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Will please turn with me in your 
Bibles to Matthew chapter 13. Matthew chapter 13, as we return 
to our exposition of this gospel, the song, the hymn we just sang, 
points us forward to the judgment throne of God Most High. It's 
probably a topic not everyone gives a lot of thought to. Very 
often we're in the here and now, we only think about what we're 
going to do in the next A few minutes we don't often think 
about even this week or next month or ten years from now. But all of us will stand before 
the judgment throne of our Lord Jesus Christ. So not only that 
song or hymn number 600 points us to that event, but so does 
our passage this morning. It is the parable of the tares 
explained. Remember that the Lord Jesus 
Christ gave the parable of the wheat and the tares earlier in 
Matthew's gospel here in chapter 13. Well, here the disciples 
come and they say, explain to us the parable of the tares. 
They make no reference or mention whatsoever to the wheat. The 
emphasis falls upon the judgment of the wicked. Certainly, Jesus 
does speak of the judgment of the righteous in this explanation, 
but as I said, the stress or the emphasis falls upon the judgment 
of the wicked on the day of judgment. The gospel is the good news of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. It is that revelation from God 
concerning the life, the death, and the resurrection of our Lord 
Jesus Christ. Every man will stand before this 
Christ with reference to judgment. And it will all come down to 
our relationship to Christ with reference to the gospel. Have 
we by His grace believed? Well, we will be ushered into 
the presence of God forever. If we have rejected, if we have 
despised, if we have played the hypocrite, then we will be banished 
from the presence of the Lord to that place described by our 
Lord Jesus as a furnace of fire here in Matthew's Gospel. So 
let us begin reading in Matthew 13 at verse 34. All these things Jesus spoke 
to the multitude in parables and without a parable, he did 
not speak to them that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken 
by the prophet saying, I will open my mouth and parables. I 
will other things kept secret from the foundation of the world. 
Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house 
and his disciples came to him saying, explain to us the parable 
of the terrors of the field. He answered and said to them, 
he who sows the good seed is the son of man, the field is 
the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but 
the tears are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed 
them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the 
reapers are the angels. Therefore, as the terrors are 
gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this 
age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will 
gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and those 
who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace 
of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing 
of teeth. Then the righteous will shine 
forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears 
to hear, let him hear. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for your word and we pray now for the ministry 
of your spirit. We pray that you would do good 
to your people, that you would strengthen each and everyone 
with might in the inner man, cause us to reflect upon the 
blessings that we have and enjoy in the Lord Jesus Christ and 
eternity with God Almighty. And Lord, would you give ears 
to hear and hearts to receive truth to unbelievers. We pray 
that today would be the day of salvation, that you would send 
forth your spirit to bring conviction for sin and show sinners the 
glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know no man will ever enter 
into heaven because of our works, because of our good deeds, because 
of our merit, but only will we enter because of Jesus Christ's 
life and death and resurrection. We thank you, God Almighty, that 
you made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might 
become the righteousness of God in him. We thank you for the 
forgiveness of sins, the fact that you cleanse us from all 
sin, all iniquity and everything that offends you. God, these 
things truly are good news and I pray that today ears would 
be given so that men, women, boys and girls would come to 
know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Do forgive us now for 
all sin and unrighteousness and anything that would cloud and 
darken our minds and give us the ability to receive with glad 
hearts the truth of God's holy word. And we pray these things 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, as we have seen in 
our studies here in Matthew's gospel, we find ourselves in 
the third discourse. And the third discourse is in 
Matthew chapter 13. It's a series of eight parables. The Lord Christ is teaching about 
the kingdom of God. Remember that the first two parables, 
the sower and the wheat and the tares, give us a big picture 
concerning the Kingdom of God. The sower goes out, he sows his 
seed and there's four different responses to that seed that is 
sown. Now there's essentially only 
two. Some receive it by the grace of God with glad hearts and bear 
fruit consistently. or there are those who reject 
it and are punished by our Lord God Almighty. The third and the 
fourth parables deal with growth, the growth of the kingdom. Not 
only growth, but transformation with reference to the kingdom 
of heaven. The fifth and the sixth parables, God willing, 
we'll look at next week, the value of the kingdom. And the 
seventh and the eighth parables give us a bit of warning and 
instruction. So that's the context, that's 
what we see here in Jesus' teaching in Matthew's Gospel. So I want 
to look at two things this morning. First, the purpose of parables 
in verses 34 to 36, and then the parable of the tares explained. And if you were not here when 
we looked at the parable of the tares given, tares simply means 
weeds. In the Lord's field the seed 
goes out and either wheat comes up or weeds come up. And the 
weeds at time at least initially look deceptive because they look 
like the wheat. It's only as they grow and mature 
that we see that they are weeds, that they are not about growth 
in the kingdom of God. And so just so we have that understanding 
in our minds and in our hearts. But remember that in this third 
discourse there are two instances or two places where Christ describes 
the purpose for parables, verses 10 to 17 in chapter 13. The Lord 
Jesus Christ is asked by his disciples, why do you speak to 
them in parables? And he answered and said to them, 
because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of 
the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. And so parables serve as a means 
by which the elect are strengthened and illumined and educated in 
the truth of God. And it is a means by which the 
unbeliever is fortified and hardened in his own sin and rebellion, 
much like in the time of the prophet Isaiah, Isaiah chapter 
6. Well, Matthew does the same thing 
here in chapter 13, 34 and 35. He indicates, again, the purpose 
for which Jesus taught in parables. Notice in verse 34. All these 
things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables, and without a parable 
he did not speak to them. I take that as a reference to 
this third discourse. I don't believe from here on 
out Jesus only ever addresses unbelievers with parables. It's 
not a comprehensive or a universal statement. Rather it refers to 
what we find here in this third discourse. And then notice that 
there is prophecy concerning this activity by our Lord. Verse 
35, that it might be fulfilled. This is a formula used throughout 
Matthew's Gospel. Matthew is writing primarily 
to a Jewish audience, and he wants to display for them that 
Jesus is the promised Messiah, that the Old Testament scriptures 
testified concerning Him. And so Matthew, all along the 
way, in his study of and in his presentation of the Lord Christ 
highlights the reality that the Lord Jesus fulfills Scripture. That He is the man that God promised 
in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3.15. He is the man that would 
be born of a virgin according to the prophet Isaiah 7.14. He is the man that would ultimately 
go to the cross and die for the sins of His people. He is the 
man that would rise from the dead He is the man that would 
assume all authority and power in heaven and on earth, and He 
is the man that would judge the entire cosmos. That is one of 
Matthew's points or emphasis throughout this particular gospel 
record, that Jesus fulfills what is written in the Old Testament 
Scriptures, and it's stated here for us in verse 35, that it might 
be fulfilled, which was spoken by the prophet saying, I will 
open my mouth in parables, I will utter things kept secret from 
the foundation of the world." This is the Psalms. Psalm 78 
verse 2, a psalm ascribed to Asaph. Now he is a prophet, according 
to the book of Chronicles. 1 Chronicles 25.2, he's identified 
as one who prophesies. 2 Chronicles 29.30, he is identified 
as a seer. And so when Asaph takes pen to 
paper in Psalm 78, he gives us this statement concerning speaking 
in parables, speaking in things kept secret from the foundation 
of the world. And we learn from this that the 
parabolic teaching of Christ is grounded in the Old Testament. 
