The Tenants and the Vineyard
Text: Mark 12:1-12
Core Idea: For God so loved the world, He sent His one and only Son, His beloved Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. “The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” May we respond with humble adoration and experience the fullness of His saving love for us.
INTRODUCTION
Good afternoon, Lighthouse. We are back in the Gospel of Mark exploring the life of Jesus. But before I read today’s passage, let me remind you of the story so far. On the first day of the Passion week, Palm Sunday, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a lowly donkey – signifying that though He may not be the King we expected, He undoubtedly is the King we need; a humble King who saves us from the power of sin. On the second day, Monday, Jesus cursed the fruitless fig tree and cleaned out the temple – reminding us that He is the only way to God, that He is the ultimate sacrifice. Now, Jesus’ action had greatly angered the religious leaders, and this prompted them to look for a way to kill Him. So, on the third day, Tuesday, they confronted Jesus – questioning His authority. This incident was significant in that Jesus didn’t remain silent – He revealed His identity and exposed them of their hardened hearts. But He wasn’t done yet – He would once again remind them of God’s patient love for them and invite them to turn from their evil ways. Then with this in mind, please turn your Bibles to Mark 12:1-12. Let me read this for us.
1 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed. 6 He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; 11 the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” 12 Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest Him because they knew He had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left Him and went away.
Amen. This is the Word of God for you today.
It’s actually been a while since we heard Jesus speak in parables – the last major parable we saw in Mark was in chapter 4 (the parable of the Sower). Then suddenly and unexpectedly, we see Jesus speaking in a parable again – but this one is unique. Let me explain. Earlier, when Jesus spoke about parables to His disciples, this is what He said in Mark 4:11-12, “The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you. But to those on the outside everything is said in parables so that, ‘they may be ever seeing but never perceiving, and ever hearing but never understanding; otherwise they might turn and be forgiven!’” In other words, most of Jesus’ parables were designed to present a truth about the kingdom of God in a subtle way so that believers would understand but those outside the kingdom would not. But what makes this parable different is that the religious leaders perceived that Jesus was talking about them – verse 12, “They [the religious leaders] knew He had spoken the parable against them.” It’s like Jesus was holding up a mirror before them so that they may clean themselves up, so that they would repent. But sadly, this only aggravated them – provoking them to find ways to kill Jesus. Phil Ryken wrote, “Jesus of Nazareth is the greatest storyteller who ever lived – the prince of parables. None of His stories is longer than a page, and yet every last one of them is a perfect masterpiece. With every story He told, our Savior took one step closer to the cross. It was the last week of His life on earth, and Jesus told a gospel parable about the cross and the judgment to come.” Jesus didn’t have to tell them this parable. But He did – knowing that He was taking another step closer to the cross. He knew that this would offend them and speed up His death – yet He did it anyway all because of His love for them and us. Then let me point out three things from this passage:
· GOD’S PATIENT LOVE
· GOD’S RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT
· GOD’S MARVELOUS PLAN
1) GOD’S PATIENT LOVE
Verse 1. Jesus began with a scene that would’ve been quite familiar to the listeners there since it was drawn from everyday life in Palestine. In those days, it was common to see landlords live in other parts of the world and send back servants to collect a portion of the profit that the tenants made by working in the field. So, this agricultural imagery wouldn’t have been foreign to whom Jesus was speaking. And from the beginning, we clearly see that the owner demonstrated great care for his vineyard. Listen to the detail provided in verse 1 – he put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress, and built a watchtower. The owner loved his vineyard, and he wanted it to be fruitful. Now, verse 2 tells us that “at harvest time,” the owner sent his servant to collect the fruit of the vineyard – which means that the owner wasn’t being unreasonable (like demanding for fruit when it’s out of season). No, at its proper time, he sent a servant to collect what was rightly his. The result was shocking. Verse 3, “But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed.” For unknown reasons, these tenants not only refused the request of their landlord but also beat his servant. But to our surprise, the owner didn’t give up – in fact, he showed extraordinary patience by sending many more servants only to be met with increasing violence. Verses 4-5, “Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.”
Now, this parable is remarkable in that in these few words, Jesus described the history of Israel’s relationship with God in the OT. Israel had a long history of abusing the prophets and messengers of God. For example, the prophet Jeremiah was beaten on multiple occasions, thrown into a pit, then stoned. Elijah and Amos were banished and forced to hide in caves. Ezekiel was murdered after preaching a sermon. Habakkuk and Zechariah both were stoned by the Israelites living in Jerusalem. Zechariah got chased into the temple and stoned near the altar. Isaiah was killed brutally by His own people. In fact, God said in Jeremiah 7:25-26, “From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again I sent you My servants the prophets. But they did not listen to Me or pay attention. They were stiff-necked and did more evil than their ancestors.” That was the history of Israel – rejecting, mistreating, killing one servant after another. Israel’s history was one long attempt to stiffen their necks and harden their hearts against the Word of God. And through this parable, Jesus wanted the religious leaders to know that they were no different from their ancestors – they too were guilty of hardening their hearts against God. Now, it’s important to note that this parable is allegorical – each character represents someone. The owner represents God the Father; the vineyard, Israel; the tenants, the religious leaders; the servants, God’s prophets; and the son, Jesus Himself. Then considering this, it’s incredible to see how the owner responded.
