Tenants in the Vineyard

Tenants in the Vineyard

March 21, 2010, Lent 5C
Luke 20:9-19

GOSPEL LESSON: Luke 20:9-20 [The Parable of the Vineyard Tenants]
He went on to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, rented it to some farmers and went away for a long time. At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants so they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. He sent another servant, but that one also they beat and treated shamefully and sent away empty-handed. He sent still a third, and they wounded him and threw him out.
“Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my son, whom I love; perhaps they will respect him.’ “But when the tenants saw him, they talked the matter over. ‘This is the heir,’ they said. ‘Let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
“What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When the people heard this, they said, “May this never be!”
Jesus looked directly at them and asked, “Then what is the meaning of that which is written:”‘The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone’? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed.”
The teachers of the law and the chief priests looked for a way to arrest him immediately, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them. But they were afraid of the people. Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be honest. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor.

Why did Jesus die on the cross? Ask any Sunday school kid and they will give the right answer: Jesus died on the cross to forgive our sin and to give us eternal life. But, adults further ask: Why did Jesus have to die? And why did Jesus have to die on the cross? Jesus answered in today’s Gospel lesson. Jesus died because it was the will of God the Father. Jesus died on the cross so that the fruit or result of his death might be the salvation of the world.

Jesus told a parable about the tenants of the vineyard. The religious leaders may have been power-hungry, jealous fools, but they were not stupid. When Jesus told this parable, they immediately understood what Jesus meant. The "man who planted the vineyard" was the Lord God. The "vineyard" is the people of Israel. The "farmers" who were the "tenants" were the religious leaders who had the responsibility of taking care of the vineyard, taking care of the people of God. The "fruit of the harvest" is the life of the people of Israel. This fruit is first of all faith, and then it is all the works of faith. Galatians 5:22 lists 9 fruit of the Holy Spirit: "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control."

It was the job of the religious leaders of Israel to help the people bear good fruit, just like a farmer takes care of the fields: watering, fertilizing, trimming, cultivation, weeding, and the like. That is to say, teaching the word of God, training, disciplining, loving, caring, encouraging, protecting, and all the like. The "servants sent by the owner" are the Old Testament prophets. Prophets like Elijah, Isaiah and Jeremiah demanded that people give their lives to the Lord God. They demanded faith and the works of faith that come through the gifts of the Spirit. The religious leaders and the government leaders often were at odds with these prophets: King Ahab tried to kill Elijah; Jeremiah was thrown down into a dry cistern; other prophets were likewise badly treated or ignore, so that they were "sent away empty handed,” just like in the parable.

When the owner says, "What shall I do?" he means that there is little hope for those tenant thieves. He says he will send his "beloved son," but when he says "perhaps they will respect him," he realizes that perhaps they won't. The owner knows it is dangerous to send his son, he knows that it may be foolish, but he tries anyway. And the tenants say, "This is the heir! Let's kill him, and the inheritance will be ours." When the owner dies, they will make claim on the land and then finally control the vineyards and will no longer be bothered by his demands. "So they threw him [the son] out of the vineyard and killed him."

Now the "son" is Jesus. God sent Jesus to get the harvest from the people of Israel. He started harvesting people when he preached "Repent and believe in the Gospel." "Repentance" is faith, and when people "believe" in the Gospel that means that the live their life according to that belief. That is a life filled with faith and the works of faith, and the fruit of that faith is the fruit of the Spirit, "love, joy, peace, etc."

When the Jews handed Jesus over to the Romans, it was like throwing him out of the vineyard; it was throwing him out of Israel, as if he were an unbeliever or Gentile pagan. The Romans killed Jesus for the Jews. The Jews did not want to listen to Jesus because they did not want to hear the word of God or the demands of God. They wanted to control things by themselves. The parable says that the owner "will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others." At this point, the Jews said "May this never be!" They understood what Jesus meant! Jesus meant the destruction of Israel by the Romans and the control of the Holy Land by Gentiles. He also meant that the spiritual care of the people of God will be taken away from the Jewish leaders and given to the Apostles. It means that the Good News of God's salvation will be given to the Gentiles who will give the fruit of the harvest to God. The Gentiles will believe, and they will live out that belief in worship and in all aspects of their life. That means that the Gospel of Salvation will be brought to the non-Jewish Gentiles like you and me.

Through the ages, many people have not believed the Christian Gospel. There are some things that might seem strange to unbelievers. Of course, to believers, even something really strange can be accepted, if God says so. Because we believe in and trust in God, we accept a lot of things that to the world might seem weird. For example: we believe that God created the world and takes care of it, even though science can not see it. We believe that God loves us and disciplines us and guides us, even though therapists say that we control our own destiny as if we were our own god. We believe there is an ethic greater than the pursuit of wealth and happiness. That ethic leads us to love our enemy and to love people who need our love. We believe that God does care what we do and how we act. We believe that God takes sin seriously. We believe that God would rather forgive than punish us sinners. We believe that he sent his Son. We believe that the death of Jesus was caused by us, even though we live almost 2000 years later. We believe that his death gives us forgiveness. We believe that his death gives us life, that his resurrection gives us eternal life. We look forward to life eternal when Jesus returns at the end of the world. This is the Jesus that was thrown away, first by the Jews, then by the Romans and then by so many other people. Like a cracked or ugly stone that can not be used in building, Jesus was rejected as useless. But　this stone has become the capstone or cornerstone. It has become the most important stone in the building of the Kingdom of God. We believe this because the Holy Spirit has given us faith. And the Holy Spirit has given us the wisdom to understand the love of God

In the parable, the tenants do not kill the son inside the vineyard. It says, “So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.” And so Jesus was killed by the Romans in the Roman method of execution. And so Jesus was killed not only by the Jews, but also by the Gentiles. It means that the sins of we who are Gentiles also killed Jesus by our sin and unbelief. But Jesus’ death was a sacrifice for that sin. This means that the sacrifice of Jesus was not only for the salvation of the Jews, but also for the salvation of the Gentiles. It means that we Gentiles are also saved. Jesus was like a building stone that was first rejected, but we have found him as the most precious stone for our lives. He is our foundation, our cornerstone, and keystone of the arch that holds everything together.

Amen!

Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church

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