Again, this is another reference to the reality that he is the 
one prophesied of in the Old Testament scriptures, and his 
life and ministry fleshes that out. It's interesting because 
Asaph's psalm in Psalm 78 spoke of the great redemptive acts 
of God in the history of Israel. Some have seen, and I think rightly, 
Jesus is Israel, and he's very much displayed that way in Matthew's 
Gospel. Additionally, the prophet Asaph 
ended Psalm 78 with the choice of David as the king over Israel. So it's kind of interesting that 
Matthew here applies this to our Lord Jesus Christ. And here 
specifically, the idea is that Jesus spoke in parables, and 
dark sayings like Asaph. He spoke of the kingdom of God 
and he gave its interpretation. That's what's unique about Asaph. 
Yes, he traces Israel's history, but it's a theological tracement 
of history. He's interpreting for them. He's 
telling them how they are to understand these things. He is 
moving from cognition to experience. He wants the people of Israel 
to embrace these things, and Christ in the context takes the 
kingdom, and He speaks of this concerning Himself, and that 
is the key to interpretation. Knox Chamberlain says, unless 
Jesus is understood and interpreted to be the central focus of the 
whole Bible, that history is sure to remain enigmatic or puzzling. And so that's the similarity 
with Asaph that our Lord Jesus bears in this third discourse 
in Matthew's Gospel. I will open my mouth in parables, 
I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world. This fits in with Matthew 11, 
25, when Jesus says, I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and 
earth, for you did hide these things from the wise and the 
prudent, but you revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father, 
for thus it was well-pleasing in your sight." Now notice the 
parable of the tares explained. Three things to observe here. 
First, the question posed, the details explained, and the judgment 
described. The question posed, the details 
explained, and the judgment described. Remember, one of the primary 
emphasis in the giving of the parable of the wheat and the 
tares was what happened when the servants found the tares. 
Remember that? The servants come to the householder. They come to the owner of the 
house and they say, sir, while we slept, we saw the tares grew 
in the garden. What do you want us to do with 
that? And the householder says, I want you to leave them alone. 
Allow them to grow alongside of the wheat until the time of 
harvest. Because if you upbraid the tares, 
you might upbraid the wheat. And I don't want that to happen. 
That's absent from his explanation here. The consideration is not, 
what do we do with the tares now? The consideration is, what 
will the Lord of the Harvest do with the tares on the Day 
of Judgment? So I said, you need to pay attention 
to this whole concept of what's going to happen when we face 
our Maker. I said that people, by and large, 
don't give a lot of thought to these realities, especially children, 
especially young people, especially people tied to this world. People 
who are bound and gagged with reference to the worldliness 
that we see all around us, they don't think beyond today. This 
parable calls us to stop, to reflect, to ponder, to consider. In fact, Christ underscores the 
very giving of this parable with a statement that he who has ears 
to hear, let him hear. Why? Because it's so important. It's so great. It is so crucial 
that you understand that you will stand before this judge 
of all the earth and you will give an account of deeds done 
in the body whether good or bad. So stop putting off this idea 
that I'll just think about eternity when I get to a really old age 
like 40. Or I'll not think about eternity until I'm 80 and I'm 
on my deathbed. Not everybody on 80 is on their 
deathbed. Let's say 120, just so we don't 
needlessly offend. You see, the mindset is there. 
We're materialists. We're tied to the earth. We're 
functional empiricists. Unless we touch it, taste it, 
feel it, hear it, or see it, it mustn't exist. We need to 
be functional theists and realize that God the Lord made this world 
and everything in it. God the Lord upholds this world 
and everything in it, and God the Lord will judge this world 
in righteousness, and He has furnished proof of this reality 
by raising His Son from the dead. Note the question posed by the 
disciples, and this again highlights the difference in terms of the 
purpose of parables. They ask, Verse 36, Jesus sent 
the multitude away and went into the house. Remember, verse 1, 
he leaves the house, he gets into the boat so that he can 
address the multitudes and his disciples are probably with him 
on the boat. Now Jesus sends the multitude 
away and went into the house and his disciples came to him 
saying, explain to us the parable of the tares of the field. He 
answered and said to them, Isn't this illustrate verses 10 to 
17? To you it has been given to know 
the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it hasn't. He has dismissed the multitudes. 
