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The Parable of the Two Sons

28 “What do you think? A man had two sons; and he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 And he answered, ‘I will not’; but afterward he repented and went. 30 And he went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the harlots believed him; and even when you saw it, you did not afterward repent and believe him.

 

The parable of the two sons may be familiar-- two sons, one of whom keeps his word and the other who defies in word but is faithful indeed. This story is widely interpreted as “tax collectors and harlots” entering the kingdom of God before the religious elites.

This reflects a common theme in Matthew - Jesus claiming his divine authority over corrupt spiritual leaders of the time.

Notice how Jesus eases into this story. The very first sentence of this lectionary text is literally a question. Jesus, always, the teacher, begins with a question, not an answer. “What do you think?”, he poses to his listeners.

In this one simple question, Jesus models a way of leadership, of teaching, of power-sharing. “What do you think?” - what a profound way to begin his teaching. Jesus, after all, has just been provoked by the religious leaders. The chief priests and elders have been questioning his authority through this section of Matthew. And instead of Jesus asserting his testosterone, he approaches his challengers with vulnerability.

“What do you think?”, Jesus begins his parable, his teaching, inviting, pulling his listeners into the story.

“What do you think?”- in this one simple framing, Jesus’s challengers become his collaborators- as he invites his listeners into the story to share in meaning-making.

Jesus is asking the chief priests, the supposed ‘authorities’ to unknow what they think they know, to suspend certainty and absolute-ness. Jesus didacts and we are invited to respond, to collaborate, to co-create in interpretation and in meaning-making.

Jesus gives away his power in a way that only one with absolute confidence may do- willing to let others react to his teaching and participate in their own faith understanding.

Can it be frustrating to hear a question when we really just want an answer? Can it be infuriating when we want a ‘yes’ or ‘no’, a ‘black’ or ‘white’, and we are offered an entire color palette of options? Perhaps.

But perhaps, God, having created us good and complex and diverse and unique, knows that his creatures, his create-ed people are capable of myriad expression and ways of being and understanding. And in giving away his power, Jesus enables us to claim our own.

Prayer: God, give me the wisdom to unknow. God, help me to give away my power.

 

Karen Cauley

karenowllandahl@gmail.com

 

Prayer concern: For those motivated by the need for power and control.