Perseverance and Patience are Golden. Sunday Breakfast with the Word 16th Sunday Ordinary Time of The Year

Sunday Breakfast With The Word 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

 

Wisdom 12:13, 16-19, 2, Romans 8:26-27, Matthew 13:24-43

 

 

After using the agricultural setting to drive home his point in the last readings of Sunday, Jesus continues to employ the same setting to teach the people the true meaning of the Kingdom of God and how to be a beneficiary of this kingdom.

 

The Kingdom of God is a place where God reigns. Jesus uses three parables at the same time ; the wheat and tares, the mustard seed and the leavened bread to lay emphasis on God’s love, mercy and patience and the need to have patience and persevere to the end. In this reflection we have to take the points gradually in an exegetical style to drive home our points one by one.

 

Everything Created is Good

 

One of the qualities of God is goodness, God cannot but be good. This infers that everything that comes from Him must be good. God cannot be a source of evil. One thing we will like to notify in the gospel of today is that Jesus compared the Kingdom of God to the sower who sowed only good seed in his field. The sower is not the source of evil.

 

After creation in Genesis 1:31 God looked at all He created, the Omniscient God proclaimed all Good. Evil comes in when there is limitation of goodness in us. This infers that the evil man or woman still has the seed of goodness in him/her. Jesus uses this parable to explain the origin of evil and and attributes the origin of evil to the devil.

 

When Everybody was Asleep

 

 

Sleeping is a moment of rest, a moment one becomes unaware of what happens to His surrounding. In the parable, it was at this time that the enemy came and sowed the weeds.

 

This can be attributed to the time we feel less concerned about our spiritual growth, we feel unaware of the good seeds God has planted in us, we begin to think bad and low of ourselves, the enemy now comes and fills this space with thoughts of evil, thoughts of jealousy, evil, negativity etc.

 

This also naturally explains that man by nature is good, but the evil around him today are the negative influences He has acquired over time through associations, books, social media, etc. Gradually these negative influences build a strong root in him and begin to develop overtime.

 

Jesus tells His apostles in the garden of Gethsemane several times to get up and stop sleeping, and pray to conquer temptations. 1 Peter 5:8-9 advises the brethren to be alert because the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion seeking whom to devour. To conquer Him we have to stand up to Him. It is in the moments of our weakness that the devil creeps in, and unaware of his plans, he keeps us in bondage.

 

 

In His Goodness 

 

 

What the enemy sowed today as explained by Jesus is the darnel weeds which in greek means  zizania, which he sowed among the wheat. Zizania  in its early stages, resembles wheat, which hereby makes it very difficult to differentiate.

 

As they grow, they sometimes become difficult to separate because  the roots of the weeds and wheat intertwine, making them almost impossible to separate any attempt to pull the weeds will also pull the wheat. So God gives them time to develop until the end of time. Points to drive home from here are:

 

1.Evil continues to exist among us and sometimes those people who perpetrate this evil look like wheat in appearance but weed at heart ,they appear good but wolves in sheep’s clothing. Many are green snakes in green grasses, they appear friendly but evil at heart.

 

They sometimes come with smiles but full of jealousy, wickedness and hatred. But despite anything, the parable still indicates that nothing lasts forever. One day the truth will be laid to the bare.

 

2.God cares for the wheat, he does not want the wheat to be pulled away on time with the weeds. He cares for the righteous. Secondly both the weeds and the wheat eat from the same field and soil until the harvest time.

 

In His goodness, God allows the coexistence of evil and good. He sends rain and sun to both the just and unjust (Matthew 5:45). So what we are is nothing if not for the grace of God. Everything becomes clear to us only on the last day.

 

3. The weed growing with the wheat also indicates that it will not be easy for the wheat because the weed will provide stiff competition and challenges to the wheat to survive in the same field.

 

This explains why good people also suffer, it is not that God has forgotten them, but their existence in the world means continual battle with challenges and evil in the world. The only way to conquer is to remain strong and persevere for there is always light at the tunnel.

Humble Beginnings and Harvest

 

1.Just like in the parable of the mustard seed and the leaven bread, everything starts small, and then develops overtime both good and bad. God allows the wheat and weed to develop over time.

 

Since man was created good, God in his patience allows Him to come back to what He naturally is; someone created in the image of God, if he errs.  Therefore, the only way to damnation is persistence in the face of evil.

 

2.The three parables simply project that everything starts like a seed and then develops. The seed has been sowed already, all we need to do is to water it and make it grow. Whatever we spend our time now to nurture will one day develop into something great.

 

3. Despite how humble the beginning might be, the future might germinate into something greater, what we need in life is the field or the yeast which can be likened to the grace of God, God’s provision, word of God, etc to water and nurture the seed in us. Then remain patient, work hard and persevere despite the challenges. Like the three parables, there is always a time for harvest.