The disciples now ask for explanation and exposition concerning this 
parable of the tares. And what does he do? He tells 
them. He instructs them. He gives them 
this wisdom. He takes the key, which is himself, 
puts it into the lock, and shows them how these all things are 
relative to his person and work. Again, so what Matthew is doing 
is showing us the purpose for the parables and he's fleshing 
it out right in the midst of this particular context. And 
then notice that the disciples ask, isn't this admirable? Don't people who know everything 
bug you? You say, yeah, then you probably 
bug yourself, right? We all know everything. We don't 
want to look like the foolish person sitting in the classroom 
that raises our hands and says, you know, I missed something. 
These disciples didn't care about that. They said, Lord, explain 
to us. You're talking about eternity. 
You're talking about where men live and die. You're talking 
about eternal verity. You're talking about the judgment 
to come. We don't want to mistake this. We don't want to miss this. We don't want to misunderstand 
this. Remember several weeks ago in our baptismal service, 
we looked at that Ethiopian eunuch. What was he doing? He's sitting 
in his chariot and Philip asks him a question and says, do you 
understand what you're reading? Does he lie and say, well, of 
course I do. I'm me. I understand everything. No, 
he says, how can I unless somebody comes and explains it? If you 
don't understand something about the judgment to come, if you 
don't understand something about the gospel, if you don't understand 
something about the truth of Jesus Christ, may I suggest you 
open your mouth and ask? This is too important to miss. 
If you were studying quantum physics, you wouldn't just assume 
you got everything before you took the test. You'd be the guy 
in the class raising his hand, saying, please help me. I don't 
want to take a test that I don't have any clue about. And if quantum 
physics is important, how much more the judgment to come? How 
many of you start a new job and the boss instructs you and you 
don't say, wait a minute, can you clarify that for me? Or how 
many of you youngins at school and they're telling you two plus 
two equals four? If you don't get it, that's okay. If you don't get it, ask. What 
do you mean? Well, here's two apples and here's 
two more apples. When you put them together, what 
do you get? You get four apples. Oh yeah, I see it now. You ask 
questions when things are important. You're not arrogant, you're not 
boastful, you're not proud. You realize that my life may 
depend upon the reality that I understand what 2 plus 2 equals. 
My life may depend upon the reality that quantum physics is legit 
and I should know something about it if I'm going to be a physicist. 
Well, each and every man will stand before God. And how many 
people don't care? How many of you, right here, 
right now, just don't care? You just want this to end. You 
want the clock to go quick. If we could set the clock forward 
an hour now, boy, wouldn't we be happy. We're going to write to the powers 
that be, those who keep the atomic clock, and say, instead of switching 
the clock forward before we go to bed, can we do it from 11 
to 12? 11.30 to 12.30? You don't care. Isn't that one 
of the most grievous things? When you as a Christian want 
to shine as a light in a crooked and perverse generation, and 
you want to hold forth the Word of Truth, and you want to take 
seriously your Lord's admonition to let your light so shine before 
men that men may see your good works and ask you questions so 
that you can give glory to God, and you're with people, by and 
large, that just don't care? I mean, they appreciate when 
people get mad, at least they show some evidence of being concerned. I don't like what you have to 
say. Well, we can talk then. But if my instruction to you 
concerning the very judgment to come is no more valuable or 
no more important than how many sets of apples make four, we 
got a problem. You need to take heed. Kids, 
I know you come to this church regularly. Every Sunday you hear 
the gospel. Every Sunday you hear something 
about Jesus. Every Sunday you hear the truths 
of His life, death, and resurrection. And the reason for that, it's 
not just a story designed to make you feel warm and fuzzy, 
it is the truth of God's Holy Word that is necessary for your 
salvation. Do you care? Do you pay attention? 
When your parents say, let's try to read the Bible after dinner, 
after breakfast, why would we care? What difference does it 
make? We all sound like Hillary Clinton when it comes to the 
very truth of eternity. What difference does it make? 
What makes a whole host of difference? Your eternal bliss or eternal 
woe? That's what the passage is dealing 
with. And the disciples don't just assume they've got it all 
figured out. The disciples say to Him, explain 
to us the parable of the tares of the field. Again, their choice. They don't ask about the wheat, 
they wonder about the tares. In Christ's explanation, the 
emphasis, as I said, is not on what do we do with tares now, 
but on what the Son of Man will do with tares on the end. or 
in the day of judgment. Bruner said, where the parable 
focused on the present problem of evil, the interpretation focuses 
on the final destiny of evil. Now note the details explained. There are seven specifics. A 
couple of things aren't mentioned. Jesus doesn't make an interpretation. He does not give explanation 
specifically concerning the men who slept, the servants, or the 
barn. Remember, he's got a pretty narrow 
focus in the presentation of this particular parable. The 
sower of the good seed is the Son of Man. He who sows the good 
seed is the Son of Man. I should have said eight details. 
The good seed, of course, is the word of the kingdom, as it's 
been identified already in Matthew's Gospel in chapter 13. The emphasis 
here is on the Son of Man. This is a reference to the Lord 
Christ that appears about 81 times in the New Testament, 30 
times in the Gospel of Matthew. It is Jesus' primary way to describe 
Himself. He refers to Himself as the Son 
of Man. Then there are several nuances 
to this particular identification. The idea is His earthly suffering, 
which precedes His glory, His earthly status of humanity, But 
what Jesus has precisely in mind here is the background of Daniel 
7, 13 and 14. where the Son of Man comes to 
the Ancient of Days. The Son of Man is in an official 
capacity. The Son of Man engages in judgment. The Son of Man presents the kingdom 
to the Ancient of Days who is his father. So the fact that 
Jesus refers to himself as the Son of Man in a context speaking 
of judgment shows us again that Daniel's prophecy was written 
concerning him. It refers to his future heavenly 
glory. Frantz says the primary theme 
of these parables, in this context, is people's response to Jesus' 
teaching concerning the kingdom of heaven. And our response to 
his teaching is our response to him. What does he say in Mark 
8, 38, when he returns? He says, when the Son of Man 
comes, he will judge. The Son of Man will render judgment 
upon man in this evil and adulterous generation. He says specifically, 
verse 38, for whoever is ashamed of me and my words, make no mistake 
about it, you do not esteem Christ if you don't esteem His word. 
