In the sermon 'The Parable of the Two Sons,' Robert Bosley explores the parable from Matthew 21:28-32, which involves a father asking his two sons to work in his vineyard. One son initially refuses but eventually obeys, while the other agrees to go but does not. The parable is used to critique the religious leaders of Jesus' day, who are likened to the son who says he will obey but does not follow through. In contrast, tax collectors and harlots, who initially rejected God's command but later repented and obeyed, are commended. The sermon emphasizes that true repentance is marked by a change in action and heart, not merely words. It critiques the self-righteousness of the Pharisees, who, despite witnessing the repentance of sinners, do not relent themselves. Bosley warns against a superficial faith that lacks life transformation, urging believers to respond to God's call immediately. He stresses the importance of living out one's faith daily, highlighting the urgency of 'today' in responding to God's commands and the need for genuine, ongoing repentance.

Alright, good afternoon everyone. If you would, open up your Bibles to Matthew chapter 21, the Gospel according to Matthew chapter 21. We're continuing the series and the parables of our Lord and try not to take it personally that seems like 90% of the church left before I got up here, so hopefully that wasn't something on me. But anyway, we're going to continue with the parables this afternoon. Looking at one of the smaller, shorter parables, the parable of the two sons and that is found in verse 28 through 32.

So let's read that and we'll pray and we'll get into it. So the parable of the two sons, the Lord Jesus speaking, But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, son, go work today in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not. But afterward, he regretted it and went.

Then he came to the second and said likewise, and he answered and said, I go, sir. But he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father? They, being the religious leaders, said the first. Jesus answered them, Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots entered the kingdom of God before you For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him But tax collectors and harlots believed him and when you saw it you did not afterward relent and believe him." Let's pray.

Father, we do pray that you would open our eyes and our minds to see wonderful things in your word. Help us Lord to learn from these words what you would have us to hear today that we may grow in our knowledge of you and our love for you and our obedience to your will. Help us Lord to have our minds renewed this afternoon according to your word in Jesus name. Amen. So this parable like many of the parables comes in the midst of Jesus in conflict with the religious authorities of his day.

The parable follows on our Lord's refusal to get into a debate about the source or the authority by which he does these things. A few verses ahead of this, the priests and the elders of the people have accosted him about what authority does he have to do the things that he's doing. He's been teaching and in fact even the previous day he cleared the temple of all those who were buying and selling. But when they confront him and they bring this question, by what authority are you doing these things, he turns it around on them, asking them about John and his authority and the cowardice of the leaders keep them from really answering his question. They say, we don't know.

And so the Lord refuses to tell them where his authority is from, but instead he poses this question to them. He poses this parable to them. And like most of the parables, the story is rather straightforward. It's fairly simple to follow and the application is pretty plain, but there are, I think, valuable things for us to see in this parable. Now, as far as identifying the different elements of the parable, again, it's fairly straightforward.

There is a little bit of debate on certain things. I mainly want us to consider who is meant by the Father, but most importantly who is meant by the two sons. There's a question of who is meant in the parable by the Father. In verse 32, Jesus himself seems to identify the father in the parable with John the Baptist, which makes sense in the context considering the question that he had posed to the leaders in verse 25 regarding John's baptism. But it does also seem fitting to see the Father in the parable as God, whether the Father himself or perhaps the Son, I think is outside the bounds of what we really need to concern ourselves with.

But these two interpretations, whether it's specifically John or whether it's meant by God himself, I think these two can be complimentary to one another. John came, as the Lord says here, in the way of righteousness, because he came empowered by the Spirit, sent by God the Father, preparing the way for God the Son. He's also an archetype, a pattern of all those who bring the Word of God to bear to God's people and even the civil realm. He's an archetype of those who come with the message of repentance and the kingdom of God. And so I think we can consider the Father in the parable in a sense to be John, in a sense to be God the Father, in a sense to be any who bring the message of repentance, that bring the Word of God, because that is how God works with His creatures.

He sends messengers with his message. But regardless of how exactly you take it, in the parable, the father comes to his sons, and he, as the father, as the man in charge of their affairs, he commands his sons to go and work in the family vineyard, as is his right as their father. And I think the most immediate understanding of these sons is that this is a picture of Israel. Israel is pictured as these two children and both are rebellious in their own ways. The one says, I go and does not and the one says, I will not go and disobeying the father to his face, though later there's a change of heart.

