Resisting Authority
Matthew 21:33-46
June 17, 2012
As you know, Jesus has just irritated
And upset the entire religious establishment of His day.
• He entered Jerusalem on Monday with His own parade.
• He entered Jerusalem on Tuesday and cleared the temple.
• He entered Jerusalem on Wednesday and began to teach the people.
None of those three things went over well
With the accepted religious establishment.
• They didn’t like the children praising Him, telling Him to make them stop.
• They certainly didn’t like Him clearing the temple.
• And they didn’t like Him teaching without having received permission from them.
To say Jesus has upset the applecart is a severe understatement.
He is doing the absolute unthinkable!
And now on Wednesday morning the religious leaders of the day
Have decided to confront Him about His perceived insurrection.
Matthew 21:23 “When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?”
They wanted to know who He thinks He is.
And you will remember that before Jesus would answer
He first wanted to know if they even recognized His type of authority.
He had the same type of authority that John the Baptist had
Authority from God.
So He asked them, “The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?”
If they said from heaven He would say, that is also where My authority is from.
If they said from men, they would have to answer to the crowd.
And so they said, “We do not know.”
And Jesus wouldn’t tell them where His authority came from.
Instead He told them a parable about the danger of failing to believe.
There were two sons, both were told to go to work in the vineyard.
One said he would not, but then he did.
The other said he would, but then he didn’t.
Only one did the Father’s will, the other was all talk.
And Jesus pronounced this judgment on the religious leaders.
Matthew 21:31-32 “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. “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.”
And so the point of that parable was obvious.
You did not recognize My authority,
Just as you did not recognize John’s authority.
Now, not recognizing authority is a bad problem.
Failing to see Jesus for who He is, is a bad problem.
It leaves men in sin, unrepentant, and unredeemed.
Not recognizing authority is bad.
But the problem we find this morning is even worse.
They didn’t just fail to recognize Jesus’ authority, they resisted it.
To resist authority indicates not only recognition of it,
But also rebellion against it.
These people can’t claim ignorance, only obstinance.
And that is far worse.
And that is the point Jesus will make here in our text this morning.
There are those in our world who are certainly ignorant of the truth about Jesus.
Either they have never been told, or they have never understood.
And that is a serious problem, for Jesus is still the only way to be saved.
But far worse are those who have been told, who do understand
And who choose to rebel anyway,
And this is where we find Israel and her stubborn leaders.
So let’s look at our text this morning – 4 things
#1 THE PARABLE
Matthew 21:33-41
So Jesus just revealed that the religious elite failed to believe,
But that is not all He wanted them to know.
For before they get in a word edgewise, Jesus already has more to say.
“Listen to another parable.”
And this is a parable with an Old Testament origin,
But one that Jesus expounds even more on here.
(33) “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it, and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.”
Now, the first part of that parable was familiar.
The second part was new information by Jesus.
Let’s understand the first part.
TURN TO: ISAIAH 5
(VERSES 1-2)
We understand the point, this man got a bad vineyard.
(VERSES 3-4)
This parable works just like the ones Jesus asked, He lets you deliver the verdict.
Two questions:
“What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done?”
Answer: Nothing
“Why, when I expected it to produce good grapes did it produce worthless ones?”
Answer: Bad seed (nothing you did caused it)
And so the punishment:
(VERSES 5-6)
The vineyard will be destroyed
And then comes the revelation.
(VERSE 7)
Now when Jesus starts this parable,
It almost sounds like He is going to give that parable to them again.
In which case the religious leaders could have finished it for Him.
But here, Jesus reveals that bad seed wasn’t the only problem.
There was another problem.
For the vineyard owner, after preparing the vineyard
Did something else that Isaiah failed to mention.
He “rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey.”
Now that completely changes the perspective of the whole parable.
Now there could be someone else to blame.
So the first point of this parable was this:
1) THERE WAS A RENTAL (33)
This vineyard owner put His vineyard in the hands of those
Who were supposed to make sure this vineyard produced good grapes.
There were stewards placed in charge.
(We of course know this to be the religious leaders of the day)
2) THERE WAS REBELLION (34-39)
So now we have fast-forwarded through the whole growing season.
We have gone from rental to harvest.
These men were supposed to be producing the fruit of the vineyard,
Bringing forth good grapes so that when the owner returned,
They could pay Him His produce.
And so “When the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce.”
But there was a problem.
There was rebellion in the ranks.
(35-36) “The vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third. “Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them.”
So the Owner sent slaves to make sure the produce was,
But the vine-growers resented it and killed those who confronted them.
Certainly this was a shocking problem.
But what comes next is even worse.
