Amen. I want you to look there at verse 39. And I want you to pick up on the words, the end of the world. Do you see that there in verse 39? The end of the world. Then if you glance at the 40th verse, you have the same thing. The end of this world. And then for a third time, in verse 49, we have the same words, so shall it be at the end of the world. So three times over in a few verses, the reference is made to the end of the world. And this little agricultural scene that is set before us here by Matthew, therefore brings us up to the end of the world. Now I know that in these times people are maybe giving thoughts to the subject, the end of the world. They get their eyes in the Middle East, they look around and they can see so many things happening and they've suddenly come to the conclusion that the end of the world is now. Now, we have been living in the last days for about 2000 years from the coming of Christ. First coming of Christ ushered in the last times of the last days and many people may be justifiable uh justified in concluding that now we've come to the last of the last days. Who can portion before us brings us right up to the end of the world. Now, as most of you here this morning will be aware, Matthew 13 contains seven very well-known parables, familiar parables to us all, all of which have the one theme, and that one theme is the kingdom of God. And that's the reason why they're called the parables of the kingdom. The Lord Jesus Christ is therefore speaking of that spiritual kingdom that he calls the kingdom of heaven. Now in the original language, the phrase reads the kingdom of the heavens. Thus he is speaking of a kingdom that does not belong to this world. It is not earthly, it's not carnal, instead it belongs to the heavens. It is therefore a spiritual kingdom and is of course the same as the kingdom of God, for these two phrases are used interchangeably in the Gospels. Now these seven parables taken together, the origin, the nature, the hindrances to, and the victory of Christ's work of spreading the gospel through his messengers, between his first and his second comings. And then the parable of the wheat and tares, Jesus has given to us a picture of this gospel age, which closes with his second advent, and that will usher in the end of the world. So it's a solemn parable, it's a solemn portion to preach from, it's a solemn theme that we've got to set before you today. But as we seek to develop the message, keep in mind the words found three times, the end of the world. The end of the world, then what? Then where would you be? Now, I have three simple things that I want to draw your attention from this particular parable. In the first place, there is the simple story. We've got to get things clear and straight in our minds. We've got to try to register this simple story in our minds before moving on to deal with the spiritual significance of what we have here. So the simple story. Now Matthew is the only gospel writer who includes the parable of the tares. And this one and the parable of the sower are the only ones among all of the parables of Christ which gives to us an explicit explanation. So as I said at the very beginning, in the opening verses that I've read, you have the example or the illustration. It's an agricultural scene. Then in the verses that I mentioned, 36 through 43, we have the explanation. And I'm thankful as a preacher that the Lord has given to us the explanation. It makes life a lot easier for a preacher when you not only have the illustration, but you have the explanation given. And like the parable of a sower, this parable begins by introducing us to a sower and a seed. In the previous parable, the parable of a sower sowing the seed, there we have the sower and there we have the seed. But Christ here speaks of good seed as opposed to good soil. In the previous parable, in verse eight, he talks there about the good ground, So instead of talking about the good soil, in this particular parable, he's talking about the good seed. We want to keep that in mind. I'll come back and explain that just in a moment or two, but keep that in mind. There's a distinction here. There's a difference here for us all to see. So the story is simple. And in a farming community, it is very, very, very simple to understand. The farmer plants a field of wheat. According to verse 24, he uses good seed and plants a crop expecting to receive a good harvest. That's what every farmer does. It doesn't matter what crop he sows, he expects to receive a good harvest. However, while his servants, or while men slept, it doesn't say that the householders slept, but while men slept, his servants, his enemy enters into the field and sows tares among the wheat, verse 25. Now, the word that is used there for tares is used to describe the bad seed, if you like. Now, a botany expert explains a tare is not really a weed, but rather an inferior and unusable member of the same family of grasses that includes wheat. And as it grows, it is virtually indistinguishable from the wheat, only its leaf is different in size by a few millimeters. You can only tell the difference near the time of the harvest when the useless kernel appears. So, tares in the early stages of development look exactly like the wheat. Keep that in mind as well. It's only then when the plant has matured and the kernels have formed in the head of the genuine wheat that the two plants can be told, can be differentiated and we can see that distinction. So the field looks good. The farmer is looking forward to harvesting a bumper crop, nothing