Sermon Tone Analysis

27-33

By what authority?

It is the case that there is an authority in our lives whether we think so or not.

The chief priests, scribes and elders in the Temple had tradition as authoritative in their lives.

And because Jesus did not fit the mould as a recognised Rabbi by them or their organisations then they wanted to know why He thought He had the right to teach, to heal, to overturn tables and generally be, in their eyes, a nuisance as He was a challenge to their authority.

After all he came from Nazareth, they from Jerusalem, he had no time for their rules but rather ignored them, and he was not accredited through any Rabbi University like they were.

By what authority?

Jesus answered them by asking a question because he saw their plan to trap.

If He said He was sent by God they would ask who confirmed it and if He said that it was by His own authority it would be counted as blasphemous in their eyes.

So, Jesus asked them about where John the Baptist got his authority.

This confounded them so much that Jesus had to re-iterate the statement to respond: Answer me! Jesus put himself on at least the same level as John but they had no answer and would rather stay on the fence than to lend credence to the ministry of John the Baptist and therefore to Jesus revealing their compromise to keep the status quo.

And mainly they kept it out of fear.

The status quo is not the way of God, nor should it be the way of his people and Church.

Indeed Christians are called to grow and move forward.

The status quo is a moving backwards.

Christians can be afraid to stand up for the right things in doctrine and in action so that the status quo can be kept for the sake of peace so-called.

Love is all.

The problem is that truth suffers.

Both are needed.

These leaders were in cahoots with the politicians of the day and whilst we are called to be involved in all walks of life including politics it can also lead to compromise as it did for these spiritual leaders.

By what authority?

What our authority is matters and so the question is legitimate even if their motive for asking was not right.

What is our authority?

Perhaps we think it is not uncompromising for us to join with others who call themselves Christians but venerate Saints and Mary and the Pope and the priests and the magisterium, or those who do not believe in the Trinity as God, or with those who have experience, tradition, reason or opinions as the way they measure what is right and true.

By what authority?

How we answer this question reveals what we really believe.

Are John Piper or John MacArthur or Brian McLaren or Billy Graham or Charles Stanley or T.D. Jakes or any other number of Christian or so-called Christian leaders or Ian Thomas or anyone else here or elsewhere the ones who authoritative in our lives?

This was the error of the Corinthian Church in saying I follow Paul or I follow Apollos.

This leads, instead, to sectarianism within the Church.

By what authority?

Is not the one who has authority Jesus?

Jesus was the one who had authority not only because he was a prophet sent from God like John the Baptist but because he is the Son of God and so He has the right to speak into our lives because he gave us life to start with

And so we read in

Jesus spoke the world into existence.

He is the Word of God.

This is why in Baptist Principles Jesus is our authority.

And, of course, the Word of God is also synonymous with the Bible which is also called the Word of God.

By what authority?

Everything that we understand about God, Jesus, the Trinity, the world, the plan of salvation and everything else pertaining to life and godliness is found within the Word of God.

If there is anything at all that is contrary to the Word of God it is not of God.

We measure doctrine, life and all other things against what the pages of the Bible says and so if we have any other authority including our own authority, our own thoughts and opinions – if they do not measure up to what the Bible says then we are wrong.

We have nothing against tradition, experience, reason and opinions as long as they are informed by the Bible and shaped accordingly.

These men that came to Jesus and asked Him “by what authority do you do these things” thought that they had the authority because they were recognised by others as such and I, too, have been ordained…but I have no authority other than what the Bible says I have and I am to be in submission to it as any everyone else and to be moulded as such and what I say and do should be tested accordingly.

1-10

Then Jesus tells them a story.

So, let’s look at this parable for it is told them in response to what authority Jesus had but it has a wealth of things to say.

Jesus gives to them a summary of Israel’s history and a glimpse into the future.

First, we find that it has the hope of God for His people, then, the kindness of God for them, then the judgement of God upon them, and finally, the victory of God.

The hope of God for His people

This is seen in the fact that in the parable a man planted a vineyard, did all the preparation as one did if you were to expect there to be fruit.

This was a picture that everyone in Israel understood.

You cannot go far in Israel without seeing a vineyard.

And it was their national symbol.

The coins of the time had a bunch of grapes or a grape leaf imprinted onto them.

God looked at Israel like a vineyard as we find in

So, we can see from Isaiah that there is a close correlation between this and the parable of Jesus.

Indeed, we can see throughout Scripture the same sentiments.

It was God who planted the vineyard called Israel:

He rented out the vineyard and expected to receive his share of the fruit which was agreed beforehand.

The rentee here is the spiritual leadership of Israel.

But let us make sure that we do not behave like them.

We must take great care that we do not leave the spiritual relevance of this back in the dusty passages of time.

We farm a far richer vineyard than that of ancient Israel.

We have no living prophets like Isaiah or Daniel, but we do have the complete Word of God and the testimonies of his messengers.

We have so much more in our risen Christ and the indwelling Holy Spirit, along with the full revelation of both the Old and New Testament Scriptures.

Added to this is the testimony of the saints for the last 2,000 years.

Now, we come to the kindness of God to them

We have historical records of how often the relationship between vineyard workers had problems with the non-existent owner.

One of the reasons for this is the Levitical injunction to let the vine grow for five years before taking fruit.

That’s five years for the farmer to put effort into and to have the feeling slowly creep in that this was now their vineyard by right.

They thought it was theirs.

So, when the owner, that is God, sent people to them to get the fruit they lost patience with them and gradually grew more violent with each one sent.

Those sent to the people were judges, priests, kings and prophets.

First with beatings, then with stoning, and finally with murder.

And we can read of these in the Old Testament and have them mentioned in the New:

In 1 Kings 19 Elijah is threatened by Jezebel that she would take his life.

In 2 Chronicles 24 we have Zechariah, a prophet and so we read

And Herod had John the Baptist beheaded.

And we are told in

These men who rented it off the owner thought that they had sole rights to the property because of their greed but it had only been lent to them.

In over reaching their authority they committed atrocious crimes including murder culminating in the putting to death of Jesus on a cross.

Do you see that this was the kindness of God?

He had been very patient and enduring and had done everything to get them to repent, change their ways, and produce fruit.

It is this same long suffering of the Lord that he has for us in expecting there to be fruit for all the work He has put in.

Well, the farmers saw the son and thought the father must be dead.

Kill him and we’ll have it all to ourselves.

They wanted to be God.

This has been the devil’s playbook from the very beginning.

Those self same hearers right now of this parable were to be the ones to kill the Son and yet, in His kindness, He was still holding out His hands for them.

Spurgeon said, “If you reject him, he answers you with tears; if you wound him, he bleeds out cleansing; if you kill him, he dies to redeem; if you bury him, he rises again to bring resurrection.

Jesus is love made manifest.

But there is a limit.

The judgement of God

In AD70 under Emperor Titus Israel and their leaders lost their place and position in the land of Israel that they held so precious and most died at the hands of the Romans, something foretold by Jesus in this parable and elsewhere.

And judgement is coming upon this world soon.

If in opposition to God, if His love is spurned, then what is left to save us?

Just the terrible expectation of the wrath of God and eternal condemnation.

The victory of God

The one rejected is the chosen of God.

Jesus quoted from Psalm 118 which would have been recited probably on that day as it is every Passover week.

Everyone knew it was about the Messiah.

Yet He was right there in the midst quoting that very Psalm.