You do not esteem the Lord of glory if you hold in contempt 
His word. You may say you love Jesus, you 
may say you're rightly connected to Jesus, but if you have no 
regard, no esteem, you place no value upon his written word, 
you have said no to Christ. That's the reality. Notice, back 
in Matthew 13, he speaks of the feel. The world here may speak 
to the extension of the kingdom beyond Israel to the Gentiles, 
a replete theme in Matthew's Gospel. It highlights the reality 
that God owns everything. God rules over everything. It is not the case that God is 
not sovereign over certain parcels and portions of the world. The 
world here is comprehensive. The field, however, specifically 
is visible in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Kingdom 
of God, I would argue, extends beyond the Church, but the primary 
manifestation of the Kingdom is in the Church. The field is 
the world, is what he says. Notice the good seeds, the sons 
of the kingdom. The field is the world, the good 
seeds are the sons of the kingdom. These are the ones who, by the 
grace of God, receive his teaching. We've already seen that in the 
parable of the sower. These are who, by the grace of 
God, receive his teaching. And what that means is they respond 
in faith and repentance. And they are those who then bear 
fruit, don't they? They don't just say, oh, I'm 
a believer and then lay on the couch until Jesus returns. Unless, 
of course, they're sick or hurt or injured and they need to lay 
on the couch. That's perfectly appropriate. 
But for the rest of us that don't need to lay on the couch, when 
we make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, what does James 
say to us? Live like you mean it. Don't be a bump on the log. Don't 
be moss. Don't be so worthless as one 
of these lumps of snow that somehow survived the torrential downpour. But rather, you need to bear 
fruit, some a hundredfold, some 60, some 30. Get out! You've professed the good faith. 
You are fighting the good fight. You need to run the race and 
you need to engage in godliness and in righteousness and in holiness. What separates the sons of the 
kingdom and the sons of the evil one? What do the sons of the 
evil one do? They cause offense and they practice 
lawlessness. So what must we imply? That the 
sons of the kingdom do not cause offense and they practice lawfulness. That's what Christ emphasizes. Note back in 8.12 for a moment. 
It's an interesting use of the sons of the kingdom there. 8.12, assuredly I say to you, 
verse 12, I'm sorry, but the sons of the kingdom will be cast 
into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing 
of teeth. There, the specific referent 
is to the Jews, the unbelieving Jews, the sons of God's kingdom 
in its old covenant manifestation. When Jesus comes and men reject 
Him, these men who are externally connected to God via Old Covenant 
religion will be cast into outer darkness. The sons of the kingdom 
are not those who are connected via Old Covenant religion, they 
are those who are vitally connected by grace alone, through faith 
alone, in Jesus Christ alone. That's wherein the emphasis lies. So the good seeds are identified. 
Notice the tares, the sons of the wicked one. Verse 38, but 
the tares are the sons of the wicked one. Think about that 
for just a moment. Isn't that one of the grand blessings 
of salvation in Christ? According to Paul in Galatians 
chapter 4, we've received the spirit of adoption, haven't we? 
What does that mean? That means we get to call God 
Abba Father. Isn't that choice? Isn't that 
wonderful? Isn't that glorious? We've been 
translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of 
the Son of His love, and by virtue of that reality, we may have 
had a despicable specimen of a human being for our earthly 
father, but now we've been ushered in to the presence of the best 
father, the pattern forefathers, the paradigm of all fatherhood, 
and we get to call him father. Note that the filial language 
is applied as well to the sons of the wicked one. Can you imagine 
that? Who's your father? The devil. Several years ago, it was quite 
common for people to say, who's your daddy? That in essence is 
what Jesus is teaching. There are those whose father 
is God. There are those whose father 
is the devil himself. Now I realize that most unbelievers 
do not pray our Father to Satan. I understand that most unbelievers, 
if queried and if pressed and if asked, wouldn't say I'm filially 
attached to the Lord Master of Evil. Beelzebub is my master. Beelzebub is my father. He's 
the one that I'm rightly connected to by virtue of my lawlessness 
and my scandals. I understand they don't say that, 
but it doesn't change reality. Jesus underscores something here 
that starts in the garden. Genesis 3.15, the seed of the 
woman would crush the head of the serpent. There would be an antithesis 
There would be enmity that God wrought between these two seeds. We see it parallel throughout 
redemptive history. Consider Jael in light of Genesis 
3.15. She's a down payment. She's a 
type of the soul crushing work of the Messiah. When Jael takes 
that tent peg and drives it into Sisera's head and takes out her 
hammer and pounds it in there, what should we see? That's gross. No, we see the triumph of God's 
holy kingdom. We see the exclusion of depravity 
and wickedness and evil. We see that God's Messiah will 
vindicate his elect. We see that God's Messiah will 
crush the head of the serpent. We see that God's Messiah will 
decisively do what God had determined in Genesis 3.15. There is enmity. 
The New Testament passages speak to this as well. What does Jesus 
say to the Pharisees and the religious leaders in John 8? 
You are of your father, the devil, and the desires of your father, 
what? You want to do it. Isn't that terrible? We as Christians want to not 
cause offense. We as Christians want to practice 
lawfulness. We as Christians, when we cause 
offense or when we practice lawlessness, we repent. We say, God have mercy 
upon me, God forgive me, God cleanse me in the blood. But 
there are actually people in this world that are under their 
father the devil and they want to murder and they want to lie. 