wrong with that at all. He's filled with the expectation of a bountiful harvest. Nothing wrong with that. However, as the harvest grows nearer, it becomes apparent that there's something wrong. Something's not right out in the field. The tares are among the wheat. Now the laborers can distinguish the difference. Now the laborers know that tares have been sold. So the time comes when the servants recognize what the enemy has done, and the enemy has done this, verse 27. They suggest to the master that they try to separate the wheat from the tares, and his response is very clear. Nay, lest when ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, the harvest, It's clear from his answer then that only in the final stages of growth would there be enough difference between the wheat and the tares that the reapers could separate the two, the one from the other and identify the wheat and at the same time identify the tares. Until then, the two will grow up together. The servants they offer to pull up the tares They come to the Master, can we not go ahead and root out the tares now? But the Master, knowing that the roots of the tares have intertwined with those of the wheat, forbids them to do so. He knows that if they start ripping up the tares, then the wheat will be harmed as well. His counsel, then, is to let them grow together until the harvest. Then he will send out his reapers into the harvest field. First of all, he will gather up the tares and put them into bundles and cast them into the fire. Then he will gather in the wheat and place them in his barns. That's the simple story. Are you with me? Do you see what's happening here? Do you get the picture? Do you see the example that's clear? A child in the meeting this morning can clearly understand this. I hope you understand it. Because God is a word for us all today, because the Bible says the end of the world is near. We're coming up to the end of the world. So you have this simple story. But then there's more. You've got the spiritual significance. That's what we want to try to get out now. In verse 24, The Lord says, the kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field. Now some have been confused by Christ's explanation that the field is a world. And you can find that interpretation in verse 38. And assume then that the parable teaches that there are both good and bad people in the world at large. Of course, that is true. That is exactly true, but Christ is here focused on his kingdom and the world. In other words, he is focusing on the visible church. There's such a thing as a visible church, and then there is the invisible church. Now the visible church refers to the whole body of professing believers who have an interest in spiritual things and who may have their names on the rule book of some local congregation, but who are not genuine believers. While the invisible church refers to the spiritual body, of all true believers. I suppose we could say here we have a representation of the visible church. We can see those who have an interest in the things of God. They may not be converted, but they have an interest. They attend church. They have some loose connection with church and the things of God, but they're not converted. And then we have gathered with us today those who have been redeemed by precious atoning blood. So the visible church is the apparent church of Jesus Christ on earth, consisting of all those who claim to be or to identify themselves as followers of Jesus Christ, while the invisible church is the whole body of true believers from all time, believers in Christ, consisting of those saved by his grace and washed in his precious atoning blood. Let me ask you the question today. Are you that good seed? Or are you represented here by the tares, the bad seed? The question must be answered. You need to answer it. God is speaking right now. We're talking here about the end of the world. And the day of separation will come. That's something that we need to give careful attention to. And this distinction between the visible and the invisible church is crucial because not everyone who appears to be a member of God's church is actually a member of God's church in union with Christ through faith, justified by faith and washed in precious atoning. But I can't answer your question for you, but I trust that you'll be honest enough and sensible enough to answer it now in your own hearts before God, because God is the judge of all the earth, and he now knows exactly who you are, where you are, where you are spiritually, and what you intend to do about the greatest issue facing you, the great need of your never dying and precious soul. and the way in which God through Christ manifests his grace to a world of sinners in the field as compared to sowing the seed. That's what the sower did in the previous parable, and that sower represents Jesus Christ, but it also represents pastors and preachers and mysteries of the gospel who on a regular basis sow the good seed of the kingdom of God in the hope that they will reap a bountiful harvest for the praise of the Savior's great. and powerful name. Now, in this parable, the seed is not the word of God. I mentioned this at the very start, as in the parable of the sower. But people, God has regenerated through the spirit by the means of the word. 1 Peter 1.23 talks about those being born again, not of corruptible seed, but by the word of God. So we've got to be clear about this. The good seed represents people. those united to Jesus Christ. And Christ clearly declares the good seed are the children of