In this, we see the two sides of Israel in Jesus' day. You have the Pharisees and the other religious leaders pictured as the son who says, I go. I'm going to do your will. But in the end, reject God's commands. On the other hand, we see the outcasts of society here generally called the tax collectors and harlots or prostitutes.

This would be the worst of the worst, the sexually immoral and the financially untrustworthy. These are those who at first refuse the father's command. They say, I will not obey. But afterwards, there's a change of heart and they obey. And the other son, the Pharisees, when they saw it, they did not repent.

They saw the change of heart that was worked in the tax collectors and the harlots who repented at the preaching of John, they saw it happen and they would not relent. And when we read there in verse 32, you did not relent. This is actually the same word that is used in verse 29, the son regretted it. It's not the exact word that's often used for repentance, but it's a related word to have a changed mind. The Pharisees, they saw the people hearing the preaching of John and being persuaded by it, and they were repenting of their sins, but the Pharisees, they were not pleased with this.

It only hardened their hearts and made them oppose the message of John and later the message of Jesus even more. They did not repent. When they saw the repentance of sinners, it hardened their heart. But these sons, Yes, it's a picture of Israel. I think that's the most direct application when Jesus is using this.

The one son is the religious leaders in Israel. The other is the sinners of Israel who are at first reject but then repent. But we can also expand this. The son that mouths the right words but disobeys is a picture not simply of the religious leaders but of the Jewish nation and people as a whole. And beyond this, it's a picture of anyone who is self-righteous.

Like in the last parable, the parable of the tax collector and the Pharisee, the one who is self-righteous, trusting in yourself. This is the one who says, well I'm doing the right things, but then does not do them. The one who gives the right words, who gives lip service to the commands of God, but then disobeys. This is the self-righteous, the one who says the right things but lives in disobedience in their heart and in their life. The other son who at first refuses but then later changes his mind and goes on to obey is a picture not merely of the sinners who repented at John's and Jesus' preaching, but of the Gentiles.

The Gentiles were cut off from the covenants and the promises of God. They were opposed to God and they were the outcasts, considered outcasts by the Jews because they were not part of the Covenant people. But now in the wisdom of God they've the Gentiles are those who are being brought in. They at first rejected but now they are going and doing what God has commanded. We saw this in Romans chapter 11, and we see this in Jesus' parables, especially in several of the upcoming parables.

The kingdom had been restricted to the Jewish people, but it is now broadened. It's actually, Jesus says, removed from them and given to another people that will bear the fruit. The kingdom goes and it's largely received now by the Gentiles until that time when Israel will be brought to repentance. We can see that in this son. And this is again also just broadly a picture of any sinner, whether a scandalous sin such as the prostitutes or not, but this is a picture of any sinner who first hears the command of God or even has their conscience pricked because the law of God is written in the heart but they ignore it they disobey it they say I will not obey the command of God.

But then later, their heart is pricked again and they repent and they turn and obey the gospel. And This is fundamentally what this parable is about. It is a parable of repentance. It is intended to be a picture of what it means to repent and what transformation of life is brought out by true repentance. The kingdom of God is a kingdom of repenters.

It is not a kingdom of the self-righteous. It is not a kingdom of those who have earned a standing before God. It is a kingdom of those who see that they have earned nothing but judgment and have turned from their old ways and are now seeking to do the will of God. Because What does Jesus say to them? He says that the tax collectors and the harlots enter the kingdom of God before you, speaking to the Pharisees, the religious leaders.

Now don't misunderstand what he says before you. He's not saying that the religious leaders are still entering on their current course. They're still going in. Just the these sinners have cut the line, so to speak. Now this before you here has a sense of in place of you.

They're going before They're going into the kingdom while these self-righteous leaders are being left outside looking in, still standing there dead in their sins, because they think that they are righteous in themselves. But the tax collectors and the prostitutes confronted with the law of God and the gospel of God have seen their wretchedness. They have seen the poverty of the way of life that they have, and they have repented. And so they will enter the kingdom of God before these self-righteous leaders who do not think they need repentance. And this is a key point, this whole idea of repentance.

This is what this whole parable is driving toward. You have these two sons, one says the right things but he does not obey, one rebels at first but he changes his mind, he repents and he goes. And this is so often ignored when the topic of the tax collectors and Pharisees and sinners and the prostitutes are brought up and with that Jesus interacted with. Often, I don't know if you've ever seen this or had these interactions, but I've seen it many times, people will bring these people up in the stories of the Gospels. And usually this is coming from people who outwardly absolutely hate the Christian faith.