Again, I think this makes perfect sense in light of the abortion 
industry, in light of euthanasia. I heard a man speak on that topic 
this past week. It's wretched, horrible. Who's the target audience with 
euthanasia? 80 plus and the disabled. What kind of a society terminates 
those who ought to listen to for wisdom? What kind of a society 
terminates the helpless and the weak among them? A society governed 
by Beelzebub. A society that is turned from 
wisdom. A society that has rejected Christ. And in the language of the Proverbs 
in chapter 8, all those who hate me do what? They love death. It's in the movies, it's in the 
music, it's in the media, it's everywhere we look. It's a celebration 
of blood, it's a celebration of gore, it's a celebration of 
that which is evil. Everywhere we look there's lies. 
Isn't it frustrating to you that daily you hear people lie to 
you? Isn't it frustrating to you that daily you've got to 
restrain yourself from lying to others? That is so permeated 
in society. We expect government leaders 
to be liars. We expect lawyers to be liars. In fact, we say, the Latin of 
lawyer is liar. We expect these sorts of things. Why is that? Because in the language 
of 1 John 5.19, the whole world lies under the sway of who? The 
wicked one. Chaplain says, as surely as the 
sons of the kingdom are enlisted to advance their father's rule, 
the sons of the evil ones seek, with their father, to thwart 
its progress and undo its achievements. You see why sometimes we tell 
you ought to pray for the advancement of Christ's kingdom? I hope I 
don't just tell you that sometime, you ought to pray for the power 
of the Holy Spirit to come upon preacher and preaching and hearer. Why? Because there's all these 
machinations in play, seeking to thwart the progress and the 
advancement of God's Holy Kingdom. This is warfare. Notice the enemy 
of Christ, as indicated in verse 40. The enemy who sowed them 
is the devil. The enemy who sold them is the 
devil. He actively opposes Christ, he 
actively opposes his kingdom, he actively opposes his church. It's interesting, this morning, 
as Pastor Cam was reading the passage in Hebrews 13, 17, about 
how the church should relate to its officers. Not dictatorial, 
tyrannical men that make the church their playground for money 
and prestige. That's just not what I'm speaking 
about. But the way that Pastor Dr. Renahan 
carefully nuanced what plurality eldership looks like in the context 
and life of the local church. One of the interesting parallels 
is 1 Thessalonians 5. The apostle says, know those 
who rule over you. I don't think he's talking about 
the civil authority because he speaks about those who teach 
you the word. He says, esteem them highly for 
their work's sake. Again, I'm not here to say I 
need a parking space, I need a plot, that's not the point. 
But it's interesting, after having given instructions about how 
to esteem those who rule over you, Paul then says, be at peace 
among yourselves. What's an implication? If you 
don't respect and submit to the elders in your church, get out. 
Because what's going to happen? There's going to be confusion. 
There's going to be chaos. There's going to be all kinds 
of trial and difficulty. Those things can't consist one 
with another. Again, I'm not saying, you know, 
if you think I'm ugly, then leave. That's not the point. The point 
is that Paul connects peaceful existence in the life of the 
church with unity in the life of the church. If we're not unified 
as elders, we're not unified as brethren, what is it going 
to be but a stomping ground for the devil? We need to understand 
that. The devil is real. Jesus assumes 
that and teaches that. And the devil wants to thwart 
the kingdom's progress. The devil wants you not to pray. The devil wants you not to give. The devil wants you not to encourage 
a pastor or encourage a missionary. The devil wants you not to encourage 
or to write people that are in the, you know, the mission field. 
The devil doesn't want the triumph of God's kingdom. Bruner makes 
this very perceptive statement. He says, our contemporary churches 
ignore the devil and leave serious references to the devil to revivalists 
and snake handling cults. There's usually an extreme on 
either side. We almost deify the devil or we never speak of 
the devil. That's all that's involved is the devil and then 
no mention of the devil whatsoever. Here Bruner again. Our contemporary 
churches ignore the devil and leave serious references to the 
devil to revivalists and snake-handling cults. I just wanted to read 
that again. This is not a good idea, for the ignored devil sneaks 
in by back doors through the appeal of the occult, the magical, 
the falsely supernatural, prophecy conferences, astrology, new age, 
the enemies of the day and other irrational realities. He's right. When humanism infects the pulpit, 
who gets the credit? The devil! Man doesn't even necessarily 
have to stand up and advocate that we all get crystals, or 
that we all put pyramids on our walls, or that we all pray to 
the devil. If he's not preaching the Word 
of God, if he's not expounding the truth of God, if the pulpit 
has become a vehicle to propagate humanistic garbage, he's as much 
an agent of Satan as the rest. This is why, much to the chagrin 
of so many, Pastor John MacArthur stood up and said that Joel Osteen 
is a son of the devil. Oh, you can't say that! That's 
America's pastor! America's pastor who has prostituted 
the pulpit, who's moved it aside and made man the measure of all 
things. It's not a son of God. You see, 
the pulpit is about God. Didn't we learn this in 1 Timothy 
4, 6? By instructing the brethren in 
these things, you, Timothy, will be a good minister of Jesus Christ. not if you make the New York 
Times bestsellers list, not if you break a million dollars in 
book sales, not if you have 15,000 people who come to hear you every 
Lord's Day. By instructing the brethren in 
biblical truth, then you'll be a good minister of Christ Jesus. 
