Jesus told a parable of a man who planted a vineyard and then leased it to tenants to work it for him. After a while the owner of the vineyard sent servants to the tenants to collect a portion of the fruit in payment on the lease, but the tenants beat the servants and sent them away without payment. Finally, the owner sent his son thinking the tenants would respect him. Instead, they killed him because he was the heir and they wanted to inherit the vineyard for themselves. Jesus asked how the owner should resolve his problem and then answered His own question: "
He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others" (vs 16). The meaning of the parable was obvious to those who heard it--the owner of the vineyard was God and the tenants were the priests and scribes, the spiritual leaders of the Jews (vs. 19). The meaning of the parable, however, should not be lost on those of us today who are stewards of God's grace--individually or collectively. When we get so focused on our own good works and neglect Who we are working for, we are like the wicked tenants who laid claim to ownership of the vineyard and all they produced from it. Just because we proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ does not make us its proprietor. We are just the tenants who work the vineyard and the fruits of our labor belong to God. It is still God's vineyard no matter how hard you work or how much you think you deserve or are entitled to. Your inheritance is eternal life and your reward awaits you in the new heaven and new earth
