Matthew 21:37
Is God gullible? Does he not know the depths of the sin of man? does he fail to see the evil within our hearts. No. Indeed, it is he who reminds us and instructs us concerning the great evil that is found within us. Without the testimony of his word, we would never call ourselves out for sinners the way that we should. The word of God alone gives the right picture of just how bad we are. So does God not read the Bible?
Why do we see here that Jesus emphasizes the presumption on the part of the vineyard owner that these miscreants to whom he had trusted his vineyard would treat his son differently? This man in Jesus’ story surely represents the Lord. Why then does he not stop short, knowing that the hirelings will hurt his son? The answer is the simple clear truth of John 3:16. God did it because he loves us. God is not gullible, but he chooses to treat us better than we deserve. We do not have an ounce of goodness on our own, but all goodness must come from God. He knows that we a guilty. He knows we cannot improve ourselves. He knows that he is our only hope.
But, you may say, God knows that many will not reverence his Son. God knows that they will not accept the gospel of Christ and be saved. So, they say, Jesus was not sent for them. This is not true. Jesus died for all men. However, the fact that, though the vineyard owner might expect the son to be reverenced, he is mistreated, shows the justice in condemning the enemies. In other words, it is all about the glory of God. He come out of this being obviously just and righteous. He offers mercy to those that he knows will not take it because he wants there to be no doubt of his glorious goodness and beneficence.
Bible Reading: Exodus 24:1-26:37
Scripture Memory: James 1:17 “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of truning.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for always working things together for Your glory. In our natural way of thinking, that would seem inconvenient to us, but it is not. It is the most wonderful thing that can happen in our lives. May Your will and way for Your glory prevail always in my life. I don’t want to fail, Father. You lead us and guide us in the way that we should go. Your path is perfect. The way of Your will is always the best. Really, Your way is all that matters. You are God above reigning over our breath. you know it all, so we will trust in You. You are worthy of our praise, and You are worthy of our service. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.
Prayer Requests: Pray for protection for a missionary family in Mexico. Pray for a young man who had a very bad fall. Pray for man with pain in his back. Pray for a man to get back to church.
Journal Entry #14123