I wanted to talk a little bit today about the
cornerstone and what it is that we think about
when we hear that the cornerstone has been rejected.
Now for me when I was growing up was that one
of the cornerstones in my life was the idea of
superheroes and that there was one that I collected
more comics of than any other character that
there was, Superman. I know it's cheesy, it's
corny, he's got superpowers, blah, blah, blah,
but I thought he was great, all right? And no,
I never took on the whole wear red underwear
outside of your pants idea, but plenty of other
things to do. Now, one of the things is that
in 1992, though, at the age of 55, what ended
up happening is that Superman died in DC Comics.
He had a massive battle, a big fight, and Superman...
And this was of course a big deal among young
people and it was up on the news and everything
else. But what was interesting is that they kept
hinting that something else may be coming along
the way. Now, whenever I was going through hospital
treatments, this was during the cancer days,
I would keep my sanity by reading comic books.
I couldn't play Super Nintendo that long. The
comic books... kept my mind focused on things
otherwise. And so for me, Superman was this place
of hope. And there I was sitting there with Action
Comics and Adventures of Superman, and I'm looking
at issue 500, and it hints at the idea of what
may be happening next. See, it turns out that
when Superman died, there were four characters
that sort of took the place. They were the heroes
of Metropolis. And each of these four had different
characteristics, different abilities, but also
they just were very different from each other,
but also not the same as Superman. See, the guy
who was all in armor, he was very human. So he
was just basically a guy in a metal suit with
a giant hammer. But he also really cared about
people. and he really did want to make a difference.
The one who looked younger, he was very cocky,
very sure of himself all the time, and trying
to prove something. Well, he didn't have the
maturity that you would hope for. He was definitely
trying to help people, but only in the way that
it might make him look good. Or, then there was
the fact that there was one guy with glasses,
and he seemed to look a lot like Superman, but
he was cruel, mean. vindictive, vengeful with
people, which was not what Superman had been
like before. And then there was a fourth one.
And he had some pieces that were made of metal.
But he acted like Superman. He talked like Superman.
He seemed in many ways like Superman. But there
always seemed to be some secret that you couldn't
quite put your finger on with him. And each of
these four, as you're watching them, you're asking
the question, would Superman... have wanted their
methods to continue. Would they be doing what
it was that Superman would have done if he were
still there? But there was also this kind of
question in the back of your mind the whole time
because in the comics it showed that Superman's
body was gone. And so there was this question
of were any of these actually the real Superman
in disguise? And so as we think about the idea
of what it is when this main character leaves
and there are others to take their place, this
image is in my head as we're talking a bit about
the tenants that we have on the land that the
master has left for a long time and now there
are farmers who are making sure to take care
of the land. But the difficulty is that these
tenants were not exactly having the same heart
and same desire as what the Master had in mind.
See, these tenets were offering no fruits of
repentance. What do I mean by that? The people
back then, whenever they would hear scripture,
there were certain things that would stand out
to them quite a bit. One of them was the prophet
Isaiah. Isaiah... had this story that was there
about how this man had created this whole vineyard,
this whole place that was supposed to be cared
for and that it was supposed to be beautiful
and produce all of these good grapes. But for
reasons he couldn't explain, some of them turned
into wild grapes, the ones that you couldn't
make any wine out of. And so when we think of
the farmer, when we think of those who are taking
care of the land, people would... connect it
with Isaiah 5. And the idea that not all of it
was the way it should have been. But as people
are listening to Jesus, they're also realizing
that now Jesus is creating a story, a parable,
about their own religious leaders. See, whereas
in Isaiah, the people were supposed to repent
and turn back to God. What we see in this parable
is that these tenants do not want any of their
fruit going back to the master. It's theirs.
This is our fruit. This is our work. We're going
to keep it. It's not for him. Now, when looking
at this, we end up understanding that whatever
they have created now in their minds is only
for themselves, not for God. But what would be
some fruits? That someone could have in their
life and what they're teaching especially from
the religious leaders that God would not be happy
with Well, I'm pretty sure that in today's world.
