Start Letting Go

A Reflection on the Gospel for October 4th, 2020:
The Solemnity of Saint Francis of Assisi

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Matthew
21.33-43

Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country.

“When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way.

“Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.

“Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”

Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?

“Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom.”

Pause. Pray.

And then read more...

This is the second of two parables that Jesus uses to address the Pharisees’ challenge of His authority in Matthew 21:23. In the first parable (Matthew 21:28), Jesus tells of two sons who have been asked by their father to go work in the vineyard. One son says “yes” but never goes, and the other says “no” but then changes his mind and does what his father asks. They all agreed that the son who changed his mind was the one who did his father’s will in the end.

This second parable, which is sometimes called “The parable of the wicked tenants,” makes the Pharisees realize that Jesus is talking about them (Matthew 21:42). Is He accusing them of being disobedient like the son who says “yes” but means “no,” or of trying to steal what is not rightfully theirs like the wicked tenants? If so, I can see why they were upset with Him.

When I read these parables from the outside looking in, it is easy to point my finger at the Pharisees and wonder how they could have denied Jesus’ authority. After all, He had been working amazing miracles and teaching in a way that had made even one of their own seek His counsel (John 3). Can’t they see that He is not just another prophet?

The challenge is to read today’s gospel from the inside out and ask the question, “Do I recognize Jesus’ authority in my life?”

One of the definitions of authority is “official permission”. The Pharisees were asking Jesus, “Who gives you official permission to come here and tell us we are doing things wrong?”

The answer is two-fold for the Pharisees of Jesus’ time and for us today. Jesus has official permission over us because He is Lord of all creation. Saint Paul tells us in his letter to the Colossians (Colossians 1:15), that “… all things were made through Him and for Him.” The other side of the coin is that because of the gift of our free will, only we can give Him official permission to act in our lives.


Are you willing to give Jesus permission? 


Here is a prayer to help you to start letting go and to give the God of all creation authority over your life. Pray along with me when you are ready:

Heavenly Father,
You sent Your Son to earth to show us Your love for us.
Help me to receive that love by giving You permission to work in my life.
Help me to surrender the things that I am holding on to out of fear of the unknown.
Help me to realize that only You can free me from the bondage of trying to control everything.
Help me to walk with Your Holy Spirit and let Him be the leader.
Jesus I trust that when I give you control of my life, You will use all things for good.
Amen.




​Maxine Brown
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