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- It was Palm Sunday and Jesus had just entered Jerusalem. Upon coming to the Temple, he drove out the money changers and merchants.
- As he clears the Temple, he alludes
to Isaiah 56 and Jeremiah 7, so let's read them: Isaiah 56:1-8; Jer. 7:1-20.
- We need to understand that by
referring to these passages Jesus was speaking out in judgement against the
entire Temple establishment including the chief priests and Temple itself, not
simply the people but the whole nation.
- The ruling priests had failed to live
up to God's standard and thereby were unprepared for the new order of the
kingdom of God.
- The merchants and moneychangers were
set up in the court of the Gentiles; the only part connected to the Temple
where Gentiles were allowed to come and pray.
- It was on the authority of the high
priest and the ruling priests that the merchants and moneychangers had set up
there in the first place.
- Since it was they who kept the Temple
from becoming a house of prayer for all peoples, all nations, then they and
their generation would be judged, just as the Temple, the ruling priests, and
the nation were judged in Jeremiah's day.
- Responding to Jesus words and
actions, the chief priests and elders come to Jesus to question him.
- You see, the chief priests,
especially the high priest, had absolute authority over the entire Temple
complex and mount, so their demand that Jesus explain by what authority he had
done this was a legitimate demand.
- But Jesus does not directly answer
their question. Instead, he offers them a counter question about the baptism of
John. If they will answer his question,
then he will answer their question.
- Because Jesus had caused a
disturbance in the temple boundaries, they had every right to question him, but
their intentions extended outside of their rights to question him because they
longed to convict him.
- If they could get Jesus to admit that
he did not have the authority to do what he had done, then they would be able
to take action against him.
- But the question Jesus asked about
the baptism of John created a problem for the ruling priests.
- Just as their answer would put them
in jeopardy, so also Jesus answer to their question would put him in jeopardy.
- But what is really interesting is
what Jesus was saying about himself in his question: if John's authority was
from heaven, then the authority of Jesus is also from heaven.
- Their answer, "we do not know,"
shows the hypocrisy of the ruling priests.
Jesus caught them in a dilemma and to protect themselves they did not
admit the truth.
- That answer reminds me of today's
take-home truth: Better an honest sinner
that repents than a hypocritical Christian.
- Jesus responds appropriately in turn
by refusing to reveal God's truth to those who have intentionally set
themselves at odds against his kingdom.
- That's what hypocrites do; they say
one thing and do another. Hypocrites are
play actors, pretending to be someone they are not. That's where Jesus gets the term from, the
theater.
- Jesus then tells them the parable of
the two sons: Matt.
21:28-32.
- The phrase, "what do you think,"
is a familiar one in Matthew's Gospel and it reminds us that Jesus is the one
doing the teaching here; he is the one with the authority and to whom we need
to pay attention.
- In this parable, Jesus shows the
importance of doing what is right above merely talking about it.
- If we are going to talk the talk,
then we need to walk the walk.
- It was expected of children to be
obedient and respectful, so when the first son rebels and rejects his father's
direction it would've been shocking to any first century Jew listening to
Jesus.
- This son more than changed his mind,
the Greek expresses regret and repentance, so he later respected his father's
wishes and went to work in the vineyard.
- The father goes to the second son and
tells him the same thing, asking him to go to work in the vineyard.
- He says, "sure thing, dad,"
but does he? No, he gives his father verbal respect but this respect is only an
illusion; it is false because he never shows up at the vineyard.
- Jesus asks the chief priests which son
did his father's will and they answer him, the first son.
- Jesus was more than making a point
with this parable; he was summarizing his teaching about the kind of people who
enter God's kingdom.
- He forces the ruling priests to give
him an honest answer.
- Then Jesus makes another shocking
point: “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the
prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you
in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax
collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not
afterward change your minds and believe him."
- There is tremendous shock value in
what Jesus is saying here that publicans and prostitutes enter the kingdom of
the heavens ahead of powerful religious figures.
- Better
an honest sinner that repents than a hypocritical Christian.
- He highlights the self righteousness
and self superiority of the religious authorities against the humble sinner who
repents.
- The righteousness of the kingdom of
the heavens displayed in the person of Jesus Christ turns religious, right-wing,
conservativism & left-wing, religious liberalism on their heads.
- Just like the Pharisees, the ruling priests
(who were the Sadducees) represent Israel's spiritual and religious elite.
- It was their desire to preserve and
conserve the status quo because they were the ones in power second only to Rome
and even Rome respected their authority over the Temple.
- God is interested in conserving, but
not the status quo. God is interested in liberating people from their captivity.
- This goes way beyond anyone's political agendas because
it's not about politics, it's about restored relationships.
- It's about the kingdom of God and God
is interested in conserving what is right and true as reflected in his kingdom & God is interested in liberty from oppression, injustice, addiction and sin.
- By trying to protect and conserve
their authority over the Temple, the Sadducees were excluding the one to whom
the Temple points, the Lord of the heavenly Temple, Messiah Jesus.
- In this parable, Jesus reveals that
both he and John draw their authority from the same source, and those that
reject John's way of righteousness show their claims to be God's servants as
false, hypocritical.
- Can you hear the voice of Jesus in
this parable? Is God speaking to you today?
- What
about us? Do we say one thing then do another? Does our walk match our talk?
- Are
we like the first son who obstinately says, "No, I will not go," but
later regrets, repents and goes? Or are we like the second son who says, "Yes,"
then never goes?
- Are we like the ruling priests, the
Sadducees who say yes to God with all their display of religion, but inwardly
only want to protect themselves and their positions of power?
- Or are we like rebellious tax
collectors and prostitutes that regret and repent of our actions so that we may
humbly serve our God and his world?
- Jesus wants to clear our hearts and
our minds, the Temple of our bodies, so that we will come to understand this
truth:
- Better
an honest sinner that repents than a hypocritical Christian.
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