Scripture

“Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces and it will crush anyone it falls on.”

Observation

Jesus tells a parable about a landowner who plants a vineyard and then makes various improvements to the property. He leases the vineyard to some share farmers. At harvest time, he sends servants to collect his share, but the tenants beat up the servants. He sends a bigger group of servants and finally his son, but they kill them all. Finally, he sends an army to kill the evil farmers.

Jesus says that the kingdom will be taken away from the priests and teachers and given to a nation that will produce good fruit. The priests and Pharisees realise that Jesus is speaking His stories against them. They want to arrest him but they dare not because of the crowds.

Application

This is one of those hard sayings that commentators either slide past or offer contradictory explanations.

The basic issues concern, the identity of “that stone.” Does it refer to Christ himself who is the stone the Builders rejected, or is it His statement that the kingdom will be taken from the religious leaders to be given to a new nation, a new kind of people.

In either case, we have a choice, we can come to Christ or the warning of the Kingdom being taken as broken people, repentant people. Or else we can be crushed by God’s judgement.

This is always the choice that Jesus offers people: turn away from your sins and follow me. for the kingdom of God is here.

Are you in or out? There is no middle of the road position.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for opening the kingdom of God to everyone who will repent. Amen.