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

 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

In yesterday's reading, Jesus explained to His disciples the parable of the Sower (given in Tuesday's reading).   He said, "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

 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."'"  My study bible says that this parable builds on the previous parable of the sower (see Tuesday's reading).   The focus here is on the enemy who has sown his seed among the seed of Christ.  As falsehood came after truth and false prophets came after the true prophets (see Jesus' warning at 7:15-20), so the Antichrist will come after Christ.  Just as the weeds first appear similar to wheat, so the devil fashions his lies to resemble the truth.  As the devil sows while men slept, we are to understand that heresy and lies creep in when people are apathetic.  It gives us an important example, also, why the Church does not condemn nominal members, nor does it judge those who are outside the Church (1 Corinthians 5:12-13).  As wheat would be destroyed in weeding out the tares, so also, many people who may ultimately find salvation would otherwise be lost if they were condemned before Christ's judgment.

In the parable of the Sower, Jesus indicated the presence of the wicked one, who comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  Here, my study bible says, in this next parable that He gives, He emphasizes the work of the enemy, the wicked one.  The significant thing to notice here is the emphasis on truth, the truth that is in the word that is sown.  Tares are plants that resemble the wheat, but don't produce the grain that nourishes people.  The resemblance is meaningful, because this is the way that falsehood works.   In this description found here in the parable, Jesus teaches us that the difference between truth and falsehood -- and even goodness and evil -- isn't often a glaring and obvious contrast.  Rather, the parable teaches that truth and falsehood closely resemble one another.  Unless one is alert and aware, telling them apart is something we won't be able to do.  Again, as my study bible pointed out, we notice that the tares were sown by the enemy while men slept.  As we learn frequently throughout our lives, what sounds good doesn't always turn out to be so.  It's important to think about this parable in the context of the history of the Church that was to follow in the centuries after Christ, and the many universal Councils that were held to decide matters of doctrine and heresy.  Those were attended by hundreds of bishops; no matter of truth was insignificant.  To modern ears, many times the issues of heresy that were discussed at these Councils can seem to be details or even irrelevant, but that is also a falsehood.  Those "details" make all the difference in terms of what our faith means for us, and how salvation works in us.  While we may think of the wicked one, or of evil itself as something glaring and horrible, completely noticeable to everyone, we delude ourselves with a false assurance that we would know it when we see it.  In Jesus' parable, the wicked one comes while we're sleeping, not in obvious ways.  The tares resemble the wheat, and furthermore they are sown so closely within the field that it is impossible to separate them without damaging the wheat.  The subtlety of this process is exceptionally remarkable, something we are meant to notice and be well aware of.  What is false is not necessarily easy to spot.  It creeps in while we sleep, or are unaware.  The falsehoods produced really closely resemble the good things we need for nurturing and for life.  This isn't an easy task to discern the difference.  Nor are the tares going to be removed; instead truth and falsehood live side by side, intermingled in our lives.  If we're looking for evil, we won't find it in obvious ways.  Instead, Jesus teaches us throughout the Gospel -- and especially as the time of His ministry comes ever closer to the Crucifixion -- that our work as good servants is to be awake, alert, ready for His Return.  We are always to be vigilant about doing the things that we know He wants us to be doing, the work of good servants.  We're to be mindful at all times of Who we serve and what that means we live in our lives, our awareness of Him should accompany all our choices.  We will be distracted by all the tares that are always with us until the harvest.  Let us remember how we are to focus, and keep His word in mind at all times.