Jesus told a lot of parables during His time on earth. Many of those parables make us feel good when we hear them, parables such as the one we just looked into last week, the parable of The Prodigal Son, along with the parables of the Good Samaritan, and the Lost Sheep. Some make us think, such as the parable of The Sower and the Seed. However, a few of His parables make us uncomfortable. Some people may not even like them at all, and would like to omit them from the Bible. Today’s parable is one that does make some people uncomfortable. It did back in Jesus’ day, and still does today for some. Let’s see what Jesus was instructing the people that day.
Earlier in the week Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem upon a donkey, while the crowds cheered and waved palm branches. The Pharisees and other religious leaders were at a fevered pitch, filled with hate towards Jesus, and they wanted to bring Him down. Jesus has only a few days left to live, and on one of those final days He gave one of His last public teachings to the crowds. As was frequently the case, there were plenty of Pharisees in the crowd making note of everything Jesus said. He begins to tell the parable of the Wicked Vinedressers.
The parable tells of the owner of a vineyard who traveled to a far country after leasing the vineyard to workers. At the appointed time, the owner sent a servant to collect the fruit. Yet, instead of giving the servant what belonged to the owner, they beat the servant up (vs. 9-12). This happened several times, with them beating up each servant that was sent, until the owner decided to send his son, who he thought they would respect. However, they not only did not respect the owner’s son, they took him outside the vineyard and killed him (vs. 13-15).
At the close of the parable, Jesus asked the crowds what the owner should do to these workers. When no one answered, Jesus told them that the owner would destroy those workers and lease the vineyard to other workers who would now work the vines. The Pharisees answered that should not happen, as they know that He told the parable referring to them (vs. 15-16). Jesus quoted Psalm 118:22, and predicted what would happen to those who did not accept the Lord’s Messiah, the Cornerstone (vs. 17-18), the foundation upon which the Church is built.
In this parable, the owner of the vineyard was God, the workers were the people of Israel, and the servants were the many prophets God sent. God had given the people of Israel His truth and His Word, which they were to believe themselves, and share with the world. God repeatedly sent the prophets to try and get the people back on track, but instead they were rejected, badly treated, and some even killed. The fact that God had repeatedly sent His messengers over and over again shows God’s patience with Israel, despite their disobedience and rejection of Him. However, God’s authority is unshakeable, and His plan will ultimately prevail.
The son that the owner sent represents the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, whom He sent into the world to redeem mankind. He is the Messiah that the workers, the Jewish leaders would reject and crucify. Because of the workers' treatment of the owner, the servants he sent, and especially the son, the owner would destroy those workers, and lease the vineyard to new workers. This pictured God’s judgment on unfaithful Israel, and His inclusion of the Gentiles into the plan of salvation. Jesus told this parable as one last outreach to the people, yet within a few short days the religious leaders would reject Him and His authority, leading to their condemnation.
In addition to this parable being a picture of what happened to both the people of Israel, the Gentiles, and the Church, there are some things we can learn for our own lives today. Like the vineyard workers, believers today are entrusted with responsibilities to bear fruit for God. Rejecting His authority, both back then and today, will lead to judgment. Jesus is the Chief Cornerstone, and He must be the foundation for our faith and our life. If someone rejects Jesus, they reject salvation itself.
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