the kingdom. Verse 38, the field is the world, the good seed are the children of the kingdom, the children of the kingdom, individuals, men and women. It's not the word that we're talking about here, as in the previous parable, talking about people. Now, is this a fair representation of you? the good Seder, the children of the kingdom, and the comparison is used in the Old Testament by Hosea. Oh, he had his troubles in his day. He had an unfaithful wife. I don't know how the man actually coped with the situation, but he did by God's grace. And then his writing, he said, he's quoting the Lord who says, I will sow her unto me and the earth, talking about Israel. And the Lord is talking here about his church. I will show them in the earth, the people. So the good seed represents the true children of the kingdom, but there's also a bad seed mentioned here as well, the tares. And Jesus says in that 38th verse as well, they are the children of the wicked one. That's what he says. But the tares are the children of the wicked one, verse 38. So there is the bad seed, the tears. But I think that Jesus is talking about more than just the mystery of the kingdom here. He is explaining what scripture elsewhere calls the mystery of iniquity. 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 7, the mystery of iniquity. And there's evidence of that every place in the world today. There is an enemy. And aren't we aware of that? Oh, aren't we ever so much aware of that? There is an enemy. God's people have an enemy. The Lord Jesus Christ has an enemy. The gospel has an enemy. Preaching the truth has many enemies today. You can see that. It's an increasing atmosphere right across the United Kingdom, hatred to the gospel and the word of God and the Bible and the truth. And Jesus Christ, there is an enemy. We have an enemy. I wonder, are you in the grasp of the enemy of souls today? Or has the good shepherd ransomed you and redeemed you and brought you out from the clutches of the evil one? Listen to it. Let it sink in. You're either in Christ or in the hands of the devil. You may be religious. You may read your Bible. You may say your prayers. You may be a good living person. You may contribute to this church. And we're thankful for all of those things. speaking against those things. Those things are all important in their own place. But are you the good seed? Have you been justified? Are you saved? That's it, very plainly. Are you redeemed by the precious blood of Christ? You can't afford to be mistaken. You can't afford to put on a front or wreck the sham. You can't afford to do that. because there's something too valuable to be lost. By doing so, your never dying soul will remain in existence forever. And if you're not in Jesus Christ by simple faith alone, you'll perish in hell forever. No escape, no way out. Forever and ever condemned to a Christless eternity. I can't tame the message down any. I can't do that. I've got to tell you the truth, and that is the truth. The devil, this enemy, tries to parallel what the Lord does. He's good at that. But does so through evil means and to evil ends. He comes under the cover of night. Did you see that? That's when the enemy did his work. He came in the night time while men slept. Now, we've got to understand this, that the seed has been sown by Christ. It cannot be uprooted. I give unto my sheep eternal life and they shall never perish. But the enemy comes under the cover of night. And that means it's impossible to know and to see exactly what he has done. And so the Lord Jesus Christ in this parable, he's taken the entire history of the world and compressing it into one agricultural cycle of sowing and reaping. And all those in the visible church from all times are in the field. Their tares as well as wheat. Unregenerate as well as the regenerate. Esau's as well as Jacob's. Reprobates as well as the elect of God. Some people don't like that word elect to be used, but it's a good Bible word. It's there. And the truth of God's election is told in the Holy Scriptures under inspiration of God. It's there. It cannot be denied. At first, as I said, there's no apparent difference between the wheat and the tares. The good and the bad grow side by side together. And you know, it's true that some people do come into a church and everything seems well. But perhaps the devil has brought them in under the cover of night. Others may grow up in the church, catechized, sent along to the Sunday school, prayed for, having gotten involved in young people's work and so on, and everything seems to be well with them. They do all that is expected of them as professing believers, but they've never been changed. They've never been justified. And so the devil does this work under the hours of darkness. Comes in so stealthily. Perhaps the devil has brought these people in under the cover of night. And in the end, they will be reckoned only as tares. That has to be said. And the point is this. Within the visible professing church, this mixture always exists. and that it's humanly impossible to accurately sort out the two groups now at this point of time. And that's what the master, the householder said, let both grow together until the harvest, verse 30. But I think that when you read this carefully, the householder's primary concern is that none of the wheat be lost. After all, the tares do not hurt the wheat, they may obscure it, and only for a time, but God will ensure that not one single stalk of wheat will be mistaken as a tear in the end. And think about the grace of the master here. The master spares