Who Am I? The Gospel According to Matthew

The Gospel According to Matthew

Matthew 21: 33-46

INTRODUCTION:  Happy Sabbath! A huge thank you to Robert for agreeing to fill in and teach.  What a blessing!  Today's lesson is a biggie!  Lot's of hmmm moments for me.  

Question of the Day:  What would you like to praise the Lord for today? What do you want to give Jesus credit for?

I would like to thank God for the incredible rainbow I saw today.  When you have been around rain for a while and then you see the sunshine and then the rainbow, what a blessing it is.  What a beautiful sign, a beautiful reminder that He will never leave us or forsake us!

Today we are looking at the last parable in chapter 21.  It is important to remember that this is at the end of Christ's ministry here on earth.  This is in the last moments! These are those moments that you take and say what you need to say, do what you need to do, and you say what you want to say and do what you want to do.

READ Matthew 21:33-46

The Parable of the Tenants

33 “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. 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.

35 “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. 36 Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37 Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said.

38 “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.’ 39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.

40 “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”

41 “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.”

42 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’[h]?

43 “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44 Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.”[i]

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46 They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.

Before we get into this I want us to better understand the parable.  So:

Vineyard = Kingdom of God      Jews have always understood the image of the vineyard to be a reference to the nation of Israel.

Landowner = God   

Tenants = Jewish religious leaders   Jewish religious leaders were charged with the "cultivation" of Israel's religious life.

Servants = Prophets   Sent by God, Old Testament prophets have been killed and stoned. (1 Kings 18:4,13; Jer 26: 20-23; 2 Corinthians 24: 21-22

Son = Jesus Christ  The Parable can be seen as a veiled messianic self-reference of Himself by Jesus

When I first read this I thought, "wow that is a weird story.  Why the detail about the tower etc? What does all that have to do with anything?  Then I discovered that Jesus is retelling a story that was very familiar to the Pharisees.  It is found in Isaiah and I have added it to the bottom of this lesson.  You have to read it!  It is amazing how he takes the details from this familiar passage that no doubt the Pharisees have taught about and most certainly read and yet, they don't seem to get their place in the story.  Right?

When Jesus asks what the land owner should do with the tenants, what do they answer?  

Once again, Jesus uses their knowledge and intelligence, combined with their arrogance to bare them. He gets to the core! 

Let's go back and look just at the story.  Not what Jesus says after the story.  We will get to that later...

So the story. 

What did building a wall, a watch tower,  and winepress do for it?  

This preparing, made things ready.  It created a perfect spot for the vinyard to grow.  Protection and even readied things for the harvest. Also who planted the vineyard?  All done by the owner. 

So who did the work needed to bring forth the fruit?  Who prepared, planted? When it was time for harvest, he sends servants to collect the fruit.  

Ellen White writes in Christ Object Lessons, "We have been redeemed by a costly ransom. Only by the greatness of this ransom can we conceive of its results. On this earth, the earth whose soil has been moistened by the tears and blood of the Son of God, are to be brought forth the precious fruits of Paradise.

What brings forth the precious fruits? 

Isn't it interesting that the tenant or farmer doesn't prepare the soil.  He didn't make the land ready, he didn't put the wall and the watch tower, he doesn't even plant the vineyard, he also doesn't build the winepress.  It was the owner or God who did that.

But wait we know how this ends.  Jesus saying that he is going to give it away to someone else because they didn't produce fruit.  So obviously they didn't do the work they were supposed to.  They didn't "produce the fruit" so they didn't do enough. They didn't work hard enough.  

I don't know about you but this passage screams the importance of works!  If we don't work hard enough, or are not obedient enough than it will all be taken away.  Am I right? 

It is still Jesus, the blood of Jesus, His love and His grace that will prepare the hearts, that will come to Him.  It is  important to remember that! 

Wouldn't it be safe to say that the land owner did everything needed to produce fruit?  Does Jesus do what is needed to produce the fruit for His kingdom? 

Hmmmm, then what about what Jesus says about the fruit?

Let's now look at what Jesus says.

“Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.

Ok this seems clear.  If we don't work hard enough, we won't produce fruit and therefore, the kingdom will be taken away.  NO SALVATION for us!

NOPE THAT ISN'T RIGHT and we all KNOW IT!!!

Let's keep going.  

At harvest time after the owner had planted etc... He sends his servants to get the "fruits."  What did the tenant or farmer do to the servants?

We see that this was telling of what actually happened to the prophets sent to warn the Israelites.

Then the land owner sends His son. 

So we know how that ends.  Here again Jesus is telling what will happen to him.  He is again predicting His own death.  

So what is the point of all this?  

Is it just to predict His death.  Is it to shame the Pharisees?  Why? 

A very simple summation of this parable is this.  The people entrusted with the vineyards let their greed and pride cause them to kill the son.  

The pharisees were powerful, and greedy, and focused on their station, their own importance? 

So are you completely confused.   

