Parable of the wicked vinedressers/Parable of the Wedding Feast?/Do we love our God and our neighbor?/Jesus in the Wilderness

 

Parable of Two Sons

 

In the Temple where He was confronted with the unbelieving chief priests and the elders, Jesus told a parable (Matt.21: 28-31). A certain man had two sons and he came to the first and said, “Son, go, work today in my vineyard”.  He answered and said, “I will not”.  Afterwards, he repented and went.  And he came to the second and said likewise.  And he answered and said, “I go, sir” but went not. 

 

When Jesus asked them which of them did the will of his father, they answered and said, “The first”.  Then Jesus said, “Verily, I say unto you, that the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him”.

 

Jesus made it clear to the chief priests and the elders that even the publicans and the harlots were better than them because the latter believed John and repented of their sins. Arrogance and self-righteousness blinded the eyes of the chief priests and the Pharisees.  They did not believe John because John was a simple man with no formal education in the laws. He was not in the palace but in the wilderness, shirking public recognition. John spoke the plain truth boldly and without fearing men. The publicans and the harlots believed him and entered the Kingdom of God.  But the chief priests and the Pharisees rejected John and missed the Kingdom of God.

 

Today also, there are true and humble servants of God like John the Baptist in our midst. They are not popular in the Christian world. They are not materially prosperous like John.  However, they have the message of God to give to the Church. You may not hear them on the T.V or through any popular media of communication because they are in the wilderness. There are also people likened to the publicans and the harlots because they are devoid of pride and humble themselves before God with a contrite heart and cry, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner”.  These people hear the voice of God through His messengers likened to John the Baptist and enter His Kingdom.

 

In the above Bible passage, Jesus compares the vineyard to the kingdom of God. This shows that when a person is born again in the Spirit and enters the Kingdom of God, he or she should go to the vineyard of God for ministry.

 

Many members in the body of Christ have not yet gone to the vineyard of the Father.  They say that they are saved and are filled with the Holy Spirit.  They go to the churches and worship God.  But they do not hear the call of God, “Son, and go work today in my vineyard”. The Devil has shut their ears to the call of God.  They have no passion for lost souls.  They are not involved in the outreach ministry of taking the glorious gospel to those places, which are not yet reached by the gospel. 

 

According to a report published in “Outreach” by Indian Evangelical Mission, India has only 3% of Christian population and that too, many of them are nominal Christians. In about 200 Indian languages, the Bible translation is yet  required to be taken up urgently.

 

There are many in our midst, who said they would go to the vineyard of God in other nations.  But they have not yet gone.  But they are some Christians who said that they would not go.  But they have really gone to the other nations.

 

Let us bear in mind:

 

(i)                  We should believe in the messages of God given to us through the members of His body, humble ourselves before God and repent of our sins and backslidings. We should be like the publicans and harlots and not like the chief priests and the elders.

 

(ii)                We should be prepared to go to the vineyard of God today.

 

Parable of the wicked vinedressers

 

The parable of the wicked husbandmen may be read in Mathew 21:33-46. Through this parable, Jesus conveyed a message to the chief priests and Pharisees that the kingdom of God offered to them would be taken from them and given to “a nation bring forth the fruits thereof”, and that “whosoever shall fall on this tone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder”.

 

Jews of the physical Israel had lost the kingdom of God by rejecting the Christ.  The kingdom of God has since been turned over to those who are accepting the Christ in many nations.

 

The same message holds good for us today.  There are chief priests and Pharisees in our midst.  They claim through their mouth that they have accepted Christ as their Savior but deny Him through their life.  The Lord has blessed them with all resources including abundant finances so that they might bring forth the fruits. They have built their own empires and not the Kingdom of God.  They evangelize the same people who have already heard the gospel.  They have not used their resources for preaching the gospel to those who have not heard the gospel even once in their lifetime. They may prophesy in Jesus’ Name.  They may cast out demons and do many wonders in His Name. If they have not done the will of the Father, Jesus will declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, ye who work iniquity” (Matt.7: 21-23). The ministries given to these people will be taken away from them and given to those who will do the will of the Father and who will bring forth the fruits thereof.

 

Whoever falls on this stone will be broken.  Jesus is the Chief Corner Stone of the Church or the household of God, which is being built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph.2: 19-20).  Those people who do not do the will of the Father may fall on this Stone in the household of God and will be broken.  It may be an anointed servant of God, a Christian ruler or a Christian businessman.  If he or she does not do the will of the Father, he or she will stumble on this Stone and will be broken.

