Let’s
read Matthew 21:28-32
Jesus said – “There was a man who had two sons. He went to
the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.” ‘I will not,’ he
answered, but later he changed his mind and went. “Then the father went to the other son and
said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. “Which of
the two did what his father wanted?” “The
first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the
tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For
John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not
believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him”.
In the above parable, Jesus is talking about two sons. The
first son is similar to a non-Christian who grew up in the ways of the world.
The other son is similar to a person brought up as a Christian with Biblical
principles and teachings.
The first son may have displeased and disrespected the
father through many years of his sinful life but there came a time when he encountered
“The Truth” and repented of his sins. This first son changed his mind (in
accordance to Christ’s) and started to live a life that is pleasing to his
father. On the contrary the second son knew how to address his father with respect
and unfortunately that was ALL that he knew. When he was asked by his father to
work in the vineyard, he so politely said “I will sir”. The second son knew how
to respect the father on the outside but on the inside he was not obedient and respectful
at all. The second son’s condition is more serious than that of the first one..!
The same can be noticed today in the Christian world. Film
actors, businessmen, prostitutes, idol worshippers, murderers, politicians and terrorists
etc. are all being transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These people are similar
to the first son in the above passage. They may have shown their arrogance to
God for most of their lives but once their mind is changed, they start working
for the Lord and take their lives seriously. But name-sake Christians say “I will
sir” to God on every Sunday but do not live by what they say or believe.
Do not say “I Will” to God unless you are serious about it,
lest you become worse than a prostitute…!!
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