Reflections From Sunday Evening

Today we preached on the text from Matthew 13 - The Parable of the Weeds.  It is the parable where Jesus talks about a field planted with good seeds then an enemy comes along and sows weeds among the wheat.  The servants would pull up the weeds but the master says no.  When wheat and weeds have their roots mingled you will ruin the wheat if you pull up the weeds.  Jesus explains that this will all be sorted out at the end of the age.  We used this story to stress patience (which we have been talking about each week during Lent).  The patience we stress is not idle.  Our patience teaches us to trust God.
As I worked on this I remembered a story from Fred Craddock about the Parable of the Weeds.  He put it in a different context with a different message.  He talked about people in the church who sometimes get "read off" the membership rolls.
We have this process where if a person does not attend worship or participate in any way for a period of time their names may be read at a "charge conference" and if nothing changes over a year they may be removed from the membership rolls.
When Craddock talked about this he made the point that if you pull out a "weed" you may actually take out a follower of Jesus.  So let the field grow and allow God to sort it out.
A few years ago I decided his little lesson made more sense to me than some provision in the Book of Discipline.  Our practice has not been to read names and take people off the rolls.  I find myself uninterested in taking people off.  I want to be busy bringing people on!
Who knows why someone looks like a weed for a season of life.  We may read them incorrectly.  They may just appear to be a weed but by God's grace (patience) we one day realize they are good wheat ready to enter into God's store.
So we may write to our "in-active" members but it will be to bless them and ask how to best pray.  We watch growth take place and trust God to produce the good crop in the church.
It's been a great day.  I hope you've had a great day too.
steve