Roanoke Rapids herald. [volume] (Roanoke Rapids, N.C.) 1914-192?, 1920-12-03

| Good Seed and Fad Seed
JUNIOR TOPIC-The story of the Whea'
and the Tares
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOPIC
Wheat and Tares.
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC
How the Kingdom Of Heaven Grows
The parables of this chapter SET
forth In graphic way the CONDITION
of affairs In the interval between
Chrlsts going away and His coming
again.
/. The Parable Of the Wheat ana
Tares wv. 24-3o, cf 36-43).
|. The Sewers. ~ The son OF
Man ". 37), He is the One VINO sows
the good seed. The field in which they
are sown is the world. (2) the 'eVli
". 39). He is in peculiar sense
Chrst's enemy. He intensely hates
Him. and with relentless energy ii
striving to defeat His purpose In saw
Ing men. While men slumber, he sows
tares among the wheat.
2. The growing crops. They are
not easily distinguished while growing
but the effects produced when eaten
are quite different. The wheat is
wholesome hut the tares produce ILL
ness. The chief danger In the tares
lies In their resemblance to wheat. me
chief danger of the devil Is that ne
strives 10 Initiate God.
3. The harvests. There comes
time when the frultage Of the growing
crops shall be gathered, Fer the tares
there is a furnace Of fire where there
shall be wailng and crashing Of teeth.
The righteous shall he gathered into
the Lords garner and shall shine sorth
as the sun in the kingdom Of the
Father.
II. The Parable Of the Mustard
Seed wv. 81. 32).
|. It's important beginning. II be-
gins MS the least of all seeds and grows
TO be the greatest among herbs. The
pareniage and humble circumstances
Of the King greatly perplexed the peo-
pie. That twelve unlettered fishermen
should he selected rs His royal adj
vlsers Is still more amazing. The propE-
ct said concerning Him that He
should be despised, rejected forsaken.
.. Its vigorous growth. From very
small beginnings the influence of the
Christ has gone forth so that there is
no power or influence so great rs that !.
OF Christianity.
3. Its lodging capacity. The birds
which find Judgment in the tree do not
represent the children Of men which
find safety and salvation In the church.
Birds constitute no part of the tree.
The bird is something foreign to and
Independent Of the tree. The branches
increase the growth Of the tree, but
birds are injurious and burdensome TO
II. They are predatory-wating to
pluck the tender buds or to prey upon
the ripened fruit. The effect Of such
lodging Is evil. blighting and spelling
to the tree. In ChrIst's Interpretation
of the parable of the sower He said
that the fowls represent the wicked
one w. 19). The same Greek word is
used in both cases, and the circum-
stances are the same; therefore, he
who would make the dodgers here any
thing else makes Christ's interpreta.
tlon farce.
III. The Parable Of the Leavened
Meal ". 33).
Three things should mainly occupy
our attention in this parable the meal,
the woman and the leayen. When
the scriptural significance of these ele-
ments is known, the Interpretation is
easy.
/. The meal. Meal has a wholesome
and nutritious effect. 1t was used In
one OF the sweet-sayor offerings, which
typifed Christ (Lev. 2:1-3, Il. W: II
was food for the priests Uev. 6:15-17,
X. W; Abraham had Sarah knead
cake out Of three measures of meal
for the angelic messengers (Gen.
IS :0; Solomon's royal table was pro.
vided with meal Il Kings 4 :22) Elijah
was fed upon cake made Of meal
I'll Kings 4:4D; Elisha used meal as
an antidote for the poison of death In
the pot CI Kings 4 :3S-41).
2. The woman. The woman Ss not
the head of the home. but Its admins
TRAITOR. Her responsibility is to take
the bread provided by the head. pre-
pare and distribute II to the children.
In Scripture we find false doctrine be-
Ing taught by woman (Rev. 2:20).
Dealing with doctrine is forbidden TO
woman Il Tim. 2:12). In Tim. :l-3;
II Tim. 2:17. IS; 4:3, 4; II Pet. 2:1-3,
we find that apostnsy will be brought
In through false teachings within
the ranks Of Gods people. The
meaning, then. Of the parable Is that
the true doctrine, the meal given for
the nourishment Of the children of the
kingdom III Pet. go; I Tim. 4:6).
would officially be corrupted by false
doctrine. The children's food is cor
rupted by the mother.
8. The leaven. In Scripture, leaven
10 invariably type Of evil. Let the
following examples suffice as proof.
~ All through the Old Testament
leaven is a continual and unvarying
type Of evil Eek. 1915; Lev. 2:l1).
(2) Jesus himself makes leaven to
denote sin Matt. 49, Il; Mark s:I5).
49, Paul uses leaven In Its usual bIbli.
cal sense Il Cor. SOS; Gal. 5:8, %. !