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The weeds among the wheat parable is part of a progression of parables that Jesus tells in one setting in Matthew's Gospel. Jesus is seen sitting, just as he was sitting when he preached the Sermon on the Mount. In this case he is in a boat where he could see the people at one time. Also this creates a safer distance between himself and the crowd.
Jesus begins this dissertation by showing that "'what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.'" This is what the wheat is in the parable of the weeds among the wheat.

Those who hear the word are the wheat and those who listen to the voices in the world are the weeds. They grow together in the same soil in the same farm, not unlike like the sheep and goats that also get separated from each other in the end.
The slaves or servants in this parable are there to ask the question that we all ask: "If there are evil people in the world, then why doesn't God get rid of them now; and if God doesn't then shouldn't we?" Jesus shows that the separating and therefore the judgment of these weeds is not our concern. We are to be the wheat. We are the ones with which God will use to feed the world the spiritual bread of the Truth.
This parable shows very well that the Jesus' followers are in the world, but not a part of it. When seen in the context of Matthew 13 we see an interesting progression. First the wheat is established on good soil, that is where the truth is spoken and the heart listens. Just as the weeds in the parable of the sower will choke the wheat, so will the world try to stop the truth from growing by creating the distractions that divert Jesus' followers away from him.
In this parable, the wheat remains intact, in other words, we, those who believe in Jesus, should not be afraid of the world, Jesus enemies. We are to live and grow among them. In other words, just as the wheat and the weeds grow together, so do we live and grow in a world that rebels against God.
Notice that Jesus explains that in the end time, the wheat and the weeds will be gathered. The wheat will shine, and the weeds will be burned. The reapers are angles Jesus explains. Again, human hands are not to be found in the separating. In one fell swoop Jesus explains a lot to us. He shows us that there is evil in the world and it can affect us. He shows us not to concern ourselves with the acts of evil but continue to grow in the Truth. He tells us that the evil in the world will be taken care of, but not by us. In some ways this is an echo from the Sermon on the Mount that we are not to worry. The world wants us to worry about materialistic things which are the weeds around us.
Notice also, that the devil doesn't interact directly with the field of wheat. He plants the weeds to hinder the growth of the wheat but doesn't dig up the soil nor destroy the growing wheat. Spiritual warfare, where the forces of darkness burst into our lives, does not apply here. The forces of darkness in this presentation can be seen as greed. Bread is made from wheat, and bread is shared. The weeds serve no useful purpose.
Our lives may be difficult and we get burdened and weighed down with the concerns of daily living. Following Jesus is a difficult life. In the end we will shine, like the wheat in the sunlight.

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