Luke 13:6

Verse of the Day Devotion Luke 13:6 

“And He began telling this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any.” – Luke 13:6

Today we will look at the Parable of the Barren Fig Tree.  Here is this parable as found in Luke’s gospel.

“And He began telling this parable: A certain man had a fig tree which had been planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and did not find any. And he said to the vineyard-keeper, Behold, for three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree without finding any. Cut it down! Why does it even use up the ground?  And he answered and said to him, Let it alone, sir, for this year too, until I dig around it and put in fertilizer; and if it bears fruit next year, fine; but if not, cut it down.” Luke 13:6-9.

Jesus told this parable immediately after reminding all who were there about the tower over the Pool of Siloam which collapsed unexpectedly and killed eighteen people. “Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. And He answered and said to them, Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this fate?  I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Luke 13:1-5.  

This story starts by the vineyard owner showing his disappointment that a tree he had watched for  three years had not produced any fruit.  The three-year period is important because this points to John the Baptist and Jesus who had been preaching repentance and the coming of the promised Messiah for three years throughout Israel.  However, the fruit of repentance was not coming forth, and they thought they were special because they we Jews. “Therefore, bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, we have Abraham for our father, for I say to you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. And also the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”  Luke 3:8-9. They had departed from the true faith and the true living God. The Jews created a religion of works based on  righteousness that was not pleasing to God. 

Now, there are three distinct entities in this parable.  The vineyard owner represents God, the one who found the tree with no fruit and justly requesting it be cut down.  The vineyard keeper or gardener is Jesus the Christ, who asks for additional time to see the tree bear fruit, and the tree itself representing the Jewish nation and individuals.  

The lesson in this parable is that borrowed time is not permanent. God’s patience has a limit. In the parable, the vineyard owner grants another year of life to the tree. In the same way, God in His mercy grants us more time; another year, day, minute or second. Christ stands at the door of each man’s heart knocking and seeking to gain entrance and requiring repentance from sin. But if there is no fruit or repentance, His patience will come to an end, and the fruitless, unrepentant individual will be cut down. We all live on borrowed time; judgment is close by. That is why the prophet Isaiah wrote, “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.” Isaiah 55:6-7.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

Matthew 20:1

Verse of the Day Devotion Matthew 20:1 

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.” – Matthew 20:1

Today we will look at the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard.  Here is this parable as found in Matthew’s gospel.

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; and to those he said, ‘You too go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing; and he said to them, Why have you been standing here idle all day long?  They said to him, Because no one hired us. He said to them, You too go into the vineyard. And when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first. And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. And when those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; and they also received each one a denarius. And when they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day. But he answered and said to one of them, Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go your way, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous? Thus the last shall be first, and the first last.” Matthew 20:1-16.

This long parable is found only in the Book of Matthew.  He tells them in response to a question asked by Peter. “Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?” Matthew 19:27.  He begins His answer with, “Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, shall receive many times as much, and shall inherit eternal life.” Matthew 19:28-29.  Then He answers them, and follows it with this parable that answers it more explicitly. 

As our focus verse starts, this parable speaks of a landowner who hires seasonal laborers to work in his field.  Planting, maintaining, and harvesting vineyards in first-century Israel was strenuous work requiring hard physical labor in the heat of summer. Often, additional laborers were required to get all the work done.  Here, more were obviously needed, so he went out to the marketplace to hire workers.  He went out four times, as he saw more workers were needed than were hired.  He went out at 6:00 AM, 9:00 AM, 12 Noon, and 5:00 PM.  And each worker was promised a denarius for their labor, a Roman soldier’s pay for a day, which was generous indeed. The workers in the first group were more than happy to work for the generous wage.  When the time came for the wages to be paid, the first group of workers saw the last group being paid a denarius and were naturally thinking they would be paid more since they had worked the longest. Their anger against the landowner spilled forth when they saw they would all be paid the same, even though they had worked longer. And even though they received exactly what they had agreed upon when they were hired.  His decision to pay everyone the same, regardless of time worked, was an act of mercy, not injustice. The landowner represents God, whose mercy and grace are given to all those of His choosing. And he gave them generously what he had promised them.

Now, there are three main points in this parable.  First, “But he answered and said to one of them, Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go your way, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.” Matthew 20:13-14.  It focusses on the first group of workers and demonstrates God’s justice with all His people.  He told them he was not depriving them of anything but was paying them what was promised.  And just because we think we deserve more, or others deserve less, is not up to us, but it is up to God to decide what we deserve.