(37-39) “But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ “But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ “They took him, and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.”
On this occasion the Owner sends His Son because certainly they should know better than to mess with the Son of such a powerful man.
But apparently they don’t.
They assume that if they kill the Son, they can also steal His inheritance.
And so they drive Him out of the vineyard and kill Him.
And in a purely illustrative sense we understand what happened.
These men were called to produce fruit, and they did not.
And when some came to call for an account they killed them.
We also understand clearly the point to the parable.
• The Owner is God
• The vineyard is the kingdom of God (Israel)
• The vine-growers are the religious leaders
• The fruit is righteousness
• The slaves are the prophets
• The Son is Jesus
• The inheritance is the glory He has as the Son
And these religious leaders,
Who had produced no righteousness for the kingdom of God
Killed those who called them into account,
Even the Son, thinking they could steal His glory.
There was a Rental, There was Rebellion
3) THERE WILL BE RETALIATION (40-41)
And so Jesus asks a question:
“Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?”
And they know the answer:
(41) “They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.”
They knew what would happen.
No one would put up with such a rebellion.
These men would be judged and judged severely.
IT WAS HOWEVER A VERY SHOCKING STORY
(many of Jesus’ parables were meant to be shocking)
Luke’s gospel says this:
Luke 20:16 “He will come and destroy these vine-growers and will give the vineyard to others.” When they heard it, they said, “May it never be!”
Luke isn’t saying that the people resisted the sentence as wrong.
They clearly agreed with the sentence passed by the vineyard owner.
They are simply responding to the horror of the situation.
They are saying, “May nothing like this ever happen!”
May there never be such terrible vine-growers
That would actually kill the Son of the vineyard owner.
And I think that is an important point to reveal,
For it helps us understand the next point of Jesus.
The Parable
#2 THE PROPHECY
Matthew 21:42
They were appalled by such a disturbing story,
Thinking surely nothing like this would ever really happen.
But Jesus reveals just the opposite.
Not only will this happen,
But God Himself actually prophesied that it would happen.
(42) “Jesus said to them, “Did you never read in the Scriptures, ‘THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?”
In other words, “What do you mean, ‘May it never be!’?”
God’s own word says this very thing will happen.
“Did you never read in the Scriptures?”
In other words, “don’t you remember this story?”
And He carries them to Psalms 118.
By now you should be familiar with Psalms 118.
It was from Psalms 118 that the children sang during the triumphal entry.
Peter quoted from this Psalm when he was on trial before the Sanhedrin.
Psalms 118 is the final stanza of the Hallel,
It was the Psalm of a champion, and several weeks ago
When we studied the triumphal entry I had you outline that Psalm.
• It speaks of a champion who is first in anguish…
• Then a champion who chooses to trust God over man…
• A champion who is then killed in battle…
• But a champion who overcomes death…
• And a champion who through his life grants deliverance to the people…
And the summation verse of that chapter is:
Psalms 118:22 “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone.”
That is to say that the least valued piece
Actually became the most important piece.
The One who was rejected as insignificant
Actually became the One who holds everything together.
And of course it was a picture of Jesus, who was de-valued by Israel,
But who is the most important person they will ever know.
But the thought that such a valuable person could actually be rejected and even killed was a shocking and horrifying thought.
It was just as absurd as the parable Jesus just gave
In which a vineyard owner’s son was killed.
It was too shocking, it was too absurd, it would never happen.
And that is why David went on and gave the next verse
After that summation verse.
Psalms 118:22-23 “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone. This is the LORD’S doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.”
David was saying the same thing.
I know this is “marvelous” another way to say “shocking”,
But it is what God is doing.
I know this is strange, but it is God’s plan
Whether you think it should be or not.
• And so Jesus gives the parable in which the unthinkable occurs,
• The people are shocked and think surely not.
• And then Jesus says, “Oh yeah, didn’t you ever read Psalms 118?”
• The Messiah Himself will be rejected in exactly that same way.
See, Jesus quoted this prophecy
To prove that the parable was not hypothetical.
• That parable was not just some “far out, tall-tale that could never happen”
• That parable was more real than the people wanted to realize.
• That parable went right along with the prophecy of God.
As shocking as it sounds that someone would kill the son of the vineyard owner in order to seize his inheritance; it shouldn’t be, for it will happen.
They said, “May it never be!”
And Jesus says, “Oh yes it will.”
People will actually kill the son of the vineyard owner.
People will actually kill the Son of God.
It will happen.
And that means that the retaliation will happen as well.
Which is the third point.
The Parable, The Prophecy
#3 THE POINT
Matthew 21:43-44
And notice the certainty with which Jesus continues to speak.
