Jesus can ferret out the difference between the darnel/weeds and the wheat. It is on the threshing floor of Calvary where that work is done. There, the wheat and the chaff are separated.
Sometimes, two texts in a pericope can create a sort of dialogue across scripture which teaches us about the purpose and person of God. Our reading from Isaiah 44 placed together with Matthew 13 is one such instance of this phenomenon.
Isaiah presents God declaring His absolute unchangeable character: “I am the first and I am the last; besides Me there is no god.” This declaration of singular divine authority is perfect by itself. But it is almost as if the servants in Matthew’s parable, in Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43, disagree. Isaiah sets up a crucial tension with Matthew to help us work out the issue through an imagined dialogue which reveals a truth about the unshakeable grace of God for us in Christ. In Matthew, Jesus explains that He sows good seed (the sons of the Kingdom) while an enemy sow’s weeds (the sons of the evil one). But this enemy’s activities do not diminish the work or effectiveness of the Sower, Christ. Instead, it gives Him more opportunity to demonstrate how He is still in control, just as Isaiah said. So, the question goes back to Isaiah and the response is: Leave it alone. It is mine to worry about. You just sit back and watch what I can do.
The tension still exists for us, though, in between the texts. How does Isaiah’s unqualified claim to divine supremacy coexist with Matthew’s acknowledgment of an active adversary operating within God’s field? Isaiah tells believers to “fear not,” and this is all they need to hear. Their worry does not alert God to something He is unaware of. Do not mistake His patience and long suffering for deficiency or weakness. He has a plan, and it is for the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4-5). He can ferret out the difference between the darnel/weeds and the wheat. It is on the threshing floor of Calvary where that work is done. There, the wheat and the chaff are separated. There, the raw harvest of salvation is stored in a borrowed tomb. But then, what comes forth three days later is a crop of salvation unto eternal life. The enemy did not win! He was defeated by the swing of the sickle of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who wielded the cross and sorted out our salvation by His victory over death on account of His empty tomb. Jesus’ instruction to the servants to not uproot the weeds prematurely, lest they damage the wheat, is instructive for what we believe about the visible and invisible church. Perhaps, taking time to develop a teaching on this doctrine will help us see the truth of Isaiah in dialogue with our appointed Gospel lesson for today.
The enemy did not win! He was defeated by the swing of the sickle of our Savior, Jesus Christ, who wielded the cross and sorted out our salvation by His victory over death on account of His empty tomb.
Using a Dialogical Structure will serve us best in crafting an experience of the sermon as a dialogue between two texts.
“Dialogical structures of preaching (as articulated by Jeremy Thomson, in Preaching as Dialog) integrate conversational interaction within the progression of the sermon. This practice manifests in a very real way how God’s Word is active, evoking a response from His people, and how God’s Word is spoken both through the office of preaching and the mutual consolation of the saints. Dialogical preaching can be classified on a spectrum of practices extending from scripted dialog spoken by the preacher to actual dialog enacted within the congregational setting.
Scripted Dialog: When the sermon uses scripted dialog, the preacher organizes the progression of the sermon through a conversational interaction between the preacher and another speaker. That speaker could be God, a figure from the text, a figure from the culture, or a member of the congregation itself. As in a real conversation, the sermon will be ordered by the transformation that occurs within a conversation.
For example, one could watch as the dialog enacts an event of learning, as the conversation moves from lack of clarity to clarity; an event of persuasion (as in a diatribe), as the conversation moves from objections to answers to confirmation of the faith; or an event of spiritual formation, as the conversation moves from theological teachings to faithful practices.
The dialog could also be enacted in relation to a chancel drama. Here, the chancel drama would begin, offering a realistic life situation which the congregation assumes will end in a certain way. Then, the chancel drama would pause to allow the preacher to interact in conversation with one or more characters in the drama, working with textual exposition, theological confession, and evangelical proclamation. Next, the drama would resume with an ending that differs from what the congregation expected which, thereby, reveals the power of God’s Word to change lives and address life situations.
Finally, the dialog could be used at the culmination of the sermon to reveal the way in which God’s people live out the teaching of faith proclaimed in the sermon. For example, on confirmation, a preacher could incorporate confessions of faith by the confirmands into the sermon, or if a congregation was celebrating Life Sunday, the sermon could close with words from members of the congregation who are active in this form of service, or if the sermon was proclaiming a teaching, such as God’s provision of care for the sick, the sermon could close with a word from a member who has trusted in God’s provision during a time of illness.
Unscripted Dialog: When the sermon uses unscripted dialog, the preacher integrates moments of conversation within the larger flow of the sermon. Here, the sermon has (1) non-dialogical portions and (2) dialogical portions. The non-dialogical sections serve two purposes: They clearly convey the textual exposition of the sermon, its theological confession, and evangelical proclamation and they create a framework for conversation with God’s people. The dialogical portions pause the directed meditation of the sermon for conversational interaction. In these portions, the conversation partner for such dialog could be limited to one or more individuals (for example, on a mission festival, the sermon could integrate an interview with a missionary or several members returning from a mission trip into the sermon) or be open to the congregation (for example, at the close of the sermon in a catechetical series, the preacher could invite members of the congregation to discuss how they go about teaching the meaning of baptism to their children).
The art of the unscripted dialogical sermon involves a preacher carefully constructing the flow of the non-dialogical portions of the sermon, so the dialogical portions have a clear purpose to them which is readily apparent to the hearers. For example, a sermon could begin with a case study of a challenge to the faith in one’s cultural setting. After the case study is presented, the preacher would invite discussion regarding how members have seen Christians in the world respond. Then, the sermon returns to a non-dialogical section that offers a close study of a Scriptural text, teaching the faith, and proclaiming God’s gracious work in Christ. This section clarifies for the people various faithful responses to the contemporary situation. After this non-dialogical portion, the sermon then invites conversational responses that explore ways in which God’s people in this place can express their faith in action, contemplating both challenges that may arise and communal support that can be offered.”[1]
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Craft of Preaching-Check out 1517’s resources on Isaiah 44:6-8.
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching Isaiah 44:6-8.
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
The Pastor’s Workshop-Check out all the great preaching resources from our friends at the Pastor’s Workshop!
[1] https://concordiatheology.org/sermon-structs/dynamic/dialogical/
