As parents or having helped in the care of rearing children, many of us can identify with the father’s frustrations in Jesus’ parable concerning the two sons. Both sons were told by their father to go and work in the vineyard. The first son said “No”, but went and worked anyway, while the second son told his father “Yes”, and then did not go and do any work. As a parent, we know that children do not always do as they are told. Other times a child will smart off to the parent, and then later feel remorse and go and do what was asked of him or her.
Jesus uses this story, while teaching in the temple, as an illustration for the religious leaders who have refused to accept Him as the Messiah. In fact, they have just demanded that Jesus tell them on whose authority He heals the blind and the lame, which no doctor could even do at that time. They are hoping to lead the people away from Jesus by inferring that Jesus’ powers are of evil origin, but Jesus asks them on whose authority John the Baptist baptized.
Now Jesus knew that these leaders had gone to see John baptizing in the wilderness. Outwardly they had given lip service to John’s teachings on repentance, but inwardly their hearts had never changed. These leaders knew the people believed John had been sent from God even though they thought of John as beneath them. So if the leaders agreed with the beliefs of the crowd, then Jesus would say to them, “Why then did you not believe him?” Out of fear of the crowds, they choose to not answer Jesus’ question concerning John the Baptist. So Jesus tells them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
Then Jesus reprimands His accusers. This is from the contemporary translation from Eugene Peterson’s, The Message, of Jesus’ words in the Gospel of Matthew. "Yes, and I tell you that crooks and whores are going to precede you into God's kingdom. John came to you showing you the right road. You turned up your noses at him, but the crooks and whores believed him. Even when you saw their changed lives, you didn't care enough to change and believe him.” Jesus pointed out to His accusers that even living proof before their very eyes was not enough to change their hearts about who Jesus really was.
Although the religious leaders gave God lip service in the Temple and in the synagogues, when He sent them His only Son, the Messiah, they refused to accept Jesus. On the outside they were pillars of the community, but inwardly they were blinded by their own knowledge and self-importance. Even the complete transformation of people that they considered as outcasts of society did not have any impact on them, because they did not believe that they themselves needed to change. Their arrogance blinded them from the truth.
This is the sad state of the son who told his father ‘Yes’, but then changed his mind. This son did not think he needed to work in the vineyard, because he was a son, not a hired hand. If his father needed workers, then let his father hire others to do the manual labor. In other words, this son was too proud to go and work in the vineyard. He would be humiliated if other folks saw him doing a servant’s job. His pride stopped him from doing his father’s will. He gave his father only lip service, not his obedience.
On the other hand, the other son, who told his father ‘No’, but went and worked in the vineyard anyway, had a change of heart. At first he was probably appalled that his father would ask him to do such a demeaning task. It was only when he realized that his father would only ask him for help if he truly needed him. So it is out of love for his father that the second son, even though he had told his father ‘No’, obeys his father. This son set aside his personal vanity to do the work that his father had asked him to do. The manual labor became a labor of love.
This is what happens when we set aside our own agendas in life and do what God wants us to do. We become laborers of God’s love. As Christians we are called to be obedient to our Father God as living witnesses of Christ on earth. This is not always an easy assignment. In fact, the life of a Christian would be impossible without the Holy Spirit guiding us and encouraging us along the way, because our human nature wants to do what is self serving and easy. So when we are called by God to do His work, our flesh struggles with the Christ within us. It is by seeking the Lord in prayer for strength to overcome the desires of the flesh that we are able to do the work of God.
On the night before Jesus was crucified, Jesus struggled in prayer with His heavenly Father. As the Son of God, Jesus had agreed to redeem humanity from sin. Jesus had told His Father ‘Yes’ that He would go and do the work that needed to be done, the work of sacrificing Himself for our sins. Yet, when the time came for Jesus to suffer under the hot sun on a rugged cross, He struggled with His decision. He had told His Father He would do it, but now as the time of suffering drew near, He did not want to go through with it. This is why He prayed in the Garden for God to change His mind.
The Message translates Matthew’s gospel to read, “Then Jesus went with them to a garden called Gethsemane and told his disciples, "Stay here while I go over there and pray." Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he plunged into an agonizing sorrow. Then he said, "This sorrow is crushing my life out. Stay here and keep vigil with me."
Going a little ahead, he fell on his face, praying, "My Father, if there is any way, get me out of this. But please, not what I want. You, what do you want?"
When he came back to his disciples, he found them sound asleep. He said to Peter, "Can't you stick it out with me a single hour? Stay alert; be in prayer so you don't wander into temptation without even knowing you're in danger. There is a part of you that is eager, ready for anything in God. But there's another part that's as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire."
He then left them a second time. Again he prayed, "My Father, if there is no other way than this, drinking this cup to the dregs, I'm ready. Do it your way."
Jesus could have been like the son who said ‘Yes’, but then changed his mind. The temptation was there, but Jesus overcame it and chose to obey His Father even though it meant suffering the cruel death of the cross. It was Jesus’ love for His Father that gave Him the strength to do what the Father wanted Him to do. May we, who are mere mortals, look to Jesus to help us to do what is right and be obedient to God no matter what it costs us..
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