Rejecting Jesus Or Handling Him With Care

Sermon: Rejecting Jesus Instead of Handling Him with Care

Scripture: Luke 20:9-20

“Now Jesus turned to the people again and told them this story: “A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenant farmers, and moved to another country to live for several years. 10 At the time of the grape harvest, he sent one of his servants to collect his share of the crop. But the farmers attacked the servant, beat him up, and sent him back empty-handed. 11 So the owner sent another servant, but they also insulted him, beat him up, and sent him away empty-handed. 12 A third man was sent, and they wounded him and chased him away.

13 “‘What will I do?’ the owner asked himself. ‘I know! I’ll send my cherished son. Surely they will respect him.’ 14 “But when the tenant farmers saw his son, they said to each other, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’ 15 So they dragged him out of the vineyard and murdered him. “What do you suppose the owner of the vineyard will do to them?” Jesus asked. 16 “I’ll tell you—he will come and kill those farmers and lease the vineyard to others.” “How terrible that such a thing should ever happen,” his listeners protested. 17 Jesus looked at them and said, “Then what does this Scripture mean? ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’[a] 18 Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on.” 19 The teachers of religious law and the leading priests wanted to arrest Jesus immediately because they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the people’s reaction.

Introduction: Experiencing rejection is a normal part of life. It happens to all of us. There can be hundreds of reasons why we experience rejection. Even though, most of us want the reasons to be logical and reasonable, yet often the reasons don’t make sense. How could a single Palm Sunday Celebration cause the religious leaders to be jealous, and envious of Jesus? Whether it is a small thing or something of great importance, rejection happens to everyone. What is most important is how you deal with it. What can you do when you feel hurt or angry about rejection? Jesus kept focus on His assignment. Jesus knew that this event in his life had been foreword by the prophets.

Psalms 118:22-23, describes the treatment He was receiving at the hands of the Pharisees and other religious leaders after his glorious triumph entry. They were rejection Jesus and casting his away as a useless stone. The very stone God had chosen and sent to be the head of corner and the chief cornerstone was being rejected. Although Jesus was careful with his words as he relates this parable, the Pharisees and religious leaders got the message. The message for consideration was rejected as an attack. That’s still the case today. These men desire to setup the kingdom and be a part of God’s kingdom, yet they rejected God’s way and rejected Jesus as God’s Cornerstone. They were willing to fight for the tradition of the elders and hold on to the Laws of Moses, without realizing the implications.

Some Jews believe the passage in Psalms 118 was an accurate description of hos Israel rejected David, even though he was God’s choice as Israel’s new King. Yet this text speaks more accurate to how Jesus was rejected by the religious leaders. The builders of Jesus’ day, search long and hard for the right cornerstone and the right head stone. One stone tied the foundation together and the another tied the standing walls together. The stones were unique and cause the building to stand securely. Luke 20, shows Jesus surrounded by leaders trying to get rid of Him. They were looking for a way to trap Jesus with his words, but Jesus answered their question with a question. Their motives were always exposed, and Jesus avoided all their traps. In the parable of vineyard, Jesus identified the vineyard as Israel, the husbandmen as the religious leaders, the servants as God’s prophets and preachers, Jesus as the Son and God as the owner of all. Those listening recognized that Jesus was referring to his own rejection. Jesus himself was God’s chosen one. He is the Living stone, tried, elect and precious. Like the leaders of that day, many still reject Him.

Why did they reject him? Why do men reject him today? Was the landowner asking for too much? Was the rent cost too high? What the request unreasonable? Was the time period too limited? No, they simply rejected God’s choice, God’s way, and God’s provisions. The text said, “He went to a far country, waited for the proper season, and made a fair request. You see the rejection had little to do with vineyard owner and everything to do with the heart and the attitude of the husbandmen. They had become owners in their heart, greedy and possessive. They saw no excellence or value in Jesus. They thought about what they might lose instead of what they might gain. Then again, Jesus did not fit into their mold and would not play by their rules. They wanted a different kind of stone, one from their own quarry, with their mindset, so the easiest thing to do was to cast him away.