 

“Do You Want us to go and Weed It Out?”

 

The servants wanted an immediate solution. Their concern was understandable, but their proposed action could have caused further damage.

This warns against premature judgement. Human beings do not always possess enough wisdom to distinguish perfectly between those who belong to God and those who do not. Someone who appears sinful today may repent tomorrow, while someone who appears righteous may later fall away.

The parable does not mean that the Church should ignore wrongdoing or refuse to protect people from harm. Jesus is not forbidding correction, discipline or justice. He is warning against self-righteous condemnation and the attempt to take God’s final judgement into human hands.

We may correct actions, resist injustice and protect the innocent, but we must not declare that another person is completely beyond God’s mercy.

 

 

“Let them Both grow Until the Harvest”

 

This reveals God’s extraordinary patience. God does not immediately destroy sinners because He gives them time to repent.

What appears to us as divine delay is often divine mercy. If God removed every sinner immediately, who among us would remain? His patience gives the sinner an opportunity to become a saint. This is why you are still alive today. God is waiting for us to repent. Do not think you are better than us. God’s mercy is giving us another chance to confess and repent.

God’s patience must not be mistaken for approval. The harvest will certainly come. Mercy gives us time to change, but it does not cancel accountability.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

The mustard seed was commonly described in Jewish speech as extremely small. Jesus’ point is not to provide a scientific comparison of every seed in existence. He is using a familiar image to contrast a tiny beginning with remarkable growth.

The ministry of Jesus appeared insignificant at first. He came from an ordinary family, lived in an unimportant town, and began with a small group of disciples. Yet the Kingdom proclaimed by Christ would spread across nations and generations.

The birds finding shelter in the branches may recall Old Testament images in which great kingdoms were compared to trees sheltering many birds. The image suggests that people from different nations will find a home in God’s Kingdom.

The lesson is that we must never despise small beginnings. A short prayer, a simple act of kindness, a word of encouragement, or a small sacrifice performed faithfully can produce results far greater than we imagine.

The Parable of the Yeast

A woman places a small quantity of yeast into a large amount of flour until the whole mixture is transformed.

Unlike the mustard seed, which emphasizes visible growth, the yeast emphasizes silent, internal transformation. The Kingdom of God often works quietly. It changes hearts, families and communities from within.

The Gospel does not always transform society through dramatic public events. Sometimes it works through a parent teaching a child to pray, a person forgiving an enemy, a Christian refusing corruption, or a believer showing compassion to someone in pain.

The quantity of flour mentioned is very large. This suggests abundance: a seemingly small amount of yeast possesses enough transforming power to affect the whole mixture. In the same way, the grace of God can enter one heart and eventually influence an entire family or community.

The Central Message

These three parables reveal three important characteristics of God’s Kingdom:

1. The wheat and darnel show that the Kingdom grows in a world where good and evil temporarily coexist.

 

2. The mustard seed shows that the Kingdom may begin very small but will grow beyond expectation.

 

3. The yeast shows that the Kingdom transforms people and society quietly from within.

God is patient, but His patience is not endless indifference. The final harvest will come. Until then, believers are called to remain faithful, resist evil, avoid condemning others, cooperate with God’s grace and produce good fruit. The Gospel therefore invites each of us to ask: Am I producing the fruit of the Kingdom? Am I allowing God’s Word to transform me? Am I a good seed?

 

Conclusions

 

1. In the wheat and weeds, Harvest time is done by the angels of God and not men. God knows anyone who is struggling today to live a good life. When you are struggling to be good, do not think God has despised you or kept silent allowing us to suffer, but be patient and persevere, always know that God’s eye is always on the righteous (Psalm 34:15) and can never forsake the righteous( Psalm 37:28). Always know that your goodness will never be in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

 

 

2. Naturally we have the seed of greatness, the seed of goodness, etc because we are created in His image. What we need is to nurture this seed and allow it to grow and mature over time. Doing this, does not mean it will be easy. We will always face challenges, persecutions, and competitions from the weeds, but perseverance and patience are the keys to remain to the end.

 

3. What we can conclude from today’s episode is that despite how long evil persists (like the weeds), despite how challenging it may be, and despite how evil will hide, there is always an end to everything. From the three parables, there is always a time of reckoning, a time of judgment, and time of harvest.

 

4. Despite how strong and mighty we think we are in this world, let us not forget that our end is certain and everything we think we possess will vanish into the thin air.

 

Despite how strong evil today becomes, evil can never conquer good, it can only exist in the world and probably think everything is in its power, not knowing it is enjoying God’s benevolence but at last, Goodness will still have the victory. So stay inspired, be faithful, and remain blessed, there is always light at the tunnel.

Happy Sunday and God Bless you