SERIES OVERVIEW
Springboarding off of the Apostle Paul’s life focus, clearly expressed in 1 Corinthians 2:2, Pastor Greg launched an “open-ended” message series on January 12th, 2020 – focusing on “Just Jesus.” He is walking us through the entire New Testament, pulling passages from the Old Testament for context, and keeping us focused throughout the year on “Just Jesus.”
This is Just Jesus, Week 72, Matthew, Part 70. Today Pastor G does a deep dive on Matthew 21:23-46. Jesus interacts with the religious leaders of Israel. He tells them two parables that emphasize obedience to God and judgment for disobedience. He continues to present Himself as the Messiah without directly making that claim to them and He again predicts that they will put Him to death.
MESSAGE NOTES
When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” ~ Matthew 21:23
Exousia (GREEK)
The power and authority to act. It especially refers to moral authority and influence. It refers to a spiritual power to act on God’s behalf in the world. It is understood as conferred power or delegated empowerment, or authorization. In the rabbinical world, the exousia, the authority to teach and make binding decisions was conferred by the semikkah, or the laying on of hands by others who were already ordained as rabbis and leaders. They are saying, no established rabbinical school is claiming Jesus as a rabbi and He is not a Levitical priest either.
Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ~ Matthew 21:24
The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?” ~ Matthew 21:25a
And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the people; for they all regard John as a prophet.” ~ Matthew 21:25b-26
And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. ~ Matthew 21:27
“But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ ~ Matthew 21:28
God is the landowner. The two “sons” represent two different groups of people who claim to be faithful believers. The work of the vineyard is the work of the kingdom, obediently doing what God calls us to do.
THE FIRST SON (GROUP OF BELIEVERS). – And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. ~ Matthew 21:29
So, initially, they were disobedient. Initially, they did not respect the wishes of the Father. But came to their senses later. They realized they were wrong, repented of that wrong behavior, and went and did as they were commanded to do.
THE SECOND SON (GROUP OF “BELIEVERS”) — The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. ~ Matthew 21:30
So, he makes a promise to His Father to be obedient and do what he has been commanded to do but then he does not keep his word.
Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” ~ Matthew 21:31a
The big idea is obvious: Repentance and actual obedience, not lip service, is what wins with God.
Samuel said, “Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams. ~ 1 Samuel 15:22
To Obey is better than sacrifice. Don’t be a “churchian!” Be a Christian!
In other places in Matthew’s Gospel Jesus also makes it clear that even those who do not necessarily know they are working for God will be rewarded, at least on some level, for their righteous behavior. That’s a powerful thought!
Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. ~ Matthew 21:31b
For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him. ~ Matthew 21:32
“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey. ~ Matthew 21:33
God is the landowner. God is the vineyard owner. The winepress is a direct symbol of judgment day in several passages of the prophets and again later in Revelation. The vine-growers who are renting the property and harvesting grapes are the believers that God has entrusted with the work of His Kingdom.
Jesus is retelling and expounding on a very similar parable from Isaiah 5:1-7/
Let me sing now for my well-beloved. A song of my beloved concerning His vineyard. My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill. He dug it all around, removed its stones, And planted it with the choicest vine. And He built a tower in the middle of it And also hewed out a wine vat in it; Then He expected it to produce good grapes, But it produced only worthless ones. “And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge between Me and My vineyard. “What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why, when I expected it to produce good grapes did it produce worthless ones? “So now let Me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard: I will remove its hedge and it will be consumed; I will break down its wall and it will become trampled ground. “I will lay it waste; It will not be pruned or hoed, But briars and thorns will come up. I will also charge the clouds to rain no rain on it.” For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel And the men of Judah His delightful plant. Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress. ~ Isaiah 5:1-7
“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey. When the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce. The vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third. Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them. ~ Matthew 21:33-36
These slaves, or servants, sent by the landowner to the farmers entrusted with the vineyard, represent the prophets. God has repeatedly sent prophets to teach the people and guide the people and correct the people. To help them produce good grapes, good spiritual fruit in their lives. In response, the general populace of Israel, and many of Israel’s kings and other leaders, have treated these messengers of God shamefully. Jesus says they beat them, they killed them, they stoned them.
