Awhile back, a good friend and mentor of mine received a word of knowledge from God while in the shower. I do not know why God often chooses to communicate with people while they are in the shower, but I know of multiple instances where this has happened. And in one case, I can personally verify that the words were from God – there was no other possible way that the recipient could have known what I was praying for in the other room.
My friend’s message of last year was this:
“Let both the wheat and the weeds grow together until the harvest, which works if someone is planting and attending to the wheat”.
A word of knowledge from God is a spiritual gift. This one was a direct reference to a parable that Jesus had told a crowd and later explained privately to His disciples.
Jesus told this parable right after the Parable of the Sower, which described the fulfillment of the Isaiah’s prophecy on why so many hearts would end up rejecting God’s message of grace and love. The upside of the Parable of the Sower is that there is a subset of people who will hear God’s message, receive it, and like a fruitful field, will produce many blessings and draw a harvest of souls to the kingdom of God.
Jesus next told the story of the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares. This one reveals an additional complication to kingdom living beyond just receiving it – while on this earth, all believers will be surrounded by evil and the temptation to sin and turn against God. His growing harvest field will always be under attack by the enemy.
A tare is basically a weed which looks just like wheat when starting out, but becomes quite harmful to the wheat as it grows. It is a sort of agricultural “wolf in sheep’s clothing”. Most of the crowd Jesus was addressing knew all about tares and their negative impact on the wheat harvest, and were listening as He continued teaching:
24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 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?’ 28 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?’ 29 But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 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 (NKJV)
Jesus later explained the meaning of this parable to His disciples. The wheat stalks are believers that sprout up from the seed of the word to become a part of His eternal kingdom. The tares are evil-hearted opponents, “sown” by the devil, to tempt away, offend, and harm the believers through lawless acts. These will eventually be separated out of the kingdom by God’s angels, but not until the end of the age. In the meantime, they will be given every opportunity to turn away from their harmful ways and to join the wheat harvest.
I have seen many, many examples of people who started out living a life of harm to others, only to be called away from that life and given a new and loving heart by God. One prison I volunteered at even opened up a seminary where inmates with newfound faith have become prison chaplains to scatter the seed of God’s word throughout other prisons in their state. These conversions are authentic, as testified to by their fruits.
God gives all of us second, third, fourth, and even hundredth chances to turn away from our rebellious and stubborn lifestyles which oppose Him and harm ourselves and others. But even a loving God has His limits, and we should never hesitate to take advantage of His generous offer and longsuffering ways when He reaches out to us to repent and turn to, or turn back to, Him.
What about my friend’s word of knowledge in the shower, about the wheat and the tares?
After he told me about it, I decided to latch onto it as a sort of mission statement for this series of meditations, and he approved. May these digital writings somehow serve to “plant and attend to the wheat” long after my days are done, until Jesus comes in His kingdom. And may the Lord bless and prosper all of our works that seek to serve Him and bless others, through the effective power of the Holy Spirit.
Reflection
What temptations surround you that you need help overcoming?
Lord, protect us from the tares of the evil one which surround us each day. Keep our roots safely planted in You, and watch over and protect us and all of our families. Help us to be busy tending to Your harvest field until Jesus comes with all of His angels to bring in the kingdom age. We ask this in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Have a beautiful, blessed day in the Lord today.
Daily Meditations from the Genealogy of Jesus 