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[ Silence ] [Music] When you're weary and discouraged and you're feeling down and low When your friends will break you and you have no place to go

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When your burden seems too hard for you to try and bear Just call on the Lord and He will be right there Just call on the Lord and He will be right there ♪ When you're weary and discouraged ♪

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♪ And you're feeling down and low ♪ ♪ When your friends would thank you ♪ ♪ And you had no place to go ♪ ♪ When your burdens seem too hard for you to try and bear ♪

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♪ Just call the Lord and He will be right there ♪ ♪ Just call the Lord and He will be right there ♪ ♪ I did ♪ ♪ There have been times ♪

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♪ When I felt so alone ♪ ♪ Feeling like, feeling like ♪ ♪ All my hope was gone ♪ ♪ I lay awake ♪

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♪ In my bed at night ♪ ♪ I was wondering, wondering, wondering ♪ ♪ If everything was gonna be all right ♪ ♪ In the master of the sea ♪

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♪ He came down from heaven and he rescued me ♪ ♪ So just call, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ And you know that he, he'll be right there ♪ ♪ Well, there ever been times ♪

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♪ When I felt so alone ♪ ♪ Feeling like, feeling like all my hope was gone ♪ ♪ I lay awake in my bed at night ♪ ♪ I was wondering, wondering, wondering ♪

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♪ If everything was gonna be all right ♪ ♪ Then the master of the sea ♪ ♪ He came down from heaven and he rescued me ♪ ♪ Just call, call on the Lord ♪

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♪ And you know that he, he'll be right there ♪ ♪ Oh, when you're weary, call on him ♪ ♪ Call on the Lord ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪

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♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ When you're heavy laden ♪ ♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ Call, call on the master ♪

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♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ When your heart is broken, call on him ♪ ♪ Call on the Lord ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪

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♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ When you're a burden ♪ ♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪

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♪ Call on him, call on the Lord ♪ ♪ All you gotta do is call him ♪ ♪ Call him, call him ♪ ♪ You can call him, you can call him in the morning ♪

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♪ You can call him in the evening ♪ ♪ You can call him, his name is Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus ♪ ♪ Oh, just call him Lord and he will be right there ♪

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♪ Just call him Lord and he will be right there ♪ ♪ Oh, when you're weary ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪ ♪ Heavy laden ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪ ♪ Broken hearted ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪

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♪ Oh, when you're burdened ♪ ♪ Call on the master ♪ ♪ All you gotta do is call him, call him, call him, call him ♪ ♪ In the morning you can call him ♪ ♪ In the evening you can call him ♪

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♪ His name is Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus ♪ ♪ Jesus, Jesus, oh ♪ ♪ Just call on the Lord and he will be right there ♪ ♪ Just call on the Lord and he will be right there ♪

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[ Music ] >> Series entitled Parables of Our Lord. We continue that series today, subject to the message, The parable of the wicked vineyard workers.

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The parable of the wicked vineyard workers. The eternal is good. The eternal is gracious. The eternal is kind.

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And we express this often in our conversation when we say God is good. all the time. Rebellious, demonic forces

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try to overcome the goodness of God. There is a battle between the eternal and the temporary, the divine and the demonic, the good and the bad.

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And we experience this conflict in every dimension of human existence. Jesus tells the story of the wicked vineyard workers to explain his rejection by the established religious and political leaders of his day. The parable, which is the focus of our attention,

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was told by Jesus in his teaching the people in the temple. He said, "A certain man planted a vineyard planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a pit for the wine press, built a

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a tower and then let it out to tenants and went to another country. These tenants were on their honor. They were trusted. They knew their relationship to the owner, required of them certain duties. They understood the rules of the vineyard.

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The vineyard had in it everything that was necessary for its operation. When the time came, the owner sent his servants to the tenants

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whose responsibility was to care for the vineyard, in order to receive from them what was his due, to receive from the tenants some of the fruit of his vineyard.

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They took the owner's servant and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. The owner sent another servant. They cast stones at him

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and wounded him in the head and treated him shamefully. And then the owner sends another.

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And him, they, along with many others, beat and killed. Then it seems that they're turning the heat up

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every time he sends some messengers to receive fruit from his vineyard. He had one other, his beloved son. Finally he sent him.

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And he said to himself, surely they will treat my beloved son with respect and reverence. because he's my son.

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And he is to carry on the work and they will recognize this. It has to do with the future of this vineyard. But they took note of the son.

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They said, now this is the heir. He's gonna have this vineyard next. So come let us kill him. He was not only shamefully treated,

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but led outside the city and crucified. Let us kill him. So they took him and killed him. Now ours is a society in which the company person

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is honored and rewarded. The individual who looks out for the company, the welfare of the company, the Fortune 500 companies,

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those who head those companies get tremendous salaries. This is the kind of society we live in. They get millions. Their pay is determined by the company's earnings.

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The owner of the vineyard had every right to receive some of the fruits of the vineyard. The tenants do not own the land, they merely work on the land.

