Luke 20:1-19 - Merciful Authority in the Cornerstone

Notes
Transcript
Handout
Introduction:
Although there is some debate on the Greek word translated cornerstone in the New Testament, most theologians agree that it refers to a stone that aligns two walls of a structure. Here is a picture to allow you to see it more clearly.
This stone was foundational for the structure that it supported. To remove the cornerstone meant that the whole building would collapse. Also of note, the cornerstone was the principle stone to guide the rest of the work that was to be done - meaning that all other stones were placed in relation to it. It was usually the largest, highest quality, and most solid stone that was a part of the building.
Christ is referred to as the cornerstone in many passages for a total of 10 occurrences. (Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 28:16, Zechariah 10:4, Matthew 21:42, Mark 12:10, Luke 20:17, Acts 4:11, Ephesians 2:20, 1 Peter 2:6-8 - 2x).
See your handout for for a list of them.
Today we understand that Christ is the Cornerstone of the Church. Everything that we do should be founded upon Christ and His Word. We are to build our church and even our individual lives on and in relation to the Chief Cornerstone - namely Jesus Christ.
Today is a special Scripture. We have seen Jesus do some amazing things already as He has triumphantly entered Jerusalem, wept over it, and cleansed the temple. And now we see Jesus continuing His teaching in the temple.
Jesus is about to be questioned about His authority. And His response leaves the religious leaders fuming. He quotes the widely known Messianic Psalm 118:22 which shows exactly where His authority comes from. His authority is from God - and as God-made-flesh - it is from Himself.
Let’s pray and get started into this wonderful section of Scripture.
Prayer
Today we will see three requirements for followers of Christ. The first is…
I. Followers of Christ Must Recognize His Authority (1-8)
I. Followers of Christ Must Recognize His Authority (1-8)
One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to him, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.”
Here we have Jesus continuing His teaching in the temple that He has just cleansed. We are told that Jesus is preaching the Gospel. Jesus is obviously preaching about how one might find eternal life. He is teaching His main thesis statement as seen in the book of Luke: The Son of Man came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).
The chief priests, the scribes, and the elders are not a fan of the message that Jesus is bringing. They approach Him and ask Him by what authority He preaches this message. Their question is a two-fold question. Where did He get this authority and/or who gave Him this authority?
They are in essence asking Him who He thinks He is to take charge the way He has. In rabbinic culture, one found one’s authority not primarily in God or God’s Word - but instead in man. Rabbis were quick to name drop who they trained under as well as quote other famous rabbis of their day.
We see Paul leverage this name dropping concept in his defense before the crowd in Acts 22:3 as he mentions the famed Gamaliel with whom he trained under.
Yet, Jesus comes in His own authority.
Jesus could have answered this question directly here but doesn’t. Wouldn’t His credentials have been fun to hear, though? It would have been amazing to hear His ‘I Am’ statements as seen in the book of John, or that He is the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Sustainer of all creation, the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings, the Alpha and the Omega. His credential list would be everlasting and never ending!
But instead, in the tradition of the rabbis of His day as well as in His own way, He answers their question with a question. He knows they won’t accept His answer as truth. No matter how many miracles He performs and no matter what truth He teaches, they will continue to refuse to repent and believe. It would be as pearls before swine to try to explain His authority to these hostile religious leaders (Matthew 7:6). Which brings us to verses 3-4:
He answered them, “I also will ask you a question. Now tell me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?”
His question seems strange at first glance. Why bring up John the Baptist? His reference to the baptism of John actually refers to the whole of John’s ministry. But the religious leaders understand that they have been one-up’d. They thought they had cornered Jesus, but like the tables were turned in the temple literally, He has proverbially turned the tables again!
Listen to their discussion in the following verses:
And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From man,’ all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.” So they answered that they did not know where it came from.
The truth should come without a long discussion. Only lying takes time to contrive a story. This is a good lesson on truth-telling. It is much less stressful and much easier just to speak the truth!
However, it is obvious that these religious leaders are more like politicians than shepherds. They weren’t seeking the truth, they were seeking an answer to keep themselves out of trouble. So they call a little meeting with one another and discuss the possible outcomes of their answer.
