Giving the Vineyard to Others

Scripture: Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others. Mark 12:9

Observation: This parable of Jesus is a thinly-veiled insult of the Jewish religious leaders, and they know it. The owner is God, the vinedressers are the Jews, the vineyard is the covenant relationship between God and the Jews, and the people the owner sends are his prophets. The vinedressers kill all the prophets, and then they kill the owner's own son. And what will the owner do next? He will destroy the vinedressers. This is all pretty easy to understand.

However, it is the final clause that is interesting. The owner will then give the vineyard to others. He won't return and take his own grapes or work the land himself. Neither will he lament the vineyard and therefore turn his back on it and let it go fallow. No ... he will instead establish a new covenant with a new group of people.

The covenant with the Jews was that of a two-way relationship. By their honor and love of the Lord, he would love and bless them. Out of that relationship, the rest of the world would understand and learn how to honor and love the Lord, and the resulting blessing would flow to all people. When the people have finally killed the son, this covenant relationship will now pass to ... others.

Application: One of my areas of doubt is about God's true intentionality with us 'gentiles'. I am sometimes concerned that there is, at the very least, a hierarchy of God's people, and the Jews remain at the top, with believing Christians at least one step down. In this parable, Jesus is saying something very different. He is clearly stating that, upon his death, a new people will be given a new covenant with the Lord. Jesus will say this even more clearly to the disciples.

The old covenant is not now with the gentiles. Rather, a new, better covenant is now with Christians. I am one of the others, given the vineyard to care for. May I be aware of the owner's requests, and honor him when they come.

Prayer: Lord, your wine, your blessing, is sweet and loving and kind. You are great in your mercy and justice and love. Please forgive my failures on a daily basis, and guide me in strength to better serve you in deed and thought. May your name be forever on my lips in worship and prayer. Amen.