The man came to the other son and gave the same order.
He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir,’ but did not go.
The chief priests and the elders gave an affirmative answer to the question of whether or not they would serve the Father. But in spite of this, they did not go out to serve in his vineyard. Did they ever plan to go? At the beginning they probably felt pressured to say yes because they didn't want to disappoint God. So they claimed to agree with him, but either not considering or ignoring the implications of doing so. But when they no longer felt like they were being put on the spot they chose to focus on their own priorities instead. Perhaps initially they envisioned the requested work to be something quite different, something that they easily could and would have done. But in fact the work in the vineyard was being accomplished best by Jesus and his disciples. His outreach to the lowest and the least, to those on the margins of society, was not what the chief priests and elders had planned to do when they gave God their yes. They seemed to prefer the stratified hierarchy where they themselves were at the top and people like tax collectors and prostitutes were entirely excluded.
He came to the first and said,
‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’
The son said in reply, ‘I will not,’
but afterwards he changed his mind and went.
The first son who was asked at least gave a sincere answer that coincided with the actions he took after. He said no and did not go, at least, not at first. He was representative of the tax collectors and prostitutes who initially said no to God, choosing their own will over his law. They expressed their no to God by the way they lived. But neither their answer nor their actions were ultimate. They were given the opportunity to reevaluate, answer again, this time in the affirmative, and to change their lives. They had come to understand all too well what the choice of not serving in the vineyard meant. It meant squandered freedom, sorrow, and despair. Since they knew they said no previously they were able to change their minds and repent. The trouble for the other son and those whom he represented was that they said yes, and somehow still believed in their answer. The trouble for the chief priests and the elders was that they were so convinced that they were in God's will that they were unable to evaluate themselves objectively and see that they were living primarily from their own will.
When John came to you in the way of righteousness,
you did not believe him;
but tax collectors and prostitutes did.
Yet even when you saw that,
you did not later change your minds and believe him.
The miraculous transformation that happened in the lives of sinners who encountered John the Baptist ought to have been a sign for others about the mercy of God, and of the fact that it was available to everyone. But not everyone wanted that mercy to be shared so broadly or so easily accessible. They preferred a world in which, as they thought, they did not need mercy, and in which no mercy for egregious sinners was available or possible. But the way they desired the world to be did not match reality. For in reality, mercy was available to all who could acknowledge their need for it. And there was no living soul, save the Blessed Virgin, who did not need it, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (see Romans 3:23).
Most of us are among those who have said 'Yes, sir' to God. But do we always go? Or has some distant yes in our past replaced the need for our continued obedience in the present? How do our own lives track with God's desire to make his mercy available to all people? Do we share his heart for those on the fringes of society? Or does his mercy seem like an invasive hassle from our point of view? Do we rather want to enjoy our lives without such interruptions, without such potentially uncomfortable relationships? If we have promised to be about God's work in his vineyard then we actually need to be about it. We can't just imagine we are, or say we are. It's not enough to merely attend mass on Sunday and put money in the offering plate if our hearts are not open to God. If we are not committed to seeing his Kingdom built among us we may exclude ourselves from seeing it come in fullness.
More than our own impressive abilities to deceive ourselves, this parable tells us that God is a God of second chances, and that it is never too late to turn to him. We must do so, not only in words, but in lives lived for him. Typically we must progress through such conversion in stages. We realize that in one area or another we have not yet given ourselves fully to God. Then, once we give that area over to him, we discover another. But the more we discover, the more we progress, and the closer to God we come.
For then I will change and purify
the lips of the peoples,
That they all may call upon the name of the LORD,
to serve him with one accord;
John Michael Talbot - Here I Am Lord
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