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Matthew 13

In this packed chapter, Matthew records seven earthly stories Jesus told to make spiritual points. He begins with the parable of the Sower and the seed, which teaches the Gospel should be shared with everyone, but few will have the right heart to accept and share it. Then attention turns to the wheat and the tares, indicating that God is patient, waiting until the judgment to separate the saved and the lost. The parable of the net and fish makes this same point at the end of the chapter. Mixed in are stories about a mustard seed and pecks of flour. Two seemingly small things would grow and affect everything around them, just like Christ’s kingdom! Jesus pictures His kingdom as a priceless pearl and a treasure, worth every cost to possess. 

These parables are Jesus’ way of helping us understand the kingdom He was coming to establish as well as the kind of people who would be in it. Many would hear the gospel and reject it, or let the world pervert it, but only a few would take it in and build their lives around it. Right now, God allows all to live on this earth, but a time is coming when He will gather His people, the faithful, and the rest will be destroyed. We must see a relationship with Jesus and His people as the greatest treasure of our lives. The kingdom started small and seemingly insignificant, but now it reaches through time and affects the entire world.  

Wonderful Father, thank you for sending Jesus to teach us about His kingdom. Thank You for His parables. They give us unforgettable imagery to help us understand spiritual things. Help us to be the good soil, to take in the word, love it, and let it grow and produce. Strengthen us not to be distracted by affliction, worries, or wealth. There is no greater treasure than the kingdom of Christ. May we believe that and embrace it. Help us understand that judgment is coming, and that an eternal separation will follow. Lead us to belong to You.  

Thought Questions: 

-       How do you measure which kind of soil you have been lately? What is the best way to soften your heart and be more like the good soil?

-       If God is allowing wheat (saved) to grow with the tares (lost) until judgment, there must be a reason. What do you think that is?

-       What cost would you pay to possess citizenship in the kingdom of Christ? In what ways is your life demonstrating to God the truth of that claim?