Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 242, Matthew 21:28-32 — Parable of the Two Sons Matthew 21:28-32 (NASB1995) “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.’ 29 And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. 32 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.” Review Yesterday, we read about the religious leaders asking Jesus where His authority comes from. This is a valid question since He is not associated with the Sanhedrin and holds no position of human authority. We learned teachers in Jerusalem often lectured in the temple courts. Those who experienced public dishonor would attempt to regain their honor by publicly challenging their opponent. This is what the Sadducees are doing to Jesus since He openly called out their teachings and hypocrisy. However, Jesus knows they intend to discredit or accuse Him further with this question. Therefore, He responds with a question of His own about John the Baptist’s authority instead of answering. Jesus’ question snared the religious leaders in the ultimate conundrum, as they must choose between admitting John was a genuine prophet from God or a false prophet. Ultimately, they refuse to answer, revealing their continued lack of conviction, as they seek to protect their image by remaining ignorant instead of humbling themselves for truth. This prideful mindset continues to keep them enslaved in unbelief, as they cannot acknowledge that Jesus is the Messiah. Jesus then refuses to tell them where He gets His authority. Discussion Today, we read Jesus’ parable of the two sons. Jesus continues speaking to these same Sadducees, saying, “28 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.’ 29 And [the son] answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go.” The initial image here is of a vineyard owner with two sons who he tells to go work in the vineyard. It was extremely common for sons to work in the fields of their fathers.[1] We see the first son initially reject his father’s request. However, he eventually becomes convicted of his disobedience and obeys his father’s command to work in the vineyard. Conversely, the second son initially says he will go work in the vineyard, yet does not. Jesus then asks the leading priests and scribes, “31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They reply, saying, “The first.” While they are correct in their response, it proves the point Jesus is making with this parable. Even though the first son defiantly rejected his father’s command at first, he heeded his conviction and obeyed. In heeding his conviction, the first son contrasts the second, who displayed obedience yet truly never obeyed. The first son’s change of heart reveals a healthy conviction leading to repentance, while the second son remained in unrepentant disobedience. Jesus uses this parable to show these religious leaders their hypocrisy, disobedience, and lack of convictions, which is a theme connected to their rejection of John the Baptist from the previous passage (vs. 23-27). These religious leaders are like the second son in that they say the right things and seem righteous in their works, yet they disobey God with their hearts. Jesus then heavily rebukes them, saying, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.” This statement likely provoked immense anger in the Sadducees, as Jesus could not have chosen a much more offensive comparison.[2] Tax collectors and prostitutes were the lowest of sinners and even considered ‘outsiders’ in ancient Jewish culture.[3] Jesus uses this extreme example to contrast between the seemingly obedient and unrepentant religious leaders and the worst sinner who comes to repentance. He is also showing that entering heaven is not just a matter of outward displays of obedience, but an inward change of heart leading to genuine repentance. The tax collectors and prostitutes do the will of God by believing and turning from their sin while the leading Sadducees reject God’s will by remaining disobedient in unrepentant unbelief. Jesus then concludes His rebuke by referencing John the Baptist again. He says, “32 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.” Just as the first son turned from his disobedience, many tax collectors and prostitutes acknowledged their sin and need for God and turned back to Him through the preaching of John the Baptist. They believed John was truly a prophet and left no doubt because of their repentance and subsequent fruit in a transformation of life.[4] Conversely, the religious leaders rejected John, ignoring their convictions. They refused to turn from their unbelief and repent of their sin, revealing themselves as mere pretenders of faith. They showed signs of obedience, yet never truly repented, believed, and submitted to God, just as the second son. We will read another parable tomorrow. Application The application of this parable is simple: repent and believe. As many times as I have read this parable before, I never truly understood its meaning until studying it for this post. All of us are one of the two sons in this parable. Either we were once lost in our sin and came to saving born-again faith or we remain lost in our pride, hypocrisy, and lack of fruit-producing transformation. The question is which son are you? Are you an unbeliever lost in your sin, yet convicted by it? If so, are you heeding that conviction that can lead to transformative, saving faith or ignoring it? Or are you a professing believer who checks all the religious boxes, yet lacks genuine fruit in keeping with repentance? There is no gray area in this message, as John and Jesus preached it. Either we heed the Holy Spirit’s whisper in our hearts to turn from our sin and submit to God, or we ignore it and remain in our unrepentant sin and unbelief. The former leads to life, while the latter leads to death. God seeks no one to perish in their sin, which is perhaps why Jesus explains the meaning of the parable to the Sadducees. They need to know they are walking on the wide path to destruction. Their works are worthless without the transformative heart change necessary to be born again into a new life in Christ. In the same way, many professing Christians put on an image of righteousness while remaining in darkness. They say they believe yet do not obey God and produce good fruit. John warns this fruitless lack of repentance leads to eternal judgment (Mt. 3:1-12). Jesus teaches the same, yet provides the way to be saved from that judgment—by believing in Him. May we turn from our sins and turn to God. May we obey the convictions He lays in our hearts. May we repent of self-righteous living and genuinely seek a heart transformation that leads to a new fruit-producing life in Christ. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 21:33-41. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Craig Keener, “IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Second Edition.” [2] Ibid. [3] Ibid. [4] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.”
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