Grace and Peace to you from God our
Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord and Savior sanctify you in
the truth, for His word is truth. Amen
Fifth Sunday
in Lent (2010)
A Rebellious
Church
Luke 20:9-20 (ESV)
And he
began to tell the people this parable: "A man planted a vineyard and let
it out to tenants and went into another country for a long while. [10] When the
time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some
of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away
empty-handed. [11] And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated
him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. [12] And he sent yet a third.
This one also they wounded and cast out. [13] Then the owner of the vineyard
said, 'What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect
him.' [14] But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, 'This is the
heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.' [15] And they
threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the
vineyard do to them? [16] He will come and destroy those tenants and give the
vineyard to others." When they heard this, they said, "Surely
not!" [17] But he looked directly at them and said, "What then is
this that is written:
"
'The stone that the builders rejected
has
become the cornerstone'?
[18] Everyone
who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone,
it will crush him."
[19] The
scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for
they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the
people. [20] So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere,
that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the
authority and jurisdiction of the governor.
The Gospel Reading for today
points us to Tuesday in the last week of our Lord’s life on earth where Jesus is
in the
From the moment He arrived
in the
Our Lord’s mission was to
save the people of Israel and as He was teaching the people the Sanhedrin came
to Him and asked, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who
it is that gave you this authority” (Luke 20:2 ESV), trying to trap our
Lord into committing blasphemy. However, Jesus easily sees through their
deception and answers them by asking them a question in return, “Was the
baptism of John from heaven or from man?” (Luke 20:4 ESV). With this
answer our Lord traps them in their unbelief. If they answer John’s baptism
came from heaven Jesus will then ask them why they didn’t believe John;
exposing their ungodly will. If they answer John’s baptism is only from man,
then they will be subject to the anger of the crowd that surrounds our Lord and
who believed in John’s baptism, and possibly they would be stoned to death.
Thus, in their fear, they answer they did not know from where John’s baptism came.
Believing they have dodged a bullet, they obviously felt relieved, however, our
Lord has other plans.
Quickly, before the
Sanhedrin can leave, our Lord launches into a powerful parable regarding some evil
tenants who plot to cheat the owner of a vineyard out of his rightful share of
the harvest. To heighten the crowd and
the Sanhedrin’s understanding, our Lord clothes the parable in the familiar
imagery of Isaiah (Is. 5:1-7). Then, bringing His parable to its climax, our
Lord drives it home by applying the dramatic quotation from an acknowledged
Messianic Psalm familiar to all the people, “The stone that the builders
rejected has become the cornerstone” (Psalm 118:22 ESV).
Our Lord begins by
explaining the owner of a vineyard hired tenants to maintain it on a
share-croppers agreement. When harvest time comes, the owner sends one of his
servants to collect his share, but the tenants beat the servant and send him
back to his master, empty handed. The owner sends more servants to collect his
share and they likewise are treated shamefully, beaten, and cast out; sent
packing to their master. Finally the owner sends his son and the tenants
foolishly conclude that if they kill the son they will become the owners of the
vineyard. Therefore, when he arrives they cast him out and kill him. Jesus then
asks the question, “What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them?”
(v. 15).
To those to whom Jesus is
speaking and to us as well, the meaning of the parable is clear. God is the
owner of the vineyard. The vineyard represents both the nation of
We can count ourselves among
those caretakers. He has made us, our Church, our Synod, a part of His
vineyard. Moreover, He has separated us from the world so that the vine of His
Word would not become corrupted by the thorns and thistles of the world;
choking out its ability to grow in doctrinal purity and produce the sweet fruit
of the Gospel. Furthermore, He calls on us to reject all who would claim
ownership of our Lord’s property; all who would teach false doctrine. Then, a
day will come, when our Lord asks those of us who call themselves Christians,
“Where is My fruit?”
A remarkable statistic of
this country is that when surveyed more than ninety-percent of the population
of the
Yes, God asks you and me today; Where is my fruit?”
