In the on-going battle between Christ and the Jewish leadership, a group of priests had come to Jesus with a question about his authority. He was doing some of the most audacious things – driving away the religious merchants, healing the sick and preaching the Kingdom of God as though He was that King. “By what authority doest thou these things? And who gave thee this authority?” As we saw last week, Christ responded with a question very similar to their own? “By whose authority did John baptize down there in the wilderness?” “The baptism of John, whence was it? From heaven, or of men?” When the Jews couldn’t respond, because any answer would have gotten them into trouble, Jesus refused to answer theirs. However Christ did reply to them with two parables which we will look at today
I have at home a scholarly study of the parables of Christ by Benjamin Keech. I mention it this morning only to point out that it is 900 pages long – it is huge. And yet, it rarely gives me the answers to all the questions that I need for my Bible study. The Lord has given us a great many parables, requiring a book that large. And there are several different varieties of parables. As He has already told us, some of them were designed to teach the disciples and at the same time to hide those lessons from unbelievers. But then, as in this case, the parable was for the unbeliever, and it condemned them, if they were paying the slighted bit of attention.
Of course those doubters and unbelievers also came in a variety of different sizes and shapes. There were those like the liberal Sadducees who basically rejected the Word of God – they spiritualized, allegorized, or secularized a great many scriptures, and this was the reason that they didn’t believe Christ or believe on Christ. But then there were the Pharisees, who were far more interested in the details of the Word of God, to the point that couldn’t hear the Lord’s message. As we will see in a couple of chapters, they did things like tithe on grains of salt, but in the process they missed the principle that all things belong to God. They washed their hands until the skin was pink, but their hearts and souls were as black as coal. Then between the Sadducees and Pharisees were multitudes of regular people who were just so consumed with living their daily lives that they didn’t have time to seriously consider the things of God.
It probably doesn’t take any extraordinary intelligence to grasp the meaning of this parable. It doesn’t require the genius of Benjamin Keech to understand these words. But it does take the Holy Spirit to grasp the modern-day application. Pray that I don’t destroy or distort that extremely important lesson here this morning.
Let’s start by reviewing the obvious meaning.
“A certain man had two sons,” and he asked them both to work in his vineyard. The man in this parable is Jehovah – the Lord – the owner of the vineyard. And the vineyard, Christ tells us, is the Kingdom of God. Summarizing all that the Bible says about the Kingdom of God, we learn that it is simply the rule of God. You could say that it is “creation” – the universe and the world in which we all live. It was created by Jehovah for His glory. There are sons and servants in that Kingdom; there are citizens and there are rebels. There is righteousness and there is evil and unrighteousness. One day in the not too distant future that Kingdom will be poured through God’s funnel, or perhaps the sieve of God’s judgment, and it will come out pure and righteous. But right now it is a mixture of wheat and tares, saints and sinners, angels and demons.
“A certain man had two sons,” and he told them both to go work in the family vineyard. These two are the man’s sons – they are not his servants, and they are certainly not his enemies. They aren’t even adopted sons. In order to understand this properly, we need to try to think like the people to whom Jesus was speaking. Long before the days of Moses, God chose a people whom He made into a nation. He then separated that nation, calling them to be a special witness to His grace. Through ISRAEL, God gave to all mankind His law and a revelation of His heart – of Himself. Israel was created and chosen by God to work in His vineyard – His Kingdom. Jesus’ audience would interpret this parable in no other way. Christ was bringing this illustration into the day in which they were both living.
Now remember the context of the moment – those chief priests had just been asking about Jesus’ authority. And He responded by focusing on John’s ministry and his authority. “The baptism of John, whence was it? From heaven, or of men?” Most recently through John, but earlier through dozens of other prophets, God had been telling the people of Israel to serve Him – to produce fruit in His vineyard. “A certain man had two sons,” and he told them both to work in his vineyard. Many of those prophets had been terribly abused – most had been ignored – some had been slain. And most recently there had been the Baptist, “If we shall say, (John was sent) from heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him? But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet.” So these great spiritual leaders – these intellectuals – said, “We cannot tell.”
Christ was speaking to the people represented by the second son in the parable. They claimed faithfulness to the “certain man” – their Father. They were outwardly obedient, knowing all the right words to say in order to please him, thinking that by smiling, repeating the day’s instructions and putting on their work gloves they could somehow deceive him.