But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. ~ Matthew 21:37-39
Jesus has been alluding to His imminent crucifixion and death more and more often as His earthly ministry comes to its climax. He does it again here. Obviously, Jesus is the Son of God, the son of the vineyard owner. Jesus is the culmination of God’s efforts to urge Israel to return to righteousness, to return to following Him with full devotion. Though the prophets have been ignored, even John the Baptist, the most recent prophet of God, perhaps they will listen to God’s own Son, Jesus. Jesus voices aloud what is in the hearts of these religious leaders. They are threatened by the coming of the actual Messiah. They don’t want to give up their control, status, and influence. Jesus rightly predicts that they will begin to plot His death. That’s exactly what they will do, this very week.
Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” ~ Matthew 21:40
They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.” ~ Matthew 21:41
Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘The stone which the builders rejected, This became the chief corner stone; This came about from the Lord, And it is marvelous in our eyes’? ~ Matthew 21:42
Jesus quotes from Psalm 118. Again, you remember, this is one of the Hallel Psalms. It’s being sung by the crowds all during Passover preparation week and on into Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It’s what the crowds were singing to Him at the Triumphal Entry just a few days before, the word of which upset the Jewish leaders who shouted at Jesus to correct His supporters make them stop. We’ve talked before about all the prophetic references to Jesus in those psalms and Psalm 118 has a lot of them.
This is the gate of the Lord; (Jesus has been revealed as the Gate of Eternal life) The righteous will enter through it. I shall give thanks to You, for You have answered me, And You have become my salvation (literally my Yeshua – My Jesus) The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone. This is the Lord’s doing; It is marvelous in our eyes. (That’s what Jesus just reminded His opponents of) This is the day which the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. O Lord, do save, (in Hebrew Hosanna!) we beseech You; O Lord, we beseech You, do send prosperity! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord; (Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord – That’s what the crowds were singing at the triumphal entry!) We have blessed you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, and He has given us light; (Jesus is the light of the world – born during the Feast of Sukkot when Jerusalem was known as such – as an adult – during another Sukkot – Jesus stood in the Temple courtyard of the women and said “I am the Light of the World.”) Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. (How’s that for a cross foreshadowing?) You are my God, and I give thanks to You; You are my God, I extol You. (The crowd sang this to Jesus! Did they fully comprehend the words and the context?) Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting. ~ Psalm 118:20-29
Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it. And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.” ~ Matthew 21:43-44
No room for misinterpration here. Nothing subtle or hidden. No innuendo. Cold, hard, truth. Because of your sinful actions and your willful disobedience, despite the constant lip service you pay to God and the hypocrisy you daily live. judgment is coming your way. You have rejected the Son of God, the chief cornerstone of the faith. After all, Jesus is the Word of God. He literally is the Torah upon which all of the Jewish faith has been built. You are going to put the Son of the vineyard owner to death and you will be judged for that sin.
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them. When they sought to seize Him, they feared the people, because they considered Him to be a prophet. ~ Matthew 21:45-46
These political movers and shakers have just been called out on the carpet by Jesus. They realize they’ve just been dressed down and rebuked and they are furious. They begin to plot to discredit Him, turn the crowds against Him, falsely accuse Him and get Him killed.
What should they have done instead? They should have recognized the true Word of God being spoken to them. They should have repented for their sinful hearts and wrong attitudes. They should have apologized to Jesus. They should have begun to live in faithful obedience instead. They did none of those things. There’s a lesson for all of us in this also.
Daily ask the Holy Spirit to point out to you any area where you are outside the will of God.
Whenever the Holy Spirit convicts you, don’t be hard-hearted.
Repent and return to obedience.