Attendance and giving are
issues of concern for the Church, but these issues pale in comparison with the
primary purpose of the Church; to proclaim the Gospel of the forgiveness of sin
in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
All who call themselves
Christians know that our Lord, Jesus Christ is the object of faith. He is the One whom we worship; the One to whom
we turn to receive forgiveness for our sins. However, many who call themselves
Christians today are killing the Son through their worship practice. In far too
many congregations today we find the focus of worship to be the worshipper
rather than our Lord Jesus. With an alarming frequency we see less and less
focus upon the person of Christ and the proclamation of the Gospel and more and
more we see worship focusing on entertaining the worshipper. Rather than
remaining in the light of God’s Word, many churches have opted for the darkness
of the world. There are denominations which claim to be Christian yet who place
their politics over God’s Word; they promote what God clearly calls sin;
abortion and homosexuality to name just two. Then there are those who’s proclamation
of social justice, worldly equality for all, supersede God’s justice of
retribution for the unrepentant and pardon for the repentant. And, of course,
there are those who attend what is loosely called a Christian congregation
simply because the music appeals to their senses, or they’re drawn to the
gathering because they can come in their everyday work clothes, be part of some
social club, and feel good about each other. Praise bands, seven-eleven songs
which glorify the self; you know those songs that have seven words which are
repeated seven times, and superficial and shallow sermons focusing on the works
of the worshipper rather than the Gospel of Jesus Christ; these are what is
commonly sought today in place of true worship of our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ. Tell me, where in the Gospels of Holy Scripture do we find Jesus with a
guitar, or one of His disciples warming up the crowd with humor while inviting
worldly corruption into the Church? We don’t!
Such as these do not see that
with their forms of worship they are serving themselves and not God. We serve
God only through faith and not with works chosen by ourselves. What He has not
commanded but is chosen by us, is already condemned: “You shall not
worship the Lord your God in that way. . . . . "You shall not do according
to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his
own eyes” (Deut. 12:4, 8 ESV). What we are supposed to do is clearly commanded so that
our self-chosen works are not necessary at all; indeed, such works are always
contrary to His divine Commandments. Moreover, the impression they make is just
as contrary as idol worship is contrary to worshipping the true Triune God.
As His laborers He has left us to tend the vineyard, to ensure that the
vine is not corrupted by disease or blight. He has left us to cultivate the
Word, to proclaim its truthfulness without changing it, without adding to it or
subtracting from it. Moreover, God expects unblemished fruit to be produced
from His vineyard; fruit from which He shall take His share when He returns. He
does not expect us to be worthless, scheming laborers who consider His vineyard
ours and who will treat His servants and His Son shamelessly and with contempt.
To do so will draw His wrath.
In closing this parable with a reference to Psalm 118, our Lord Jesus asks
the question, “Is Jesus your Stumbling Block or Cornerstone?” Surely the members
of the Sanhedrin had heard Him. They knew His meaning and clearly it was a
verdict on their disbelief. It was a shot across the bow of a
Oh, how many today think much the same of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Hey, it’s
been two-thousand years since He walked the face of the earth, if there ever
was a man named Jesus. Yes, we know He promised to come again, but, hey, He
hasn’t appeared and chances are He never will. Let’s make the focus of the
Church how many people we can get to occupy a seat in the pew, or how well we
get along with each other, or how well we entertain ourselves; putting on a
“good show”. Doctrine, theology, liturgy, hymnody, sacramental worship,
adherence to God’s Word, focus on true faith; those are old, worn-out, passé, forgotten
forms of worship. They are no longer relevant in this twenty-first century
church! Take care, the Lord Jesus is the cornerstone of the Church and, “Everyone who falls on that
stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him”
(v. 18).
When we sin we fall upon the
stone and are broken, however our brokenness is not fatal if we should turn to
God in repentance. Because of His love for His Son, God forgives us our sin and
heals our infirmities, mending ours transgressions. However, unbelief, leading
to unwillingness to repent, brings God’s condemnation and in such a case, the
stone falls upon the unbeliever and crushes him with eternal imprisonment in
hell.
Our Lord Jesus, the stone
the builders rejected, is the Son of the parable who is killed by the disloyal
servants. Led by the opposition of the Sanhedrin, Pilate orders the death of
our Lord Jesus; crucifixion. Thus, a mere three days later, our Lord Jesus is
nailed to the altar of the cross, where He sheds His blood for our salvation. However,
His death is not the end. No, it is just the beginning. For His death opened
the gates of heaven granting eternal life to all who believe in God’s only
begotten Son, Jesus Christ.
Moreover, He is the
cornerstone of the Church. Thus, He governs every aspect of the Church. He is the
new covenant and the great spiritual temple of God. True worship focuses only
on the object of saving faith, our Lord, Jesus Christ, because only by faith in
Him can one achieve the goal of faith; eternal life in heaven. He tells us
plainly, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me” (John 14:6 ESV).
The desire of the tenants of
the vineyard is to have their own way, which is to rob the Owner of His
rightful share of the harvest. Today, the
May the Peace of God which passeth all understanding
keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.