Wheat or Chaff

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF MATTHEW

WHEAT OR CHAFF

Matt 3:11-12

11 "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

NIV

John was certainly the man of the hour, forecasting the coming of Christ. As cousins, in a certain sense, we would think that throughout their youth they must have known each other, perhaps played together at family gatherings. In their late teens perhaps they even had theological discussions. Surely Jesus was aware John would become this man, this voice in the wilderness, “Prepare the way for the Lord”. Yet we are not told any of that but here we are with John telling the people Jesus is coming to save those who will be saved and to burn up those who will not be saved. Was this knowledge revealed to him by Jesus earlier or by the Holy Spirit at that moment? Although Jesus was telling his disciples about when they would be arrested, it is still true the Holy Spirit reveals to us what to say and when.

Luke 12:12

12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say." 

NIV

Therefore either way, John knew the truth because God in one form or another told him. Jesus would be the way in which man would have to make his choice between being the wheat or the chaff. Up until now the Israelites had Yahweh who had given them the law. They could not keep this law, although the brood of vipers had created laws upon laws and so many restrictions concerning the law, it was more then impossible for them to follow. However in their blindness of the truth, some might well thought they were righteous, at least in the eyes of others, but we know they were not in the eyes of God. None of us are righteous in and of ourselves, we are all sinners. It is just some of us sinners are saved and some are not. This comment about the wheat and the chaff makes us think about the entire first Psalm.

Ps 1

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and  on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.

4 Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

NIV

The first half is the wheat and the second half is the chaff. Jesus will be the one whom all people will have to make the choice about. He is the one who we must come to in order to be the wheat, to be gathered into the barn. He does not just roam about the world saving those he decides to save and throwing who he decides into the fire. Just as we see in this first Psalm the wheat are those who do not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or stand or walk or live in the same manner as the sinner, or sit in the seat of mockers, that is give God lip service. But they delight in the law of the LORD and they continually have that law in their hearts and mind. Although David lived before Jesus, we know Jesus said the greatest law, the greatest command is to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. This is the choice of each person in which they become wheat gathered into the barn. Are we then perfect? By no means. We will only be made perfect in Christ. He is the author and finisher of our faith. It is not by our perfection that we are wheat and saved, but it is by our faith in Christ. How can we ever believe we will ever be totally free of all sin? If that were possible, Jesus would not have to have died on the cross for us. How could we ever be totally true to the law? No man ever was able to or will ever be able to, except for Jesus, to be faithful to the compete law of God. If we are guilty of but one, even the smallest of the smallest point of the law, then we are guilty of breaking the whole law. That is why Jesus came, to be our righteousness, so that as we accept what he did for us on that cross, we become the wheat gathered into the barn. Why would anyone choose to be the chaff?