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RESPONSE:
The parables were directed at the
Sanhedrin. In the parable of the two
sons (Matt. 21:28-32), one son refuses
to go and work in the vineyard, but
later repents and goes to work. The
second son says he will go, but doesn't.
According to Barclay, the tax collectors
and prostitutes said they wouldn't
work, but they turned their lives
around. The Jewish leaders are the
people who said they would obey God
and then did not. The ideal son would
be the one who agreed and obeyed.
Of the two sons, the one who repented
is preferred. This speaks to two classes
of people: those whose practice is
much better than their profession
and those whose profession is much
better than their practice.
If you could write a sound bite for
this parable, maybe it would be: the
really good person is the one in whom
profession and practice meet and match.1
The second parable (Mark 12:1-12)
is about the vineyard. Jesus used
terms familiar to the people, especially
the Sanhedrin.
- The owner of the vineyard is God.
- The vineyard represents the people
of Israel.
- The servants are the prophets.
- The son is Jesus.
- The cultivators are the rulers
of Israel.
When you put the players into the
parable, you can see the point Jesus
was driving home to the Scribes and
Pharisees.
The parable is full of truths.
- God is generous. The vineyard
had everything.
- God is trusting. The owner left
the cultivators to run the vineyard.
God trusts us to run our lives.
- God is patient. He gave the cultivators
many opportunities to pay their
debt.
- God is just. God might bear long
with disobedience and rebellion,
but in the end He acts.
- Jesus regarded himself as a son
not a servant.
- Jesus knew he was going to die.
The cross was not a surprise ending.
2
The third parable from Matthew 22:1-14
is about the marriage of the king's
son. The Jewish custom was to send
an invitation without the time. After
the preparations have been made, the
final summons was issued. In this
parable, the invitation was refused.
The refusing guests symbolize the
Jews. Long ago, they had been invited
by God to be His chosen people. When
God's son came into the world, they
were invited to follow him, but they
refused.
The people in the highways stand for
the sinners and Gentiles who never
expected an invitation.
Jesus used familiar stories that the
rabbis told, which involved kings and
garments. The first rabbinical story
told of a king, who invited his guests
to a feast without telling them the
exact date and time; but he did tell
them that they must wash and anoint
and clothe themselves that they might
be ready when the summons came. The
wise prepared themselves at once and
took their places to wait at the palace
door. The foolish thought they would
have plenty of time. The summons came
without warning and the wise went in.
The foolish were locked out. The rabbinic
parable tells of the duty of preparedness
for the summons of God, and the garments
stand for the preparation that must
be made.
What about the wedding garment? That
always disturbed me: if they got the
invitation on short notice, why would
they be rejected just because they
didn't have the appropriate attire?
Jesus' lesson is showing how the
Gentiles and sinners would be gathered
in. The door is open to all, but when
they come, they must bring a life
which is appropriate for the occasion.
Grace is not only a gift; it is a
grave responsibility. A person cannot
go on living the life he lived before
he met Christ Jesus. He must be clothed
in a new purity and a new holiness
and a new goodness. The door is open,
but the door is not open for the sinner
to come and remain a sinner - rather
for the sinner to come and become
a saint. The parable had nothing to
do with what the guest wore on the
outside, but with what he carried
on the inside.3
— GAL
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