The Parable of the Two Sons

MATTHEW 21:28-32
Jesus went to the Temple, and He taught the people. 
The chief priests and the ELDERS came to Him. They asked, “What is your authority for teaching here? Who gave you permission?"
Jesus answered, “Before I answer, I will ask-you. If you answer me, then I will tell you my authority for teaching here.  Tell me: When John baptized people, did that come from God or only from other people?”  
The priests privately discussed about Jesus’ question. “If we answer, ‘John’s baptism was from God,’ Jesus will ask why we didn't believe John.  But we can't say that John's baptism was from people, because we are afraid of what the crowd will do. They all believe that John was a prophet.”
So they answered, “We don’t know.”
Jesus told them, “Fine. I won’t tell you my authority for teaching here.
What do you think about this story? A farmer had two sons.  The father went to the first son and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.'
The boy answered, 'No! I don't-want to work.'  But later the son changed his mind and he went to work.
The father went to his other son and told him the same:  'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.'  
The second son answered, 'Yes, Father. I will go work.'  But the son didn't go."
Jesus asked: "Which son obeyed the father?"  
They answered, "The first son."  
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, tax collectors and prostitutes will enter God's kingdom before you.  Because JOHN the Baptizer told you how to become saved, and you didn't believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him.  No-matter that you saw that happen, you won't repent, you won't believe."

Suggested Old Testament Lesson:  
Isaiah 29:13-14, 18-19
13 The Lord says:
“Those people say they love Me;
they show honor to Me using nice words,
but their hearts are far from Me.
Their worship to Me is only rules that people invented.
14 So, I will continue surprising those people.
I will do wonderful works, more and more.
Their wise men will lose their wisdom;
their intelligent people will lose their intelligence.”
18 In that time deaf people will hear the words in a book.
Blind people will leave their dark world, and they will see.
 19 Humble people will rejoice with the Lord.
Poor people will rejoice with the Holy God of Israel.

Suggested Epistle Lesson:  
JAMES 2:14-17
    14.  Dear Christian friends, what happens if we say we have faith, but don't show faith with doing things?  Can our faith save us?
    15.  If brother or sister is without enough clothes or without enough food,
    16.  And we tell him, "Go with peace, be-warm and full," but we don't give clothes or food, what good is that?
    17.  True, faith alone, without doing things to show that faith, that is dead.

The Father =  	
The 1st Son = 	
The 2nd Son = 	
Application: 	

Supplemental Scriptures
Ezekiel 18
21 “But suppose the wicked stop doing all the sins they have done and obey all my rules and do what is fair and right. Then they will surely live; they will not die. 22 Their sins will be forgotten. Because they have done what is right, they will live. 23 I do not really want the wicked to die, says the Lord God. I want them to stop their bad ways and live.
 24 “But suppose good people stop doing good and do wrong and do the same hateful things the wicked do. Will they live? All their good acts will be forgotten, because they became unfaithful. They have sinned, so they will die because of their sins.
 25 “But you say, ‘What the Lord does isn’t fair.’ Listen, people of Israel. I am fair. It is what you do that is not fair! 26 When good people stop doing good and do wrong, they will die because of it. They will die, because they did wrong. 27 When the wicked stop being wicked and do what is fair and right, they will save their lives. 28 Because they thought about it and stopped doing all the sins they had done, they will surely live; they will not die.”
Romans 8
18 Yes, I know that nothing good lives in me—I mean nothing good lives in the part of me that is earthly and sinful. I want to do the things that are good, but I do not do them. 19 I do not do the good things I want to do, but I do the bad things I do not want to do. 20 So if I do things I do not want to do, then I am not the one doing them. It is sin living in me that does those things...  24 What a miserable man I am! Who will save me from this body that brings me death? 25 I thank God for saving me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
James 1
22 Do what God’s teaching says; when you only listen and do nothing, you are fooling yourselves. 23 Those who hear God’s teaching and do nothing are like people who look at themselves in a mirror. 24 They see their faces and then go away and quickly forget what they looked like. 25 But the truly happy people are those who carefully study God’s perfect law that makes people free, and they continue to study it. They do not forget what they heard, but they obey what God’s teaching says. Those who do this will be made happy.
26 People who think they are religious but say things they should not say are just fooling themselves. Their “religion” is worth nothing. 27 Religion that God accepts as pure and without fault is this: caring for orphans or widows who need help, and keeping yourself free from the world’s evil influence.

[We did this lesson on Reformation Sunday.]

The Parable of the Two Sons...
	a simple story that has a clear meaning.

[Summarize the story]
A farmer had two sons.  The father went to the first son and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.'
The boy answered, 'No! I don't-want to work.'  But later the son changed his mind and he went to work.
The father went to his other son and told him the same:  'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.'  
The second son answered, 'Yes, Father. I will go work.'  But the son didn't go."

The Father = ?     ...God

The 1st Son = ?   ...sinners that repent.

The 2nd Son = ?  ...sinners who cover-up their sin with religion.
				-- two-faced religious hypocrites.

Both sons are sinners.
	#1 admit it.
	#2 deny it.

Notice that the Father invites both sons to work in Vineyard,
the same as God invites ALL people to His mercy.

Notice why Jesus told this story:
The priests criticize Jesus.  Why?
	They feel jealous about all the attention Jesus gets.
	They feel disgusted that 
		Jesus is so popular with the common people.
	They feel annoyed that Jesus doesn't follow their rules.
		He doesn't follow their traditions.

The priests should be FIRST IN LINE to trust Jesus.
They have the whole Old Testament that prophesies His coming.
Many times through Israel's history
	God show His mercy
	and promises our Savior.

Now, Here He is!

The priests don't-know what the Old Testament says?
	No, not really.

They know the OT stories and laws.
The know lots of OT verses.
But they overlook God's heart that the OT shows.

So when their Messiah comes, they reject Him.
And the people who already rejected God's law in their lives,
	they rush to Jesus.

Why?
	Because in Jesus they see mercy and love.
	They see hope.
	They see forgiveness.
	They see real power for change in their lives.
	They see God!

Their priests only offer them rules, laws, and judgment.

Now jump ahead in time, 1,500 years.

What happened in this story, 
	happened again,
not in Israel,
	but in Europe,
		Italy, Germany, Spain, and France. 

And the problem was not in the temple,
	but in the church.

Christian Clergy and Church leaders fell into the same mistake that the priests in Jesus' time did.

God's love and mercy became replace 
	with laws and traditions.
Religious leaders forgot God's heart.
They ignored the Bible.

They were like son #2 in our story.
	They said that they loved God and obeyed Him.
	But.... did they really?  by selling forgiveness for money!?

But we also see there son #1, 
	sinners who saw in the Bible 
		a sweet wonderful message about forgiveness,
they upset everything by announcing that message
	in the church
	and to the world.
Repenting sinners, like Martin Luther, 
	John Calvin, 
	and many other Reformers.

[Interesting: 
	the Signs for REPENT and REFORMATION are alike.]

Now again jump ahead in time, 500 more years
	to NOW,
	October 30, 2011.

We still have the same story,
	the same two sons, 

#1 - Sinners, hungry to know Jesus,
	hungry for receiving forgiveness,
	hungry for God's power for their lives to change.

and
#2 - Religious people who know all the right words.
	They dress nice.
	They know the right behavior 
		when other people are watching.

Question:
	Which of these two sons are we?