A parable for today:
Matthew 21:28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’
29 “And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went.
30 “The man came to the second and said the same thing; and he answered, ‘I will, sir’; but he did not go.
31 “Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you.
32 “For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.
I’m looking at the parables a lot more lately, and this one struck me as especially pertinent for today.
The emphasis in many churches today is put on the confession of faith. Are you a believer? The answer to that question is paramount as to whether you are in or out.
I confess that I often place too much weight on my own confession of faith. I feel secure in the fact that I call myself a follower of Christ, but all too often, I neglect the actual following.
To put this parable a different way, if one man confesses to be a Christian and attends church services weekly, but he does not feed the poor, love his neighbor, give aid to the helpless, he is not doing the will of God. If another says he does not believe in the way of Christ, then changes his mind and does these things, he is the one following Christ. The parable does say the man “regretted” saying no to his father.
All too often, the standard is the confession with little emphasis placed on the action. Regardless of how we interpret Paul’s words about being saved by faith without works, we cannot forget Jesus’ parable here showing us who is really doing the will of the Father.
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