If they admit that John was a true prophet of God, then they really open themselves up for a theological beating in at least two ways.
1) They refused to believe in John during his ministry on earth which would indict them as liars (See Luke 7:28-30).
2) If they acknowledged John as a true prophet, then they would have to believe him when he claimed that Jesus was the Messiah (See Matthew 3:1-16)!
A true prophet was always correct. If John was a true prophet then his prophecy about Jesus being the Messiah must be correct. They definitely weren’t going to go along with that.
But to deny John the Baptist was a prophet would have enraged the people who held him in high esteem. And then they would have been open to the charge of rejecting a true prophet as well as blasphemy which resulted in stoning (See Deuteronomy 13:1-11).
If they were playing chess right now, Jesus could have said checkmate. They were stuck. There was nothing they could do. And so they choose the most embarrassing but least condemning answer that they can contrive - ignorance. They in essence, plead the 5th! We see their rage increase all the more as Jesus makes them look incompetent yet again. Each of their attacks have been turned right back upon them. Jesus has shown the people that their religious leaders cannot even answer a simple question about a prophet who has lived during their own lifetime. If they didn’t have an opinion about a man of prominence such as John, how were they to be respected about any other theological issue?
Jesus ends this discussion in verse 8…
And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
Jesus does not directly answer them here. However, it becomes clear where His authority comes from in the parable He tells next… Which brings us to our second point…
Scripture References: Luke 19:10, Acts 22:3, Matthew 7:6, Luke 7:28-30, Matthew 3:1-16, Deuteronomy 13:1-11
II. Followers of Christ Must Obediently Respond to His Messengers (9-15a)
II. Followers of Christ Must Obediently Respond to His Messengers (9-15a)
And he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants and went into another country for a long while.
Jesus changes gears and starts to speak to the surrounding people. Interestingly, this parable is about the religious leaders of Israel. And the main theme of this parable goes right along with the interaction that Jesus has just had with the religious leaders - namely this parable is about rejected authority.
We are introduced to a man who planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants.
The man in this parable stands for God, the vineyard is Israel, and the tenants are the leaders of Israel.
Israel was commonly referred to as a vineyard in the Scriptures (Psalm 80:8-16, Isaiah 27:2-5, Jeremiah 2:21, Ezekiel 19:10-14, Hosea 10:1 and Isaiah 5:1-7).
Many of these verses about Israel being a vineyard describe the rebellion of Israel as a whole. However, in this parable, we are going to see the rebellion of the religious leaders.
We are told that the man goes into another country for a long while. While the man is gone, the people begin to forget about him.
This concept is seen throughout the Old Testament as the people quickly forget about the power and majesty of God. While Moses is receiving the Ten Commandments, the people make a golden calf to worship (Exodus 32:4). Countless times the people complain and grumble about their situation in the wilderness and become hopeless - despite God time and time again miraculously providing from them.
They also forget about the fear of the Lord. They lack respect and reverence of God.
We need to be sure that we learn from Israel’s sin. In the busyness of life, it can become very tempting to forget the Lord. It can become really easy to get up and start your day with out a word of prayer or some time in the Scriptures. May we be intentional in our relationship with God and not forget Him.
Today’s parable shows us the outcome of such forgetfulness:
Forgetting the Lord always leads one into sin…
When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out.
Jesus now introduces us to three different servants. These servants refer to prophets sent from God.
God has asked for fruit from His vineyard. The vineyard is His, and He seeks to collect some of the fruit from His vineyard.
This parable presented a situation that was commonly seen in Israel. Wealthy men would have tenants who worked in the vineyard who would give them the contractually obligated portion of the harvest.
So in this parable, God is expecting His share of the fruit from the religious leaders of Israel.
Yet, we see the terrible response to all three servants sent. The violence escalates with each one. The first is beaten, the second is beaten and treated shamefully, and the the third is wounded and cast out. The word used for beaten here is a strong term that literally means ‘to remove the skin.’ It is not just a small beating, but a savage and harsh one.
