Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-09-03

the letting II out to husbandmen; these
were part of the everyday life of the Jew
ish people. The property rights of the lord
of the vineyard, enhanced by the great
expenditure Of time and money upon it,
would be instantly recognized by all who
heard the parable. and SO the Nervousness
of the crime OF which the householder
was guilty would be readily acknowl-
edged
The application OF the parable to the
Jewish people and to Himself as-the Son
Of God and heir of all was so natural and
pertinent that II was calculated to carry
ing in this. it would inevitably intensity
their anger. Every particular of this
parable had it's parallel in Gods dealing
with the Jewish people. God had chosen
them from among the nations. He had
built toem into a great people. He had
had been rebuked for their sake, and a
laid flowing with milk and honey had
been given them as possession.
They had never been left without re-
1igious teachers. An entire tribe was set
apart for the purpose of ministering to
their spiritual needs. Prophets had been
sent to warn them Of their wickedness
and to urge them to attain those fruits
Of righteousness which the Lord OF the
vineyard had a right to demand. But
they had rejected the teachings and
warnings Of these servants Of God. Some
were slain, others were prosecuted, all
were disregarded
And now at last He had sent His SON.
And He had sought to produce In them
the righteousness which alone can save
and elevate a people. He had demon
strated in every possible way the truth
fulness Of His claim. He had healed the
sick, cleansed the Iepers. cast out devils
and raised the dead. He had stilfed the
tempest and quieted the pillows. He had
shown himself to be full Of sympathy for
the suffering. He had fed the multitude
and He had forgiven sin.
These are the works OF God. 3D. ana a,,e OF
now. rejecting Him. He had made Him.
self intolerable because He demanded OF
them righteousness. They had determin-
ed upon His death. They would STAY
From first to last the analogy was COM
plete. With what sad tones must Jesus
have uttered those words. They caught
Him. and cast Him out of the vineyard.
and slew Him" He was describing
the application and they made haste to
verify the prediction. II was last
appeal. There was nothing left but that
Jesus must pronounce sentence against
them. THE kingdom of God shall be
taken from you and given to nation
bringing forth its fruits OF righteousness"
How fearful was the sentence and how
literally It was fulfilled. To this day
the Jews reject the claims of Jesus to be
the Son OF God. But the Gentiles Of all
lands and of all tribes are bowling to
Him in worship and are hailing Him as
their Lord. Forty years more and the
temple was destroyed and the nation
was a hopeless ruin.
This then Is the lesson. Great adj
vantages carry with them great response
bilfties. The demand OF God is right
eousness. in proportion to our opportuni,
ties. and failure means the withdrawal
Of our privileges. 1t Is strange that
we can stand face to face with these
truths and not tremble. To fall upon
this stone Is to be broken. but IL II fall
upon us 1t will grind US to powder"