28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he
came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard. 29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he
repented, and went. 30 And he came to the second, and said
likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. 31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They
say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the
publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For 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. (Matt 21:28-32)
The Collect
First Sunday after Trinity
O
|
GOD, the strength of all those who
put their trust in thee; Mercifully accept our prayers; and because through the
weakness of our mortal nature, we can do no good thing without thee, grant us
the help of thy grace, that in keeping thy commandments we may please thee,
both in will and in deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Jesus is delivering a harsh rebuke
to the Chief Priests and Elders of the Jewish people. These are the only ones
to whom Christ showed little patience. He did so because their fate had been
settled (for He knew their black hearts). The people of the Jews were given
high privilege in the gift of the teacher of all righteousness – the Law of
God. Failing to learn the glaring object of that Law (that they could not be
righteous or worthy of salvation by works) they now reject the only possibility
for their salvation, that Lamb of God that "taketh away the sins of the
world." Time and again Christ has confronted these arrogant hypocrites
(leaders of the Jews). He has labeled them as "Whited Sepulchres (Matt
23:27) full of dead men's bones," as a "serpents and generation of
vipers (Matt 23:33)," and finally as "children of their father the
Devil" (John 8:44). Jesus, unlike us, had no problem naming sinners. To no
other sinners did Jesus use such condemning terms, and to no other sinners did
He hold out so little hope. For the most part, they were beyond the reach of
salvation "having their consciences seared as with a hot iron."
We might see the same generation of vipers standing in many pulpits of America
today or even sitting in the pews. They speak in biblical terms and act
subversively as children of their father the Devil bringing in damnable
heresies among the people of God.
28 But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he
came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
Allow me, again, to ask the same question Jesus asks regarding this account:
"What think ye?" You doubtless have read this passage many times. Did
you stop to wonder at its meaning? Did you give it any deeper thought at all
that could have led to better understanding? The `certain man' exists in the
reality of this world, but is also a symbol of God here. This Man had two sons,
each of a different nature. The church today is divided between these two types
of sons. The purpose of the Christian life is to produce and gather
fruit. Have we done so? If the church is small and puny, some will blame the
Pastor. He is the shepherd, so why does he not get more sheep? Shepherds do not
beget sheep – sheep beget sheep. If you fail to tell your friends and neighbors
that there is an excellent, Bible-centered Pastor at your church, who will tell
them. Certainly, the Pastor does not desire to appear to boast of himself and,
besides, his voice is single while the congregant voices are many.
29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he
repented, and went. The rebellious voice here is very
disappointing, isn't it? Notice there is not even an excuse given by this son
to justify his disobedience. This son represents the character of each of us
before we came to Christ in earnest to obey and to do. In the process of time,
this son, (and you and I), came to accept the Lordship of Christ in our lives
and repented. Once we have repented and turned from our sins, the vacuum
of purpose must be turned to the service of God. The first son is at least
honest. He tells his father he will not, but later repents and does. The "I
WILL" illustrates that mind that is centered on self-will and not the
Will of God. Please observe the I WILL's of Lucifer: How art thou fallen
from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the
ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart,
I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of
God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of
the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will
be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the
sides of the pit. (Isaiah 14:12-15) Whose will do you obey?
30 And he came to the second, and said likewise.
And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. What a fine
and proper response from this second son. I do not know how long this type of
attitude has existed in the church, but I do know that it predominates among us
today. The church is full of false professors who profess Christ with
their lips and deny Him by their actions (or lack thereof). In times when
the Holy Ghost has born upon our hearts the full awareness of our depravity, we
may have succumbed to that Spirit and made a profession of faith. Later, our
memory dims to our sins and awakens to our sinful desires. What do we then? We
break our vow to God and renew our devotion to the things of the world. Else,
we may hide our sins and sit proudly in church as fine, though phony, Christian
men and women.
31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They
say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the
publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. The greater number of converts to Christ in
Judaea were publicans and harlots. What a fine lot from which to draw a
following, right? Be careful, friend. If you have come to Christ, you have come
as a harlot and publican, for your sins were just as gross. Though you may be
prideful of your position and character, this same fault may end you in Hell.
The proud leaders of the Jews boasted of their righteousness – a righteousness
of which they were abjectly devoid. I love the woman taken in adultery. I love
the woman at Jacob's Well, and I love the lepers and blind whom Jesus forgave
and healed. Why? Because there is a measure of self-love in each of us. I love
those people mentioned because they are truly who I was, too, before coming to
Christ.
32 For 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 must confess that I do believe that the Jewish leaders believed that Christ
was who He claimed to be. That was their greater sin! They knew Him and
rejected Him for the sake of power and pride. If we ever believe that we are
worthy of heaven, that is the very moment that we ARE NOT! There are forever
two emotions fighting within our hearts – that of righteousness and the other
of wickedness. If left to our own struggle, wickedness will always prevail
because it battles on its native soil. Our hearts are the natural habitat of
wickedness. Righteousness enters through the grace-working miracle of the Holy
Ghost. If we have not made the Holy Ghost welcome in our hearts, He will depart
and we are left to fight a losing battle with the Archenemy of our Souls – the
Devil. Longfellow wrote the following poem of the Austrian City of Prague.
There was a legend of old that the city, as all cities are, was besieged by an
Army of evil spirits. But at the sounding of the Angelus (a short practice of devotion in honor of the Incarnation
repeated three times each day, morning, noon, and evening) invoked by the
ringing of the church bell, caused the evil spirits to wane and disappear by
the rising of the prayers of the people:
The Beleaguered City
I have read, in some old,
marvellous tale,
Some legend strange and vague,
That a midnight host of spectres
pale
Beleaguered the walls of
Prague.
Beside the Moldau's rushing
stream,
With the wan moon overhead,
There stood, as in an awful
dream,
The army of the dead.
White as a sea-fog, landward
bound,
The spectral camp was seen,
And, with a sorrowful, deep
sound,
The river flowed between.
No other voice nor sound was
there,
No drum, nor sentry's pace;
The mist-like banners clasped
the air
As clouds with clouds embrace.
But when the old cathedral bell
Proclaimed the morning prayer,
The white pavilions rose and
fell
On the alarméd air.
Down the broad valley fast and
far
The troubled army fled;
Up rose the glorious morning
star,
The ghastly host was dead.
I have read, in the marvellous
heart of man,
That strange and mystic scroll,
That an army of phantoms vast
and wan
Beleaguer the human soul.
Encamped beside Life's rushing
stream,
In Fancy's misty light,
Gigantic shapes and shadows
gleam
Portentous through the night.
Upon its midnight battle-ground
The spectral camp is seen,
And, with a sorrowful, deep
sound,
Flows the River of Life between.
No other voice nor sound is
there,
In the army of the grave
No other challenge breaks the
air,
But the rushing of Life's wave.
And when the solemn and deep
church-bell
Entreats the soul to pray,
The midnight phantoms feel the
spell,
The shadows sweep away.
Down the broad Vale of Tears
afar
The spectral camp is fled;
Faith shineth as a morning star,
Our ghastly fears are dead.