We know that not every religious leader Produces
fruits that would always be pleasing to God See
there were times whenever they might be more
focused on their pride There might be times whenever
they just wanted to feel that they were powerful
or think that they were making the world a little
more stable for themselves or even there were
some that made a pretty decent living. Those
who were able to feel that they had a position
and even just making sure that everything around
them made them feel comfortable and good. The
problem is is that not everything that these
religious leaders were doing were actually pointing
people back to God. And that's what we end up
seeing with these characters that in the parable
There were these workers these servants that
were coming back to the tenants and saying over
and over again We need the fruits to come to
God But every time that they would do that the
tenants the farmers would be beating up these
servants See the thing is is that Jesus has been
talking about a lot of these things for a long
time So with so many of the stories in the sermons
he's given before They already know he's talking
about the prophets. Every time that the prophets
needed to come to the people and get their attention,
they would beat them up, throw them out, and
sometimes even kill them. But why? Why was it
that they didn't want? Because they didn't want
to be told that what they were doing had to stop.
They didn't want to be redirected. They didn't
want to have to change. But now in seeing this,
what would be the types of fruits that God would
want to see? God would want to see repentance.
To trust Him by faith and not on our own beliefs
or knowledge. God would want to see His Spirit
being the thing that leads and guides people.
That people would have forgiveness and compassion
in their hearts for other people. Was that what
we saw among those religious leaders at the time?
Is that what we see among our own religious leaders
today? How often is it that we truly believe
that what we see among those who claim the name
of God, those who speak to goodness, are actually
showing fruits that are supposed to come from
God's Spirit? Or are we just posturing and making
sure everybody knows that we're here? How often
is it that we get so upset that the world is
abusing us as the church? Satan must be somehow
in control. But how often is it that maybe the
reason we're being rejected is because we're
not actually doing what God would want? Is it
possible that sometimes the church is rejected
because we should be? And that's the difficulty,
is that when we're supposed to listen, where
is it that we're truly supposed to put our attention?
Because let's be honest, maybe, maybe the difficulty
was that they just didn't know if the prophets
were actually speaking from God. So what does
he say in the parable? I will send my son. You
can't deny that this is the son of the master,
so surely they will listen to him. Because wouldn't
they listen to the one that they know has authority?
Wouldn't they listen to the one that they know
for sure is speaking on behalf of the Master?
But what do we see the people actually doing
with Jesus? When they see Him, how are they actually
reacting to Him? Because the problem is, is that
the things that they want to see don't always
align with what God is doing through Jesus. Forgiveness?
Mercy? Freedom? Hope? No, it's supposed to be
about making sure you act good enough and make
sure that everybody around you listens and that
someday we will overthrow the government and
get our own place again. But the difficulty is
that when Jesus comes on the scene, he always
has a habit of showing where your heart really
is. If you see that it is difficult to be clear
about whether or not you are or are not following
God, when was the last time you asked what Jesus
has actually called you to? See, that's one of
the things that we see is that what God desires
and what we create sometimes can be so subtly
similar, but it makes all the difference. It's
said in Isaiah, it's said that when God wanted
justice, instead He saw blood shed. And you may
be wondering, that's an interesting thing to
put next to each other. God wants justice, but
all of a sudden people are shedding their blood.
What's the connection? The connection is the
Hebrew. In the Hebrew, justice is mishpat. In
Hebrew, bloodshed is mishpak. Mishpat. Miss Pa,
go ahead and wipe your eyes. I'm sorry for the
spit. Anyway, but what we end up seeing though
is it's meant to verbally show just such a subtle
difference. How many times it is that we claim
something to be on behalf of God. But there's
something just a little different about it that
somehow makes it more about us. And he does the
same thing again. He wants righteousness. Sedaka.
But instead, there's an outcry. Instead, the
people are crying out because they are being
harmed and hurt. Sedaka. Sedaka. Sedaka. Whenever
Christ comes on the scene, He ends up showing
that you may look similar to what people were
expecting, but are you genuinely following my
spirit. How do we react when God expects us to
respond with fruits of forgiveness, freedom,
love, compassion? Is that what we are actually
moving toward in our lives and in the world around
us? Now I have to admit, as a kid I was really
excited when I saw the Superman issue coming
out. I think it was 82. And when it was coming
out and you realize that the main character had
died, but he had never truly been replaced. See,
that's the thing is that Superman actually did
come back. And when it happened, all four characters
actually revealed their true colors. The guy
with armor on who has no special powers, he was
courageous and was still willing to fight even
whenever he was losing his armor. The young kid,
yeah, he was cocky, but when he saw the real
Superman come along, he respected him and started
following after him. The guy with the glasses
turned out he was supposed to actually protect
Superman. But the guy with the metal pieces,
as much as he acted good on the surface, it turned
out he was actually the villain all along. As
much as he spoke, sounded like, tried to act
like Superman, is that in reality, under the
surface, he had his own plans happening the whole
time. And so then, finally, when he tries to
kill Superman again, the guy with glasses protects
him, and then Superman is finally able to come
out and save the day. The thing is that whenever
the main character comes back, people reveal
who they truly are. That's the thing about the
Sun coming back to the field. The people were
not actually just waiting for the right authority.
