Sermon for 18th after Pentecost, 27th August 2026

Welcome sisters and brothers and peace be with you. MAY the words of my mouth and the meditations in our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. <Amen>

I once new a lady in a faith community who was always telling other people what to do, how to do it and when. This so upset some of the other members of the community for so long that they went to their pastor and asked, “Could you please tell us who actually has authority here and what right has ‘so-and-so’ to always be telling us what to do?”

The pastor smiled and said, “That’s a very good question. Actually, authority isn’t really about who has the loudest voice or who gives the most orders. It’s about who actually does stuff AND takes responsibility for it.”

That little story brings us surprisingly close to Matthew’s Gospel, 21:23-32 because this is all about authority. <PAUSE>

Jesus has entered Jerusalem. He has challenged the religious establishment. He has turned over the tables of the money changers and sellers. Now the chief priests and elders come to him with a question:

“By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”

It sounds like a straightforward question. But it isn’t. The chief priests aren’t really asking because they want to understand Jesus. They are asking because they want to challenge him. They want Jesus to justify himself. They want to know who gave him permission to do what he is doing!

Jesus responds beautifully. He asks them about John the Baptist, “Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?”

Suddenly the people who had been so confident a moment before become very uncomfortable. They begin discussing what answer they should give and realising that they are in an awkward situation they eventually say, “We do not know.”

Jesus refuses to play their game and, instead, he tells them a story about two sons.

A father goes to the first son and asks him to go and work in vineyard. The son refuses but later changes his mind and goes. The father goes to the second son and says the same thing. The second son says, “Yes, sir”, but he doesn’t go.

Then Jesus asks the obvious question: “Which of the two did the will of his father?” The answer is obvious. The first son. THAT is where Jesus makes his point.

Because the religious leaders have been saying all the right things. They know the Scriptures. They know the religious rules. They know how to speak the language of faith. They know what they are supposed to say.

However, Jesus is stressing that it isn’t enough to say “yes.” What matters is what we actually do. <PAUSE>
There is something that can be deeply uncomfortable about this Gospel because most of us like to think that we are the second son. We hear God’s call and say, “Yes, Lord.” We come to worship. We say our prayers. We sing the hymns. We read the Bible. We know the right words … and YES all of those things matter … BUT, BUT …

Jesus is asking us a more searching question, “What happens after we say ‘yes’?”

Does our faith actually change the way we live?
Does it change the way we treat people?
Does it change the way we respond when somebody is hurting?
Does it change the way we behave towards the person with whom we disagree?
Does it change what we do with our time, our money, our influence and our opportunities?

Here, today, is Jesus’ deeply personal message to each and every one of us His parable … your Christian faith is not simply about what you say you believe. Your Christian faith is about allowing what you believe to become visible in your life. <PAUSE>

Here Jesus’ message once again, just so you don’t misunderstand me … Our Christian faith is not simply about what we say we believe. Our Christian faith is about allowing what we believe to become visible in our lives. <PAUSE>

I would also like us to notice something else about the first son. He gets it wrong. He says no. He refuses his father’s request, but then something happens. He changes his mind. He turns around. He goes to the vineyard … and that little detail is enormously important.

Why? Because Christianity is full of people who have said “no” to God at some point in their lives. People who have walked away. People who have made mistakes. People who have resisted God’s call. People who have spent years living in ways they later regretted … yet the Gospel tells us that a “no” does not have to be the final word.

There is always the possibility of turning around.
There is always the possibility of repentance.
There is always the possibility of beginning again.

The first son discovered that his initial response did not have to determine the rest of his life and perhaps somebody listening today needs to hear exactly that.

Maybe you have said “no” to God.
Maybe you’ve neglected your faith.
Maybe you’ve made choices you wish you could undo.
Maybe you have wandered a long way from where you once were.

Jesus’ story today reminds us that God’s invitation is still there.

You can change direction.
You can come home.
You can still enter the vineyard. <PAUSE>There is yet another warning in this Gospel.

The second son says all the right things. “Yes, Father.” But then he does nothing! There is a powerful lesson here for faith communities today. We can become very good at talking about Christianity. We can discuss doctrine. We can debate theology. We can argue about worship styles. We can discuss who is inside and who is outside. We can become experts at telling other people what they should believe and how they should behave.

But Jesus asks much simpler questions:

Are you doing the Father’s will?
Are we loving our neighbour?
Are we caring for the vulnerable?
Are we welcoming the stranger?
Are we forgiving those who have hurt us?
Are we standing alongside those who are lonely?
Are we willing to serve rather than simply be served?
Are we taking the Gospel beyond the walls of our churches, rooms and homes?

You see - the “vineyard” is not simply a place where we talk about God’s work. The “vineyard” is where God’s work gets done. <PAUSE>

Perhaps this also explains why Jesus refuses to answer the question about his authority in the way his opponents expect. They want a certificate. They want credentials. They want to know who authorised him.

No, no, no - - - Jesus’ authority is demonstrated by what he does.

He heals.
He welcomes.
He forgives.
He challenges injustice.
He reaches out to people others have rejected.
He announces God’s kingdom.
And ultimately he gives his own life.

His authority is not simply something he claims. It is something people encounter … and that should make us think about our own Christian witness. <PAUSE>

The wonderful thing about today’s Gospel is that Jesus isn’t asking for perfection. The first son got it wrong. He said no. But then he changed. That’s grace.

The Christian life isn’t about having said the right thing every time. It isn’t about never having failed. It is about being willing to hear God’s voice, turn around when necessary, and getting on with the work God has given us.

Because the kingdom of God isn’t built simply by people who say: “Yes, Lord.” It is built by people who say: “Yes, Lord — and then get up and go.”I pray that our words and our actions become one.

I pray that our faith becomes visible in our lives.

I pray that when we hear God say, “Go and work in my vineyard today,” our response be more than words.

I runga e te Ingoa o te Atua, te Matua, te Tama me te Wairua Tapu. <AMINE>