LAG TIME
Palm Sunday
3-16-08
Ken Peterson
Mtt. 21:28-32
INTRODUCTION
Most of us here have unsaved people we’re concerned about. They may be family members or friends. But you see no evidence in them of a personal commitment to Jesus. It may be reflected in their priorities, what they say, and/ or their lifestyles. In many cases, you’ve prayed for a parent or spouse or child for years and years with little apparent effect. The parable we’re going to consider this morning contains some encouraging news and can help us gain perspective.
It is Monday of Holy Week. Yesterday the crowds were cheering Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem. In just four days he will be crucified on a cross. Now, on Monday, is the beginning of days of intense encounters as the religious leaders seek to catch Him saying something for which He can be executed.. But through this week, many who have affirmed faith in Christ will fall away, some even joining the crowds shouting, “Crucify Him!” All the apostles will buckle in the crunch and fail to act on what they said they believed. At the same time, we will see surprises as the secret faith of two from the ruling council, the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimithea, is revealed. Jesus addresses these religious leaders with this parable– a parable about what it really means to believe.
Rd. Mtt. 21:28-32
There is gap between hearing and doing in both of these boys. This last summer, at the Whitworth Institute of Ministry, Dr. Earl Palmer, referred to this as “lag time.” It stirred some thoughts in me and I’m borrowing that phrase for my title. Lag time is that time between hearing and doing. Neither son obeyed immediately. Jesus’ obvious point is that the test of faith is not words, but action.
THE 1st SON– Rebellious
Jesus said: A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ He answered, 'I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. (28-29)
Here is the difficult child who often causes parents to despair. His first response when told to do anything seems to be pre-programed to be “no.” I heard Ron Hutchcraft a couple of months ago tell of a friend with a three-year-old daughter. Before crossing a busy street, he said, “Now hold Daddy’s hand.” Her response was, “No. I’ll hold my own hand.” That father has his work cut out for him, doesn’t he? Here is the teenager who is constantly pushing the limits, arguing about anything and everything.
Spiritually, here are the people who seem the farthest from God. They may be angry or rebellious, going their own way. Here we might find those claiming atheism or agnosticism. Here are people whose language and behavior let it be known that they’re going to live hard, do it their way, and nobody’s going to tell them how to live. Or, their words or behavior may not be so overt, but nonetheless, they have little interest in making Jesus Lord of their lives and doing what He says. In this parable, Jesus specifically refers to tax collectors and prostitutes– two despised groups considered the worst of sinners. The prostitutes were sexually immoral. Tax collectors sold-out to the occupying government, Rome, betraying Israel and most often were cheating the people as well. Most people of that day if asked who would be the least likely to be saved, collectors and prostitutes would head the list.
Then, the surprising change in this angry rebellious first son– but later he changed his mind and went. The word for change here is the same in the Greek as the one for repentance, metanoia. Here, we see the kingdom of God is full of wonderful surprises. Those we may view as least likely to come to faith in God, end up there. But sometimes there is considerable lag time.
The Gospel wears well over time. It has good shelf-life. As a pastor I am often privy to stories of lag time that has stretched over decades. Seeds were planted in Sunday School and/ or the home. Perhaps there was a childhood commitment to Christ that seemed to be totally lost in immoral, rebellious living. Then years later, perhaps as an adult, and even in old age there is that miraculous change of heart– repentance and coming to Christ.
This parable tells us we don’t need to be afraid of lag time. Keep interceding with God on behalf of those struggling to find the way. Be faithful in witness. And, when we ourselves struggle with questions and doubts, stay in the church, stay around people of faith. After the questioning, after the doubts, faith will return, stronger than ever. We see it in Job. We see it in the Psalms. And we see it in the early disciples– for certainly we’d have to view the time between the crucifixion and Pentecost as lag time for them. They were confused. They had a commission, but they were powerless to carry it out. But, they stayed with what Jesus had told them even though they didn’t half comprehend it.
If you watched the Super Bowl, you’ll remember the amazing catch made by New York Giants wide receiver David Tyree. It was a pivotal moment in the Giant’s victory and some are calling it the greatest catch in Super Bowl history. But David Tyree says that is not the greatest moment of his life. He says the biggest moment of his life was when he met Jesus Christ. David, like this first son in the parable was rebellious. He drank and smoked pot from an early age, habits he carried with him into the NFL. In 2004 he was fined $10,000 for being late to a team meeting. Tyree decided to sell marijuana to pay the fine. He was arrested and put in jail. But David says, “What looked to be the lowest point in my life ended up being the greatest thing that ever happened to me.” His girlfriend issued an ultimatum: “her lifestyle or his.” He began reading a Bible he saw on her bed. A month after his arrest, he went to church and listened to a woman singing with joy. He realized he had no joy. He hung his head and sobbed. He said, “I had no joy. I had no peace. My life was in disarray.” David Tyree committed his life to Christ and he says, that story is “bigger than his Super Bowl catch. It is about destiny and purpose.” Now he is much more concerned, he says, about changing lives. He and his wife do this now counseling teens through an organization called Next in Line.
Now, we turn to the contrast with this first son– the second son.
THE 2nd SON– Words of Obedience
To his father’s command to go out and work in the field today, this son responded, 'I go, sir!' There is no hint of rebellion. This is the kid who is a delight to have around. He is agreeable, compliant, and respectful. The word translated, “sir” here is kyrie, the Greek for “lord.” He doesn’t argue or complain– “But I wanted to play with my friends today!” He didn’t make excuses– “It’s too hot” or “it’s boring” or “I’m too tired.” His response is a satisfying, “Yes, Dad, I’d be glad to do it!” Wow, that’s the kind of child every parent wants.