We would expect the owner to bring judgment against the tenants right away. They deserved justice. But the owner remained patient, forbearing, and forgiving to the tenants. Pastor Tim Keller said, “Justice is getting what you deserve. Mercy is not getting what you deserve. Grace is getting what you don’t deserve.” The tenants deserved justice but instead, they received mercy. And he kept on giving more – they were about to experience what grace was all about. Verse 6, “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’” Many scholars agree that this is one of the most moving verses in all of Scripture – and I pray that your eyes will be opened to see that. This was an act of extravagant grace. The owner had many servants, but he only had one son. His son was the heir. His son was the beloved – the one he dearly loved. And now, he would send him to the tenants knowing what could happen to him but hoping they would show some respect for his son. So, his son would go with the authority of the owner to claim what rightfully belonged to his father.
Brothers and sisters, in the same way, this is the love of God for us. God sent His one and only Son, Jesus Christ, whom He dearly loved to die for us. By the way, this is a third reference to the “beloved Son” in Mark’s Gospel – the first one was at Jesus’ baptism and the second one was at the transfiguration. And this is important to note because it clearly reveals to us God’s sense of loss in sending His Son. God dearly, deeply loved Jesus. Parents, do you love your children? Of course, you do. Then who in their right mind would surrender their children to such tenants? But that’s exactly what God did – He willingly gave up His beloved Son to see Him suffer and die. Why? There’s only one explanation. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Romans 5:8, “God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Christians, be convinced of the Father’s love for you today. Let this truth assure you. Don’t run away from God in fear that you might be condemned, in anger that God has let you down, in ambition to find joy and security in something other than Him – instead, run to Him with confidence that “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1), trusting that in all things He is working for the good of those who love Him (Rom. 8:28), believing that everything we desire and need is found in Him alone (Ps. 23:1). Then let His patient love move you today, humble you, and transform you. And as disciples of Jesus Christ, encourage one another with this love, relate to one another out of this love, and tell the world of this love so that they too may “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Ps. 34:8).
2) GOD’S RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT
Verse 7 – despite the love the owner showed, the tenants said to one another, “This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.” Verse 8 – so, they took him, killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. Honestly, this didn’t make sense to me – why would they think that they’ll inherit the vineyard if they killed the son? Maybe they assumed that the owner was dead, which meant that they could have a chance to inherit the land for themselves if the only heir was eliminated. But even then, it still didn’t make sense to me. How can they be so illogical? How can they be so foolish? But that’s exactly the point: this parable reveals how illogical, irrational, and foolish our sins are. Think of the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were literally living in paradise, but they listened to a snake and risked everything for a single fruit. Or think of David – the king of Israel. Not only did he have everything he desired but he was immensely loved by the Lord – yet he was led astray by his desire for temporary pleasure that caused him to fall into other sins. The prodigal son had access to fine food, a roof over his head, and the unending, unconditional love of his father every single day. But because of his greed, he wasted a lot of wealth and ended up with the pigs. Then there’s Ananias and Sapphira who got themselves killed over a small lie they told to make themselves look good. And sadly, we’re no different. We know that a single lie can destroy our relationships; we know that our anger will crush our marriage; we know we shouldn’t watch certain things; we know we shouldn’t drink too much; we know we shouldn’t worry; we know we shouldn’t – yet we do. We know it will break our fellowship with God – yet we still do. And we find ourselves crushed by the weight of our guilt and shame.
Then I pray that God will open our eyes to see how irrational our sin is but even more so, I pray that God will empower us to do the most rational thing – turning back to God in repentance and trusting in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. That’s what should’ve happened with the religious leaders. After hearing that the tenants killed the son, the religious leaders should’ve sympathized with the owner, they should’ve repented and submitted to Jesus Christ – but instead, they hardened their hearts. Verse 12, “Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest Him because they knew He had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left Him and went away.”
