“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’

 “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went.  “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.  “Which of the two did what his father wanted?”  “The first,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.  For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.

Matthew 21:28 – 32

Jesus used this opportunity on the holiest of Jewish weeks to reflect on what is happening.  As he so often did, he used a parable that all could understand to explain the coming of His Kingdom.

I love this story of the two sons, and find myself wondering about myself, which am I most like?  Jesus asked, which son did what his father wanted him to do?  Obviously, it was the one who did not want to go at first but repented and then went to the vineyard to work.  His listeners understood that.

But Jesus went further, explaining that they were like the son who did not enter the vineyard.  He reminded them that John the Baptist, now dead, preached the way of righteousness that only people like tax collectors and prostitutes understood because it gave them hope.  Jesus is implying that those who claimed to be righteous by the law never did enter God’s vineyard to serve Him.  In other words, by rejecting Jesus Christ they were turning their backs on true righteousness.  While sinners who needed salvation badly repented of their pride and believed in the salvation that Jesus offered.

So, Jesus was not at all surprised that the clear majority of the Jews will reject him because they have no need for him.  They obey the Law!  Of what could they repent?

The Blood that Jesus was to spill soon was to cleanse, not those who had no need to be cleansed because they were sure that their obedience pleases God, but for sinners.