But, then we get to the second clause, but he did not go. We’re not told any more about this son, but I find it easy to fill in the blanks– for that is me as I was growing up.
I was an obedient child, always wanting to please my parents. I’m the youngest of three, and I remember my mother telling me, “Kenny, you are the easiest of our children to raise.” Just a disapproving look would devastate me. My older sister was a strong-willed child. My older brother was the adventuresome sort, running away from home– more than testing the limits. Then there was me. Whatever was expected I tried to comply with, at least outwardly. But, I also got good at faking it– looking like I was in compliance, yet getting away with not following through. I could affirm willingness to do what was asked, but found ways to make it look like I did, but didn’t. I would easily speak the right words, but at times conveniently forget or procrastinate– the primary means of passive rebellion.
Spiritually, there is a similar parallel. I grew up in the faith. I never rebelled or struggled with believing. I learned the language of the faith , the songs of the faith, and never questioned attending Sunday School and worship Sunday mornings, Sunday evening services, and Wednesday night prayer meetings. I complied with the outward rules of the church– no cards, no movies, no alcohol, and no smoking. I remember my mother once commenting that my Bible, which sat beside my best, was a bit dusty. Did that prompt me to be more faithful in reading it? No. I simply made sure I dusted it now and then, moved it around a bit, so it would appear to be used.
Now this was not all hypocrisy on my part. I was sincere. I did want God and I did love God. But the follow-through often came up quite short. My resolutions were noble and sincere in deciding to do better. But peer pressure, laziness, complacency, the pressure of school work, priorities, and a myriad of other things were excuses for not doing my Father’s will. And, here’s an important point, the external practice and the language of faith often caused me to view myself as having more faith than I was practicing. While I probably impressed others with my religious practice, I failed to notice how much of it wasn’t being practiced in my own heart and living– at least in the places where no one could see.
Mostly my problem was one of putting things off. And, I expect this second son in the parable may well have been there. He probably intended to go out and work... but, there were a few things he wanted to do first. “Later” never “feels” like “no.” But, when it comes to following Jesus, delay can be the deadliest form of denial because we aren’t saying “no.” It “feels” like we are in agreement, so it never feels like rebellion. But the net result, no action, is the same as rejecting His command. There is always a “today-ness,” an immediacy to the call of Jesus. The father’s command in the parable is to go to the vineyard today. Remember the three people considering following Jesus in Luke 9:57-62–
As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
He said to another man, "Follow me.”
But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family.”
Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
No one is saying “no” here. They all sound in agreement with following Jesus– just not right now, or naming a few conditions for their discipleship.
In this parable, Jesus is targeting the religious leaders of that day who are plotting to destroy them. They had the orthodox doctrine. The Pharisees were the fundamentalists of the Jewish faith. They have the words of the faith down pat. Everyone is impressed with their spirituality. These religious leaders are so scrupulous in keeping the details of the law that, after they’ve paid-off Judas to betray Jesus and he in remorse returns the money to them, throwing it down at their feet in the temple,
The chief priests picked up the coins and said, "It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” So they decided to use the money to buy the potter's field as a burial place for foreigners. That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. (Matt 27:6-8)
They are about to murder Jesus, yet are concerned that the money used to betray Jesus not contaminate other money in the treasury. They knew it was tainted money but in their scrupulosity in following all the legalities, they never dealt with their hardened hearts twisted with jealousy, pride, and the need for control that were driving them to murder Jesus.
This parable points out the danger to those of us in the church, for we are most apt to fall into the same trap as the religious leaders of Jesus’ day. Knowing the Scriptures and knowing about God and doing religious activities can make us feel we’re okay while failing to deal with the deeper heart issues.
VALIDATION OF BELIEF
In the vineyard, is where we know what true faith is. Talk about going isn’t good enough. It is the one that goes to the father’s field that is truly a believer and in the kingdom. Earlier, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus has ended the sermon with a stirring call to doing, Mtt. 7:21-24
"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
That is followed by the parable of the house built on the rock and the one on the sand. Jesus is warning that the spiritual life is “putting into practice” and “doing the will of the Father.” Martin Luther defined true faith as a “living, busy, active, mighty thing.” And, as James reminds us, faith without works is dead (James 2:17).
And, note that in that last sentence of our text, the word “believe” occurs three times for emphasis– belief that results in action. As with the example of John the Baptist, these religious leaders saw the transforming effect of John the Baptist’s preaching on these “terrible sinners,” the life-changes. Jesus says, and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds [repent] and believe him.
CONCLUSION
For Christmas, we received one of those gift cards that are activated and loaded at the cash register with the amount of money you pay when you buy them.On the presentation card it was given to us in, we were informed it was worth $25.00. Polly and I were pleased. Then when we went to spend it, we found out it was actually loaded with $50.00. Wow! What a pleasant surprise. It was twice the value we were told. There was obviously a mistake either in the amount written on the presentation card or when the gift card was activated. No matter how it happened, it was worth twice as much as we thought. There was nothing to be done except enjoy the bonus.
I was thinking about that for our lives. We don’t know what spiritual depths might be there or not be there by the face value. We can look spiritual and our external practice can be impeccable– but what’s really there in your heart? When that is revealed, will we and others, be pleasantly surprised or disappointed? Some of the worst-looking sinners of that day, God loaded with incredible gifts of character and power, becoming great leaders in the kingdom of God. And those who looked the most spiritual were revealed to be filled with incredible darkness and ugly sin.
As I mentioned, there is lag time for both sons. We’d be pressing the parable too far to speculate that the second sonmay have also changed his mind. But if you are in the shoes of the second son, know you too can repent. All of us second sons need warnings like this so we can examine our hearts and put into practice what we know to be the way.