They weren't like, oh, well, these servants don't
really speak for the master. We'll wait until
someone with real authority comes. That was never
the point. And in fact, because the Sun had more
authority, that was the reason they had to get
rid of them. But what ends up happening in the
parable? The master kills the tenants and takes
away what they had. But notice the people are
saying, surely not. Why are they so scared? What
is it that bothers them about this story? Is
it bothersome that the son is killed? Well, sure,
absolutely. But it's more than that. It's more
than the fact that they are sitting there, they
know that Jesus is referring to Himself in this
parable. How could you possibly imagine that
the leaders would kill you? How could you possibly
make this kind of a claim? Clearly, this would
never happen. How often is it that people want
to assume that it would never happen until it
does? But even more than that is the fact that
the tenants would be taken away. Are you really
telling us that the leaders we've looked to are
the ones that need to be taken away? And more
than that, are we really going to lose everything
we've had? Because within the century, they would
lose their country, and within a few decades,
they would have lost their temple. But as much
as the son's death was shocking, it was the rest
of it that hit them so hard. Because when the
son comes, he reveals where people truly are.
And that's the thing about a cornerstone. A cornerstone
has two big functions in what we're looking at
here. You know, a cornerstone, that's where it
was that buildings would be started at. This
is the stone. This is the corner. Everything
else comes from there. This is our starting point.
But here's the difficulty is that the cornerstone
is either something you stumble on or something
that can crush you in this story. Why is that?
Don't those both sound pretty bad? Who really
wants to stumble on a cornerstone? I stumble
enough in real life as it is, don't you? But
when we're looking at this, is that the idea
of stumbling is actually supposed to be a good
thing. You see, if you are the one that you are
wanting to go up against the cornerstone, instead
that thing is so heavy and so powerful that it
would crush you. But the thing about stumbling
on it is that it shows you when you're going
the wrong way. Whenever you stumble on the cornerstone,
it tells you when you're going the wrong way.
That's the thing about this is that Jesus has
come to reveal Himself and that He's the one
who's actually trying to show us, are you going
in the right direction? Is this really what it
is that God wants for you? Are the fruits that
are coming from your life genuinely what God
would want from you? Are these the fruits that
God sent His Son to create by His Spirit in you?
Because every fruit that we work to keep for
ourselves, instead of offering back to God, condemns
us. That's the thing about this stone. When Jesus
came he's either showing you this is the direction
you should go and he knocks you on your face
when you go the wrong way Or he ends up condemning
you because you don't want to follow him And
that's the hard part about what we see here,
but it's also the reality that we need to face
as Much as we have these goals and ideas in our
mind If they're not the ones from God, then what
future do we truly have with them? When we look
at Jesus, that He is the one who is the standard.
He is the one around whom the rest of the church
is built. We keep trying to build the church
around what we think matters. We keep trying
to build our legacy around the things that we
care about, the things that we think are important,
and then we don't stop and pause and say, is
this genuinely the fruit that God set us on this
earth to create? Have we made a world of forgiveness
and hope and mercy? Or did we just make a world
in which people think that we don't like them
very much? In this world, The land that's theirs
doesn't truly belong to us. The fruits that come
from us are not for us. They're meant to be for
God. Because otherwise, what kind of wine are
you going to create when you're making the wrong
fruit? When we look at our lives this season,
during this time of Lent, it is the time to realize
that we may be stumbling. But it's only because
God is trying to get our attention and put us
back on the path we're supposed to go down. So
where you may be today, where you may be wondering,
why is it that I am stumbling at this moment?
And it may be because God is trying to get your
attention. Not because he wants to leave you
on the ground. Because he wants you to be growing
the fruit that actually matters. So whatever
that may be, May we as God's people continue
to seek him so that we would grow in the ways
he desires and that our life and legacy would
be the fruit that truly blesses the kingdom of
God. Thanks be to God.