"But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.
And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.
Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you."
Matthew 21:28-31
This is the parable of the two sons, and it seemed interesting to me today because I was thinking about the difference between the brothers, both of which were not perfect, and that I've probably been both of them at different times in my life. (Or a third even worse brother who says he won't and actually doesn't.) I appreciate that God helps us to understand here that it matters less how we start out, and more how we end. We need to work on our rebellious natures and move towards faith and trust in God instead, doing as he asks rather than doing whatever we feel like.
I think it is also clear here that repentance isn't something temporary, where we say whoops, sorry, and then can go back and do it again. It's actual change in our lives where we change what we do, not just what we say.
Today, let's try to be good children of God by doing the Lord's will... whether we said we would or not. Let's wake up to the fact that our way is just not going to cut it and that we need God, desperately, and his path to hope, peace, and joy. As we learn and practice God's will in our lives, things will get better for us, and we'll be happier without that barrier of resistance between ourselves and God.
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