Sacred Rhythms (Rhythms of Mystery)Matthew 13:24-30 (ESV)The Parable of the Weeds24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds[a] among the wheat and went away. 26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also. 27 And the servants[b] of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’ 28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”Matthew 13:36-43 (ESV)The Parable of the Weeds Explained36 Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.” 37 He answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed is the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. 40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the end of the age.41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law- breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.We are in the middle of many of the parables of Christ. These were tangible ideas Jesus used to describe the mysterious and subversive nature of the kingdom.The Purpose of the Parables10 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” 11 And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.Prophecy and Parables34 All these things Jesus said to the crowds in parables; indeed, he said nothing to them without a parable. 35 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet:“I will open my mouth in parables;I will utter what has been hidden since the foundation of the world.”Parables reiterate the importance of working out our faith together as we translate and process what we read in Scripture.This may be unpopular by society standards, but it doesn’t make it less true: As disciples, we are given a grace in our pursuit of God (because we are asking for it & professing it...). Everyone has access but we have to approach with the proper posture and confession. To receive a degree, masters, or doctorate, one must spend an extended amount of time as a student, focusing on a specific field of study - to be oriented, educated, & immersed. As disciples, we are oriented, educated, & immersed in the Way of Jesus. There, the Spirit enables retention, application, & guidance. This is portion of what Christ talked of he explained why he spoke to the crowds differently than his crew. We need to be cautious in our pursuit... we must allow for mystery.“In the Christian context, we do not mean "mystery" merely that which is baffling and mysterious, an enigma or insoluble problem. A mystery is, on the contrary, something that is revealed for our understanding, but which we never understand exhaustively because it leads into the depth or the unknown of God. The eyes are closed — but they are also opened.”― Bishop Kallistos Ware, (The Orthodox Way)
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