He then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.
6 “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
7 “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.
9 “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this scripture:
“‘The stone the builders rejected
has become the capstone a;
11 the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes’ b?”
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God created the universe - it belongs to Him along with everything it contains. Unfortunately many of us are like 2nd, 3rd...25th generation farmers who by virtue of their residency assume the land belongs to them. They do not remember the tenancy agreement forged between the Creator God and the original humans.
Right now we are in a period of history after the Son has come but before the vineyard has been reclaimed. We as tenants are still carrying along our merry way ignorant of the fact that the Owner will return and judge the rebels. God has chosen to delay His return to allow the news of His Son to be spread throughout the world, so that people may choose to be reconciled to God and live in right relationship with Him. These people will be prepared for His coming, and will have cause for great celebration when it occurs. For those who continue to live in rebellious autonomy, the occasion will not be one for celebration, but judgment.Reflection
We tend to shy away from these truths because they are antagonistic. People don't like hearing about judgment, or being accused of living in rebellion against God.
As someone who is a natural peacemaker, I tend to underplay this part of the gospel picture also. I naturally prefer to emphasize love, acceptance, reconciliation, the blessings of being reconciled to God and the hope of eternal life, rather than talking about the consequences of rejecting God.
However the Bible strongly teaches that God will judge the Earth. As confronting as that message is, it needs to be heard. Not to scare people into the pews, or to condemn people not in the pews, but to give people the opportunity to choose to be prepared.
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