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Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds. “The Kingdom of heaven may
be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While
everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the
wheat, and then went off.” Matthew 13:24–25
This parable begins in a very good way. It states that good seed
was sown. In other words, the pure Gospel was preached into good
soil. This should be understood as any situation where the preacher
is truly effective and where the Gospel reaches many ears and is
planted in many hearts. This is worth rejoicing over. But this
parable quickly points out that those responsible for guarding the
good soil in which the Word of God was planted, failed in their
duty to protect it. As a result, the “enemy came and sowed weeds
all through the wheat.” In other words, the evil one also had sown
his lies into the hearts of those who heard the Word of God, and
those lies took root and began to grow.
This is a clear description of the world we live in today. First,
it’s a description of the hearts of many Christians who have heard
the Word of God and have responded, only to also struggle with
doubts, confusions and lies sown by the evil one. But it is also a
clear description of the world as a whole and even of the Church on
earth. There are many divisions within societies and even within
the Church. There are many competing voices. And among those whose
hearts are good soil, it can be hard to distinguish between that
which is from God and that which is a subtle deception from the
evil one.
The weed referred to in this parable is called cockle. Cockle was a
weed that, as it grew, looked much like wheat. It was very
difficult to distinguish from wheat until the grain began to
appear. But when the grain did begin to appear, it was clearly
distinguishable. And if the cockle were to accidentally be ground
in with the wheat, it would cause nausea when eaten.
The parable is quite clear. The lies that the evil one sows in the
hearts of the faithful, those with fertile hearts, are very subtle,
especially at first. It is easy for those subtle lies to confuse
us. The evil one rarely succeeds in misleading the faithful through
grave and obvious errors. Therefore, he deceives with small errors.
As a result, the error is often not understood until much later as
the fruit is born. The result is division, confusion, conflict and
the like—conflict within our own souls, within our world and even
within our Church.
What is the solution? Vigilance. We, as followers of Christ, must
be exceptionally vigilant in regard to that which we allow our
hearts to receive. Just because something sounds good at first
doesn’t make it good. This is why we have the Scripture, the
Magisterium of the Church and the teachings of the saints. We must
constantly examine all that we allow into our hearts, our families,
our world and our churches in the light of the pure and consistent
teachings of our faith. And when we see divisions, this is a clear
sign of some subtle error that has crept in. In the end, at the
harvest time, when we all face Christ our Lord at our judgments, He
will separate the good from the bad. But for our part, vigilance is
essential so that only the pure seed of God’s Word is received by
us and sown by us.
Reflect, today, on your own soul as fertile ground. What “seed” is
sown there? What do you allow to penetrate your heart and take
root? Are you vigilant, remaining attentive to the ways that the
evil one tries to mislead you through subtle lies and errors?
Ponder these questions honestly, and if you find conflict and
confusion in your life, look more deeply at the source of these
troubles. If there are lies that you have allowed into your own
life, then turn them over to our Lord so that He can remove them at
the proper time.
Most holy Word of God, You are the living Word who sows seed
upon the fertile ground of our Hearts. You plant Yourself in the
hearts of those who believe so that Your life can bear good fruit
in the faithful. Please sow the seed of Your Word in my own heart,
dear Lord, and protect me from the deceptions of the evil one. As
You do, I pray that You bring forth an abundance of good fruit
through me. Jesus, I trust in You.
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