“And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.” Matthew 21:32b ESV1
Read Matthew 21:28-32
You have undoubtedly heard it quoted and seen it in print as much as I have—2 Chronicles 7:14—“If My people … pray … I will hear from Heaven … and heal their land.” Believing in the power of this promise, many sincere Christians gather and call out to God pleading for His intervention in a variety of situations that affect them, those around them, and the countries in which they live. But when those prayers are seemingly unanswered, most of those who came together to pray, go back to their normal lives disillusioned with the power of prayer and doubting the goodness of Almighty God. The trouble is, whether by intention or merely through emphasis, we have reduced the promise of 2 Chronicles 7:14 to the words above. There is a whole lot more to that verse than we usually stress or remember. The following parable which Jesus told to the sincerely religious who questioned Him reveals that which they, and we, so often overlook.
The Prologue and the Parable
“One day, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the Gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to Him, ‘Tell us by what authority You do these things, or who it is that gave You this authority.’ He answered them, ‘I also will ask you a question. Now tell Me, was the baptism of John from Heaven or from man?’ And they discussed it with one another, saying, ‘If we say, “From Heaven,” He will say, “Why did you not believe him?” But if we say, “From man,” all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.’ So, they answered that they did not know where it came from. And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things’” (Luke 20:1-7).
Instead of directly answering their question, Jesus told this story:
“‘What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, “Son, go and work in the vineyard today.” And he answered, “I will not,” but afterward he changed his mind and went. And [the father] went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, “I go, sir,” but did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?’ They said, ‘The first.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the Kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him” (Matthew 21:28-32).
To answer the question concerning His right to be respected and obeyed, Jesus used an allegorical story. The primary character in this story was one in authority with the right to give direction and expect compliance from those under his care. It was a story of a father ordering two of his sons to perform the same specific task. The father in this parable is representative of God. The sons are a picture of the Jewish people.
In Jesus’ story, the response and subsequent action of each son were completely opposite of the other. Many of the men who confronted Jesus that day were likely fathers and all of them were most definitely sons. They had no trouble recognizing which of the sons in Jesus’ story obeyed his father. But what they may have struggled with was how this parable applied to them and their question. So, Jesus made the symbolism clear. The religious leaders who outwardly appeared to be pleasing God were pictured by the second son who promised to obey his father and then did not. Those who had previously engaged in much obvious sin were represented by the first son who initially blatantly disrespected his father by refusing to comply but later regretted that decision and obeyed. The latter were the ones who were obedient in the end.
“Jesus said to [the chief priests, scribes, and elders], ‘Truly, … the tax collectors and the prostitutes [will] go into the Kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him” (Matthew 21:32a).
When Jesus spoke of John, He was referring to what happened about four years earlier:
“John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, ‘Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.’ … Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. But when [John the Baptist] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit in keeping with repentance’” (Matthew 3:1-2, 5-8).
Through the ministry of John the Baptist, many people realized their sins and repented. They turned from that which was unpleasing to God and sought to right the wrongs they had done. (See Luke 3:10-14). Jesus explained that the previous lawbreakers would have the honor of entering the Kingdom of Heaven before the Law-keepers because they did one thing the religious leaders refused to do; the sinners repented. When John preached repentance, the tax collectors, prostitutes, and others caught in a lifestyle of sin, felt remorse over how they had been living, changed their minds, and went in the opposite direction—the direction of righteousness. Those who considered themselves upright and moral saw no need for repentance because they could not see past their good deeds to the sinfulness of their own hearts. But both John the Baptist and Jesus perceived their self-righteous facades and called them out concerning their hypocrisy.
The Paradox Portrayed
One would think that it would have been those who were familiar with the Laws of the LORD, were concerned about purity, and were looking for the coming of the Messiah that would have responded enthusiastically to everything Jesus did and taught, but that was not the case. Over and over, the most religious of the Jews treated Jesus and all He stood for with disdain.
It just so happened that Jesus told this parable during the most emotional time of His life on Earth. He was confronted by the priests, scribes, and elders questioning His authority early in the week between the Triumphal Entry and the Crucifixion. Again and again throughout the Passion Week, the absurdity of the religious Jews opposing the work of the God they claimed to serve was displayed.
It all began with a dinner party:
“Six days before the Passover, Jesus … came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So, they gave a dinner for Him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at the table. Mary, therefore, took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples (he who was about to betray Him), said, ‘Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?’ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it” (John 12:1-6).
During the party, an evil plot was being hatched:
“When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was [in Bethany at Martha’s house], they came, not only on account of Him but also to see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. So, the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus” (John 12:9-11).
When the party finished, Jesus made the two-mile journey to Jerusalem and the crowd followed Him:
“And [His disciples] brought [a donkey] to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. And as He rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. As He was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of His disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, ‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest! And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, ‘Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.’ He answered, ‘I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.’ (Luke 19:35-40).
“And when He drew near and saw [Jerusalem], He wept over it, saying, ‘Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. (Luke 19:41-42). “‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!’” (Matthew 23:37). “‘For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation’” (Luke 19:43-44).
The closer they got to Jerusalem the more impassioned for the things of the LORD Jesus became:
“And [when] they came to Jerusalem. And [Jesus] entered the Temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the Temple, and He overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. And He would not allow anyone to carry anything through the Temple. And He was teaching them and saying to them, ‘Is it not written, “My House shall be called a House of Prayer for all the nations”? But you have made it a den of robbers.’ And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy Him, for they feared Him because all the crowd was astonished at His teaching” (Mark 11:15-18).
