Parable of Two Sons

 TEXT: Matthew 21:28-32

Background

The primary audience of Jesus in this parable are the priests and the elders of the people (v). These people are questioning the authority of Jesus in teaching. Instead of answering their question, He asked them, where does the authority of John the Baptist come from. Jesus asked this question because He knows that the teaching of John is contrary to theirs, and they hated him for it. However, they are afraid to confront him because the people who believe in John's message will be mad at them. So in order to please the crowd, they pretend that they believe John's gospel message. In this parable, Jesus is trying to reveal their true identity, which is hypocrisy.

Parable of the Two Sons

The Father's Command

               Jesus introduces that the father has two sons and owns a vineyard (v28). The father commanded his two sons to work in the vineyard. It might be the season of harvest or time of plowing or planting. Maybe there is a need for more workers to work in the vineyard. Nevertheless, the father needs his sons to work in the vineyard. First, he went to the first son and commanded him to work in the vineyard that day (v29). Then, he also went to the other son and issued the same command  (v30). Every command demands a response. What are the responses of the two sons to their father's command?

The Son's Responses

              The two sons responded differently. While the first son responded negatively, the other responded affirmatively. The first son boldly answered his father that he will not go to the vineyard and work. He means that. He did not like to work in the vineyard.  In the same way, the father commanded the other son to do the same thing. The other son told his father that he will go. However, their initial responses are exactly opposite of the final responses. The first son who did not want to go changed his mind, and thus went and work in the vineyard after all (v29). The other son who told his father that he will go, contrarily did not go (v30).

Comparisons 

There are three main characters in the parable, the father and the two sons. More often than not, when a father is used in a parable it is either the God the Father or Jesus himself. In this parable the father represents God the Father who owns a vineyard which represents the Kingdom (this is clearer in the Parable of the Tenants). The father is like God the Father who commands his children to work in the vineyard. His commands represent the gospel invitation. The response of the sons to the command to work in the vineyard is significant in understanding this parable.

The next two main characters in this parable of Jesus are the two sons. Jesus compares the two different groups of people to the two sons, who were commanded by their father to work in the vineyard. This is apparently seen from verses 31 to 32. The first son who first disobeyed his father, but later changed his mind and went to the vineyard to work, represents the tax collectors and prostitute because they responded to John the Baptist's message affirmatively. These people are the two most condemned groups in Jewish society. They are like Zacchaeus, the tax collector, who was condemned by people in their grumbling (Luke 19:6-7) and a woman who anointed the feet of Jesus at Simon the Pharisee's house. The self-righteous groups of people like Pharisees, scribes, Sadducees were abasing these people in order to elevate their self-righteousness. This can be seen in the parable of a Pharisee and a Tax Collector where the former was elevating himself by downgrading the latter. These groups of condemned people are literally sinners, but, they changed their minds and responded to the message of the Gospel.

The second son represents the priests and the elders whom the Lord Jesus has spoken to (v23). They are the people who keep on elevating themselves by condemning others. They compare their lives to the condemned people of the society. They are the hypocrites. Jesus describes their hypocrisy through the response of the other son. When the father told this son to go and work in the vineyard, he replied that he would do so, but he did not go (v30). This son just said "yes" in order to please his father, but from the bottom of his heart he does not want to obey. His response reveals his hypocrisy.

Purpose

The main purpose of the entire Gospel of Matthew is to present Jesus as the promised Christ the King, who was rejected by Israel and for that reason, God gave the Kingdom to the Gentiles. This purpose is crystal clear in this series of parables. In this parable Jesus aims to describe how the Jews reject Him as their king as the fulfillment of the kingdom that will be given not to them but to other people who are not God's people. The strong statement of Jesus in verse 31 that the tax collectors and prostitutes will go into the kingdom before these priests and elders of the people. What is the reason why the condemned groups of people will go into the kingdom before them? The very reason is that they rejected the Gospel message that John the Baptist proclaimed (v32). Their rejection of the Gospel message is seen in verse 25 and 26 as well. Therefore, the intention of Jesus in this parable is to emphasize that the priest and elders' rejection of the message of the Gospel (which is Christ himself) results to the condemned people of the society who will go into the Kingdom of God before them.