the tears for a time, but sparing grace is not saving grace. And while abiding among the wheat, their privileges are the same, but the nature of the tares unfits them for the heavenly garner." Do you see that? It's clear. It's the explanation given by our Savior, by the Lord Jesus Christ himself. I didn't make it up. This denomination didn't make it up. It's there for you in black and white. It's there for you to see. Examine for yourself. Handle these things. Look at them yourself. Ask the question, what is this all about? How does it relate to me? Where do I stand? The end will come as sure as the seed time, and all that offends, according to what we read here, shall be gathered out. So they grow together until the harvest at the end of the world. It's the end of the world we're focusing on here. So you have a simple story. You have the spiritual significance. And then in closing, we have the solemn separation. Verse 39, so wheat and tares grow together till the harvest at the end of the world. That's made clear in verse 39. And by the way, the word end is only found six times in the New Testament, always in connection with the end of the world. It really means full end, or if you like, completion. or the consummation, this will be ushered in at the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me just read to you Matthew 24 verse 3. And as he sat upon the mountain of olives, the disciples came unto him privately saying, tell us when shall these things be, and, listen to it, and what shall be the sign of thy coming, he's referring to a second coming, and the end of the world. Do you see that now? So in Matthew 24, verse three, Christ's coming and the end of the world are brought together by the Savior himself. And the point is that the two coincide. They coincide. The second advent of Jesus Christ coincides with the end of the world. The end is the consummation. It's the completeness, if you like. And the word for world means age in terms of time. Christ's coming brings about the end of the world. There's a limitation to the world's existence. And as a parable shows, that age is a time during which the Lord has been gathering men into the kingdom, the spiritual kingdom. He has been calling out the people, he's been calling out the good seed, he's been planting them in his field, in the kingdom, that heavenly kingdom. And at the end, this is it, at the end, the separation will come. How do I know? The tares are gathered, according to verse 40, and are burned. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the world. And I think these words set forth the wrath and indignation of God that will come upon the lost at the day of judgment. There's a reference here to the furnace of fire. And that is to the abode of the damned as they come under the condemnation of Christ the judge at the last day. And when they're banished from his presence, having stood at the last judgment at the great white throne revelation chapter two. And you can read verses 13 and 15 there for yourself. You will discover that the terms signify the resurrection of the lost, their bodies coming from death or from the grave, if you like, and their souls from hell. And the word that is used there for hell is heres. And that's the word that is used of the rich man in Luke chapter 16. And in heres, he lifted up his eyes. He had been buried. And his soul was in hell or heres. Now in Revelation chapter 20, such as him are raised up to stand for the final judgment are then condemned to the furnace of fire. Verse 42. And so when the rich man came to die, his body returned to earth and his soul went to Heres. And according to what we read about the Great White Throne Judgment, there will be a reuniting of the body and the soul, when men and women will appear before God to hear the final judgment of the great Lamb of God. And then men and women and young people will be cast away out of the sight for eternity. Obviously, the term is used as the description of hell. in order to denote that hell is a place of condemnation and damnation. Matthew 23, 33, Christ speaks of the damnation of hell, and the word for damnation also means judgment. There's a day of judgment coming at the end of the world, a day of damnation at the end of the world, at the end of the age. There's a limitation to this old world. It's coming to an end. Thus, in the place called hell, there is the infliction of damnation, or judgment in view of the reference to fire. Isn't that interesting? Matthew 13, verse 50 reads, the furnace of fire. And often Christ speaks, he speaks more often about hell than he does about heaven. Did you ever think about that? Often Christ speaks of hell's fire, into the fire that never shall be quenched. The fire is real. This is not figurative language. where Christ explains the parable. Fire is God's punishment for sin. For often in Scripture, punishment is spoken of as fire. Think about that rich man again. In Luke's Gospel 16, 24, he said, I am tremendous in this flame. You think of a flame, you think of fire. You think of a man in hell. He's in the flame. He's in the fire. He's in the place of judgment. He's in the place of condemnation. And he has been experiencing that, but the day will come when, in that final state, he will receive his body again, a body especially fitted for everlasting burnings. Every soul ought to tremble at the thought of this. Many of us are saved today. We have unconverted loved ones. Perish the thought that they be lost and go to this horrible place. Let's pray as never before. Let's come to the prayer meeting and