Posted May 24, 2025

During His final days on earth, Jesus spoke more about the kingdom of heaven than any other lessons. Jesus taught in parables, which are stories that He used to illustrate and make a point about a love or faith principle He wanted His followers to understand. They often began with “the kingdom of heaven is like....”, not re-telling an actual event. For example, when we hear about the prodigal son who left home, spent all his money, but found his way back to a loving father who had been waiting for his return, it never happened, it's a parable. 

Bishop T.D. Jakes discusses the parable of wheat and tares, as a lesson about patience. Wheat is an important plant/crop that has a vital purpose worldwide. It sustains life as a source of food. Tares are also plants; they are weeds. A weed basically survives by using what wheat needs to produce a harvest. Tares are not useful to sustain life, but they need the same nutrients, water, and air as wheat. This parable says the kingdom of heaven is like a man who sows good seed in his field. While everyone is sleeping, the enemy comes and sows weeds among the wheat. The owner discerns what has happened. He says, “Let them both grow together. When it was time to harvest, we will collect the weeds first, tie them in bundles and burn them; then we will gather the wheat and bring it in” (Matthew 13:24-30). Bishop Jakes describes weeds as something that shows up to cause "calamity", to intentionally bring trouble to the growing environment. Imagine the feeling of seeing weeds growing in your vegetable garden or flower garden. Ugh!!!

Even so, God wants us to understand, weeds cannot kill the wheat. They show up to make it hard for the wheat to be all it can be. Bishop Jakes says the presence of weeds is how the enemy “marks the spot” where there is potential for a harvest, This is where he causes his attack to be focused. He also says this “planting” happens in the darkness, under the soil, “by night when they are sleeping” (v.25). Whenever you plant wheat, there will always be weeds. He also tells us we must be able to produce where there are weeds because there will never be a day when weeds will not come, when the enemy will not be sowing. Now, we ask, “Why does the enemy plant tares?” Yes, why? No one can change or curse what God has blessed (Numbers 23:8). Tares cannot destroy the wheat, they only make it harder for it the wheat to survive. This parable tells us the kingdom of heaven is like a farmer who sowed good seed in his field. Bishop Jakes shows us that planting good seed does not mean weeds will not show up. When you water the wheat, you’re also watering the weeds. They both can grow up beside each other. However, there is warfare, an unseen “tangling” underground. 

And now the question is, "Should we pull them up?” The farmer says, “No.” We still ask, “Why does the enemy plant weeds?” Bishop Jakes concludes, it is to trick you with impatience, to make you feel like you’ve got to do something right now. The enemy wants You to take action on your own. The farmer knows, there is so much “tangling” that can’t be seen, it would be easy to kill the wheat when trying to take matters into your own hands. Bishop Jakes says the lesson here is to have enough faith to leave it alone. Every battle, seen and unseen, belongs to the Lord. Your faith is expressed through the wait. The wisdom is in the waiting. The enemy wants you to have a spirit of urgency. God’s Word teaches us, “They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, mount up, run, walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31) The enemy wants you frustrated, aggravated, tired, afraid. Don’t let “weeds” manipulate you to move on your own when the timing is not right. You can trust God to show up, to keep His promises. "Do not lose hope in times of trouble, for God is working in the unseen. His hand is steady, and His timing is perfect in bringing good out of difficulty" (Isaiah 43:19). Can He trust you to wait?