A FRUITFUL LIFE: GOSPEL: MATTHEW 21: 33-43

Dear friends,

The gospel this Sunday uses the image of the vineyard to speak to us about the patience and generosity of God.

Jesus tells chief priest and the elders a parable. The owner of the vineyard sends workers into his vineyard to collect the harvest. However these poor servants do not receive a positive welcome. They are attacked and beaten. The owner then sends more workers into the vineyard. Sadly these workers are treated in much the same way. Lastly, the owner decides to send his son in the hope and belief that they will treat him with respect. Alas, his hope is ill placed; they kill his son. It comes as no surprise to us, that the owner of the vineyard represents God and his son is Jesus Christ. Also very clear in the parable, is that those who killed the servants and the owners son are Scribes, Pharisees and the elders. Imagine their shock and anger when they heard this!

But this, like all the other parables, is held up to us today so that we can see ourselves in it and learn from it. Through the life, mission, death and resurrection of our Lord, God offers the chance to reap an endlessly abundant harvest of love, mercy and forgiveness. They are offered to us freely out of love. Like those in the gospel, we have to choose freely whether to accept or decline God’s generous offer. We are the tenants today and God has certain expectations of us. God looks to us to produce the fruits of love, mercy, compassion and the values of the Kingdom of God. The burning question from this parable to us today is simple but challenging; what sort of fruits and harvest are we producing today though our ordinary daily lives as followers of Jesus? Do we bear the fruits of love and serve God and each other with the fruits God expects of us? Or are we just a bunch of useless sour grapes?!"

The kingdom of heaven has been given to us. As Christians, we should bear fruits of righteousness in our lives because we live in Christ. We are grafted into Him, the true vine. He bore our grapes of wrath so that we may bear grapes that last. Faith without works is dead. It should always be accompanied by a life of thanksgiving and good works. God has given his kingdom to a people who will produce its fruit. We are all replacement tenants. Our role as the new tenants, is to produce the fruit pictured in that grape harvest. God is not interested in counterfeit fruit, outward pretense. God wants fruit that last; the fruit of repentance (Matthew 3:8), love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Jesus himself said, "A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit" (Mat. 7:18). Remember, We shall be known by our fruits (Mat. 7:16). Let us strive to live a fruitful life, bearing fruits that last as we LOVE ONE ANOTHER.