They hate your God, but at the same time think they understand it better than you do. And they will often claim that while Jesus went out and he hung out with the sinners, As if he was approving of everyone and everything that he ate with. The claim will be made that Jesus was actually very understanding, very, he was basically a libertine. He allowed them to do whatever they wanted. He had no criticisms and if he didn't like it, he didn't say anything.

He was just there to make everyone feel more comfortable. People try and justify a life of sin by saying well Jesus ate with sinners as if his interaction with them was a night out on the town and If he disagreed with him, he didn't bring it up or even worse I've seen people try and twist Jesus interaction with the prostitutes and the sinners that Jesus even approved of these things and so he approves of it today. Of course any careful reading of the Gossels shows that this is actually nonsense. It's not just nonsense, it's blasphemous nonsense. Jesus did not approve of sin, he did not approve of rebellion.

The reason that he ate with them and spent time with them is that he was calling them to repentance. He was evangelizing them. He was proclaiming the kingdom of God to them. The Pharisees had cut them off and discarded them. Jesus was reaching out but not saying, you're okay, you don't need to change anything.

God loves you just the way you are. There's a sense in which that's true, but at the same time that message comes with, God loves you but you must repent. That's the message Jesus was bringing to these people. It was a message of repentance. And that's the reason the tax collectors and prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before the Pharisees and the elders of the people.

It's because They heard the message and they were repenting of their sins. They heard the word of God preached, it convicted them, and they repented. They changed their minds. They were the son who said, no, I will not go, but later changed his mind and went. The tax collectors and the prostitutes are given to us as an example.

These are two of the most looked down on groups of people among Jewish society at that time. They are set up as sinners par excellence. They are the worst of the worst. And so the religious authorities of the day would write them off. There's no hope for these kinds of people.

That was the attitude. And so if there's no hope for them, and we're the self-righteous leaders, we can't mingle, we can't mix with them. But rather, Jesus and John, the apostles, give us a much better example to follow. They proclaimed a message of repentance. They proclaimed a kingdom that was coming with a forgiveness so great that even the worst could be forgiven.

That there was no sin too great, that the grace of God could not come in and wipe it away. But it did require repentance. Remember what Paul says in 1st Corinthians chapter 6, do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived by the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. That list condemns the tax collectors and Pharisees, and the tax collectors and the prostitutes, and it condemns each and every one of us.

And that's not an exhaustive list of all the sins that men can commit. Each one of us, by that standard, are absolutely guilty. You will not inherit the kingdom of God if this is you. So what hope do we have? Well thankfully Paul didn't end there, the next verse, but you were washed.

You are sorry, I skipped even the one of the most significant sentences and such were some of you, but you were washed. You were sanctified. You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. God is rich in mercy, ready to forgive and save sinners. He calls men and women to repentance.

Such were some of you. But God invites that you turn from your sins, that you come into his kingdom, that whatever has been in your life, whatever rebellion you've been involved in, you can lay down your weapons and Stop fighting God and be brought in as a son. Be welcomed as his daughter. Stop being his enemy. Turn around and be welcomed as a child.

Flip over to 2 Corinthians, chapter seven. I want to look at this briefly to see, Use this as an example of contrasting real repentance with a false repentance, a short-lived repentance. Paul begins in verse 8, writing to the Corinthians, for even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I perceive that the same epistle made you sorry, though only for a while. Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance.

For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us and nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted. But the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner. What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication.

In all things, you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter." So what Paul is saying is He wrote another letter to them, he wrote the first letter, and they were sorrowful because of the strong language he used. It caused sorrow among them. He says, I'm sorry I had to make you feel that way. Sometimes it can be hard to confront someone in their sin. It doesn't make anyone feel better.

It doesn't make the person who's being confronted, it doesn't make the person who's doing the confronting feel good either, At least it shouldn't. If you take glee in confronting people about their sin, that's a you problem. But Paul was bothered that he even had to confront them over their sins. But in the end, he says, I now rejoice because Your sorrow led to true repentance. And what was the mark of this true repentance?

It wasn't just that they had tears and then nothing changed. That sorrow, but it's worldly sorrow, It's short-lived sorrow that ultimately leads to death because it doesn't lead to a changed heart. Their sorrow led to a repentance that is not to be regretted because it led to a change in their action, in their life. What diligence it produced in you, a diligence to see where is the sin, what is it, what can we do to change? What clearing of yourselves, what they want to purge this sin from themselves.

