes what the Kingdom of Heaven is like.
Matthew records these parables in chapter 13. The first parable (v1-23) is the parable of the sower.
The seed sown in this case is the Word of God as it is sown in men's heart, how the Word is either choked out by hardness of heart, made ineffectual by the cares and riches of this world, how it may only have a shallow root causing the believer to quickly fall away, or the ground/heart receives the Word and it becomes fruitful.
The second parable, the parable of the wheat and weeds is the focus of our reading in Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43. The one sower in this case is the same as the first, God; but rather than being His Word, the seed is the people of God sown in the world. The other sower is the devil, planting his followers (those rejecting the gospel) in the world.
There are times that outwardly there would be very little difference, the only time it will be fully known who God's people are will be at the final judgement. “Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. (Matt.7:21-23)”
Do what God asks you to do, even if it is just giving a glass of cold water (Matt.10:42), and not make ones' self more important than what God had intended.
The age old dilemma remains, evil will exist in the world (some of it well hidden) with the good and will only be fully remedied at the final judgement. Darnel cannot be distinguished from wheat until they ripen, by then it is too late and can only be separated at the harvest, by trying to pull up the darnel, the wheat will also be destroyed. We must patiently wait until the end before evil can be fully wiped out.
Sandwiched between the parable of sowing wheat and weeds, are two short parables, 3rd & 4th , (v31-35), the parables of the mustard seed and yeast.
The mustard seed is very small, about 21,000 to an ounce, yet the plant becomes large enough for birds to roost on its branches. Yeast, though often associated with sin, in this instance, it refers to our influence in the world. Both start small, seemingly insignificant, showing, yet with faithful obedience and honouring the Lord with our lives, can influence those around us.
It is not the big and flashy that changes lives, it is God's people, working collectively, that permeates the world to win followers of Jesus Christ.
Following Jesus' explanation of the parable of the wheat and weeds, are two other paired parables, the parable of treasure and the pearl 5th & 6th, (v44-46).
One finds God even though he is not actively seeking Him but once He knows God, he values that knowledge above anything else.
The other is actively seeking God and may have searched other avenues of knowledge before ultimately finding the truth and once having found the truth, values it highly. Both are willing, if necessary, to lose everything to hold onto the truth of knowing God and the gospel, it is the greatest treasure of all.
The final, 7thparable, is the parable of the net. Jesus continues to use everyday language that everyone in His day would understand. In this instance, He uses fishing as an example of the end day harvest and judgement (v47-50). Jesus used the example of fishing when He called fishermen to be his followers so that He would make them fishers of men (Matt.4:19). In this instance, a net indiscriminately harvests good and bad fish, signifying that at the end of the age, everyone must stand before the judgement seat of God.
“Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead,great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. (Rev.20:11-12)”
The wicked and righteous will be separated, only those whose names are not written on the book of life will endure the second death, eternal judgement.
These seven parables recorded in Matthew's gospel explain what the Kingdom of heaven is like, who the sower of the word is, how we as God's people respond to His Word as it is sown into our hearts. How the devil has brought evil into the world and how, because of God's patience not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance (2 Pet.3:9), He temporarily tolerates that wickedness in the world.
But, at the end of the age, the harvest will take place that will separate the good from the wicked, the unbeliever will be punished for rejecting Jesus Christ.
The true believer in Jesus Christ, whose names are written in the book of life, have no fear of the second death.
These parables cover the Kingdom of Heaven from beginning to end.
All are accountable to God and must stand before Him one day (2 Cor.5:10).
“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11)
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