But then there were those other sons who didn’t care about appearances and about pleasing their old man. They were prodigals and cared nothing about working in the vineyard. They cared only about what the vineyard could give to them in the way of inheritance. They had become publicans and harlots, wishing to be out from under the thumb of their bossy old dad.
But then, by the grace of God, along came their father’s most recent prophet, preaching repentance. “John came unto you in the way of righteousness.” John DID have the authority of God for his ministry. And he was a godly man, living in the way that God wanted him to live. There may not have been any miracles or great surprises in his ministry, but neither was there any sin, or anything which might diminish the message which had been given to him from God. John came to Israel pointing to God’s righteousness and to Israel’s self-centered pride. He demanded repentance and a return to the God of their fathers. Furthermore, he pointed to Jesus of Nazareth and declared, “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.” Most of the first-born sons of Israel, thinking more highly of themselves than they ought to have thought, turned their backs on that rusty, rustic, fundamentalist preacher. They SAID that they would serve in their father’s vineyard, but when the time came they walked away serving only themselves. But on the other hand many of the formerly rebellious prodigals, were touched by the grace of God and responded to the invitation of John – with humility, repentance and faith. At first they said, “No way,” but afterward, when their regenerated hearts responded, they went with joy into the vineyard of the Kingdom of the Lord. “John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him.”
I doubt that those chief priests and elders of the people had any trouble understanding the Lord’s words. They most likely also understood the implied accusation which Jesus was delivering. They probably hated Him even more after the words began to sink in. I think that the Lord has made this a pretty easy parable to understand. But now let’s move forward now about two thousand years.
Let’s make a modern day application.
Just as the city of Jerusalem was a part of the Kingdom of God in Jesus’ day, so is Post Falls, Idaho and so is Spokane, Washington. Just as Israel has been a part of the Kingdom of God for three or four thousand years, Calvary Baptist Church is a part of that same Kingdom today. And just as the family of King David, or the family of Joseph and Mary were a part of the Kingdom of God, so is the family in which you are a part. And the orders of the great King are still the same – “A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.” We have examples of both these sons up and down this valley from Coeur d’Alene to Spokane. And we have examples of both these sons right here in this church this morning.
Throughout the years of this church, there have been families with sons and daughters, growing up under the Kingship of Christ. Both the parents and the children were taught about the righteousness of God. For decades the sinfulness of man has been preached here, along with God’s demand for repentance. Long before my arrival, Christ Jesus has been declared to be the only way that sinners can be delivered from the wrath of God. And, whether verbally or tacitly, we have said, “I go, sir” into your vineyard to work to glorify thy name. By our continued attendance here, we and our children have said “I go, sir.” But some of you have not gone. Your faith is not in Christ; your heart has not been humble before Him. You have not repented before the Lord, perhaps because you thought that there was no reason to repent – you’ve never done some of the more wicked things of life. And yet, you are the Christ-slayers to whom Jesus was speaking that day so many years ago.
Outside the walls of this building there are thousands of families, who are living under the reign of Jehovah, and enjoying His marvelous bounty, but who have said from the day of their birth, “I will not work in the vineyard of God.” They have openly rejected the Word of God, and the testimony of His prophets. They have foolishly chosen self-destructive pathways – sins of all kinds – too numerous to list. Some of them have been eaten up by those sins; while others seem, thus far, to be floating along in bliss. And then along came John the Baptist, or Fred the Baptist or Tim the Baptist, calling for repentance and faith in Christ. And surprisingly – miraculously – some of those who had previously said, “I will not work in God’s vineyard,” repented and went, entering into the joys of the Lord.
Some of you adults know exactly what I am talking about. You were not raised in the spiritual peace and serenity of a Christian family. You were raised by publicans and spiritual harlots, quickly going in that direction yourselves, if you weren’t there already. But then “there was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light (the Lord Jesus Christ), that all men through him might believe.” “And the Word (the Light; Christ Jesus) was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (Christ) came unto his own (the first-born sons, but) his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” Some of you have been miraculously saved by the grace of God.
But there are others here, primarily young people, who have been blessed by the bounty of God beyond their comprehension, and who have implied, “I will go, Father,” but you have not. You have seen others repent and follow Christ, but you have not joined them. Listen to the Lord’s parable and recognize the implied tragedy. Fall on your face before the Lord. The self-righteous son needs the Saviour as much as the prodigal. Do you need the Lord Jesus Christ this morning? Repent before God and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ Come and let’s serve the Lord in His vineyard.