You see, the evil one has his ways in the midst of the church. Humanism. happiness, niceness, 
all these saccharine, sickening concepts that ought to make the 
people of God throw up and say, we want scripture, we want Bible, 
we want men like Bunyan, of whom Spurgeon says, you cut him and 
he bleeds bibling. That's the kind of men that belong 
in pulpits, not the devil's men. No, the harvest is the end of 
the age. working through the details, 
verse 39, the enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest 
is the end of the age. You see, pagan thought looks 
at history like it's a big circle. You hear that in the shows, you 
hear that in the media. We're all part of the circle 
of life. Biblical history is not cyclical. It is not circular. It's not whatever goes around 
will keep on coming around, and if I was a bug in one life, I'll 
be a man in another life, or whatever the case. Biblical history 
is linear. for of Him, beginning, and through 
Him, middle, and to Him, end, or tell us, are all things, to 
whom be glory forever. Amen. It's linear. We have a destination. This is 
one of the reasons, I think, that men try so hard to deny 
God the Creator, because they think if they deny God the Creator, 
well, they certainly don't have God the Governor, and they'll 
never meet God the Judge. You see, it's orchestrated. We 
don't like the concept of judgment. We certainly don't like the concept 
of God's governance in our lives now. We don't want Him telling 
us who we can sleep with or what we can put into our bodies or 
how we can function and how we can conduct ourselves. So let's 
take Him out at the beginning of the equation. Jesus teaches 
us there is an end of the age. France describes it this way, 
the end of the age is a familiar Jewish expression for the crisis 
which was expected to bring the present world order to a close 
and to inaugurate the age to come. Then the reapers, they 
are the angels. They are the angels. Daniel 7 
prior to 13 and 14 is verse 10. The angels play a part. 2 Thessalonians 
chapter 1, when Jesus returns in the glory of his father with 
all of his holy angels. It's another thing that's interesting 
today. We all love angels, and not we all, but we shouldn't 
hate angels. I'm not suggesting otherwise, 
but people just deify angels. I was touched by an angel. I 
have an angel bumper sticker. I have angel fridge magnets. 
Everything's angels with this society. Maybe back a few more 
years. What's the angel's job at the 
end of the age? To pick you up, to bring you 
before the just judge of all the earth, and if you're an unbeliever, 
to cast you into the furnace of fire. We don't like those 
kinds of angels. We just like the big wings and 
the fat cheeks. We just like them strumming their 
harps. That's our concept of what we'll 
do. We'll be like the angels. We'll have fat cheeks and we'll 
have wings and we'll strum harps on clouds. Probably the song 
we'll sing is kumbaya. You mean Christian? Everybody 
wants angels. You're not going to want an angel 
on the Day of Judgment if you're outside of the Redeemer. Now 
note, those are the details from the giving of the parable. Now 
he gets into specifically the description of the judgment to 
come. Verses 40 to 43. Notice in verse 
40, it's a general statement. Therefore, as the terrors are 
gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this 
age. Verses 41 to 43a develop in detail 
that statement. You see, verse 40, he only deals 
with the tares. Verse 40, he only deals with 
the final disposition or destiny of the wicked. 43b, he does deal 
with the final destiny of the righteous. He doesn't leave that 
untouched, but the emphasis and the point is on what's going 
to happen to me if I'm not a believer in Jesus Christ. What's going 
to happen to me if I am not a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ? May 
I suggest that if you're not a believer in the Lord Jesus 
Christ, you think with me? You pay attention, you listen, 
you give ear to these things? This is better than me telling 
you, hey, tomorrow, on Monday, you're going to go to the Capital 
Restaurant, have a nice Chinese lunch, and on the way out, find 
a bag of money. I'm telling you something far 
more important than that. Pay attention. Listen to what 
Jesus says concerning your future. People seek crystal balls, people 
seek tarot cards, people seek messages in tea leaves. Why don't 
you open Matthew 13? It'll tell you everything you 
want to know about the future. It'll tell you everything you 
want to know about where you're heading. Notice specifically, 
Jesus, first of all, is the judge who presides. Verse 41, the Son 
of Man will send out His angels. It's Christ who is sovereign 
in judgment. It is Christ, the one with nail-scarred 
hands, is going to be the one to whom every man gives an account. 
It's Christ who is sovereign over this whole affair. Daniel 
7, 13, and 14, the Danielic Son of Man, who has all authority, 
who has all power, who has all sovereignty, who presents the 
kingdom onto His Father, Jesus is the righteous judge of all 
the earth. So consider that. Consider with 
me for a moment that you went out and you robbed a bank. And 
then in the midst of robbing that bank, you were armed to 
the teeth and you had all kinds of guns. And I'm not saying guns 
are bad. They're bad when you rob banks with them. And in the 
midst of that, you see a man standing by the teller. You start 
guns a-blazing, you take your piles of money and in the midst 
of it you hit that man that's by the teller in the leg. You 
get caught. No such thing as a perfect crime. 
You get caught. You go to prison. You get arraigned. Your trial comes. You walk into 
the courtroom and who's sitting behind the bench? The man that 
was standing by the teller that you shot in the leg. You see, what you do with Jesus 
Christ right now, when you despise, when you reject, when you loathe, 
when you hate, you're going to meet Him. The text is conspicuous. You see, we preach the Gospel 
now. We preach mercy, and grace, and 
kindness, and love. We preach not offers of mercy, 
but promises of mercy, by the power of God's Holy Spirit, to 
all, to everyone who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ. There 
is a terrifying scene in the book of Revelation, in chapter 
6, when judgment comes. And it says that all men, and 
I take it there to be all men outside of Christ, call upon 
the mountains to fall on them. They call upon the rocks to fall 
on them. You think, what horrible thing 
must be happening if men are actually going to say to Mount 
Sham, can you fall on me and cover me? What horrible event 
could possibly be in view for a man to say to a great big rock, 
can you fall on me and smash me? John underscores what that 
horrible event is. They say, hide us from the wrath 
of the Lamb. So the Lamb that is preached 
as the Savior of the world, the Lamb that you have heard promised 
to all who come in faith in this pulpit, you reject Him, you despise 
Him, this much you should know. You're going to meet Him. You 
will set eyes on Him. You will stand in judgment. Notice, he speaks of the agents 
who execute the judgment, 41B. I'm sorry, 30, let's see here, 
wrong passage, I was in John. Lots of passages in John, we 
simply don't have time concerning the judgment of God and His agent 
or His execution of judgment is the Lord Jesus Christ. The 
agent in Matthew chapter 13, the Son of Man will send out 
His angels. Spurgeon says, this the Son of 
Man will do with authority. The angels are simply the executioners 
of the wrath of the Lamb. Notice he identifies the wicked. He identifies the terrors. He 
identifies the weeds. The Son of Man will send out 
his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things 
that offend and those who practice lawlessness. all things that 
offend and those who practice lawlessness." It's interesting 
because Paul says, we preach Christ crucified. To the Jews, 
a scandal. To the Jews, a stumbling block. 
