Kingdom Identity

Matthew 21: The End of the Beginning (6)

Pray Psalm 142.5, 6.
I cried out to You, O LORD:
I said, “You are my refuge,
My portion in the land of the living.
Attend to my cry,
For I am brought very low;
Deliver me from my persecutors,
For they are stronger than I.

Sing Psalm 142.5, 6.
Dix: For the Beauty of the Earth
Hear my cry, LORD, I am low! They are strong who seek my soul.
Jesus frees from every foe; He will keep and make me whole!
Refrain
LORD, You are my Refuge strong!
O receive my plaintive song!

Read Matthew 21.1-46; meditate on verses 28-46.
What kind of “work” does the Kingdom of God require?

Prepare.
1. What do these two parables have in common?

2. How did Jesus apply these parables?

Meditate.
This is a rather lengthy passage, I know; but I think these parables go together. Each has to do with helping us understand who is in the Kingdom of God and who isn’t. To Jesus, establishing Kingdom identity was very important. It should be for us as well.

The first parable (vv. 28-32) addresses the question of which son did the father’s will, the one who said he would work but didn’t, or the one who said he wouldn’t work but did. Not a difficult question for the religious leaders to answer. The one who actually worked did his father’s will, not the one who merely said he would. Jesus used this teaching to condemn the religious leaders because, unlike the tax collectors and harlots who heard John the Baptist, and repented of their sins, the religious leaders did not believe his message. 

The second parable (vv. 33-44) indicts the religious leaders for betraying their trust. God had given them charge over His “vineyard”, and they, rather than returning fruit to Him, kept it all for themselves, and abused and murdered His servants the prophets. True citizens of the Kingdom of God recognize that everything they have comes from God; therefore, they are always eager to return the fruit of, obedience, praise, and glory to Him, and not to keep it for themselves. The religious leaders spoke their own condemnation (v. 41) by condemning the wicked vinedressers in the parable, and Jesus confirmed their conclusion. God would take the Kingdom away from them and give it “to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” That nation is the Church of Jesus-followers who have looked to Him alone for forgiveness and eternal life (v. 44).

The implications for Kingdom identity in these two parables are clear: The Kingdom does not consist in mere words, but in power, invested in good works to the glory of God (1 Cor. 4.20; 10.31). The religious leaders condemned themselves; but rather than repent, they determined to play out Jesus’ second parable to the letter, and began to seek an opportunity to take and kill Him (vv. 45, 46).

Treasure Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
Go work. I won’t. But went.
Go work. I will! But didn’t go.

The other difference between the two was repentance.
The first son’s conscience was pricked. “…afterward he regretted it and went” (Matt. 21.29).
The second son never felt a twinge of guilt and was content with his decision for inactivity.

This parable is akin to the sower’s seeds falling on different ground.
What at first glance looked like a good drop for the second son, 
turned out to be rocky, thorny, and scorched (Matt. 13.6 7).

We can look askance at the chief priests and elders; but we would be better served by looking at ourselves.
How often do we, in our vast observational skills, self-righteously declare words like these pertaining to others? “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers 
who will render to him the fruits in their seasons” (Matt. 21.41). Take that, you sinners!

But what about our sometimes-wavering response to Jesus’ “Follow Me”?
“No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Lk. 9.62).

We must be sure that, as Jesus said, we “… let [our] ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’, and [our] ‘No’, ‘No’.
For whatever is more than these is from the evil one” (Matt. 5.37).
Or as James added to Jesus’ words: “Lest you fall into judgment” (Jms. 5.12).

Our work is to follow Jesus. 
So, when He calls, we not only answer in the affirmative, 
but we do what He has commanded.
Lest the Chief Cornerstone falls on our “maybe/maybe not works” 
and grinds them to powder (Matt. 21.44).

Every day is a new day with God. 
If we have previously answered or done poorly, we need only repent and change our ways.

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise” (Ps. 51.17).
“But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, 
and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, 
this one will be blessed in what he does” (Jms. 1.25).

We can please the Father, and do His command—Go work— 
with a “Yes” blend of the two sons’ response—I will. And I went.
“Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (Matt. 13.43).

Reflect.
1. What is a “broken spirit”? How does that relate to repentance?

2. What Kingdom work awaits you today? Have you agreed with the Lord to undertake it?

3. To work in the Lord’s “vineyard” is a great privilege. What “return” is He seeking from our work?

And let us ask ourselves, whether we who have the vineyard and all its advantages, render fruits in due season, as a people, as a family, or as separate persons. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Matthew 21.33-46

Pray Psalm 142.1-4, 7.
Seek the mercy, grace, and power of the Lord to serve Him in your part of the Kingdom today.

Sing Psalm 142.1-7.
Psalm 142.1-4, 7 (Dix: For the Beauty of the Earth)
With my voice, O LORD, I cry—hear my plea for mercy, LORD!
My complaint mounts up on high, bringing You my troubled word:
Refrain
LORD, You are my Refuge strong!
O receive my plaintive song!

When my spirit faints away, You my falt’ring pathway know;
where I take my journey they traps have hidden to my woe.
Refrain

LORD, look to my right and see: None takes notice of my plight.
Is there refuge left for me? Is my soul out of Your sight?
Refrain

Out of prison lead me, LORD; thanks and praise to You shall be.
Righteous men armed with Your Word will Your grace bestow on me.
Refrain

T. M. and Susie Moore

If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment to give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).

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Other columns of interest: This week: Our Read Moore podcast continues readings from the book, The Joy and Rejoicing of My Heart. Our Crosfigell teaching letter is pursuing a series on the spiritual poetry of the Celtic Revival. The ReVision column is working through a study of the role of reason in the life of faith. Click here to see all the other columns and writers available to you.

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.