The second point was regarding the last groups getting the same as the first, demonstrating God’s amazing and wonderful grace.  If God treats no one unfairly, he also deals with many far more leniently than they deserve. God alone in his sovereignty freely chooses whom he will favor and in what ways.  And due to who He is, it is always the right thing. And He concludes this idea with, “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?” Matthew 20:15. God has the right to do as He pleases.  And the phrase “Or is your eye envious because I am generous?” speaks of the heart of the people. The “evil eye” was often viewed as a diabolical look that could cast a wicked spell on a person. The idea of this phrase is, ”Are you envious because I am generous?

And the third describes God’s ultimate perspective of things. “Thus, the last shall be first, and the first last.” Matthew 20:16.  No matter how long or how hard a believer works during his lifetime, the reward of eternal life will be the same given to all—an eternity of bliss in heaven in the presence of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The thief on the cross whose life of service was limited to a moment of repentance and confession of faith in Christ, received the same reward of eternal life as the apostle Paul. Of course, Scripture also teaches that there are different rewards in heaven for different services, but the ultimate reward of eternal life will be achieved by all equally.

So let us not look at ourselves as special or as deserving more than others.  “For through the grace given to me I say to every man among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.” Romans 12:3.  We should not think the work we do for God makes us deserve more blessings than others. God will make that decision, and we will definitely be blessed by what He chooses to confer upon us.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

Matthew 21:33

Verse of the Day Devotion Matthew 21:33 

“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers, and went on a journey.” – Matthew 21:33

Today we will look at the Parable of the Tenants, the second of three parables, in sequence, that depict God’s indictment and sentence of the present Jewish Leadership, unless they realize their errors and turn to the truth. Jesus does not reject Israel as a whole, only the current leadership, which has rejected him. The contrast is not between Jews and Gentiles but rather between those who reject and those who accept Jesus.  Here is this parable as found in Matthew’s gospel.

“Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard and put a wall around it and dug a wine press in it and built a tower, and rented it out to vine-growers, and went on a journey.   And when the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce.  And the vine-growers took his slaves and beat one, and killed another, and stoned a third. Again he sent another group of slaves larger than the first; and they did the same thing to them. But afterward he sent his son to them, saying, They will respect my son. But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and seize his inheritance.  And they took him, and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.  Therefore when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers? They said to Him, He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers, who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.  Jesus said to them, Did you never read in the Scriptures, THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES’?  Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and be given to a nation producing the fruit of it.  And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.” Matthew 21:33-44.

This parable’s image closely resembles which was written by Isaiah. “Let me sing now for my well-beloved A song of my beloved concerning His vineyard. My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill.  And He dug it all around, removed its stones, and planted it with the choicest vine. And He built a tower in the middle of it, And hewed out a wine vat in it; Then He expected it to produce good grapes, But it produced only worthless ones.” Isaiah 5:1-2. The Hebrew expression regarding the grapes produced is that they were wild, poison grapes.  The slight difference between this verse in  Isaiah and the parable is that the parable speaks of what the Jews did, as opposed to what they were, which was essentially those who took advantage of the vineyard owner.  We also see another picture of this in Isaiah. “The LORD arises to contend and stands to judge the people. The LORD enters into judgment with the elders and princes of His people, “It is you who have devoured the vineyard; The plunder of the poor is in your houses. What do you mean by crushing My people, and grinding the face of the poor? Declares the Lord GOD of hosts.” Isaiah 3:13-15.

The parable starts with a landowner planting a vineyard and then putting up a wall, with a pit to be used as a wine press along with a watch tower.  He then, as a landlord, rents this out as an investment. Now, we then read “And when the harvest time approached, he sent his slaves to the vine-growers to receive his produce.” Matthew 21:34.  First of all, it takes roughly four to five years for newly planted vineyards to produce good grapes, therefore this was not a short time period.  When these slaves arrived, they were killed. Therefore, he sent another group of slaves and they were also killed. “But afterward he sent his son to them, saying they will respect my son. But when the vine-growers saw the son, they said among themselves this is the heir; come, let us kill him, and seize his inheritance. And they took him, and threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.” Matthew 21:37-39.  

