They
will respect my son
Scripture:-
“Listen to another
parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall
around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the
vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. When the harvest time
approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect
his fruit.
“The tenants seized his
servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. Then he sent other
servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated
them the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them.
‘They will respect my son,’ he said. “But when the
tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his
inheritance.’ So they took him and
threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. “Therefore,
when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
He will bring
those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied,
“and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give
him his share of the crop at harvest time.” Jesus said to
them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:‘ The stone the
builders rejected has become the cornerstone ;the Lord has
done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? “Therefore
I tell you that the kingdom
of God
When the chief
priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about
them. They looked for a way to arrest him, but
they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.
Matthew 21:33-46
Observation:-
“They will
respect my son” the landowner indignantly thought. Servant after servant had
been beaten up. A few had even been killed, stoned to death mercilessly by the
ungrateful and violent tenants. Still, the landowner was merciful, and decided
to give them one more chance. They had to respect the son, the heir to the
whole vineyard. What would they dare do to him?
But they had
killed his son, his only son….. In their wickedness, they thought that if the
landowner had no heir, the vineyard would be theirs in perpetuity. How badly
mistaken they were, for they were not only wicked but extremely foolish. For
the landowner proceeded to engage a whole army to come down upon them and
destroy them utterly. And once they were gone, the landowner proceeded to look
for new tenants, those who would dutifully give him his share of crop at harvest
time….
In this
parable, the Lord in one stroke exposed the sin of the Jewish people, for He
had sent them prophet after prophet to turn them from their idolatry and wicked
ways. But they would not listen. They even mistreated and even killed God’s
true prophets. Finally, God sent His one and only Son to them, but again, in
their wickedness, they were to commit the ultimate sin by condemning the Son of
God to death on the cross.
But death could not hold on to God’s Son,
for He rose again on the third day, and has become the Cornerstone. He was the
stone the builders had rejected. He is the capstone on which the true Church of God
Note the words of Jesus: the kingdom will
be given to those who produce fruit. Fruitfulness is the hallmark of a true
believer. What then is fruit? It is not just works, but character, cultivated
in humble service to the Lord, refined in God’s holy fire like silver.
What does it mean that “anyone who falls
on this stone will be broken to pieces”? Jesus Christ is our foundation. All of
us who come to Him fall on Him in a sense. In the Beatitudes, Jesus said
“Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven
Regarding the reference to the
Cornerstone crushing those on whom it falls, this refers to complete and utter
judgment when Jesus Christ returns again with His mighty angels. It is better
to be broken than to be crushed….
Application:
Remember that the kingdom is given to
those who will bear fruit. Pray to God that you may be fruitful. Seek His true
fruit in our lives, not only in works, but in character. Meditate on the Fruit
of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness and self-control. Ask the Lord to inculcate these qualities more and
more into our inner life, even as we interact with others in the workplace or
at home.
Remember that being broken is an
important part of the Christian life. Read the Psalms and consider the emotions
of David who truly had a broken and contrite spirit before God. Where we are
going through hard and difficult times, know that it is in this process of
being broken that we grow in maturity and faith even as we depend on the Lord
to help us through.
Praise the Lord, that He is coming again
and will make all things new. Pray to the Lord for strength and wisdom and
perseverance that we may be found worthy at His second coming.
Prayer:
We praise You and love You, Lord, for
Your loving grace and mercy to us. We thank You Lord that You are slow to anger
and abounding in love. Forgive our sins and lift us up that we might praise
Your name! Grow that fruit deep within our spirits Lord. Let Your love, Your
joy, Your peace, Your patience, Your kindness, Your faithfulness, Your
gentleness, Your self-control become more and more evident and glorious in our
inner character. Help us become more and more like You we pray! In Jesus name,
Amen!
No comments:
Post a Comment