 

On whomsoever this Stone shall fall, it will grind him to powder. Christians are being persecuted all over the world.  The other day I read a message that the evangelical churches in some European nations are going underground because some laws are being enacted in these nations, which would directly affect the evangelical work.  This Stone will fall on those national leaders, who persecute the body of Christ and will grind them to power. The Son of God is angry and His wrath is kindled but a little.  They will perish in the way unless they repent and turn to the Son (Ps.2: 10-12)

 

Parable of the Wedding Feast

 

Let us meditate on Mathew 22:1-5. Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. Again, he sent out other servants, saying, “Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding”. But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another  to his business…”

In this passage, we read that the king, out of his love for his people, not only invited a select group of people to the marriage but also sent His servants to call them personally. The great tragedy was that the chosen people “were not willing to come”. But the king did not relent in his efforts and sent out “other servants” with a specific invitation telling the chosen people about the great benefits that could be enjoyed by them. Today, similarly, the King of Kings sends out His special invitation to His chosen people through “other servants” like me, reminding them of His dinner. Oh, beloved guests of the great King, your King has killed His oxen and fatted cattle. Are you in the midst of a severe financial crisis, unemployment or any other problem in your life? Why cannot you lift up your eyes and see what great blessings are in store for you in His Kingdom? “My oxen and fatted cattle are killed”, tells your King. The oxen and fatted cattle are symbolic of His great spiritual and material blessings that await you in His Kingdom. “All things are ready”, He further tells you. You need not strive any longer to get such ready-made blessings. You have to simply “come to the wedding”.

It is a pity that they “made light of” His repeated invitations and “went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business…” Oh, dear wedding guest, as you read this message, are you hearing His small voice of invitation, bidding you to the marriage? Do not make light of it and go your own way. I quote a parable here. A five star hotel has thrown its door open to all the people in the town to get into it and eat the delicious food specially prepared for them. A blaring loudspeaker announces the grand invitation. But, a hungry man who passes by that side makes light of this

 invitation and goes hungry.

Let us forget our own farm or our own business today and take heed to his repeated invitations. We give priority to our own farms and businesses and relegate a back seat to Jesus in our life. Do you fall under the category of the people chosen for the wedding dinner who “were not willing to come”? Today, this final invitation comes to you bidding you to come to the “wedding”.

 

Marriage of the king’s on means the salvation to be experienced by accepting Jesus as the Savior.  The kingdom of heaven is “like a certain king who arranged a marriage of his son”. The chosen people have not taken seriously the invitation extended to them.  They not only ignored the invitation, but also seized the servants of the king and killed them.

 

In many nations including some Christian nations, there is a persecution of the evangelical churches.  Various laws are being enacted for preventing the true ministers of God from evangelizing or from preaching the truth of the Word. The servants of the King of Kings in these nations are being persecuted and killed.  The King, on hearing about it, is furious.  He sends out His armies, destroys these murderers and burns up their city. God chose Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylonians to judge and destroy His own people of Israel (Hab.1: 6).  The armies of Babylonians or Chaldeans became the armies of God.

 

Since the invited people are not worthy, the King is asking His servants to “go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding”.  In these last days, when the people of Christian nations are not accepting Christ, the people of non-Christian nations are accepting Christ and are being brought to the kingdom of heaven.

 

Even in the kingdom of heaven, the King “saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment”.  Merely accepting Christ and entering the kingdom of heaven is not enough.  Growing in holiness and conforming to the image of Christ would only confer us the wedding garments.  One who has entered the kingdom of heaven but without the wedding garment may be thrown out and cast “into outer darkness”.  Many a slip between the cup and the sip!

 

Let us heed the invitation of the King and come to the wedding.  We should put on the wedding garments once we enter the kingdom of heaven.

 

Do we love our God and our neighbor?

 

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees in the matter of resurrection of the dead, they gathered together.  Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?”  Jesus said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matt.22: 34-40).

 

Jesus summed all the laws of Moses and the prophets in these two commandments.  Today, Jesus asks us to follow these two commandments, which, in essence, comprise the whole Bible.  Do we love our God with all our heart, soul and mind?  Jesus just before His ascension into the Heaven asked Peter, “Simon, son of Jones, lovest thou Me more than these?” (John 21:15).  You may love Jesus.  But how do you love Him?

 

You may love Him half-heartedly.  You may regularly go to the church for worship and may put a few dollars into the offering box. Or you may give away a few dollars to God’s work.  Or you may appreciate a sermon from the pulpit or a message of God from some web site. Or you may participate in intercessory prayers.  But still your prominent love for God may not be with all your heart, soul and mind.

 

Jesus expected Peter to show a kind of love, which was not merely prominent but was preeminent.  Peter was expected to love Jesus more than anybody else – to love Him unto death.

