On Second Thought

People sometimes say things they do not mean. Some will later have second thoughts and regrets, while others never think twice. In the following parable, Jesus uses this scenario to teach a lesson about repentance.

A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, “Son, go work to-day in my vineyard”. He answered and said, “I will not”: but afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, “I go, sir”: and went not. (Matthew 21:28-30)

Then Jesus asked a simple question: “Whether of them twain did the will of his father?” (v. 31a)

The father gave each son the same command: Go work today in my vineyard. Therefore, both sons knew their father’s will, but the first son had no intention of doing it. Upon second thought, he regretted what he had said. The scriptures tell us that he repented. He went beyond feeling remorseful. He showed proof of his repentance by going to work in his father’s vineyard.

For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. (2 Corinthians 7:10 NKJV)

Since we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, we should give thought to what we are doing or not doing, repent, and do the will of our Father in Heaven.

Unfortunately, the second son, for whatever reason, never went into the vineyard to work as his father commanded him. We cannot assume that he had no intentions of going. Maybe he did have good intentions, and maybe he just procrastinated and wasted away the day and the opportunity to do his father’s will. Maybe, on the other hand, he wanted to find grace and favor in his father’s presence, but later had a change of heart. Maybe he was deceiving himself. Maybe he was trying to deceive the father. Maybe he felt that the empty promise was justification, in and of itself.

In any case, he did not obey his father’s commandment. He did not go and he did no work. But worse, he saw no reason to repent.

This is where people in the religious world make a critical mistake today, believing that good intentions are acceptable to God. When they fall short of doing His will, they make the excuse, “Well, God knows my heart”. Therefore, they see no cause for repentance.

But man’s heart can deceive him (1 John 1:8), and God is greater than our heart (1 John 3:20).

So, which of the two brothers did his father’s will? The answer should be obvious, even to a child. But the meaning of the parable was not so obvious to whom it was directed, mainly the chief priests and elders in Matthew 21:23. And, the answer might not be so obvious to whom it now applies.

Jesus explains, in verses 31-32, why sinners like publicans and the harlots would enter into the kingdom of God before the self-righteous priests and elders. Like the first son who initially refused to do his father’s will, the publicans and harlots heard the preaching of John the Baptist about the coming of the kingdom of God; they believed it and, more importantly, repented. But these religious leaders, who thought they were already in the grace of God, rejected the preaching of John, and refused to repent.

The important point of this lesson is not so much centered on what a person says. People can easily say things they do not mean. Rather, it is about what a person does, and not simply as a matter of good intentions. There is a saying: The road to hell is paved with good intentions. As the scripture says:

For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. Romans 10:3 KJV

No, it is not about what people say. And, it is not a matter of doing things with good intentions. Remember Jesus asked the question: Which one did his father’s will? Therefore, the answer lies in doing the will of the God, according to His commandments.

The father in the parable commanded: Go work today in my vineyard. On the other hand, we feel that we can go wherever we wish and do whatever we want. But if we do not go into the Father’s vineyard and do His work, we cannot enter into His kingdom.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:15-16)