choose the night determined to pray for lost, perishing souls on the verge of a Christless eternity, on the verge of dropping down into hell's fire forever. Loved ones are perishing. Tell them of Jesus, the mighty to save. Bring the good news of the gospel. Differences need to be put aside. The unity of the people of God needs to be emphasized. We're striving together for the glory of God. preaching Christ and him crucified. As a complete person, then, in body and soul, the unconverted will be cast away into the lake of fire. Don't let anybody talk you out about the letter of fire that the Bible speaks of. Far beyond all hope. Their damnation is final. It's endless. And verse 42 talks about wailing and gnashing of teeth. That signifies the desolation of the lost. And that word gnashing of teeth, it means to bite with loud noise, grinding their teeth and torment. Now maybe you've experienced great pain. In your life at some time, you think about gnashing your teeth, grinding your teeth in agony. Here we have this awful picture before us. It's the same thought concerning the wheel that John speaks about in Revelation 1-7, the reference to the wheel that will arise as sinners are confronted with the returning Christ. They shall wheel because of him. Oh, that will be an awful day when men look up and see Christ coming. It's too late then. It's too late to call now. And there will be a wail arise from millions and millions of hearts confronted with the coming Christ. Opportunities have been missed, neglected, ignored. Now it's too late. Time is coming for gnashing of teeth. You think about the hardness expressed when the people, there are next seven, the Jews opposing Stephen. Remember what they did? They stoned them with stones, of course. But the Bible does say, they gnashed upon him with their teeth, just like a pack of raving wolves gnashed upon him with their teeth. Think about hardness of hearts. the wickedness, the evil, no hope, no way out, condemned forever. So we're talking today about the end of the world. The simple story that Jesus tells, the example, the spiritual significance, there's the explanation. And then you have this solemn separation. And so, until the end of time, the wheat and the tares will go side by side. We might not be able to identify the one from the other, but the time is coming when he will make that distinction. He will send out his angels. According to what we're taught, he will send out his angels, they will gather the tares into bundles, and then they'll be cast into the fire. There shall be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father. There's a bright day. There's a better day. There's a glorious future for the redeemed of God in this congregation and those listening to my voice today. Glorious future. What makes the difference? That man of Calvary, the one who died an atoning death, the one who shared his precious blood on Calvary's cross, the one who suffered hell on behalf of his people. That's why he said that it's finished. It's complete. It's done. There's no more suffering for the ransom of God. No more hell. No condemnation. No wrath. But perfect peace. And they shall shine forth as a son in the kingdom of her father. Are you in Christ today? Can you be described as the good seed, as the children of God? Or can you be identified with the tares, the bad seed that will be gathered together into bundles and cast into the fire? There's mercy with God. We have a great Savior. He's a merciful Savior. He loves sinners. He died for sinners. His blood was shed for sinners. You can come today. You can believe the gospel now. You can repent now in this house. You can flee from wrath right now. You can become a child of God and you're very pure right now if you pray, God, be merciful to me, the sinner. I repent of my sin. I'm coming as a sinner to Jesus. I believe that the world is coming to an end. I need a savior. I believe, I repent, I'm coming today. And if you do that by the grace of God, by the help of God, then I can assure you from the Holy Scriptures, him that cometh to me, I will in no ways cast out. Will you come? Up there in the gallery, will you come? Down on my right-hand side, will you come? Down on my left-hand side, will you come? Down in the middle here, will you come? The invitation is given. Come to the Savior. Make no delay. Here in his word, he has shown us the way. He is the way. The end of the world. The theme is emphasized here. Prepare to meet God for the end draws nigh. May God bless you. And if I can be of any help to you, I'm here to help you. Not to be judging you, but to be showing you the way to him who is altogether lovely, fairest of 10,000 to our souls. Put your faith in him today. believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. We'll close now with prayer. Father, we do thank thee for thy presence. Thank thee for the example given in the scriptures, but furthermore, We're so grateful for the explanation given, and we've tried to expound that explanation to the best of our ability with the help of God. And now it's up to the Spirit of God to take what has been of the Lord himself to apply to the hearts of those who have heard. And as we file from the meeting, may our hearts be solemnized. May the fear of God remain with us during the course of the day. and if there should be a man or woman or young person, boy or girl, who's uncertain about these things, even today, may God give needed grace to put things right. Dismiss us with thy blessing, and in thy fear, for we pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.