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This particular parable is an allegory. So, I don't have any qualms about allegorizing it because it is different from many of the other parables.

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It is an allegory where the various characters things in this parable have certain representations that may apply to life and the Christian walk. God is the owner.

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He owns everything. We read in Psalm 24, "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell there."

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It's all God's. We can't take it with us. The shroud of the dead have no pockets. God owns it all.

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It's His. So God is good. He provides everything that is necessary for the good life, he provides it.

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We read in Genesis in the beginning that God created heaven and the earth, then he planted a garden, Eastwood and Eden, and everything he made was good.

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He looked at it and said, "It's good, very good." So he has provided in this vineyard everything that the tenants need. We might say that we are all tenants in God's vineyard,

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all of us, tenants. But these tenants in this particular parable are wicked. are wicked, wicked tenors. You know some people are weak. They just don't do because they have a certain weakness, they may be feeble, and they may lack the

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strength to do what they'd like to do. So we say they're weak, weak. But then there those who are wicked, they're much worse. To be wicked is to be morally bad, to be evil, to be fierce, to be vicious, to be going beyond reasonable limits, to be wicked. And these are called in this parable, Jesus tells, the wicked tenants.

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They're not just weak, they're wicked. So they are servants in the Lord's vineyard but they do not honor the Lord. Three times the owner of the vineyard sent to receive fruit from his vineyards and was rejected by the tenants. Can you imagine? Just, it's difficult to imagine that the creature, the creature would rebel

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against the Creator. These wicked tenants are rebelling against the owner of the vineyard. Now I want to raise possibly three questions in connection with this parable. What did Israel do with the Lord's vineyard? The parable itself tells us how they treated the Lord and his vineyard. They harvested the fruit of

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the vineyard and kept it. They didn't even share it with the owner of the vineyard. The second question is, what will the Lord of the vineyard do to the wicked tenants? This is a question that's raised in the parable. It's also answered in the parable. What will the Lord of the vineyard do? Well there is a

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parable in the book of the Prophet Isaiah and he talks about the Lord planting a vineyard in Israel is that vineyard and he goes to receive grapes from the vineyard and instead of receiving good delicious grapes he receives wild grapes. And he said what shall I do with this vineyard? And he

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destroys the vineyard because it did not produce the fruit that was expected of of it. What will the Lord do with his vineyard? Well there is a time of preparation, there is a time of

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growth, and then there is a time of judgment. There comes a time for the harvest to come. Because the Lord of the vineyard expects some grapes and he will have his grapes. Well while grapes are produced he

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he will destroy the vineyard because he's determined to have some good grapes. He comes, that's his purpose, to have some good grapes from the vineyard. And there There is a settling up time. There is a time.

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There's a harvest time. Well, the Lord God himself comes and views his vineyard and looks for fruit. And here, these wicked tenants have not only failed to produce fruit, but they have killed the messengers that have come.

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They're very wicked. have gone to the nth degree so to speak, but there is a settling of time. There is a story I want to share with you that comes from the autobiography of Daddy King who was the father of Martin Luther King Jr. Daddy King says that when he was

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12 years of age that his father gave in to his request to carry him to the place that was called the Cotton Trade. The Cotton Trade was the place where you went at the end of the year when all of the crops were in. That's the place you went to for the settling up and you worked all the year, you got the tools

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that you needed from the commissary and you got food from the commissary and at the end of the year there was this man who was the head of this plantation his name was Old Man Graves, they called him behind his back, Old Man Graves. And Old Man Graves was there to see to it that they received from that plantation all

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the things that they were to receive. And the workers also called him settling up time, settling up. That was their nickname for old man Graves, settle up. This was a time that they gathered around, all the things, the last of the crops were on the wagons and they'd been carried over there and he looked and he

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said to Papa King, who was really the grandfather of Martin Luther King, he says to him, "Well you had a pretty good year. In fact, in fact you have a little coming, a little money coming." They looked at it and he had about $30 the whole year. But when they got through figuring, they figured it, he had $18

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coming to him and he had the $18 and young King who was there with his papa for the first time, he had been denied time all the other, the privilege all the other times because he said this is grown folks business. So when he gave him the money he said, the young king said, "But daddy, what about the seed, the cotton seed?"

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He said, "Hush up boy, did not tell you not to have anything to say?" And they went on And as they continued with the transaction, the little boy said, "But Daddy, what about the cotton seed?" And Daddy tried to hush him up.

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And as he continued, settled up, who was there of suddenly everything turned red. And as he turned red, the people around drew a circle to see what was going to happen

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because this was a very, very significant moment. It seemed that even the dogs that had been running around were quiet when he raised the question about the cottonseed.

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The horses stopped. Everything was quiet. There was silent silence when he raised the question about the cottonseed.

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And settled up, the head of the plantation said to Papa King, "You better keep that boy quiet, that young one, or I'm going to kick his butt." And Daddy King said, "No, it's not going to be like that."

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He said, "No, it's my boy, and if he needs any correction, I'll do that." He said, settled up, said to him, "Who are you talking to? You know who I am?"