To the Jews, an offense. It's the same word used here. 
I don't take it. That means every single Jew. 
It means unbelieving ones and unbelieving Gentiles. The description 
of those who go into the harvest of fire are those who engage 
in things that offend and practice lawlessness. What's your life 
look like? What are you doing? Do you think 
the seventh commandment is simply a suggestion for those holy rollers 
that live next door to you? Do you think it's okay to look 
at internet porn? Do you think it's okay to lie 
with your girlfriend or your boyfriend? Do you think it's 
okay to steal? Do you think it's okay to cheat? 
Do you think it's okay to covet? Do you think it's okay to break 
the Sabbath? To have other gods before God? To make idols for 
yourself or to make an idol out of yourself? Is it okay to use 
God's name, the holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ, as if 
it were a curse word? If you think those things are 
okay, you're in this text. You're one that causes offense, 
and you are one who practices lawlessness. John defines sin 
as lawlessness. It's when we know what to do, 
but we reject it, we despise it, and we rebel against it. 
Now understand that Christians struggle with lawlessness as 
well, but typically Christians say, Lord God, please forgive 
me. Christians have an advocate with 
the Father, even Jesus Christ the righteous. We have one who 
ever lives to make intercession for us, so we come to him and 
we pray, please forgive me, and we trust that if we confess our 
sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse 
us from all unrighteousness. But the sons of the evil one 
don't have that advocate. The sons of the evil one don't 
confess their sins. The sons of the evil one practice 
lawlessness. That's how Jesus describes them. 
Now, when you look at a passage like that, you think of bank 
robbers. You think of crack dealers. You think of prostitutes. You 
typically don't think of polished, upright Canadians who go to church 
weekly and revel in their self-righteousness. That is as much a practice of 
lawlessness as is dealing crack. It's not saying just those icky, 
disgusting people out there. If the Kingdom of God's primary 
manifestation is through the Church of God, then we are fools 
to think that there aren't persons currently attending churches. 
We are fools to think that there aren't persons currently members 
of churches that don't cause offense or practice lawlessness. all under the guise of being 
holy. Love what Keats said with reference 
to the hypocrite. They might as well be openly 
profane as secretly wicked. For hypocrites and unbelievers 
shall have their portion together with the abominable and profane 
persons and devils. So when you see that, All things 
that offend and practice lawlessness don't project. Well, I saw this 
guy and I know he robbed a bank and he smoked crack and he had 
a prostitute and he's a real practicer of lawlessness or practitioner 
of it. Now me, on the other hand, I 
go to church, I pay my tithes, I fast, I'm not like these sorts 
of men. Sounds like the Pharisee in Luke 
18 who prayed thus with himself. Who went to heaven in Jesus' 
story? Not the Pharisee. Not the Pharisee. Notice the 
terrifying end of the wicked in verse 42. And will cast them 
into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing 
of teeth. You know, sometimes pastors or 
preachers are accused, oh, you're trying to scare people. You just 
want them to get scared. Well, if God the Lord is pleased 
to put his fear in the hearts of men, praise be his most holy 
name. That is certainly an end of view 
or a goal in preaching. You don't pray to God, please 
don't put your fear in the hearts of men. Just make them think 
you're nice and everything's happy and everything's great. 
Just give them health, wealth and prosperity. Give them everything 
they want. That's not the prayer of a faithful 
man of God. Lord, put the fear of God in 
their hearts. But who's more fearful? Some pastor or preacher 
standing up today saying, you ought to think about the future, 
you ought to think about eternity to come, you ought to think about 
the Judge who is the Son of Man. What's more terrifying than what 
Jesus says here in our Bibles? He says, "...and will cast them 
into the furnace of fire, there will be wailing and gnashing 
of teeth." It just doesn't sound pleasant, doesn't sound like 
health, wealth and prosperity, doesn't sound like something 
I'd like to have for my future, but this is the language of Christ. 
This is a warning from the Savior. This is what Christ is telling 
man. Spurgeon said it this way, the fate of these ungodly ones 
will be fire, the most terrible of punishments. But this will 
not annihilate them, for they shall exhibit the surest tokens 
of a living woe, wailing and gnashing of teeth. Sooner or 
later, this is what must come of evil men. That's the terrifying 
fate, the terrifying end, the terrifying destiny of the wicked. So if you are here this morning 
and you do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you are one 
who could be described as one who causes offense, or one who 
practices lawlessness, This is your future. This is what you 
have coming to be cast into the furnace of fire where there will 
be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And then it's sort of an addendum. 
Jesus tells us where John Newton got the fourth stanza for amazing 
grace. What does he say? then the righteous will shine 
forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father." Did you ever 
wonder where Newton got stanza four? He probably got it here 
and Daniel chapter 12. Daniel 12.3 says, those who are 
wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament and those who 
turn many to righteousness like the stars for ever and ever. When we've been there 10,000 
years, bright shining as the sun, we've no less days to sing 
God's praise than when we first begun. Praise God Almighty, we're 
not in the furnace of fire. Praise God Almighty, we're not 
wailing and gnashing our teeth. But praise God Almighty, most 
of all, that we're with the Jewel of Heaven Himself. We are with 
Christ. The bride eyes not her garment, 
but her dear bridegroom's face. I will not gaze at glory, but 
on my king of grace. Not at the crown he gifteth, 
but on his pierced hands. The lamb is all the glory of 
Emmanuel's land. Jesus emphasizes the destiny 
of the wicked, but it's almost as if he can't stop but tell 
us what the righteous enjoy. He concludes with the admonition, 
the end of verse 43, he who has ears to hear, let him hear. Pay 
attention. Listen, we've come full circle. 
