Matthew 21:33-43
33 "Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. 34 "Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. 35 "And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. 36 "Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. 37 "Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' 38 "But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.' 39 "So they took him and cast [him] out of the vineyard and killed [him]. 40 "Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?" 41 They said to Him, "He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease [his] vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons." 42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD's doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes' ? 43 "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. "
In this passage, the Lord Jesus is speaking to the chief priests and Pharisees of Israel. This parable is concerning them as attested to in verse 43 by Jesus. To understand the profound impact of this verse, we must engage it in reverse order. I would like to call your attention to verses 42 and 43 in particular at this moment. Notice verse 43 which states that the kingdom of God will be given to a nation bearing fruits of it. The word “bearing” here in the original KJV is actually two words; that is “bringing forth” and it means to act rightly, to execute, to celebrate, to perform. This is powerful because God is about production, He is not about mere words. He wants tangible results not just arbitrary ideas and moral constructs that don’t help or change anyone. Further, it is imperative to recognize what God means by the term “nation.” What He DOES NOT mean is a country, such as the United States. We know this because of the law of first mention. In Genesis, beginning in chapter 12, we have God promising to bring forth a “nation” from Abram. What God was referring to was the Jewish race. He was not referring to those who specifically lived in Israel because there was not an Israel yet at that time on the face of the Earth. Later, when Rebekah is pregnant with Jacob and Esau the Lord tells her that she had two “nations” inside of her womb. So nations refer to bloodlines not boundary lines in scripture. Further Jesus said He would give the “Kingdom of God” to this nation. This is different than Him saying He would give “the Kingdom heaven” to this nation to which He referred. I propose that the nation in particular to which Jesus was referring was the nation of the new creation! Further, in Luke 17:20-21, Jesus assured us that the Kingdom of God does not come with observation, but it is “within you.” This notion brings continuity to the concept that the new creation nation carries all of the precepts and concepts practiced and adhered to in the Kingdom of heaven in the heart of the representatives of that kingdom here on Earth. Thus, when Jesus stated that the Kingdom of God would be taken from the Jews and given to the new creation nation it was because the citizens of the new creation nation were manifesting God’s will and not merely speaking about God’s will!
The next passage I would like to magnify is verse 42. Since we have established that the new creation is the nation to which Jesus referred, we can now examine why the exchange was made. The key to that concept lies in the word “builders”. The word builders in verse 42 is a word that means to build a house, to found, to establish. This is so important because when Jesus quoted Psalm 118:22 by calling the Jews “builders” He was saying that the establishment of the kingdom of God on the earth was the responsibility of the Jews - for they were the “builders”! They were not merely recipients!! The distinction is clear and so powerful because if we understand that the Jews were the “builders” because God gave them that authority, then we can clearly understand how very important their response to Jesus’ parable was. Jesus asked them, the builders what they thought about what would happen to the nation {or servants in the vineyard} who did not produce fruit and they themselves called out their own judgment!!!! At the moment Jesus asked them what they thought that the owner of the vineyard would do {verse 40} they responded with quick, severe, and harsh punishment, but they did not comprehend that they were speaking death upon their own lives with their own tongues. Jesus said to “judge not, lest you be judged” and that He would judge them out of their own mouths in Luke 19:22.
In conclusion, it is imperative beloved that you fully comprehend the weight of this passage. The nation that has within itself the Kingdom of God is the New Creation Nation, and this is so because it bears fruit. Along with this blessed state of being, comes the vast responsibility of the “building” of the Kingdom with the mouths and words of the New Creation. To boil it down, we believe Jesus and then we act on what He said out of love for Him and we will manifest the Kingdom of God!!
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