Matthew 21:33-46 "The Vineyard"

Greeting: “Peace be with you! And also with you.”

Prayer: “Father may your will be done. Jesus, may your word be proclaimed. Spirit may your work be accomplished in us. Amen.”

I. Introduction

Four-fold Sense of Scripture:

I. Literal (Historical) Sense.

II. Spiritual Sense:

A. Allegorical (Christocentric hermeneutic)Sense (Faith).

B. Tropological (moral/righteousness) Sense (Love).

C. Anagogic (spiritual/mystic) Sense (Hope).

III. Support: Two Rules to assess your interpretation:

A. Rule of Faith (Church Doctrine):

1. All of Scripture verifies.

2. Church Doctrine teaches. (Orthodoxy)

B. Rule of Love (Application):

1. How can you love God more?

2. How can you love others better?

II. The Vineyard

A. The Literal sense:

1. The vine that God has planted in the land (world) was Israel.

Isaiah 5:1–7 NASB95

1 Let me sing now for my well-beloved A song of my beloved concerning His vineyard. My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill. 2 He dug it all around, removed its stones, And planted it with the choicest vine. And He built a tower in the middle of it And also hewed out a wine vat in it; Then He expected it to produce good grapes, But it produced only worthless ones. 3 “And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge between Me and My vineyard. 4 “What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why, when I expected it to produce good grapes did it produce worthless ones? 5 “So now let Me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard: I will remove its hedge and it will be consumed; I will break down its wall and it will become trampled ground. 6 “I will lay it waste; It will not be pruned or hoed, But briars and thorns will come up. I will also charge the clouds to rain no rain on it.” 7 For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel And the men of Judah His delightful plant. Thus He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.

2. Israel: instead of producing good fruit they produced bad fruit.

Acting Murderous towards the owner’s slaves and sons

Seeking to steal the rights of the vineyard for themselves and usurp the owner’s rule and reign.

3. The owner transfers stewardship.

Owner gets involved.

Gives justice to evildoers and hires a new people to oversee the vineyard.

B. Allegorical Sense: Christ/Faith

1. Christ is the son that Israel kills.

2. Christ is resurrected.

Israel doesn’t account for resurrection.

Because of Resurrection the Son still holds all rights to the vineyard. Matthew 21:43

Matthew 21:43 NASB95

43 “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people, producing the fruit of it.

Christ is the better Israel- No just owning a vineyard but showing us how to work the vineyard.

Though they killed the son, the son is not dead and all rights and rule remain with him. The Son of God, claims what belongs to him and gives it to new caretakers. The Son removes the bad fruit and restores the new vineyard to produce good fruit with His resurrection power. He seeks and finds other people who have commitment their lives to him through faith and gives them stewardship over his land, with the same expectation- to produce good fruit.

C. Tropological Sense: Moral/Love

1. A vineyard they didn’t plant.

We are not our own.

1 Corinthians 6:19 NASB95

19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?

Sin: insatiable appetite to possess and rule the vineyard that we do not own.

Righteousness: doing the will of the Father and serving Him.

2. Produce the fruit of it:

Under New Management: New stewards: A People/Person 1 Peter 2:9

1 Peter 2:9 NASB95

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

Stewarding: Producing Fruit

1. Build up the Church (internal duty).

Matthew 16:18 NASB95

18 “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

2. Expand the Kingdom (external duty).

D. Anagogic Sense: Spiritual/Hope

1. Jesus is not dead! He is the Cornerstone of the vineyard

Psalm 118:22–23 NASB95

22 The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone. 23 This is the Lord’s doing; It is marvelous in our eyes.

The Son is resurrected… “Has become the chief cornerstone.”

Son still executes his rights to the vineyard… “This is the Lord’s doing.”

The son oversees the operations of the vineyard and will produce fruit… “It is marvelous in our eyes.”

The son will come to judge the living and the dead

Matthew 21:44 NASB95

44 “And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”

Even the Pharisees understand this:

Matthew 21:41 NASB95

41 They said to Him, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.”

Matthew 21:45 NASB95

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they understood that He was speaking about them.

2. The Purpose of a Vineyard: wine.

We are a people who live for something: Hope.

The Hope of a vineyard is fruit

Fruit to be enjoyed at the feast.

This is our hope that drives us daily is to dine with Jesus and drink the fruit of the vine.

III. Application:

1. Rule of Faith: What kind of Stewards-Lessons from scripture.

What we do stems from what we believe. If we believe that Christ is risen from the dead and that we have been purchased by his blood and place our faith in Him as LORD. Then Christ has called us into stewarding the vineyard. But how do we distinguish ourselves from the previous stewards?

A. If you Love Jesus.

John 14:15 NASB95

15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

B. People who go looting:

2 Kings 7

Christ has bound up the devil- so let’s go plunder his loot. Set captives free.

Matthew 12:28–29 NASB95

28 “But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 “Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

C. Zealous for God’s vineyard:

Jacob is not a thief.

It is a lesson to learn to take hold of the promises of God which he bestows upon us in Christ. To take action and every action is a response to the what we are given and promised in Christ.

Genesis 25:21–23 NASB95

21 Isaac prayed to the Lord on behalf of his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord answered him and Rebekah his wife conceived. 22 But the children struggled together within her; and she said, “If it is so, why then am I this way?” So she went to inquire of the Lord. 23 The Lord said to her, “Two nations are in your womb; And two peoples will be separated from your body; And one people shall be stronger than the other; And the older shall serve the younger.”

D. Act like the Bride.

“The excellent wife brings food from afar, provides food for the household, considers fields and buys them. She is dressed in strength and puts her hand to the spindle. She opens her hands to the poor and needy, and her husband is known in the gates. Her lamp does not go out at night. (Proverbs 31) This is thus true of the bride of Christ Jesus, the church. The work of the church on earth is a domestic task. The church is preparing and adorning the earth to be a fit home for her husband. This domestic work is warfare, an attack on lurking dragons and powers on their fool's errand.” - Peter Leithart

2. Rule of Love (Homework)- The Great Commandment

A. How does this grow your love for God?

B. How does this encourage you love others better?