Trong bài dụ ngôn hôm nay, Chúa đã dạy cho chúng ta thấy về lòng quảng đại và sự tin tưởng của Thiên Chúa. Như ông chủ vườn nho, Thiên Chúa đã tin tưởng chúng ta, cho chúng ta sự tự do để chạy theo cuộc sống riêng như chúng ta muốn. Dụ ngôn này cũng cho chúng ta thấy được sự kiên nhẫn và sự công bằng của Thiên Chúa.
Không phải chỉ một mà nhiều lần ông Chủ đã tha thứ cho những người thuê vườn. Tuy nhiên, những người thuê vườn lại có ác tâm với và lợi dụng sự kiên nhẫn của ông chủ vườn, và cuối cùng thì sự phán quyết và công lý của ông chủ đã toàn thắng .
“Therefore, I say to you, the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” Matthew 21:42
Are you among those from whom the Kingdom of God will be taken away? Or among those to whom it will be given so as to produce good fruit? This is an important question to sincerely answer.
The first grouping of people, those who will have the Kingdom of God taken away from them, are represented in this parable by the tenants of the vineyard. It is clear that one of their greatest sins is greed. They are selfish. They see the vineyard as a place through which they can enrich themselves and care little about the good of others. Sadly, this mind frame is easy to adopt in our own lives. It’s easy to see life as a series of opportunities for us to “get ahead.” It’s easy to approach life in a way that we are constantly looking out for ourselves rather than sincerely seeking the good of others.
The second grouping of people, those to whom the Kingdom of God will be given so that it will produce good fruit, are those who understand that the central purpose of life is not to simply enrich themselves but to share the love of God with others. These are the people who are constantly looking for ways that they can be a true blessing to others. It’s the difference between selfishness and generosity.
But the generosity to which we are primarily called is to build up the Kingdom of God. This is done through works of charity, but it must be a charity that is motivated by the Gospel and has the Gospel as its ultimate end. Caring for the needy, teaching, serving and the like are all good only when Christ is the motivation and end goal. Our lives must make Jesus more known and loved, more understood and followed. In fact, even if we were to feed a multitude of people in poverty, care for those who were sick, or visit those who were lonely, but did it for reasons other than to ultimately share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, then our work would not produce the good fruit of building up the Kingdom of Heaven. In that case, we would only be philanthropists rather than missionaries of the love of God.
Reflect, today, upon the mission given to you by our Lord to produce an abundance of good fruit for the upbuilding of His Kingdom. Know that this can only be accomplished by prayerfully seeking out the way God is inspiring you to act. Seek to serve His will alone so that all you do will be for God’s glory and the salvation of souls.
My glorious King, I pray that Your Kingdom will grow and that many souls will come to know You as their Lord and God. Use me, dear Lord, for the upbuilding of that Kingdom and help all my actions in life to bear abundant and good fruit. Jesus, I trust in You.
1. Salvation through Joseph’s Suffering: When we hear the story of Joseph and his brothers, we cannot help but think of Jesus and how he was betrayed by Judas. Joseph was sold by his brothers as a slave for twenty pieces of silver; Jesus was betrayed and sold by Judas for thirty pieces of silver. Just as the sons of Jacob became envious of their father’s love for Joseph and sought to get rid of Joseph, so also the Pharisees are acting like the wicked tenants in today’s Gospel and are plotting to kill the landowner’s son. When we read the story of Joseph in Genesis it is important to remember that God brought good out of the evil actions of Joseph’s brothers (Genesis 50:20). In Egypt, Joseph eventually rose to second in command and saved his brothers from a devastating famine. And, just as God brought about the salvation of Jacob’s family through the sufferings of Jacob’s son, Joseph, so also God brings about the salvation of the families of the world through the sufferings of his Son, Jesus Christ.
3. Offering up our Sufferings as a Sacrifice: The wicked tenants thought they would acquire the inheritance reserved for the landowner’s son by killing the son. This is a very deep and mysterious reference to the saving effect of Jesus’ death on the cross. By dying, Jesus destroyed our death. His death lifts the ancient curse and establishes the New Covenant that grants us a share in the inheritance of the Son of God (Romans 8:17). As children of God and members of a royal priesthood, we are called to offer up our lives as a pleasing sacrifice to God our Father. We are to unite our sufferings, which are transformed by love into a sacrifice, to the suffering and sacrifice of Christ (Colossians 1:24).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I unite my life and my sufferings to yours. All that I am I offer to your Father and my Father. I humbly ask that you present my offering to the Father today and purify it with your love.
