Christianity and the Problem of Human ViolenceChristianity and the Problem of Human Violence: Part 136: Parable of the Weeds
from All-Creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living

True Christian living requires us to live according to Kingdom standards which bring Heaven to earth.

Christianity and the Problem of Human Violence: Part 136: Parable of the Weeds

By Stephen R. Kaufman, M.D.
http://www.christianveg.com

In the parable of the weeds (Matthew 13:24-30), a servant informs his master that an enemy has sown weeds among his wheat. The master elects not to pull up the weeds immediately, saying, "lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them. Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matthew 13:29-30).

This parable reveals much about the scapegoating process.4 People have always sought to identify evil and destroy it, and this is how Satan works. Satan convinces us that there is evil in our midst and, in our intense desire to eradicate evil, we accuse and kill many good individuals along the way. The parable of the weeds instructs us to tolerate evil patiently, which will allow the good and evil to more clearly manifest themselves. Otherwise, the evil we do to ourselves far outweighs the evil wrought by our perceived enemies.

This describes accurately what happens when people try to eradicate "pest" animals. The balance seen in nature does not accord with humankind's limitless acquisitive desires. Our material desires can blind us to the harm we cause to God's people, God's animals, and God's earth. In the ongoing quest to meet insatiable human appetites, farmers often try to kill those creatures who reduce farmland productivity or who threaten "livestock." Greatly reducing the population of certain "pest" species often has unpredictable consequences, many of which have proven harmful to humans as well as to the rest of God's Creation.

Go on to: Part 137. Parable of the Ten Talents
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