Even if you go back and read in Isaiah this story, there is great detail about all that is done by the owner or the "loved one" to have a bountiful harvest.  Yet nothing but bad grapes were grown.  If you look in Isaiah, there was nothing for the vines to do but produce the fruit.  All the work was already done.  

So what is the key here.  

There is no earning, no working we can do to earn or gain, the Kingdom.  The owner, has done it all!

Our fruits? Hmmmm

If he has done it all shouldn't it be automatic, that the fruit will grow?

Here it is simple.

Jesus tell the Pharisees, "listen to this parable" and then tells them a story they know.  A warning.  Then he asks them a question.  And answers as they would to others, by asking them a question from scripture.  The story, the scripture all points to them rejecting Jesus and if they reject Jesus they can't be part of the Kingdom.

Jesus is how they are to be saved and only through Him, and if they reject Him, then they are out of blessings.

I know that God wants the best for us.  A life abundant and full.  God wants us to praise Him and be filled with joy.  God can't wait to be with us for eternity! God has given us laws to follow.  He has said, "if you love me, keep my laws."


There is a strong warning for us in this passage.  Don't reject Christ.  Let Him change you, transform you.  Do as He asks.  Be willing to obey Him.  It will bring you joy and teach you of His great love.  It will give you the knowledge and understanding to serve others.  There are many reasons to obey him and keep His commandments but Salvation is not one of them.  

As I was writing this and struggling with how to end it, about how to best talk about the importance of Jesus and our acceptance of Him, Chris said, "read what Pastor Ryan sent out." 

So I stopped and read, and was so thankful for the blessing of His email.  So to end this I want you to reread his letter.  

This lesson is ALL about accepting Jesus.  This lesson is All about seeing Him!  This lesson and every lesson should be about Jesus! 

Jesus is the way, the truth and the light.  

Reread our pastors letter.

Dear Church Family,

There is so much to life that is truly important. To be able to survive and thrive in our world today you have to be educated in countless ways: math and language, reasoning skills, health practices, etc. But book learning is not enough. You need street smarts, common sense, interpersonal skills - situational awareness and emotional awareness. And we're just beginning to scratch the surface. You need to learn self-discipline, deferred gratification, how to set goals and manage your time in order to achieve them. It can quickly become overwhelming!

But there's more! Beneath the surface of life are your values and beliefs. Get these wrong and you could be setting goals and managing time well and heading with great effect in the wrong direction!

For Christians our values and beliefs come from the Bible. In short, these are the things we call "doctrine." For instance, it affects your life in huge ways whether you think the dead are sleeping in the grave or alive somewhere (either in paradise or torment). It makes a difference how you view prayer - whether it is something formal and required or whether it is a powerful privilege. Doctrines matter. They matter a lot.

But again, there is so much debate about true doctrine. How is a person to choose what is right? Even with the best of intentions a person might possibly get some details wrong. Worrying about this can create deep insecurities and lead to paralysis. Talk about overwhelming! What to do?

There is good news! In a strange and intriguing passage in 1 Corinthians 2 Paul talks about what is most essential to life. He writes:

(10) By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. (11) For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. (12) If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, (13) their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. (14) If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. (15) If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.

I am grateful for this passage because it sets things in perspective. Paul basically says that you can have some bad theology and flimsy life skills and still be saved. It will be painful - there will be loss - but it won't be the loss of eternal life.

In the midst of so many important things, what is the one thing required? Jesus. If you have Him for a foundation in life, you are secure. Everything else is lower in importance to Jesus. Hopefully you build well on the foundation and live in a way that brings great glory to God, but even if you don't, as long as you have Jesus, you have life (see 1 John 5:12).

It is important to understand this truth - that we are not saved by how we build, but where we build. My performance isn't what matters; it is the saving power of Jesus that matters. When I receive Him as Savior and Lord, my life is changed. I have new meaning, new power, new confidence, new humility, new joy. And suddenly I am free to build with creativity and care. I'm not stressing about whether I'm getting the joints perfect or the walls straight. I'm free to do a great job because I know my life doesn't depend on it!

Happy Sabbath!

There is one very important and only one very important life application question  today, "Have you accepted Jesus Christ as you savior?  Is He, Jesus your foundation?  

Resources: 

The Song of the Vineyard

5 I will sing for the one I love
    a song about his vineyard:
My loved one had a vineyard
    on a fertile hillside.
2 He dug it up and cleared it of stones
    and planted it with the choicest vines.
He built a watchtower in it
    and cut out a winepress as well.
Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
    but it yielded only bad fruit.

3 “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
    judge between me and my vineyard.
4 What more could have been done for my vineyard
    than I have done for it?
When I looked for good grapes,
    why did it yield only bad?
5 Now I will tell you
    what I am going to do to my vineyard:
I will take away its hedge,
    and it will be destroyed;
I will break down its wall,
    and it will be trampled.
6 I will make it a wasteland,
    neither pruned nor cultivated,
    and briers and thorns will grow there.
I will command the clouds
    not to rain on it.”

7 The vineyard of the Lord Almighty
    is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
    are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed;
    for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.