What Exactly Is a Tare? by Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie

Here is another story Jesus told: "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat. (Matthew 13:24-25)

Jesus told a story known as the parable of the wheat and tares. In this particular story, He talked about a farmer who planted a crop of wheat. And during the night his enemy, probably a competitor, came along and sowed tares, or weeds, among the wheat.

The tare that Jesus described in this parable was also known as the darnel seed, which looks almost exactly like wheat in the beginning stages of its growth. But after it grows a little more, it becomes evident that it is a weed, and it actually uproots the wheat.

When one of the farmer's workers asked him, "Shall we pull out the weeds?" the farmer replied, "No, you'll hurt the wheat if you do. Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds and burn them and to put the wheat in the barn."

Jesus told this story to point out that there are people in the church who have infiltrated our ranks. While there is wheat, there are also tares. We don't know who is who, necessarily. You will find them sitting side by side in a pew, breathing the same air, and singing the same songs. One may be a believer, while the other may be an unbeliever. One may be wheat, and one may be a tare.

****We always will have people who infiltrate our ranks, the Ananiases and Sapphiras and the Judas Iscariots””the satanic plants that undermine the Word of God.******

But it is not our job to weed those people out. We don't see a person's heart. Our concern should not be who the hypocrites are, but whether we are hypocrites ourselves. Our job is to take care of ourselves, to take heed and make sure that we are true believers.

Mat 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

"Until the harvest." At the time of the harvest the tares are gathered together. Just prior to the harvest the tare becomes abundantly apparent from the wheat. I have no doubt that we are in the very midst of the separation process in our day. As each denomination falls to the ways of the world, their true colors have become apparent. The tares are becoming distinct from the wheat as they fall away, the great falling away where the Word of God ceases to be authoritative in their lives and they live life according to the rule of their own hearts, lawless indeed..........bro Frank

If one has learned a little about spiritual forensics, the tares leave behind evidence of themselves ("fingerprints").

The Tares will mock and deride the Wheat. They can't help it. It is their nature and the spirit by which they operate.

Jude 1:17-18

But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ; How that they told you there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly lusts.

It's their choice whether they want to be tares or not.

Julius writes......

"The Tares will mock and deride the Wheat. They can't help it. It is their nature and the spirit by which they operate."

I agree, its the difference between flesh and Spirit and its ancient. The tares desire leadership and authority and influence, its the nature of the flesh. Tares seek influence and wheat have it by the Spirit..........bro Frank

The tares usually think they are the prime of the wheat.
Tares do not move when the wind blows, the wheat does.
The Lord Jesus Christ rebuke you satan

Then the king Nebuchadnezzar fell upon his face, and worshipped Daniel, and commanded that they should offer an oblation and sweet odours unto him. The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret. (Dan 2:46-47)

In this passage we can see that even the mightiest of Kings fell down on his face when he came face to face with the reality that God is the revealer of the secrets of mens hearts. Earlier in the chapter the wise men and magicians complained that there was no power on earth that could reveal the secrets of a man’s heart or his dreams or thoughts. When Jesus encounters the woman at the well He reveals the secrets of her heart. She is so utterly astonished that she rushes into town and publicly announces to everyone that she had encountered the Messiah and He had told her everything that she had ever done. They come, encounter Him and believe.

In 1 Corinthians 14:24:25 it says "But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all: And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.” The power of God brothers and sisters, just one aspect of the power of God in a living breathing entity called the Body of Christ. It demonstrates itself and it manifests itself in power, resurrection power. A life transformed and moving in the power of God touches the hearts of men. It changes them, it challenges them, it confronts them it penetrates deep into the hearts of men, it ” stabs men in the hearts.” In Acts chapter two men were so violently assaulted in their hearts by the Truth spoken by the power of God that they cried out to God ” what must we do.”

Brothers and sisters are we seeing the power of God demonstrated in the average church today? Are men so busily chasing after signs and wonders that they have neglected all together the mightiest of all powers, the power of God to violently assault the hearts of men? Are men so caught up in their learning and the correctness of their particular doctrines that they refuse to even acknowledge that such a power exists outside of the abstract? The power of God to radically transform a soul is the essence of what it means to be a witness. The very lives of the transformed saints, the work of God Himself in the hearts of men for His will and for His good pleasure is the primary witness of the Church. It is radically transformed saints that make up the Body of Christ, His Church here on earth. It is a witness to His power.

If mighty kings fall down on their faces merely because the God of all ages reveals a dream to them, what does it say to principalities and powers when sinners are transformed into saints? When former drunks now live soberly glorifying the God of the transformed heart. When those who robbed and stole rob and steal no more but live peaceably glorifying God among men. When those who followed the selfish dictates of their own hearts without regard to others now live sacrificial lives to the glory of God. When those who followed man-made gods and idols now follow and glorify the one true God. When blasphemers and those who persecuted God’s saints now fall down on their faces with reverence to the most Holy God and love their brothers and sisters in Christ. When former violent men become as gentle as lambs. When fornicator and adulterers find forgiveness and walk chaste holy lives. When prostitutes are reborn as virgins and are now found at the feet of Jesus. This is the Body of Christ. This is His witness here on earth. As it was then so it is now and so shall it ever be until that great and notable day of the Lord.

What is the crisis of this age? A lack of power demonstrated in the lives of men in the average gathering of what we call church. Churches across the land filled with half dead men and lukewarm souls at best. Churches that are nothing more than glorified social clubs, political clubs, middle class country clubs where homogeneous groups gather to carry out religious activities. Is it any wonder that the world has great difficulty telling themselves apart from the average church goer? When the tares have so engulfed the wheat then the wheat must give serious consideration to their position. The early church would simply fail to recognize what we call church today. While they always had wheat and tares, they would never have imagined a day when the wheat is simply crowded out by the tares. Yet, that is the nature of weeds is it not? A weed never needs any encouragement to grow, quite the opposite. If left unchallenged it simply grows to dominate and drown out everything else.

In these last days, God will have a pure and un-spotted Bride. He is drawing His own unto Himself and is preparing them through trial and tribulation for the final refining fire that is to come. Rev 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. Yet brothers and sisters we are assured that we will overcome in the midst of it all by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our Testimonies and by the fact that we love not our lives unto death. This is the final and greatest witness; lives so transformed by the power of God that they cared not about their own deaths but about the glory of God thus forever closing the mouth of the accuser of the brethren.............bro Frank