Sunday, November 14: The Parables

Matthew 21: 28 – 32

As we continue in our series on PARABLES we will be looking at the parable of the two sons recorded in Matthew 21:28-32. Jesus is in Jerusalem and He is talking to the religious leaders of the day as they are trying combat the influence that Jesus is having among the people. He then shares this parable to indicate how the religious leaders have hardened their hearts to God’s Will for their lives.

Jesus shares a story of a father asking his two sons to work in the vineyard and then details how they respond to the request. The first son refuses at first, but then decides to follow his father’s request. The second son says “yes” to the request, but then afterward does not go. He asks the crowd which son did the will of the father and they answer with the correct answer; the first son. Jesus then explains the story in stating how tax collectors and prostitutes are like the first son and the religious leaders are similar to the second son when it comes to following God and His Will for their lives.

We know that all have sinned. This is stated numerous times in the Bible and leads us to the realization that we need a Savior. In order to do God’s Will we will need a heart of repentance. Just like the first son, we will sin against God, but if we are to make a change and “go and work in the vineyard” or follow God’s Will for our lives, we need to repent. It starts with confessing with our mouth and believing in our heart that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior and the only way to the kingdom of heaven. But it does not stop there. Because we have a sinful nature that is being eradicated by God’s grace through sanctification, there will be numerous moments in our lives where we need to surrender, confess our sins and commit to the act of repentance. Only by doing this throughout our lives, we model our lives after the first son and follow God’s Will.

Danger lies in not having a heart of repentance and hardening our heart to what God wants for us. The religious leaders looked good on the outside by following their own religious rules, but their hearts were far away from God. Just like these religious leaders, we can say all the right things and make ourselves look good to the world, but our hearts can be focused on our own rules and values instead of God’s. This parable helps to call us back to a heart of repentance; where we recognize Jesus as Lord and Savior and follow His Will, confessing our sins and committing to a life of repenting of our wrongdoings. May the Holy Spirit do a work in our hearts today to call us to His Will for our lives.

See you Sunday.

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