Those hearing this parable would have cringed at the picture that was painted. How dare these wicked tenants treat the servants of the man so harshly!
Matthew, in his parallel account (Matthew 21:36), actually mentions that there even other servants that are sent and treated harshly as well.
Jesus uses this vivid language to remind the people that the prophets of God sent to Israel have been mistreated and abused throughout the centuries. Elijah was driven into the wilderness by Ahab and Jezebel (1 Kings 19:1-5). Zechariah was stoned to death near the altar (2 Chronicles 24:21). John the Baptist was rejected by the religious leaders as we have already seen and eventually beheaded. Jeremiah was thrown into a pit (Jeremiah 38:9). Micaiah was struck in the face (1 Kings 22:24). Amos fled for his life (Amos 7:10-13).
Stephen in Acts 7:52 spoke a word of condemnation upon Israel that summarizes their treatment of the prophets throughout the ages:
Acts 7:52a (ESV)
Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One…
The leaders of Israel have constantly rejected the Lord and His prophets. But as Stephen has just mentioned, there is one last opportunity for them to repent before destruction comes - the coming of the Righteous One…
Luke 20:13–15a (ESV)
Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ And they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
The mercy of God is incredible here isn’t it? God has sent many prophets who have been abused and even killed and yet He still reaches out to Israel and her leaders.
It was one thing to send all of the prophets, but now comes an even more amazing act of mercy and grace. God sends His One and only Son to Israel.
Because of this being a parable, there is a rhetorical question included here as well as the word perhaps - meaning that this is a gracious attempt to win over the religious leaders.
Obviously we know that God sovereignly knows the outcome of this decision to send His Son. Before the foundation of the world, God knew that Jesus would die on the cross. How great is the love of God as shown here?
And Jesus, predicting His own death, tells the people that the tenants - namely the religious leaders - will kill Him.
Sadly for the rulers of Israel but graciously for us, this prophecy was proven true.
Jesus was thrown out of the vineyard (Israel)- as He was handed over to Rome - and then executed on the cross.
The leaders of Israel refused to respond to the messengers of God. And they even refused to respond to the Son of God - Jesus Christ.
They wanted nothing more than to have Israel all to themselves. They wanted to rule and reign without any outside influence.
This is the default state of man. Man naturally wants to run his own life as well as the lives of others. Man wants to be served and be in charge. And these religious leaders were no different. They would do whatever it took to maintain their control - even murder the Son of God.
My friends, I pray that you obediently respond to the messengers of God. We do this by reading and obeying God’s Word - the Bible. Let us learn from the wicked ways of these evil leaders and humble ourselves before God in obedience.
And may we respond to the most amazing Messenger ever sent - the Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that everyone here has repented of your sins and placed your faith and trust in Jesus alone for salvation. His message of salvation is for all who are willing to humble themselves and follow Him.
Followers of Christ must recognize His authority, obediently respond to His messengers, and finally, they must…
Scripture References: Exodus 32:4, Matthew 21:36, 1 Kings 19:1-5, 2 Chronicles 24:21, Jeremiah 38:9, 1 Kings 22:24, Amos 7:10-13, Acts 7:52a
III. Followers of Christ Must Revere His Eternal Glory (15b-19)
III. Followers of Christ Must Revere His Eternal Glory (15b-19)
Finishing His parable, Jesus asks a rhetorical question to those listening…
Luke 20:15b (ESV)
… What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them?
It is obvious what should be done to these wicked tenants. They have beaten and wounded the servants sent and have killed the owner’s son. It is clear what they deserve. Jesus continues by answering this question Himself in the following verse…
He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!”
The people expected the beginning of this answer. The evil tenants should be destroyed and judged. They would have agreed that their forefathers who had beaten and killed the prophets deserved the judgment that they received from God. They understood the Mosaic Covenant. They knew that if they were rebellious, judgment would come. Deuteronomy 28 covers this concept in a lengthy 68 verses.
But what they didn’t see coming was the second half of Jesus’s answer. The owner - or God - will give the vineyard to others. Now Jesus changes the meaning of vineyard from only meaning God’s chosen Israel to meaning those in God’s kingdom. Jesus lets them know that the kingdom of God will be given to the Gentiles soon.
