Homily of the Week

Holy Angels Anglican Church

Homily for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany
(February 9, 2025)

St. Matthew 13: 24-30

The Good Seed and the Tares

Given by: The Rev. Father Vincent J. Varnas

Do very many of you have a garden? For those that do, you know what I mean when I say that weeding is a pain! Did you ever notice how Nettle weeds sometimes make a home right next to your favorite flower? Trying to uproot them without also uprooting the flower plant is almost impossible. And then, wearing gloves helps only a little from getting jabbed by the nettles. I hate those weeds! Why do they have to grow so big and so fast?

With today’s Gospel reading, we hear about how, “The kingdom of heaven is likened to a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while he slept, his enemy came and sowed tares [something akin to weeds] among the wheat, ...” (Matt. 13:24). Our lives are like that, as we encounter both good and evil in our daily lives. We must recognize the tares among us and not allow ourselves to be corrupted by evil.

When I listen to the news on radio or television, I sometimes think that the world is overrun with evil. But I know better than that. Why does God allow evil, sinful people to do their evil deeds? Well, God gave us all free will and that includes the ability to do both good and evil. Wouldn’t it be nice if God just said, “Enough is enough! I’ve had it with your evil ways. I am punishing you here and now!” After all, God punished the Israelites by making them wander for 40 years in the desert for their sins and Moses himself was not allowed to cross into the Promised Land because of his prideful sin of saying that it had been both himself and his brother Aaron who brought forth water from the rock; thus, giving no credit to God for this miracle.

I remember an old story that my mother told me about former President Calvin Coolidge. President Coolidge had the nickname, “silent Cal” because he was usually a man of few words. I suppose he got this from his childhood in Vermont. He was a Congregationalist and always went to church on Sunday. One Sunday, a friend of his questioned him about the preacher’s sermon that day by asking: “What did the preacher preach about?” Coolidge replied: “Sin.” Not content with this terse answer, the friend asked further: “What did he say about sin?” Undaunted and unperturbed by the pressure placed upon him to open up with a bit more information, Coolidge said: “He’s against it!”

Well I’m against it too, but hopefully you all will remember a bit more about my homily than did President Coolidge remember about that sermon.

There are several metaphors in today’s Gospel reading. The good seed is sown in a field by a man who is the householder. This man who sows the good seed is a metaphor for “the Son of man”, Jesus. “The good seed are the children of the Kingdom” that grow and become wheat. The “enemy” of the householder “is the devil”. “The tares [or weeds] are the children of the wicked one” or the evildoers and those who cause others to sin. Of course, the “field” is the world. The enemy is the devil. The harvest is the end of the world. And the reapers are the angels. (Matt. 13:37-40) Recall the Gospel of St. Mark: “And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect ...” (Mk. 13:27). This is the gathering of the wheat. And His angels will also gather the tares and “... cast them into a furnace of fire” (Matt. 13:42). Remember fire is a metaphor for the pain of damnation to Hell and not necessarily physical combustion.

The servants of the householder, that is the disciples of Jesus, ask whether or not the weeds should be gathered or pulled up and discarded. But the householder says, “allow them to grow together with the wheat until the harvest”, that is until the end of the age, the Parousia. Then they will receive their punishment and the good and faithful ones will be gathered into the barn that is the kingdom of heaven.

Why has the master directed his servants to wait? Is it not better to rid the world of evil?

Our Lord is patient with us. He knows that we all are sinners. Some of us repent and some do not. Furthermore, tares look like wheat in their early development. The Lord wisely waits until a distinction can be made more easily between the good seed (i.e., the wheat) and the tares (i.e., weeds). We also have difficulty in many instances determining between a sinner and a saint. If we make a mistake, we might do serious injustice to one or the other.

It is said that only the good die young. That is not entirely accurate, but it does follow that God’s patience with our sinfulness is extensive. He gives us every chance to reform during our lives and turn away from sin. But He will not wait forever!

A Roman Catholic theologian, Fr. Richard Rohr, wrote that most of us remain self-centered until we are in our 30’s. Of course there are many exceptions both ways and it is a gradual process of conversion of heart over the years, but just think about that. The opposite of self-centeredness is altruism or loving kindness toward others. Is this not what Jesus preached, that is, to love one another as He has loved us? St. Paul wrote in his First letter to the Corinthians, (13:4) that love is patient, love is kind. It is because of God’s love for us that He is patient with our sins and with us; thus, giving us every opportunity to transform ourselves into the holy ones that He wants us to be. Of course, we can never be perfect, as only God is perfectly holy, but He wants us to keep striving. It is the persistent effort that counts.

Matthew is telling us that we must be patient with sinners for they are also the children of God and must be granted every opportunity for repentance. The roots of both the good seed or the wheat and the tares or the weeds are inextricably intertwined. To root up the tares, like those pesky Nettles I mentioned earlier, would result in uprooting the good wheat, also.

Therefore be cautious that you not become enveloped by the roots of the tares and thus be corrupted. St. Paul warns us about this, saying: “Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” (Col. 2:8).

But what of the tares? It is quite correct to hate sin, but we must continue to love the sinner. God loves the sinner, and so must we. No one must attempt to usurp divine judgment. God is God and I am not! St. Matthew wrote: “Judge not, that ye be not judged” (Matt. 7:1). We can often be the judge of actions, but not what is in the hearts of men. But even judging actions is perilous, because there may be unseen reasons for the actions taken that seem obvious, yet are not what they seem to be.

For example: abortion to save the mother’s life is not murder of the unborn. Yet often it is only God who truly knows why anyone does what they do and the reasons for it. Remember the lesson of the wheat and the tares. Have you any dahlias in your garden? Dahlias look somewhat like tares or weeds, but are actually flowers.

So what is our task in life regarding sin?

First, we must pray for the sinners among us and for ourselves to turn away from sin and adopt a life of virtue.

Second, we must never be silent in the presence of sin. We must be willing to stand up for what we believe. It is a duty that comes with both Baptism and Confirmation.

Third, we must always strive to avoid sin ourselves lest we be seen as hypocrites. We must strive to be an example of loving virtue for the world.

St. Matthew’s Gospel at Chapter 13 gives us other examples of how we might grow from good seed into mature wheat in seeking and finding a glimmer of the kingdom of heaven within ourselves, as follows:

• “The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field” (Matt. 13:31). This means that our faith grows from a tiny seed, ever greater and stronger as we age and gain wisdom (i.e., awe and reverence for God).
• “The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened” (Matt. 13:33). This means that we are shown guideposts on the road toward holiness that help us to grow in faith.
• “..., the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he ... goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field” (Matt. 13:44). This means that our reward for having lived a virtuous life on earth will be attained in Heaven, as we strive toward holiness here on earth.
• “..., the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, ...” (Matt. 13:47-49). The good and the bad are mixed together here on earth.
• “[And] ..., the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it” (Matt. 13:45-46). This means, as from the Book of Ecclesiastes, that all things here on earth are but vanity or useless. But God’s heavenly kingdom is priceless.

The lesson presented in today’s Gospel reading is fundamentally that the kingdom of God is at hand with the coming of Christ. The kingdom of heaven is to be seen in Christ and in His Mystical Body, the Church. And since we are constituent parts of His Body, the Church, we enjoy just a taste or prefigurement of our heavenly reward when we seek goodness within ourselves.

We must search for and discover that good seed of wheat, that mustard seed, that leaven, that treasure, the netted good fish and; yes, that pearl of great price, so often hidden within ourselves. Let not the tares distract us from our goal. Beatitude awaits us in Heaven.