Biblical history isn't cyclical, but this sermon is. We've come 
back to the very beginning. You need to think about judgment. 
You need to think about where you will fly into eternity. You need to think about something 
beyond today, something beyond tomorrow. You've got to think 
of the reality that the end of the age is a certain day. As 
much as we're all sitting here this morning, Jesus Christ will 
come again to judge the living and the dead. Mockers will mock, 
deniers will deny, but I think deep down inside even the mockers 
and the deniers know, because they bear the image of God, they 
know it's a righteous thing with God to judge sinful men, according 
to Paul in Romans 1.32. And so they deny and mock in 
the attempt to try and make it not true. Ryle said, with reference 
to the admonition, let the ungodly man tremble when he reads this 
parable. Let him see in its fearful language his own certain doom, 
unless he repents and is converted. Let him know that he is sowing 
misery for himself if he goes on still in his neglect of God. Let him reflect that his end 
will be to be gathered among the bundles of tares and be burned. Surely, such a prospect ought 
to make a man think. May God Almighty cause you to 
think today. May you just one Sabbath day 
internalize the truth, think about the truth, consider the 
truth, talk to people about the truth, or even better yet, get 
in your closet and talk to God about the truth, and don't end 
the day unconverted. Don't end the day as a tare, 
as a weed, as something fit only for burning, but fly to the mercy 
of God in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ on that 
last great day of the feast said, he who is thirsty, let him come 
to me and drink. The prophet Isaiah says, oh, 
everyone who thirsts, come. You who don't have money, come 
buy and eat. Buy the wine that exhilarates. 
Buy the water that refreshes. Buy the milk that nourishes. 
Why will you tarry? Why will you die? As Isaiah says, 
why do you spend your wages on that which does not satisfy? 
Why do you eat out of dumpsters? Why do you eat garbage? Why do 
you eat stuff that isn't even fit for dogs? Why don't you flee 
to the marriage supper of the Lamb? By the grace of God, say, 
Lord, save me. I don't want to continue unrepentant. 
I don't want to continue as one who causes offense and one who 
practices lawlessness. Contrary to popular belief, you 
were not put on this earth just to copulate, and just to eat, 
and just to make money, and just to do your thing. You were put 
on this earth to bring glory to God. You were put on this 
earth to reflect the majesty, and the honor, and the dignity, 
and the beauty of our Creator. You were not put on this earth 
to tie yourself to lusts, and sins, and wickedness. Ezekiel 
says, why will you die? Turn! Turn from your sins, come 
to the Lord Jesus Christ, and He will save you. That's what 
the Bible says. Every man and woman and boy and 
girl in this church right now will be right there to tell you, 
I didn't save myself. I wasn't good. I wasn't polished. I didn't earn it. I didn't do 
anything. Most of us will tell you I was 
running from God. I despised God. The thought of 
God made me sick. It was He who sought me. It was 
He who found me. It was He who changed me. It 
was He who turned me. Isn't this the grand lesson in 
the Zacchaeus narrative? That little man climbs up the 
big tree so he can get a view of the Savior. And when Jesus 
says, hurry down the tree, I'm coming to eat at your house, 
everybody gets mad. Everybody grumbles, everybody 
whines, everybody complains. He's going to go eat with this 
tax collector. What is Jesus saying? The Son of Man came to 
seek and to save that which was lost. This is what Christ is 
about. You may have heard the gospel 
twisted or distorted. You may have heard that it's 
your faith plus what you do. No, it's grace alone, through 
faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. The only way any sinner 
will enter into God's Holy Kingdom is through the blood of His Son. 
It's it. That's it. No other way. You 
believe on him. And the scripture says you will 
have everlasting life. Please consider eternity. Please 
consider the judgment to come. I've told you children, I've 
told you young people several times before, at least one time 
before. People here pray for young. People pray for you. Your 
parents pray for you. Your elders pray for you. People 
want you to come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This 
isn't just something you do because you're brought up in a Christian 
home. We just go to church because that's what people do. You come 
to hear the words of eternal life. Say with Peter, Lord, to 
whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal 
life. I've heard it said, I've not 
seen it in print for myself, but Luther, to the effect of 
this, if Christ had a sword pointed at me, I'd still run to Him. 
I'd still go to Him. He is heaven's darling. He is 
the chief among ten thousand. He is the altogether lovely. 
Come, and He will save you. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we come to you now and we thank you for this description of the 
future. God, in so many ways it's terrifying. And we pray that sinners here 
would come to Christ and we can't appeal to them in their free 
will or in their power or some supposed effort on their part. 
We come to you, the God of sovereignty and grace and mercy. We know 
that you rejoice over your people to do them good. We know it is 
grace that taught our heart to fear. We know according to the 
prophet you put the fear of God into the hearts of men and we 
pray that you would do that even this morning. that you would 
save sinners, Lord God, that you would do that work which 
is impossible with men, but possible with you. We pray that for our 
meeting here today. We pray that for other churches 
here in Chilliwack. We pray wherever the gospel is 
proclaimed, it would run swiftly and be glorified, that it would 
not return unto you void, but you would be pleased to say from 
every tribe and tongue and people and nation, For God, we know 
the certain terrifying reality that this parable holds forth. 
And we know, Father in heaven, that we are to call men, knowing 
the terror of the Lord, we are to persuade men to believe on 
the Lord Jesus Christ. Do this for your glory. Do this 
for your honor and for your praise. And do this in the hearts and 
in the lives of the young people. And the children here, God, may 
they not be hardened, may they not be Bible hardened, but may 
they know Christ early on in their lives. And we pray these 
things through Jesus our Lord. Amen.