The Separation of Wheat and Tares in the Last Days

The final separation of the wheat and the tares takes place at the end of the world, specifically during the harvest which occurs at the second coming of Jesus Christ. 🌾 While both classes are permitted to grow together during the period of human probation, the great day of the Lord brings a permanent and visible division between the righteous and the wicked.

The Period of Growth and Grace

In His wisdom, God allows the children of the kingdom (the wheat) and the children of the wicked one (the tares) to remain in close association throughout the gospel dispensation. This period is a time of mercy where the "word of the kingdom" is preached to all.

• Growing Together: The Master commanded that the tares should not be pulled up prematurely by human hands, "lest while you gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest" Matthew 13:29-30.

• The Field: This mixed condition exists because "the field is the world" Matthew 13:38. It is only in the kingdom of glory that nothing which defiles will enter 1 Corinthians 6:9-10.

• Satan's Work: The presence of tares is not of God's doing; rather, "while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat" Matthew 13:25.

The Investigative Judgment and the Harvest

Before Christ appears in the clouds, a solemn work of judgment takes place in heaven to determine whose names remain in the book of life. This is the "hour of his judgment" which has already come Revelation 14:7. ⚖️

• The Sealing: During this time, a mark or seal is placed upon the righteous Malachi 3:17. This distinction is made based on whether individuals have been "obedient to God's commandments" Revelation 14:12.

• The Harvest defined: Jesus explicitly taught that "the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels" Matthew 13:39.

• The Command to Reap: When the character of every person is fully developed and the "harvest of the earth is ripe," the Son of man is commanded to "Thrust in your sickle, and reap" Revelation 14:15.

The Final Executive Separation

When the Son of man returns in glory, the separation becomes physical and eternal. The angels perform the work of gathering the two classes for their respective destinies. ☁️✨

• The Gathering of the Tares: The tares—representing "all things that offend, and them which do iniquity"—are gathered first to be "bound in bundles to burn" Matthew 13:30, 41.

• The Gathering of the Wheat: The righteous are then gathered into the heavenly garner Matthew 3:12. Christ will "send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds" Matthew 24:31.

• The Final Contrast: In that day, the difference between those who serve God and those who serve Him not will be clear to all Malachi 3:18. "Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father" Matthew 13:43.

Practical Preparation for Today

Because we are living in the "day of visitation" 1 Peter 2:12, it is vital to choose the path of obedience and faith now. Our destiny is determined by our own daily choices.

• The Call to Holiness: We are encouraged to "clean" ourselves and put away idols, just as Jacob’s household did before going up to Bethel Genesis 35:2-4.

• The Strait Gate: We must "strive to enter in at the strait gate," for the time is short Luke 13:24.

• The Reward: To those who keep His commandments, the promise is sure: they will "have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city" Revelation 22:14. 📖✨