Matthew 21:23-32
Everyone loves being right. It’s hard for all of us to admit we were wrong especially when there is a lot at stake.
23 When He entered the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, “By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” 24 But Jesus responded and said to them, “I will also ask you one [h]question, which, if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John was from what source: from heaven or from men?” And they began considering the implications among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From men,’ we fear the [i]people; for they all regard John as a prophet.” 27 And answering Jesus, they said, “We do not know.” He also said to them, “Neither am I telling you by what authority I do these things.
Parable of Two Sons
Having the right answers and doing the right thing are two different things
28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go work today in the vineyard.’ 29 But he replied, ‘I do not want to.’ Yet afterward he regretted it and went. 30 And the man came to his second son and said the same thing; and he replied, ‘I will, sir’; and yet he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They *said, “The first.” Jesus *said to them, “Truly I say to you that the tax collectors and prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him; but the tax collectors and prostitutes did believe him; and you, seeing this, did not even have second thoughts afterward so as to believe him.
The Answer Is In The Question
Jesus first asks them a question that they don’t have an answer to. Then he asks them an easy question that anyone would have the right answer to. The answer to Jesus’ first question is in the answer to the second question.
Perhaps Jesus is pointing out to them that they care more about giving and having the right answers than they do about doing God’s will. The second son gave the right answer but he didn’t do the will of the Father. The chief priests and elders know the law, but they don’t know the will of God. They seek answers but they don’t practice love. They are hardhearted and the truth that could set them free is so hard for them to see because they have been living this lifestyle built on knowledge rather than action.
And no one has questioned them till Jesus. But people were looking to them to provide answers so they needed to be challenged because they were leading people astray. I’m sure Jesus wasn’t the first one to see through them but he had the power to confront them and that is often enough to confirm to others who suspect that things are not right.
Challenging Authority
I have been on both sides of that fence. I have been the one questioning authority that became indignant that I was questioning them. And I have had my authority questioned and felt indignation rise within me. I love how Jesus handles this. Rather than put them in their place because who are they to question the authority of God!! Jesus gives them something to think about.
Like any good politician, they consider how their answer will be perceived by the crowds, and respond accordingly. I don’t think that surprised Jesus. But the truth is, Jesus is the son of God and they are questioning His authority. And the real question is, who gave them the authority that the Son of God should be answerable to them!!? But rather than confront that head-on, Jesus leads them to a quieter place to see what is really happening.
Jesus Is Not Above Being Questioned
The messiah, the chosen one, the one that they have been waiting for is here, as evidenced by the fact that people are being healed, the blind are given sight, the lame can walk. Furthermore prostitutes and tax collectors are coming to an awareness of their actions and lifestyles. They are turning away from relationally destructive behavior and humbly walking with God. Jesus is showing them that they are the ones who are blind and lame. They are refusing to see. Refusing to walk. Just clinging to their positions of power by giving the right answers all the while the truth is passing them by because of their stubbornness. God is in their midst and prophecy is being fulfilled and they are angry.
The only truth that they are seeing is that they are not as special as they thought they were. God doesn’t need them and they need to repent just like everyone else. Can they bring themselves to accept that?
The lectionary always has a psalm as one of the readings. Psalmist often have a heart that is contrary to the Pharisees and teachers of the law and chief priests. While the psalmists were often priests themselves, they seem to express a heart that read God’s law with humility. The law seemed to be a lens through which they saw the glory of God and their desperate need for God’s mercy and grace.
In Jesus day, the law seemed to be just a tool for those in power to rule over those who were not in power. The law ceased to be something read and then applied to one’s heart. How am I dong with that? Am I looking at the Word of God as a way of seeing who Jesus is? Seeing the love of God? Understanding the story of God and us? Of learning how to participate in all that God is doing in the world? Or am I gathering information so that on the day of Judgement, I have the right answers?