DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL  MAY 12, 2023  (IMPENITENT LEADER)

TOPIC : IMPENITENT LEADER

Text: Mark 12:1-12 (KJV)

12 And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country.

2 And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard.

3 And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.

4 And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled.

5 And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.

6 Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son.

7 But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.’

8 And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.

9 What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others.

10 And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner:

11 This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?

12 And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.

KEY VERSE: “And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.” – (Mark 12:12)

MESSAGE

King David proved more discreet and tolerant in his time than the chief priests, scribes and elders did in Christ’s day. When Nathan the prophet exposed his sin through a parable, David set aside his ego and humbly accepted his inexcusable transgressions. He attracted instant mercy, although he could not escape the corporeal repercussions.

The leaders of Israel were not so. More than one thousand years later, Jesus spoke of the parable of the wicked husbandmen who hijacked God’s vineyard. They slew the prophets He sent to them for harvesting of the yields. In a final act of rebellion, they murdered the son of the owner of the field. Clearly, they understood, like David did, that the story targeted their forebears and them, as they were also scheming to kill Jesus the Son of God sent to reclaim the lost.

When the Lord sends preachers to address our shortcomings and sins, we ought to have remorseful conviction and repent. We should not resent His messengers or see them as personal enemies. It should lead us to thank the Lord for loving us such that He does not want us to perish and lose heaven. It fulfils His desire not to take pleasure in the death of the sinner.

God’s rebuke comes from various sources: the Bible, the sermons of preachers, Christian literature and online messages, etc. They are not meant to further alienate us from Him or from the church leaders He sends to us. His censures are Fatherly, plaintively designed to pull us from the mire when we break His laws and realign us to His love. Rejecting His overtures is the same as choosing the road to doom.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: A true Christian is grateful for the Lord’s rebuke as much as His commendation.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Corinthians 12-14

Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM) written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi. It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.