Introduction
Many of us seek God, whether to deepen our understanding of Him or to find help during our life’s challenges. We may look for a good Bible study or follow various teachers to gain new insights. Additionally, we might listen to different preachers, hoping to discover fresh perspectives from the Word of God that can assist us in our situations. All these activities can greatly strengthen our faith if we approach them with an open heart and evaluate everything through the Word of God, the Bible. The Bible must be our ultimate source of truth about the Lord Jesus and the standard for discerning right from wrong.
When the Lord Jesus was on Earth, walking with His disciples, He taught the people and the disciples face-to-face, and people could hear Him and ask Him direct questions. As time passed, the Lord Jesus was crucified for our sins, died on the cross, was buried, but rose again on the third day and ascended to the Father, where He is now seated at the Father’s right hand. He promised His followers that He would send the Intercessor, the Holy Spirit, to Earth after His ascension (John 14:26). Now, the Holy Spirit is our true Teacher of the Word of God as He Himself is the Word (John 1:1). When we become true followers of the Lord Jesus, both the Spirit of Christ and the Holy Spirit make a home in our hearts (John 14:23). If we invite the Holy Spirit into our lives, He will teach us all things related to the Word of God, provide us with understanding about His Son, the Lord Jesus, and the work the Lord Jesus accomplished on the cross for us. Furthermore, when we pray and seek His guidance, He will support us through life’s challenges and be our shield against the enemy’s attacks.
In this blog, we will explore who our true Teacher is and how He helps us understand the things of God.
Why Does the Lord Jesus Speak in Parables?
In the Gospels, we learn that the Lord Jesus often spoke to us in parables, which can be challenging to understand. He used many parables to describe the kingdom of the heavens. In Matthew chapter 13, we find eight parables presented by the Lord Jesus, along with an explanation of why He spoke in parables. A crucial question for Christians when reading this chapter is, “What does heaven mean for me?” Within this chapter, the Lord Jesus provided detailed explanations for two parables: the parable of the sower and the parable of the wheat and the tares (or weeds). However, many of His parables were not explicitly explained; instead, He shares in His Word the reasons for speaking in parables. In Matthew 13:24-30, the Lord Jesus tells the parable of the wheat and the tares (weeds). We encourage all readers to review this parable along with our accompanying comments. After sharing the parable, the disciples sought understanding, and the Lord Jesus explained its meaning to them in Matthew 13:36-43.
Matthew 13:36 Then having dismissed the multitudes, He went into the house; and His disciples came to Him, saying, Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.
37 He answered and said, The One sowing the good seed is the Son of Man;
38 and the field is the world; and the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil;
39 and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels.
40 As therefore the tares are gathered and burned up in fire; thus, it will be in the end of the age.
41 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all causes of sin, and those doing lawlessness,
42 and they will cast them into the furnace of the fire; there will be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.
43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. The one having ears, let him hear.
Comments Matthew 13:36-43. The first stage of the millennium time era is when the Lord sends His angels to gather the tares together to burn them up with fire. This period of time does not end in one earthly day. The length of time is unknown for humans; it is the Lord’s time. And then, His chosen ones will be left to glorify the Lord, and He will rule them as the King of all. The chosen ones will be the ones who stay and glorify the Lord. The words from their lips will be only to glorify the Lord, and no useless words will be spoken in that time because they are in front of the Lord. Sin will not happen at that time because the tares have been destroyed.
In this passage, when it talks about “the end of the age,” it does not refer to the Judgement Day. The Judgement Day in the Bible refers to the judgment of the souls of the non-believers. Only the believers who will go with the Lord Jesus will get heavenly bodies. The parallel earth that comes; this is where His believers will go, which is why their lips cannot say useless words. Still, the tares are already bundled up before the Judgment Day, and at the Judgment Day, these will be cast into the furnace of fire (hell) together with the non-believers.