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He said, "Well, I'm just saying what needs to be done, what will be done, and if that applies to you, then I'm talking to you." And the other persons who were involved in caring

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for the farm gathered around and settled up with somewhat embarrassed. He left and went into his little office and came out with a fistful of money. And he gave it to him.

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He said, "Here's your money." He said, "Your cottonseed was worth $90 a bale, and here you take it." And so he took it. And young King said on the way home, the daddy didn't say anything.

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He had told him to be quiet. He knew he had done something wrong by just mentioning the fact of the cottonseed, but he drove on home. And the next morning, Settle Up was there at the house at daybreak

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and told him to get off his land and not to come back. So, suddenly nut time can be a very difficult time. It can be a very difficult time for the workers, and it can be a very difficult time for the owner. Settling up time.

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But there is a settle up time. I think that Jesus told this parable. He didn't tell it out there on the plains. He told it in the temple. You know, it was addressed to church people. This is where he told the parable.

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And it's about when all is said and done. We sing, "Oh, when I come to the end of my journey, "there is a settling up time, "and that settling up time has to do

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"with the Lord of dominion, for he shall come." He shall come and he will settle all accounts. This is the one that will righten all wrongs. This is the one who will make the crooked straight.

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This is the one who will change the course of human history when he comes. He will settle all accounts. So, he is coming.

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That's the message. He is coming. Not, not, not, not, maybe. He is coming. He is in history and he's coming right now in the things that we see taking place in the world. He is coming. The Lord whom ye seek

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shall suddenly come to his temple. And the covenant in whom you, the one in whom you delight in the covenant, all of it is coming to pass right now. There is a settling time. Jesus is coming. He is coming again. He has been once. He walked upon the earth some thirty and three years, and then he ascended into heaven,

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and now he sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. But he's coming again. He's coming back again to claim his church, he's coming to claim his vineyard, and he's coming looking for some good grapes, coming looking for good grapes. "My eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. He is

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trapping out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored. He has loosed his faithful lightning, the powerful swift sword, his truth is marching on. Glory! Glory! Glory! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! His truth is marching on. So God is at work in the world. He has not forsaken his vineyard. Messengers may come and go,

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but he's coming. He comes in the end to claim the fruit of his vineyard. And God is good. He's good. Oh look look look how patient he was, they said he sent three different groups and then at the last he sent his son, that was the fourth, he just kept sending. He's good. He's gracious. He's kind. I don't know what's

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going to happen. I don't know where his islands lift, his fronded palms in air. I only know we cannot drift beyond his love and care. God is good. All of the time he's good, he's patient, he's kind, he comes to claim his fruit. And it's ours to be prepared to be faithful laborers in the vineyard of God. We sing now the hymn of invitation,

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"Wounded for Me." God suffers through his son Jesus Christ. He's wounded for us transgressions. That's the message that comes to us through the Christian faith that God suffers, He dies, and He rises again through Jesus Christ. He does it all that we might be good fruit produced in his vineyard. So as we sing, as we

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extend the invitation of the church, we ask you to come unite with the family of God here at Ebenezer. The door is open. We ask you to come, commit your way into to the Lord. Come. [ Music ]

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[singing] [Music] ♪ Who lived for me ♪ ♪ Who lived for me ♪

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♪ He was who lived for me ♪ ♪ All my expressions ♪ ♪ And now I am free ♪ ♪ All because Jesus was who left for me ♪

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♪ Shining on me ♪ ♪ Shining for me ♪ ♪ Flying for me ♪ ♪ He who's flying for me ♪

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♪ Oh, I've heard your questions ♪ ♪ And now I am free ♪ ♪ All the love Jesus was dying for me ♪ ♪ Risen for me ♪

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♪ Prison for me ♪ ♪ Prison for me ♪ ♪ He is prison for me ♪ ♪ God ♪

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♪ My transgressions ♪ ♪ And now I am free ♪ ♪ All because Jesus ♪ ♪ Is prison ♪

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♪ For me ♪ ♪ Come before me ♪ [ Music ] ♪ Come ye, come ye, this coming holy year ♪

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♪ Oh, think what joy is here, great skies shall see ♪ O how I praise Him, He's coming, Amen. Gracious God, send us forth to be righteous vineyard workers, producing your fruit, obeying your will, and being ready for the harvest when you come to claim us all. Grace, mercy, peace be with you from God our Father, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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[ Music ] [ Silence ] [MUSIC] ♪ I hear you people ♪

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♪ Our Lord make his face to shine upon you ♪ ♪ I'll be gracious ♪ ♪ Unto you ♪ ♪ I'll be gracious ♪

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♪ The Lord be gracious ♪ ♪ Gracious unto you ♪ ♪ Amen, amen ♪ ♪ Amen, amen ♪

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♪ Amen, amen ♪ ♪ Amen, amen ♪ ♪ Amen, amen ♪ ♪ Amen, amen ♪

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♪ Amen ♪ [Music] [BLANK_AUDIO]