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Text: Matthew 21:23-32
Unsubmitted rebels
- Dealing with rebels
- In these verses (23-27) the Son has come into his own house. The stewards interrogate him about being in the house and interrupting the current operation. The Son asks, When I sent you my friend, John the Baptist, to pick up the fruit, why didn’t you give him the fruit? They looked at each other knowing they messed up, then said, We don’t know. The Son then says, then I don’t need to tell you why I’m here.
- Authority is their issue. These elders and priests want to know what gives Jesus the right to do what he’s doing in the temple.
- The word of God shuts the mouth of sinners. Jesus Christ knows their fears and exposes them.
- John’s baptism of repentance
- John was the voice of one crying in the wilderness (Isaiah 40:3), preparing the way of the Lord. He came in the spirit of Elijah (Luke 1:17) who also came from the wilderness, disconnected from this present evil world, wore a leather girdle
- John’s baptism was interesting because there was no precedent for it in the Old Testament.
- The scribes and priests won’t commit because they don’t want to be pigeon-holed.
- The preaching of John is repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ
- John 3:25-36 John the Baptist preached to believe on the LORD Jesus Christ for eternal life. He never preached that his baptism was eternal life.
- John the Baptist said, Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.
- John the Baptist said, He must increase and I must decrease.
- John the Baptist said, I baptize you with water unto repentance, but the LORD would baptize you with the Spirit of God and with fire.
A story of two sons
- The will of the Father is the issue.
The husbandmen intended to bring forth fruit in the householder’s vineyard fail to bring forth fruit. Not only that, they kill the servants the son sent by the householder. The householder destroys the old husbandmen and hires new husbandmen.
Goal is not to be used by God, but to be pleasing to God!