Living the Word of God: Where is there suffering in my life right now? How am I dealing with it? How can I unite it to the offering of Jesus today?
Opening Prayer:
Lord, help me to pray well to overcome my selfishness. Instead of thinking of myself and my own comfort, enjoyment, and entertainment, help me to think first of the needs of others and especially how I might help them take a step closer to you today.
Encountering Christ:
1. For the Benefit of Others: The tenants in the parable used their talents for their own enjoyment, comfort, and entertainment, and they eventually lost everything. When Jesus created us, he gave us talents to use for a mission. Not only are we supposed to work to get ourselves to heaven, but the Lord also invites us to help bring others there as well. The talents and abilities we have are meant to be used for this task—not for our own profit. When we accomplish the Lord’s work, we are rewarded as people “that produce fruit.”
In the parable of the vineyard owner and the unworthy tenants, Jesus addressed the Pharisees, the priests and the leaders of the Jewish people of his time. He admonished them that God expected them to bear fruit and offer them to God. Instead, they maltreated and killed the prophets and killed even the Son of God himself who came to redeem them, because what the prophets and the Son of God told them to do interfered with what they had become comfortable with and their worldly self interest.
The word of God, however, is addressed not only to the Pharisees and the High Priest and the Jewish people of ancient history. The word of God is addressed to everyone for all times and for all peoples, including ourselves. We too are tenants in the vineyard of God. God is expecting us to bear fruit for him. Are we bearing fruit and sharing with God the fruits of His vineyard or are we like the followers of the Pharisees and the High Priest, selfishly thinking only of our own comfort and worldly desires? In our lives, are we choosing the will of God over our own craving for fame and fortune, comfort and pleasure?
The first reading narrates the beginning of Joseph's story. It is a tale of the jealousy and hatred of his brothers over the pride of Joseph and his dreams. Stopping at the point where Joseph is sold by his brothers, with his bloodied coat making it appear like a violent death from an animal attack, it seems like another sad ending to a bible story. Who would have thought there is a better ending to this unhappy drama – that many years later, Joseph would be the salvation of the Egyptian nation and its neighbors, including his family, during a time of great famine! Yet many times we encounter similar situations in our lives. Why do bad and sad things happen to us, why this untimely death of a child, why an unjust accusation from which we cannot defend ourselves, why a devastating flood that demolished the homes of hapless people? God weaves such fascinating narratives with unexpected happy endings to stories such as these. And if we fail to look at events in our lives with the eyes of faith and lose hope instead of patiently awaiting the outcome of this chapter in our lives, we miss out on seeing all the good God does for us, how He molds us by unlikely occurrences, how like the potter that He is, He teaches us patience and perseverance by the trials that come our way.
O loving Father, when seemingly cruel events happen in our lives, help us to trust with patience that Your love and mercy will bring everything to a good ending. Amen.
In many ways, Joseph was naive and innocent. In his seventeen years of life, he had been protected and showered with love and special treatment by his father. He probably thought that the rest of the world loved him just the same. But his naiveté got him in trouble when he told his brothers about his dreams and showed off the beautiful coat his father had given him. He probably couldn’t imagine that they would be offended—he was the golden boy, after all!
Even though his brothers assaulted him and sold him into slavery, Joseph did not give up on God’s commandments. Even when he was falsely accused and jailed for molesting his master’s wife, he held firm to God. When in prison, his ability to interpret dreams became known to Pharaoh, who ultimately released him and raised him up to a position second only to his own. Just as Joseph believed he would, God brought good out of evil for him. And not only for himself but for all the people around him. In his new position, Joseph was able to save both Egypt and the Israelites from a devastating famine.
This is a classic story of good and evil: the goodness of Joseph contrasted with the evil done by his brothers and those who appear later in the story. This story tells us that though they may seem locked in a never-ending struggle, goodness eventually triumphs over evil. As Paul wrote in Romans 8:28, “All things work for good for those who love God.”
God always works good for those who love him. We should never let hard times keep us from turning to our Father and asking him to sustain us. If we always seek to do good and try to forgive those who harm us, miracles can happen—not only in our lives but in the lives of those around us. Let’s not run away from tough times but instead face them with faith and trust in God’s promises. Who knows what blessings God has waiting for us?
“Father, I surrender my life into your hands. When I get weary of fighting the good fight, lift me up and hide me in your presence. Keep me safe until I am able to praise and thank you once again.”
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