A reflection upon the Gospel of Matthew 21:23-33, about the wicked tenants who kill the son of the vineyard owner.
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00:00 One of the most difficult things in life is dealing with the bitterness that comes when
00:05 we feel like we're passed over or overlooked.
00:09 And sometimes it can lead us to do things that we really wish we hadn't done, like the
00:13 parable this weekend of the wicked tenants who, they want to own the vineyard.
00:19 And so when the father sends his son to negotiate with them and to talk them out of it, they
00:26 seize the son and they kill him.
00:28 Of course, he's an image for Jesus.
00:31 And it's terrible and it's at the end.
00:36 Sometimes we think it might be, but the parable is told to give us a hope that we can't have
00:44 apart from the death of the son of the father.
00:47 There's a story about a man named Jacques Fesche.
00:50 Did you ever hear of him?
00:51 He was from Paris.
00:52 He lived in the last century.
00:53 He was a man of privilege.
00:56 He was unhappy with his life.
00:58 So he concocted this crazy idea of buying a yacht and spending the rest of his days
01:04 in Polynesia.
01:05 So he basically robbed a bank, but it all went wrong.
01:09 And in the process, he ended up murdering a policeman and another person.
01:13 And he went to prison for it.
01:15 And he was sentenced to the guillotine.
01:17 But while he was in prison, he experienced this tremendous grace because even though
01:23 he tried to rob the father of his riches, the son came to find him and to claim him
01:31 in his own sorrow and in his own shame.
01:34 And this is what he says in his diaries, which you can read.
01:37 He was suffering his first year in prison.
01:39 And he says, "It was then that a cry burst from my breast, an appeal for help for God.
01:46 And instantly, like a violent wind which passes over without anyone knowing where it comes
01:50 from, the spirit of the Lord seized me by the throat.
01:55 I had the impression of infinite power and kindness.
01:57 And from that moment onward, I believed with an unshakable conviction that has never left
02:02 me.
02:04 Within the space of a few hours, I came into possession of faith with absolute certitude.
02:09 I believed and could no longer understand how I had not ever believed.
02:15 Grace had come to me.
02:16 A great joy flooded my soul and above all, a deep peace."
02:21 So if you're going through that bitterness and if you're feeling the shame, let that
02:26 cry emerge from your breast in prayer.
02:31 Cry out to the son who, yes, died, but is risen and is waiting in the resurrection to
02:38 bless you with every gift of the Father.
02:41 "And I will not be ashamed of my sin, but I will not be ashamed of my good work." - Jesus