In the passion week leading to his betrayal and crucifixion, Jesus tells a parable about a vineyard owner renting out his land to some tenants. Jesus is drawing from the prophet Isaiah, who had also compared God’s creation of Israel to a landowner who planted a vineyard. The vineyard owner eventually sends messengers to collect on what is due. The tenants reject each messenger and send them way. The climax of the story is when the vineyard owner plays his final card, sending his son. He believes they will respect the authority his heir. But the tenants see the chance to secure the vineyard for themselves and kill the son. The parable makes it clear that Jesus sees his own death and ministry in this story. Jesus would be rejected by his own people and put on the Cross so that, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone". In this parable we discover a window into Jesus’ own interpretation of his death and ministry. His life and death are an act of surrender to the Father who wants to plead with the tenants to return to right relationship with the vineyard owner. They may reject him, but the vineyard owner will have the last word over the matter. What is that last word? At the Cross we discover that the last word is not retribution, but forgiveness. When God should have been pouring out punishment on humanity for the murder of Jesus, God instead absorbs the blow of injustice and responds in forgiveness.
In the passion week leading to his betrayal and crucifixion, Jesus tells a parable about a vineyard owner renting out his land to some tenants. Jesus is drawing from the prophet Isaiah, who had also compared God’s creation of Israel to a landowner who planted a vineyard. The vineyard owner eventually sends messengers to collect on what is due. The tenants reject each messenger and send them way. The climax of the story is when the vineyard owner plays his final card, sending his son. He believes they will respect the authority his heir. But the tenants see the chance to secure the vineyard for themselves and kill the son. The parable makes it clear that Jesus sees his own death and ministry in this story. Jesus would be rejected by his own people and put on the Cross so that, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone". In this parable we discover a window into Jesus’ own interpretation of his death and ministry. His life and death are an act of surrender to the Father who wants to plead with the tenants to return to right relationship with the vineyard owner. They may reject him, but the vineyard owner will have the last word over the matter. What is that last word? At the Cross we discover that the last word is not retribution, but forgiveness. When God should have been pouring out punishment on humanity for the murder of Jesus, God instead absorbs the blow of injustice and responds in forgiveness.