The verse we would like to bring to our attention in this blog is Matthew 13:36, where the disciples came to the Lord Jesus, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.” This request from the disciples can be paralleled to another question they posed to Him, in Matthew 13:10, in which they asked, “Why do Thou speak to them in parables?” Let us examine the Lord Jesus’ answer and connect it to the topic of our blog, “Who Can Explain the Things of God?”
Matthew 13:10 And the disciples having come, said to Him, Why do Thou speak to them in parables?
11 He answered and said, Because to you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of the heavens; however, to them it has not been given.
Comments Matthew 13:11. Within the crowds, the purpose of coming to listen to the Lord Jesus is different. Some are coming to find mistakes and point them out. Some are coming to find weak points and point them out for people to have no faith in the Lord Jesus. To those, the secrets of the kingdom of the heavens have not been given. But some are coming with a clean heart and want to hear the Lord Jesus before deciding to believe or not. To those, the Lord will give the understanding of the secrets of the kingdom of the heavens.
12 For whoever has, to him will be given, and he will have abundance; now whoever has not, from him will be taken away even what he has.
Comments Matthew 13:12. “For whoever has, to him will be given …” This portion here refers to the spiritual world. Keep yourself in the Word of God, and more spiritual blessings will be given to you. Spiritual blessings for this life on earth are understanding the Word of God, faith in the Lord Jesus, peace with God, and joy that you can feel deep inside your soul. If we have these spiritual blessings on this earth, when we depart, these spiritual blessings will be transformed to be used for our life after death. The peace of God comes only to those who have a clean heart. The heart that is like a child’s heart will be the heart that comes closer to the kingdom of heaven. The joy comes to those who have real faith in the Lord Jesus.
“Now whoever has not …” This portion of the verse is opposite to the one above. This part relates to the pleasures of the world that you think you have. Those pleasures will be taken away if you do not want to receive the pleasure of knowing the Word of the Lord. Nothing in this world is worth knowing more than the Word of the Lord.
13 Because of this I speak to them in parables; because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Comments Matthew 13:13. This passage refers to those who have rejected the miracles and the words of the Lord Jesus. Many of them feel they have sinned but reject the Lord completely. Their eyes have witnessed what many others never had the chance to see. Yet, if they themselves cannot benefit personally, they reject and try to limit the power of God. The prophecy is speaking about self-centered people. They see the Lord Jesus and hear the Lord Jesus, yet they reject Him. Blessed are those who come after and, by just hearing and not seeing, believe in the Lord Jesus.
Conclusions
To truly understand the Word of God, one must come to the Lord Jesus in faith, with a sincere and pure heart. It is essential to ask for forgiveness, believe that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God, and accept His work on Earth —not by asking for miracles, but by hearing about the Lord Jesus’ miraculous work and resurrection. Our human minds cannot fully grasp the Word of God; we need the Holy Spirit to reveal the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven. We should remain rooted in the Word of God and meditate on it, with the Holy Spirit’s guidance, to attain a true understanding. The kingdom of the heavens and the spiritual world cannot be seen with our physical eyes; they can be seen only with our spiritual eye, which must be guided by the Holy Spirit.
The Lord Jesus teaches us that He sends the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s truths and the matters concerning the Son of God and His kingdom. Therefore, it is our responsibility to humbly ask the Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus, to bless us with His Holy Spirit, inviting Him to dwell in our hearts and guide our faith and lives.
Finally, the things of God can be found in the Word of God and to understand the things of God one must have faith in the Trinity of God (God the Father, God the Son, the Lord Jesus, and God the Holy Spirit), be a true follower of the Lord Jesus by following the Lord’s teachings and invite the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of Christ to guide them in their reading and meditation in the Word of God, and their lives.
Meditation Tasks
- We encourage all readers to review all the parables in Matthew 13 and consult our article titled, “The Second Coming of the Lord Jesus.”
- Meditate on the significance of water baptism and Holy Spirit baptism. Also, check out our articles titled “Water Baptism for Christians” and “Holy Spirit Baptism for Christians.”