Bring in the Fruit!
Matthew 21:33-46
August 10, 2008
Introduction
We continue our walk through the gospel according to Matthew, and even though it’s only Tuesday, Jesus finds Himself in the thick of some controversy.
The religious leaders are really coming after Him – challenging His words, challenging His authority, challenging His claims to be the Messiah.
Jesus knows that in just a few days He would give His life for the sins of the world by being brutally nailed to a cross.
But here He is, debating the religious leaders, healing people, and teaching people about the Kingdom of God that He has come to bring.
I don’t know about you, but if I know that I’ve got a hard few days coming up, I tend to want to hide for a while and get psyched up for what I’ll be facing.
Not Jesus – He’s fully engaged, giving of Himself right up to the very end. Not hiding, not getting psyched up, not getting rested, not laying low.
In this passage we’re looking at today, Jesus is talking to the religious leaders who have decided to kind of gang up on Him.
They had tried to paint Him into a corner, but Jesus was too smart to allow that. And then Jesus turned the tables on them by challenging them and questioning them.
Jesus continues in that vein as He tells them a parable that does nothing but get them even more angry at Him.
And in this parable, we can find something for us as a church to apply as well.
God: Matthew 21:33-46 (p. 698-699) –
33 "Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. 34 When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit.
35 "The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. 36 Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. 37 Last of all, he sent his son to them. ’They will respect my son,’ he said.
38 "But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ’This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ 39 So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
40 "Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?"
41 "He will bring those wretches to a wretched end," they replied, "and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time."
42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: "’The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
43 "Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. 44 He who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed."
45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46 They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.
One thing about Jesus that could never be said about politicians and preachers is that He never wasted His breath just talking.
Everything He said had a purpose, and even His stories – the parables, were tools He used to get His points across.
Sometimes the points were rather obvious, sometimes they were obscure to the listeners, but they always had a point.
This parable is one where the point became pretty obvious, especially to the religious leaders, since it was about them.
In this parable, the landowner is God, the vineyard is Israel, the tenants are primarily the leaders of the nation of Israel, although it could also include all the Jews who had rejected Jesus as the Messiah.
The servants are the prophets, all the way up through John the Baptist.
The son here is obviously Jesus the Messiah.
But who are the other tenants that will be brought in to work the vineyard? The Gentiles. The non-Jews.
Jesus says in verse 43 –
"Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.”
And not only would the vineyard be taken away from the Jewish leaders and their nation, they would suffer judgment, illustrated here in the crushing by the capstone in verse 44.
And today we find that it’s the Gentiles who are taking God’s kingdom around the world with the news of the Messiah.
Main point for us today:
God is still looking for people and churches to work in His vineyard.
He’s looking for individuals who are willing to give themselves to Christ and His work instead of living for themselves.
He’s looking for churches who are willing to actually function as His hands and feet to a dying world in need of the Savior.
But you know what He finds in many cases?
He finds people who call themselves Christians but who are more interested in their comforts and conveniences than in helping people escape hell and find heaven through Jesus.
And truth be told, that’s me at times.
And He also finds churches that are more concerned with staying with the status quo of religious activity but not having God really be a part of what they’re doing and moving in them.
They’re not concerned with reaching people for Christ – they’re more concerned with reaching people for their church.
Now let me be clear about something: I want this church to grow. I want it to grow in numbers, because numbers aren’t just numbers – they’re people.
And I want more and more people to find this church and come to make it their church home, especially if they come because they found Christ through this church and its people.
I want this church to grow spiritually. I want more and more people to find that living for Jesus as the boss and Master of their lives is a great and wonderful thing, and is the source of real meaning in life. And I want this church to help them with that.
I want this church to grow. No question about it, and I don’t apologize one bit for that.
But more importantly, I want the Kingdom of God to grow. I want people to find Christ and live for Him, whether or not they come to this church.
At District Conference I love having people see our statistics. Love people to see we’re growing.
But statistics don’t really show what’s happening in the lives of people. They are an outward indication, though, so as our numbers rise, it’s usually an indication that God is moving.
I think this church is growing, by the way. I’m thrilled at what I believe God is doing here.
And I’m not the only one who feels this way. Ask your leadership what they think. Ask others who are involved in our ministries.
They’ll tell you: something’s happening in our church. God is moving. He’s moving in the hearts and minds of His people here at AWC. And we’re seeing fruit come in for Christ.
It’s exciting, folks, and I love it.
But more than that, I believe God is pleased.
You: So how can we keep it going?
1. Remember that we’re the renters, not the owners.
Jesus said that He would build His Church.
I’ve talked about this before, but let’s do a little review, okay?
Who does Aberdeen Wesleyan Church belong to?
Does it belong to…
A. The congregation right here – the ones who pay their tithes and offerings?
After all, we pay the bills, keep the lights on, provide the people for the work, and bring the food for the pot-lucks, right?
B. The Dakota District, whose name is on the property deed?
They’re the ones who actually have the legal responsibility for the property. They are responsible for the overall health of a church, and even take over the leadership of a church if it’s in trouble or between pastors.
C. The denomination?
Their name is on the sign, we choose to identify with the denomination in its beliefs and practices, and like the District, often resource the local church in certain ways.
Arguments could be made that any of those are true – that because of the paperwork filed at the courthouse or whatever, one of those three groups own the church.
But in reality, we don’t own the church – and we certainly don’t own the vineyard – Jesus does. We work for Him, not ourselves.
Start thinking like a renter, keeping in mind that we are responsible to work for the owner.
2. Pray for more workers.
Matthew 9:36-38 –
36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."
3. Look for ways to serve in the vineyard.
In other words, see if God wants you to be part of the answer to your own prayer for workers!
Look for ways to serve through the church or through organizations that partner with the Church to reach people for Christ.
Intentionally and earnestly look for the gifts that the Holy Spirit has given you for service in His Kingdom.
If you’re a believer and follower of Jesus, He has given you some tools to work for Him. Find out what they are and start using them.
If you want help finding out what those tools are for you, let me know and we’ll work to discover those.
We: Let’s get our eyes of ourselves and remember that our church belongs to God, that we have a mandate from Him, and that as we work to bring fruit for Him, He will bless us.
It is happening. May God be pleased to cause it to happen all the more.
Let’s pray.