Jesus then asks the audience, predominantly Jews with the leadership, a question. “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine-growers?” Matthew 21:40. Then they answered Jesus saying, “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and will rent out the vineyard to other vine-growers, who will pay him the proceeds at the proper seasons.” Matthew 21:41.  Next, in verses 42-43 we read something unique to Matthew. It emphasizes the transference of leadership in Israel to new individuals. But the use of ethnos, the Greek word meaning “a people”—a collective singular” suggests more than simply the appointment of new leaders; it envisages a new community of disciples who perform the works God commands. Jesus is not so much foreshadowing the shift of God’s activity from Jewish to Gentile realms as anticipating the replacement of Israel by the church, which will unite both Jew and Gentile. Those who have rejected Jesus, for whom the cornerstone has become a stumbling stone, will be broken by him. And even if one does not actively oppose Jesus, anything less than genuine discipleship will lead to judgment, the stone will fall on and crush such a person.

We can apply this parable to our lives by asking two questions; first, have we truly come to know Christ as our Lord and Savior, or have we rejected Him like the Jewish leadership did? And second, if we are a believer, what have we done with and for Jesus? Are you like the bad tenants rejecting His Word and living a life of disobedience? If there is any question, we need to study His word, and pray fervently.  He loves us and wants us to be totally committed to Him. I can tell you, life this way is totally worth it now and eternally.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

Matthew 21:28

Verse of the Day Devotion 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.'” – Matthew 21:28

Today we will look at the Parable of the Two Sons, the first of three parables, in sequence, that depict God’s indictment and sentence of the present Jewish Leadership, unless they realize their errors and turn to the truth. Jesus does not reject Israel as a whole, only the current leadership, which has rejected him. The contrast is not between Jews and Gentiles but rather between those who reject and those who accept Jesus.  Here is this parable as found in Matthew’s gospel.

“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. And he answered and said, I will, sir’; and he did not go. And he came to the second and said the same thing. But he answered and said, I will not; yet he afterward regretted it and went. Which of the two did the will of his father?  They said, The latter.  Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you that the tax-gatherers and harlots will get into the kingdom of God before you.  For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax-gatherers and harlots did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.” Matthew 21:28-32.

This parable starts by introducing a man who has two sons. There are several things that need to be done, so he goes to one of his sons and says, “Son, go work today in the vineyard.” Matthew 21:28a. The son tells his father he will go out and work, but then does not.  He then goes to his second son and says the same thing, and he tells his father no, he would not go, but later regrets his decision and ultimately goes out and does what his father asked.  Both sons give opposite answers, but later do the contrary of what they told their father.

In this parable, Jesus is addressing the Jewish officials who continue to refuse to accept His divine authority, or to acknowledge John’s prophetic ministry.  “For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax-gatherers and harlots did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even feel remorse afterward so as to believe him.” Matthew 21:32.  What Jesus was saying here was that the most notorious of sinners, tax collectors and harlots, will get into heaven before they will. This does not mean that ethical considerations do not apply and that the worst of sinners keep on with the worst of their sins in the kingdom. It means that sinners like outcasts could respond to the message of the kingdom much more readily than sinners whose sins were cast in the conventional mode that brought no rebuke from the religious establishment.  As long as there was no rebuke from the Jewish leadership, then they believed there was no problem.

God has called us to do His work just as the father called his sons to do his will. Are we like the son who said ‘yes’ but did not carry through, or like the one who said ‘no’ but then repents and does it?  Many times, people promise to do things for God, or have every intention of doing them at the time but fail to because something else came up and was raised to priority one, over and above what God called us to. Like the son who ultimately disobeyed, some promise but do not perform it as they promised and so are rejected by God. Like the son who ultimately obeyed, some rebel but later submit and so are accepted.  The Jewish leadership would not accept Jesus as the promised Messiah because He did not fit the mold they believed the Messiah would follow, even though John laid out clearly who Jesus was. 

I want to close this with a quote from the Theologian Adam Clarke. “It is very difficult to get a worldly minded and self-righteous man brought to Christ. Examples signify little to him. Urge the example of an eminent saint, he is discouraged at it. Show him a profligate sinner converted to God, him he is ashamed to own and follow; and, as to the conduct of the generality of the followers of Christ, it is not striking enough to impress him. John, and Christ, and the apostles preach; but, to multitudes, all is in vain.”

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.