My guess is that few of us like being told what to do—especially if we don’t think the person has our best interests at heart. Yet we have different ways of showing (or not showing) our true feelings.
Jesus spoke to such differences. He tells the story of two brothers who were told by their father to spend the day working in the family vineyard. One son said he wouldn’t do it— but later changed his mind and went. The other son agreed to do the work, but didn’t do it (Matt 21:28-32).
Jesus told his parable to religious leaders who had challenged his authority to chase money-changers out of the temple while he was, at the same time, showing mercy to the tax collectors and prostitutes that came to him for help (Matt 21:12-13) (Matt 21:23-27).
Looking back, Jesus was in the process of being the faithful Son who had come to work in his Father’s vineyard. But he was like no other son, and this was not just any vineyard (Isa 5:7). Jesus was the true vine of Israel. He was the Temple of God, mirroring the heart of his father in heaven—for some of the most unlikely people. He had come to forgive and to befriend those that a religion of laws had condemned.
Seems to me that Jesus also came to help people with authority issues—see what real authority looks like.
(+9 rating, 9 votes)
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