“the kingdom of God WILL BE taken away from you…”
That was not a hypothetical illustration.
That was a true story, and you are the vine-growers.
You failed to produce fruit, and you killed the prophets,
And you will kill the Son in order to steal His glory,
And you will be brought to a wretched end.
And then Jesus gives what is one of the more
Difficult statements that He ever makes.
(44) “And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”
I know that is sort of a hard statement, so let me simplify it for you.
First, we see two different fates, but both are bad.
One is “broken to pieces”
The other is “scattered like dust”
Second, one fate is worse than the other.
Clearly being broken is not as bad as
Being ground into fine powder and scattered like dust.
One gets broken, the other gets absolutely pulverized.
One is cracked, the other is ground into a fine powder.
The question comes in as to what causes it.
“And he who fall on this stone will be broken to pieces;”
We already know the stone is Jesus,
And so the one who falls on Him will be broken.
The Greek word “on” translates EPI
57 times in Scripture it is translated “over”
Let’s read it that way.
“And he who falls over this stone will be broken to pieces;”
And that helps us understand it much better.
Isaiah 8:14 “Then He shall become a sanctuary; But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”
Romans 9:30-33 “What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith; but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone, just as it is written, “BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.”
It speaks of a people who couldn’t get over the fact that the Messiah
Would suffer and die, and because of this they failed to believe.
It falls in line with Isaiah 53 when people simply can’t believe
Because the Messiah had no “stately form or majesty” to help us believe.
They stumbled over Him.
And certainly a person who stumbles over His low position
Will be broken, they will be judged.
It may be rejection due to ignorance,
But it is still rejection and they will still be judged.
But the second problem is even worse.
“but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”
WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT HERE?
Well some people trip over the stone of Jesus, not willing to accept His humiliation and they never believe and are judged.
But some actually have the stone fall on them and crush them to pieces.
What does that mean?
Let me give you a few other Scriptures
To help you understand the figure of speech here.
Zechariah 12:3 “It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it.”
In that passage Israel is the stone
And those who try to lift it are severely injured.
So this person tried to lift the stone and the stone ended up hurting them.
Either their back, or dropped it on a foot, or something.
Psalms 2:1-3 “Why are the nations in an uproar And the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand And the rulers take counsel together Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!”
Now that Psalm speaks of rebellion and rebellion against God’s anointed,
Namely Jesus.
And there they are trying to “cast away their cords”.
Literally throw Him off.
And maybe now you are getting the picture.
Jesus is referencing those who recognize the rock, they just don’t like it,
And so they are trying to throw it away.
It is not the stone overlooked by the builders,
It is the stone rejected by the builders.
But He says when they do that, the rock will actually fall on them
And crush them into a fine powder.
The first people did not recognize authority and they tripped over.
These people rebel against the authority and they will be judged.
Those vine-growers, they knew it was the son.
It was a pre-meditated attack on the Son of the Vineyard Owner.
They knew what they were doing.
They didn’t kill him thinking he was merely a slave.
And that made them in even greater danger.
And that is Jesus’ point here.
You think that story about the vineyard is shocking
And hope nothing like that ever actually happens.
I’m telling you not only will it happen,
But it is happening right before your very eyes.
• I am the Son
• You are the vine-growers.
• You have produced no fruit and I came to call you into account.
But instead of humbling yourself and listening to My message,
You have rebelled against Me and will kill Me.
And as a result of your rebellion God will bring you to a wretched end.
To try and destroy Christ is to secure one’s own destruction.
That is the point.
And a painful one.
Now, you would think that any sane person at this point would repent,
But no, Jesus was right on about them.
#4 THE PERFORMANCE
Matthew 21:45-46
The only thing that kept them from killing Him right then
Was that they were afraid of the people.
See, for this day, Jesus is charge in the temple
And there is nothing they can do about it.
Luke’s gospel says:
Luke 20:19-20 “The scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on Him that very hour, and they feared the people; for they understood that He spoke this parable against them. So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, in order that they might catch Him in some statement, so that they could deliver Him to the rule and the authority of the governor.”
They were a fulfilling prophecy.
And it is a tragedy.
But the point is clearly made to us.
Those who rebel are destroyed.
You must submit to the Son of God, Jesus the Christ.
Let me take you one last place this morning.
TURN TO: PSALM 2
And there we have it all.
You can reject and rebel, but it does not end well,
Because like it or not Jesus is the Son of God the heir of the world.
The only option is to shown discernment and submit to the Son.
We are not ignorant.
We know the truth.
We are called to produce fruit, and submit to the Son who desires it.