Then I want to take this time to speak to our non-Christian friends who I am very grateful are here. Know that I’ve been praying for you – that you’ll have ears to hear because this parable is a gracious reminder of God’s love and a gracious warning of God’s judgment for you. You, being here today is no accident. It’s not a coincidence – in fact, it shows that God has been after you. And now that you’re here, He is speaking to you. This message is for you. The Bible tells us that all of us have been living irrationally – rebelling against the Creator God. And every single one of us deserved condemnation and judgment from Him. But this story reminds us that in love, He made a way for us by sending His Son to bear our condemnation and judgment on behalf of us – substituting His place with us so that in His suffering, we may be healed, forgiven, and have life again. J.I. Packer writes, “It is staggering that God should love sinners; yet it is true. God loves creatures who have become unlovely and unlovable. There was nothing, whatever in the objects of His love, to call it forth; nothing in us could attract or prompt it. Love among persons is awakened by something in the beloved, but the love of God is free, spontaneous, unevoked, uncaused. God loves people because He has chosen to love them, and no reason for His love can be given except His own sovereign good pleasure.” The love of God is all about Him, not us. Then as Paul said in Acts 16:31, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” I plead with you: respond to His mercy, His love today. Don’t delay. This is the only and sure way of being freed from the power of sin in your lives. And let me remind you that God has been patient with you. He has been sending you His servants in the form of your family and friends to share the gospel with you as an expression of His love and patience. But if you continue to resist, if you continue to live in ignorance, Jesus warns us that the righteous judgment of God will come.
That’s exactly what we see in verse 9. I wonder if Jesus was looking directly, intently at the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders when He asked, “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” One day, the owner will execute justice on the tenants – and in the same way, Jesus warned the religious leaders that God will bring judgment on them. I know that there are many today who disagree with this – that all will be well, that a loving God wouldn’t do something like this. But this is Jesus telling us that judgment is certain. Then let me ask you, “Who will you believe – Jesus or those who dare to contradict Him?” Friends, please don’t mistake patience for powerlessness. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. Instead He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” Did you hear that? He is patient because He doesn’t want anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance. He wants you to be saved. He wants you to receive life. He wants you to taste joy everlasting. He wants you to experience this unshakable peace that can only be found in the One who is sovereign over all things. Then I say this with fear and trembling, with humility and urgency, turn to the Lord today. As Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5:20, “We implore you [we plead with you, we beg you] on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” Don’t miss His warnings. Don’t ignore His warnings. Stop running from God, rebelling against God. Acknowledge your need for a Savior, cry out for mercy, and receive God’s gracious gift in the person of Jesus Christ today.
3) GOD’S MARVELOUS PLAN
Verse 10. Jesus ended the conversation by quoting Psalm 118:22-23, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” Psalm 118 is about celebrating the day of going up to the temple to participate in worship. And in it, the psalmist talks about the temple architecture – how there was a stone that was initially rejected by the builders. They thought it was unimportant, unnecessary. But it ended up becoming the cornerstone – the most important piece that holds the structure together. For those of you who may not be familiar, a cornerstone was the foundation stone – usually placed at the corner to guide the builders in their work. A cornerstone was usually one of the largest, the most solid, and the most carefully constructed stone in a building because it became the basis for determining every measurement in the remaining construction. Everything was aligned to it. Everything happened with the reference to the cornerstone. And here was Jesus, telling them that He was the cornerstone for their lives. Now, just as the builders rejected the stone, the religious leaders were rejecting Jesus, denying His authority – but He wanted them to know that He will undoubtedly be vindicated to become the cornerstone, and that all this (the rejection, crucifixion, and vindication) was, in fact, part of God’s perfect plan. His death was no accident. It wasn’t a tragedy that Jesus couldn’t avoid. No, it was the very plan and purpose of God – and it will be reversed in a marvelous way. There are only two ways to pay for our sin – either we, the guilty ones, suffer for it eternally or someone else, the righteous One, can suffer in our place. And that’s exactly what Jesus did for us – He died in our place, paying the penalty for our sin. In other words, His crucifixion became the means of forgiving us. And not only that, His crucifixion also released the power to transform us. The irony of the gospel is that the hatred that caused us to crucify Jesus became the very means of destroying the hatred in our hearts. “The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.”
Brothers and sisters, nothing will frustrate our God. The wicked schemes of evil will not prevail. His plan will stand. He will be exalted and glorified. He will be victorious. Then the only appropriate response is to wonder and worship. We must marvel at His beauty, His power and wisdom, and praise Him for all that He has done for us. And of course, this should be reflected in our singing. So, when we sing in a few minutes, I invite you to sing your heart out. Don’t just sing – sing to Him, telling Him that He’s all that we need, all that we desire. But I pray that we will worship also through our giving – humbly surrendering, out of gratitude for all that we received. I pray that we will worship through loving others – loving those who others consider unworthy, unreachable, or undesirable. I pray that we will worship through our time, studies, work, speech, and action. I pray that we will worship through our whole life – living every day as we marvel at the cross.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, for God so loved the world, He sent His one and only Son, His beloved Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. “The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” May we respond with humble adoration and may all of us experience the fullness of His saving love for us.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1) Reflect on verse 6. How does this parable demonstrate the Father’s love for us? How does this encourage you today?
2) How are you responding to the patience of God? How can you help others (especially non-believers) see that the delay of Christ’s coming and the delay of judgment is an act of kindness? (Also reflect on 2 Peter 3:9).
3) Reflect on verses 10-11. How does this truth comfort you today? How can the reality of His sovereign grace empower you to live a life of worship every day?