 

When I wrote this very message, a Christian monthly magazine “Tortured For Christ” for March 2003 was received by post.  The first message was on the martyrdom of one Brother Than in Myanmar.

 

Brother Than was imprisoned for his Christian faith on some false charges by the military dictatorship of that nation.  Two Christian believers sought permission to visit him in prison.  When permission was granted to them with a great difficulty, the police ordered them not to speak to Than.  However, the police took the two believers and Than to a nearby wooded area where they were allowed to speak to Than, to their great surprise.

 

Before any of the believers could share some words of encouragement, Than pleaded with them, “I am very glad you are with me.  Please go to my area and share the gospel.  This is our responsibility.   You must be faithful unto death”.  Suddenly, one of the policemen shouted at Than, “You have spoken too much!”   He drew out his pistol and shot Than in the head.  The believers were sternly warned to recant their Christian faith or else they would face the same fate. With this warning, they were permitted to bury Than’s body.

 

If you love God, are your “faithful unto death”? (Rev.2: 10).

 

The second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself.  Who is your neighbor?  In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus explained in the 10^th chapter of Luke that the neighbor was a certain man who was stripped of his raiment and was wounded by thieves.  The wounded man was neglected by a priest and a Levite but was taken care of and was nursed by a certain Samaritan. Your neighbor is one who is neglected by the society and the religion. 

 

You are not supposed to love your neighbor in the normal human manner but in the divine manner.  You should love him as “thyself” – in the same manner as you love yourself or your own family.  The Good Samaritan not only gave first aid to the wounded man but also took him on his animal and brought him to an inn.  Not only that, he also paid two denarii’s to the innkeeper for taking care of the wounded man and promised to compensate the innkeeper for the extra amount spent by him. This is love for your neighbor.

 

Let us dedicate ourselves to our God and our neighbor.

 

Jesus in the Wilderness

 

Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. Immediately after His baptism, the Spirit could have led Jesus to a powerful ministry because He was filled with the Spirit Who descended like a dove and alighted upon Him (Matt.4: 1-11). What else Jesus needed, except the power of God given to Him through the baptism of the Holy Ghost? Why did the Spirit lead Him to the wilderness, and not to the ministry? Why did the Son of God who had been given all the authority by the Father in heaven and on earth need to go to the wilderness?  Just to fast for 40 days and 40 nights and to become hungry!

 

These days in many churches, over-emphasis is being laid on the doctrine of power-filled ministry or “dunamis”. No doubt, we need the power of God for a deliverance ministry.  But we have to pay a price for it by remaining in the wilderness.  By “wilderness”, I am not exhorting you to go to a desert in your town or village.  “Wilderness” is a place where you are shut up with God, away from the distractions of this world.

 

You should fast for a day, two days or more than that as led by the Spirit. Prayer and fasting are required for a power-filled ministry.

 

Jesus faced three kinds of temptations. Firstly, when the Devil wanted Him to turn the stones into bread, as He was hungry.  Since the 40 days’ fast ended, Jesus could have performed this miracle, even before the Devil made his debut in the wilderness. Since He was hungry, He was quite justified in taking food through a miracle.  But Jesus chose the glory of His Cross, which was before His eyes.  Jesus said to the Devil, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God”.

 

Ever word from the mouth of God is important for us. We need not only His words of promises concerning material prosperity, miracles and divine healing but also His words of counsel concerning suffering and endurance.

 

The Devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple and asked Him to throw Himself down so that the angels could protect Him. The second temptation by the Devil concerned His popularity by performing a feat in front of the unbelieving Jews.

 

Many servants of God have fallen down from the pinnacle of their ministries because they wanted to be popular. After performance of signs and wonders through the gifts of the Spirit, followed by publication of testimonies concerning such signs and wonders, the Devil would whisper into their ears, “The Lord has used you in a mighty manner”.  He would also suggest to them they do such kinds of miracles in the next meeting. The devil would boost their pride and would induce them to be popular through self-advertisements.  Let us not listen to the voice of the Devil.

 

Again, the Devil took Him upon an exceeding high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  But Jesus chose the glory of His Cross. 

 

The Devil wanted Jesus to “fall down and worship” him because he pretended to be the owner of all the kingdoms of the world.  The Devil wants us to love the world, and to worship him.  He sets idols of worldly pleasure in our heart and we are tempted to worship such idols planted by him in our heart. He wants us to settle down in comforts and luxuries of this world so that we may relegate to the background the call of God and our vision. We would be induced to fall down and worship our worldly possessions in place of God.

 

To sum up, the Devil tempts our weak flesh.  He tempts our ego to be popular.  He also tempts us to possess all things of the world for our self-gratification. We have to go to the wilderness and commune with Jesus Christ by fasting and prayer.