Matthew 21:28-32

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:

“What is your opinion? 

A man had two sons. 

He came to the first and said,

‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ 

The son said in reply, ‘I will not,’

but afterwards he changed his mind and went. 

The man came to the other son and gave the same order. 

He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir,’ but did not go. 

Which of the two did his father’s will?” 

They answered, “The first.” 

Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you,

tax collectors and prostitutes

are entering the Kingdom of God before you. 

When John came to you in the way of righteousness,

you did not believe him;

but tax collectors and prostitutes did. 

Yet even when you saw that,

you did not later change your minds and believe him.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I pray that I may always accomplish your will. Help me to hear your Word amid the noise of this world and heed your loving invitation to work in your vineyard.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Second Son: In the Gospel, the chief priests tried to trap Jesus with a question about his authority to cleanse the Temple and teach in it. Jesus responded to their question with a question of his own about John the Baptist’s authority. The chief priests refused to answer Jesus’ question, since any acknowledgement that John had divine authority would mean that Jesus, whom John indicated as anointed by the Spirit of the Lord, is the royal Messiah sent by God and has divine authority. In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus compares the chief priests to a son who says one thing but does another. Like the second son, the chief priests and elders say they will work in their father’s vineyard, but don’t. This is part of their hypocrisy. They were supposed to be working in the Lord’s vineyard and helping the people grow in holiness to prepare for the coming of the Lord. But they were failing miserably, as evidenced by the moneychangers in the Temple’s Court. They were more focused on money and commerce than prayer. Jesus cleansed the Temple the previous day and now sits in it to teach.

2. The First Son: The second son in the parable represents the hypocrisy of the religious authorities. By contrast, the first son represents the repentance of sinners. The people of Judah and Jerusalem heeded the call of John the Baptist. Having confessed their sins and been washed in the waters of the Jordan River, they set out to work in the Lord’s vineyard. Jesus points this out to the chief priests and elders. Public sinners – like tax collectors and prostitutes – believed in John the Baptist and took to heart his message of repentance. John’s Old Covenant baptism of water in the Jordan River prefigures our New Covenant Baptism of water and in the river of the Spirit. We enter the Kingdom of Heaven through our Baptism and are called to work in the Lord’s vineyard. We need to protect the vineyard from the assaults of the ancient serpent. We need to till the soil and clear out stones and brambles (Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23). We need to water the vines (John 7:37-39), prune the branches (John 15:1-17), collect the harvest of grapes at the appropriate time, crush and ferment the grapes, and produce good wine. These are all symbols of our spiritual life and cultivating a life of grace and virtue. Am I imitating the hypocrisy of the chief priests or the repentance of the crowds this Advent? What are the most urgent and important tasks in the vineyard of my soul?

3. A Renewed Invitation: John, Jesus says, came to the people “in the way of righteousness.” When John appeared in the desert of Judea, his message was: “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand!” John was the voice crying out in the desert, “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” When John saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism to observe what he was doing and teaching, he called them a “brood of vipers.” Jesus recalls this and how John invited the religious authorities to repent. When the chief priests and elders saw the crowds in the desert responding to John’s message and turning from their sins, this should have been a sign that the royal Messiah was coming. They should have repented and believed in John and prepared to welcome Jesus. Instead, they plotted to kill Jesus. They persisted in their mindset and refused to change. Jesus reissues the invitation to repent to the chief priests. They may think that they are like the second son, but they are actually in the situation of the first son: they refused to listen and go to work, but now they can change. What things am I persisting in, like the chief priests, that are not in accord with God’s loving plan of salvation?

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you fulfilled the Father’s will perfectly and invite me to do the same. I need your grace and strength to do this. Please help me to resist any temptations to stray from the path to holiness and eternal life.

Living the Word of God: Am I imitating the hypocrisy of the chief priests or the repentance of the crowds this Advent? What are the most urgent and important tasks in the vineyard of my soul? What things am I persisting in, like the chief priests, that are not in accord with God’s loving plan of salvation?