A desire to forsake it and abandon it. What indignation, a hatred of this sin. What fear, a fear of falling back into this sin, of offending God by continuing in, what desire, a zeal to not want to do it again, what vindication, what clearing. You have proven yourself now to be clean in this matter. That is true repentance.

Not merely some tears and then going on and forgetting what you just saw in the mirror, as James says. But they're confronted with their sin and they see it and they're changed by it and they don't want it anymore and they go away trying to clear it out of their hearts and their lives. That is true saving repentance and that is what characterized the tax collectors and the prostitutes when they heard the preaching of John, when they heard the preaching of Jesus, they turned from their sins. The Pharisees and the religious leaders, they were hardened in their sin. They were hardened in their self-righteousness.

They would not repent. They would not relent And so what does what does this parable mean for us how what do we learn from this We have to learn that it is not merely enough to mouth the words of repentance. It's not enough to hear the commands of God and say, I obey. I go, sir. And actually in the Greek the son says to the Father, I go, Lord.

It's not enough to say, yes, Lord, I'll do it. And then live unchanged. If the commands of God and the word of God has come to you, and that you say the right things, but your life is not different, is a sign that you have not yet come to know him. Because this is what real repentance does, It changes the life. Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of heart, a change of action.

It's not merely intellectual. It's not merely words. It's not enough to say the right things. True faith, true repentance is seen in a changed life. Not perfectly.

Again, we don't want to try and say that sinless perfection is achievable in this life, that's not my point. But repentance, if it's real repentance, will lead to a change. And this isn't only true of sinners when they first come to know the Lord. This is true for Christians for all of life. Are we guilty of saying we obey Lord and then neglecting our duties?

The commands of God come to us every time we read our Bibles, every time we sit under the preaching of the Word of God, are we hearing it and saying, yes, Lord, I go, and then do not? As Christians, we ought to be the best of both of these sons. We should say, yes, Lord, I go, and we go do it. God, instruct me in your will. We heard that this morning, to have a renewed mind that you may know what is the will of God are we living lives of repentance where we see our sin we see what God wants us to do instead and we go and we do it so what God is calling us to do I want to end the last minute or two by focusing on one particular word in the parable.

Look back in verse 28 the father says to the son, says to the son, son go work today in my vineyard. The Greek word order I think is a little bit more emphatic. He says, go today. Work in the vineyard. Today.

I want us to focus on that. Today. Today, the Father says, today go and do the work. Do it today. Do the Lord's work today, not tomorrow, not when it's more convenient you might think.

Do it today. Repent today. Believe and trust Him today. Hebrews 3.13, exhort one another daily while it is called today. Verse 15, today if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.

God calls you today to repent, today to obey him. Second Corinthians six, again, behold, now is the accepted time, now or today is the day of salvation. God calls you to obey him today, every day. Answer him saying, I go and follow through with it. Do it.

Do what he has called you to do. He's calling each one of us today to do something. He is calling each one of us today to greater faithfulness. Perhaps there's some duty that you've neglected. You know you've neglected it.

He's calling you today, go Do this. Perhaps there's a brother that's offended. Or someone that you've offended and you know it. Today, go and make it right. Is there a sin that you're holding onto?

Don't play with fire any longer. Today repent. Today go to Christ. God calls you today to leave your self-righteousness and your sins and go work in his vineyard. Go do his work in this world.

Perhaps it's salvation itself. Perhaps you still are in your sins. God is calling you today. Repent, trust in Jesus. Find what you need in him.

Find the forgiveness of your sins at the cross of Christ Today do not refuse him do not harden your heart, but today repent and go to the cross Hear God's call to you today Do not harden your hearts, but like obedient children, say, I go Lord and do it. Let's pray. Father, we thank you that you have spoken to us in your word and given us such commands to go and to do your will. Lord, help us to examine ourselves, to examine our own hearts. To examine our own hearts.

Lord, may you grant us to have repentant hearts that do desire to live for you, to live for your glory, to live in a way that pleases you. God, renew our minds today and help us to live today and each day As members of your kingdom, as those who love you and have been loved by you, Lord, grant us the grace to be faithful children working in your vineyard. And Lord, may you be glorified in everything that we do in Jesus name amen