Argument

The argument of Jesus in this parable is found in the statement of Jesus in verses 32 to 33. The last sentence in verse 32 Jesus strongly states, "Truly I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you." This statement will definitely blow them up. They will really get mad at Jesus because what he said is an insult to them. The people whom Jesus is talking to are keepers of the Law of Moses. When it comes to the Law we know that they adore the Law so much. Unlike the tax collectors and prostitutes who do not care for the Law, the former carefully observe the Law word for word. They might think that Jesus is out of His mind. However, the Lord Jesus is so adamant in His statement. The word "truly" indicates that Jesus is so sure in what He said to them. Jesus is trying to remove the idea of being right with God in their obedience to the Law. He wants them to realize that the publicans and prostitutes are better than them. This upsets them. All they know is that they will go in the Kingdom of God first among the Jewish nations, and what Jesus told them is a mere accusation and an insult.

On the other hand, Jesus will never utter such statement without an evidence. When the Lord Jesus asked them which of the two sons did the will of the father, they answered rightly (v31). On the contrary, the priests and elders never changed their minds when they heard the gospel proclamation of John the Baptist. By closely examining the response of the other son, there is no mention of a change of mind. He is just pretending that he wants to obey, but in reality he really does not like to. It is hypocrisy. This depicts the present situation of the priests and elders whom Jesus is talking to. They are hypocrites. Although they tolerate John in his preaching because of fear, in reality they hate John and his message. They never believe John the Baptist's message and the way of righteousness (v32). Their unbelief is also found in verses 25 to 26. Further, He told them that the people they condemned (publicans and prostitutes) believed John's. The publicans and the prostitutes are those who truly do the will of God. For that reason, they will enter the Kingdom of God before them. The very ground in entering the Kingdom of God is through believing (faith). Therefore, the argument is that the Kingdom of God is only to those who changed their mind and believed.

  

Pastoral Application

1. The changed mind receives the Gospel Message

The gospel message is not just an invitation to go to heaven. It is a call to obey Jesus as King. When Jesus called Peter and the other disciples, they were called not just for salvation, but they are also called to a responsibility (Luke 5:10-11). In addition, a call to salvation is costly and is for a lifetime (Luke 9:23). One preacher said that following Jesus will cost a person everything. Therefore, the message of the gospel is unpalatable. Who can respond positively to the gospel call?

The people who can respond positively are those whose minds have been changed. This is illustrated by the first son who replied to his father that he does not want to go and work, but later on he changed his mind and went to the vineyard to work. They are the publicans and prostitutes in the time of Christ. They changed their mind and received the gospel message that leads to continuous believing and following Christ as their king. Matthew and Zacchaeus are two of the publicans who changed their minds in order to follow Christ. This is a reminder to those who are not yet in Christ. Those who will enter the Kingdom of God are those whose minds are changed to receive the gospel message, which is to obey Christ as their king.

2. The unchanged mind rejects the Gospel Message

The gospel message will be heard by people until the King of kings returns. Despite the continuity of preaching the gospel message, still many people keep on rejecting this message. Rejecting the gospel message is tantamount to rejecting Christ as King. People do not want to acknowledge Jesus as king because it is really a threat to their lives. Their worldly desires will be suppressed, their personal dreams will be gone, and their sins will be exposed. However, there is a greater danger than rejecting Jesus Christ―Hypocrisy.   

There are people who decided to follow, but in reality they do not like to follow. This is illustrated by the other son who said that he will go and work in the vineyard, but he did not. There is no change of mind. From the very start he does not want to obey. His "yes" is just a pretense. Like the priests and elders, many in the churches today are like the other son. They agree on the message of God through the pastor's preaching, but their lives are in contrast to what they agreed upon. This parable serves as a warning to those whose minds are still unchanged and keep on pretending. Those people in the church who do not want to obey Christ under the authority given to the church. They are self-deceived people and they are in great danger. It is about time whether there is a change of mind or not. If there is a change of mind, there is obedience to Christ as King. If there is no obedience to Christ as king, there is no change of mind, and that person is still in condemnation.