Week 39 The Vineyard Revisited

 

We have no video this week

Text: This week we’re skipping ahead since we covered the Triumphal Entry and the cleansing of the temple last spring on Palm Sunday and Easter (notes and videos are still on the blogs), and will be covering Luke 20:1-19 where Jesus’ authority is questioned by the priest and scribes and then the section where Jesus taught another parable to the people about a man who planted a vineyard, rented it out, and was unable to collect rent from the wicked tenants. This parable is usually called “The Parable of the Wicked Tenants”, but this title might cause us to miss Jesus’ point.

 

Other passages to read: We encourage you to read "horizontally" in these passages that are parallel or provide background information to our text from Luke 20:

·           Authority of Jesus challenged: vv 1-8; Matthew 21:23-27; Mark 11:27-33

·           Whole parable: vv 9-16; Matthew 21:33-46; Mark 12:1-12

·           Vineyard Imagery: Psalm 80:8-9; Isaiah 5:1-6; 27:2-4; Hosea 9:10; 10:1-2

·           Many messengers sent (some persecuted): 2 Chron. 24:19; Jer. 25:4-7

·           Death of the Son: Repeated message in Luke 9:22, 44; 18:31-34

·           Stone of stumbling: Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 8:14-15; 28:16; 1 Peter 2:4-10; Daniel 2:31-45

Points to ponder: In your study this week, you might want to think about one of these questions:

·           What “things” were the priests concerned about, what was prompting them challenge Jesus authority? You should be able to find at least three “things”.

·           In what ways is Jesus’ parable in vv 9-16 similar to Isaiah 5:1-6 and in what ways is it different?

·           Why does the vineyard owner show such patience?

·           Why does he send his son? Is he naïve or does he know what will happen ahead of time?

·           What might be a better title for this parable?

·           When those listening say, “Surely not!” in v. 16, to what are they referring?

·           In v. 18 what is Jesus talking about? Is it somehow better to be broken than to be crushed?

We try to answer these questions on the Jesus4Everyone blog in the next week’s post.

Questions to ask ourselves: The following questions are intended to help us move towards greater personal application of what we learn about Jesus…

·         How open am I to Jesus Christ’s authority over my life? What if Jesus starts rocking our boat? Is Jesus free to be Jesus in our life?

·         Have we ever started to back-peddle from what the Lord is doing in our life? Are we doing so now?

·         If we think about being a part of the Lord’s vineyard, how can that encourage us this week?

·         If we were to think of ourselves as “renters” rather than owners of this life how would it change my outlook this week? What “rent” if any does the Lord require from us today?

·         Will we “fall on the stone” or will the stone fall on us? How?

Pastor Randy’s Sermon Notes: Questions for Jesus 

Read Luke 20:1-19

1.The goodness of the owner

• “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it...” (Psalm 24:1)

 2.The rights of the owner

• The owner has rights. A tenant has responsibilities.
• Read Isaiah 5:1-5
• “He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” (v16)
• “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19

 

Quotes and Commentary:

Due to tending to a close family memorial service, I am not able to post commentary this week, but am encouraging you to do your own study here. I will take time to answer your ponderables from last week! Well OK, here are a few anyway!

·         The Herodian Temple was decorated with the national symbol of Israel…a huge golden vine.

·         According to the Mishna, the doorway of the temple was flanked by two square-shaped pillars each formed of ten cubes measuring four cubits on the sides. On these two pillars rested …five oaken beams, separated from each other by square stones set on a line with the pillars. It was a reproduction of the triumphal arches then so common in the east. Upon the immense trellis, or grille, stretched a golden vine, of which the grapes, according to Josephus, were of the height of a man. He adds that it extended almost [40 feet across the top] (from north to south) and that its top was [100 feet] from the ground. Tacitus also speaks of this vine.

·         The parable in vineyard 20:9-18 has been called “The Parable of the Wicked Tenants, but the main point of this parable is in the center…The noble owner’s decision to send his son!

Previously on Ponderables:

·         How should we interpret and apply the parables, the metaphorical theology, of Jesus? They are not primarily allegorical, unless meanings are identified specifically in the text. Jesus uses stories with real-life comparisons to make a spiritual point, often the opposite of what the audience might have expected. To understand them it is good if we can put ourselves into the cultural and spiritual situation of the original audiences and hear what Jesus was saying to them. A parable may have more than one point…like a house may have more than one window through which we might look out. However, we should not try to make it say something it didn’t or couldn’t have said to the original audience, or that would be contrary to the whole counsel of the Word of God.

·         What about this parable specifically? Is it an allegory, a historical allusion, a prophecy, a pastoral teaching on stewardship, or something else altogether? The answer is yes. It alludes to the journeys of Herod and then later his son Archelaus to Rome to secure their kingdoms under the authorization of Caesar. It does provide some teaching on stewardship (servanthood, accountibility, faithfulness in a little leads to greater responsibility). However, it is primarily a pastoral teaching, though not primarily on stewardship as much as it is it is about witness while waiting for the kingdom/king to come in all fullness! Kenneth Bailey brings out the helpful point that those remaining behind were being asked to do business in the name of an absent king surrounded by a rather hostile population. It was an interesting coincidence that last Sunday was the internationally designated Sunday to pray for the persecuted church

·         What points in this parable are realistic to the original hearer? How do we relate to these points of contact today in our culture without getting “fuzzy”? The nobleman going away to receive the kingdom is right from their own history. When Archelaus had done this he was followed by a delegation that said they didn’t want him for a king. Regime change in the ancient world, was often very costly to the supporters of opponents. The United States is pretty unique in the history of the world in that power can pass peacefully from one government to another. The idea of representing an absent king while surrounded by enemies is very similar to the national history of Israel. How faithful are we to the Lord’s commands to be faithful witnesses until he returns? How committed are we to believing that the Lord is loving and gracious in all his ways, or do we choose to look at things in a way that sees him as crooked?

·         In regards to the economic systems in this parable, what quality is valued most highly? It is not success, but faithfulness.

·         What does this parable teach us about the “kingdom of God”? What does it say about its timing? The kingdom was present in the king’s faithful people…yet the full realization of it would happen when the king returned. This parable would have functioned to cool off the eschatological fervor of the people and equip they for the long-view of faithfulness and the ministry of reconciliation.

·         How does this parable tie in to the teaching of Hebrews 11:6? Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Those who are faithful witnesses in a hostile culture demonstrate faith by believing that the “absent” king not only exists, but is a rewarder of those who seek [serve?] him.

·         How do we reconcile the apparent harshness in v. 27 with the idea of a “loving God”? This is what his enemies deserve…and certainly would have been the cultural norm during regime change in the Middle East at that time. But as a number of commentator’s point out, we are not told what happens in the end. In fact, it sounds like Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death…but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Luke 6:35-36 also teaches to love your enemies…because your Father is merciful. We can guess how this will turn out but we are not told how it did work out.