The Jewish leaders would completely lose their authority and power, and it would be handed over to Gentile leaders. We saw this with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 as well as with the early church and until now.
Consider all of the pastors across our world. How many of them are Jewish? The kingdom of God would be filled with Gentiles, and His Church on earth would be led by Gentiles like myself.
This idea was so foreign of a concept to the people that they say surely not - or in some translations, may this never be! Their response was one of shock and horror. The thought of them losing their special place with God and it being handed over to the Gentiles was terrifying to them.
Jesus isn’t done yet…
But he looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written: “ ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’?
Can you imagine the intensity of this look from Jesus. Luke tells us that He looked directly at them. This reference reminds me of what we will see in Luke 22:61. After denying that he knew Jesus three times, we see the following interaction with Jesus and Peter…
And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.”
This penetrating look from Christ must have been overwhelming. The God of the universe is now explaining judgment to the people with intensity.
He then quotes the Messianic Psalm 118:22. The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
The builders are Israel’s leaders. They have rejected the living stone - namely Jesus Christ.
Yet, He is the Cornerstone despite their rejection. Their rejection has no impact on His rule and reign.
In fact, their refusal to respond to the Cornerstone will result in horrific judgment as seen in verse 18:
Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
Jesus gives two different ways that this judgment may come.
1. Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces.
In this first illustration of judgment, Jesus is using an illustration from Isaiah 8:14-15. Jesus is referred to as a rock of stumbling or a rock of offense. Those who fall upon it will be broken.
The religious leaders refused to submit to Jesus and thus they stumbled over Him and were broken.
There are many today who do the same. They refuse to repent and revere Jesus and His Word. Those who are offended by the Gospel and reject the Cornerstone will experience eternal judgment.
2. Everyone on whom the stone lands will be crushed.
The same judgment in the first half of verse 18 is repeated in a different way in the second half. Now we are told that this rock will crush those in judgment. This concept comes from Daniel 2:34-35 and Daniel 2:44-45 where we see a supernaturally cut rock that smashes the world’s kingdoms and remains and stands forever. This refers to the everlasting reign of Christ.
The initial judgment upon the evil rulers of Jerusalem and those who opposed Christ came in AD 70 with the destruction of the temple. Yet, there is coming an even greater judgment on the nations of the world. Jesus will crush His opponents in the end (Revelation 19:11-21).
All of those who oppose Christ will eventually be crushed by His judgment.
Both of these examples show the complete and utter destruction that Christ will bring upon those who oppose Him.
However, this parable has also shown the amazing mercy of God through Christ. His judgment is absolutely sure for those who oppose Him. However, His salvation is just as sure for those who repent and believe in Him.
Unfortunately, many respond to Christ like the religious leaders do in verse 19…
The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people.
Instead of repenting and believing, they decide to take out the Messiah. Their hardened hearts are unphased by the Gospel teaching of Jesus. Their rage is palpable. Although their fear of the people would hold them back for a little while, they would strike in only a matter of a couple of days.
That is a scary place to be. There are many people with whom I have shared the Gospel that have seemed unphased by it. To become so hardened that the good news of the Gospel doesn’t register at all is a terrifying state.
Yet, even God can break stony hearts such as these. So may we not lose heart as we face resistance in sharing the Good News of the Gospel with a lost world. God can still save even the foremost of sinners as Paul so beautifully stated (1 Timothy 1:15).
Scripture References: Deuteronomy 28, Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 8:14-15, Daniel 2:34-35, Daniel 2:44-45, Revelation 19:11-21, 1 Timothy 1:15
Conclusion:
As we come to a close, I pray that we have seen both the authority of Christ but also the mercy of Christ as well.
In order to follow Christ, we must recognize and submit to His authority. We must humble ourselves before Him.
We must also respond to His Word in obedience. And finally, we must revere His glory. He is the Cornerstone and Rock of Ages.
May this beautiful parable remind us of the merciful grace as well as the judgment and authority of our Savior - the Cornerstone.