The next day, emotions still ran high:
“In the morning, as Jesus was returning to [Jerusalem from Bethany where he had spent the night], He became hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside, He went to it and found nothing on it but only leaves. And He said to it, ‘May no fruit ever come from you again!’ And the fig tree withered at once. When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, ‘How did the fig tree wither at once?’ And Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, “Be taken up and thrown into the sea,” it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith’” (Matthew 21:18-22).
The Preposterous Pictured the Problem
During the joyful celebration of Lazarus’ resurrection, how unexpected it would have been that one in attendance would be planning on bringing down the One who had lifted up the one who had been dead. After witnessing the selfless love of another for The Master, how contradictory it would have been for a disciple of Christ to be concerned only for himself. And how absurd that a party celebrating life and the Life-giver would have motivated those who were tasked with pointing the way to Life to plan to kill someone. And how unbelievable it would have been that those who served in the Temple of the One True God would desire to prevent people from coming to God.
As King of Kings rode into The City of David, how ridiculous it would have been that those who were so concerned about pleasing The Sovereign One would demand that the His Son stop the people from honoring Him. Likewise, in the event that the praising did subside, how unthinkable it would have been to hear rocks cry out. And how astonishing it was that Jesus cared so deeply for those who so passionately rejected Him.
When it came to the Temple, this was not the first time Jesus cleaned out the place and not the first time He chastised those who were taking advantage of the people and using the Temple for a place to profit themselves. (See John 2:11-12). How unimaginable it would have been that the religious leaders hadn’t done anything to rectify this evil. How incredible that, in their self-righteousness, they went so far as to begin planning a way to destroy the One for Whom the Temple was built to honor. And how beyond belief it would have been that those who were called to lead the people were struck with fear of them.
And in the case with the fig tree, how seemingly unlike Jesus it was to curse a tree. How amazing it would have been that the disciples were surprised by His power. And how incredible the declaration that the prayer of faith could, among other things, move mountains.
It was with the backdrop of these extraordinary events and attitudes that Jesus told an equally surprising parable. How unthinkable it would have been for a son who promised to obey his father would ignore him. And how improbable that a son who so disrespected his father would turn around and yield to his father’s desires. But that was exactly what had been happening over and over. Like the second son in the parable, the religious Jews had made a big show of promising to obey their Heavenly Father but they never followed through because their hearts weren’t in it. Like the first son in the story, those steeped in sin didn’t hide their disobedience, but when they realized their errors, they repented from their hearts and changed their courses.
Faith and repentance were what allowed the prostitutes into the Kingdom of Heaven before the priests. Faith and repentance were the reasons the tax collectors gained more favor with God than the scribes. And faith and repentance were what allowed uneducated, young men to walk closer to God than the learned elders of the synagogue. Faith and repentance are what allows a person to enter the door Jesus has opened into a relationship with God and knowing God intimately is what the Kingdom of Heaven is all about.
Past the Point of Patience
By the time Jesus told this parable, the priests, the scribes, and the elders had had enough. The city was in an uproar over Jesus. The people were flocking to Him. Jesus had caused havoc in the Temple. Now, He was even cursing fruit trees. “The Pharisees said to one another, ‘You see that [we] are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after Him’” (John 12:19). It was then that the religious leaders approached Jesus and demanded He tell them how He figured He had the right to accept the praise of the people and do such outlandish things in and around the Temple.
But the religious leaders weren’t the only ones running out of patience; Jesus was too.
“‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, … How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” (Matthew 23:37). “‘For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will [attack and destroy you and your people] … because you did not know the time of your visitation’” (Luke 19:43-44).
The cursing of the fig tree was a picture of fact that Jesus would not continue to put up with that which looked good on the outside but was worthless on the inside. Although it was too early for full-fledged figs to be available on that tree, in that climate, there should have been something available there to eat.
“Fruits generally ripen from August – October depending on cultivar and climate. Some trees produce what is called a breba which are fig fruits that develop during the spring on the previous year’s shoot growth, followed by the main fig crop that develops on the new shoot growth and ripens in late summer or fall. In cold climates, the breba crop is often destroyed by spring frosts.”2
Israel isn’t in a harsh, cold climate. There should have been breba on that fig tree. The Jews were God’s Chosen people. They had God’s blessing and His Law. The LORD had poured out His great love upon them. The Messiah came through them. They should have been producing some kind of “fruit” for the glory of God. They should have been providing something for those from the lost world who were searching for more. They should have been ready to believe when Jesus came to them. But the majority of those who claimed to be right with God didn’t recognize Jesus as the Messiah. And even when those less likely to see Jesus for who He was repented and believed in Jesus, the self-righteousness of the religious leaders prevented them from doing the same.
Our Present Predicament
Jesus didn’t just lose His patience with the religious ones of old. I believe He is getting pretty impatient with us and our religiosity, too. Today, in a lot of ways, we who consider ourselves Christians, are not so different from those Jesus chastised while He was on Earth. Right now, we might just be causing Him as much or more pain as those who opposed Him two thousand years ago.
The first sermon of Jesus’ Earthly ministry was, “‘Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand’” (Matthew 4:17b). The call to repent didn’t commence when Jesus left this Earth. From Heaven, He insisted on repentance. Check out Revelation 2:1-3:22. If you have a red-letter Bible, every single word in these two chapters should be printed in red because these were the words of Jesus. These were admonitions to seven specific churches. To five of the seven churches, Jesus effectively said, “Repent or else.” (See Revelation 2:5, 16 & 21-22; 3:3 & 19). I believe Jesus is still requiring repentance from His Church today.
Jesus praised each of the churches mentioned in Revelation for the things they were doing right. Some were completely faithful to Christ despite insurmountable odds. But most of them had huge blind spots. In these problem churches, it was what they overlooked and the sins that they accepted in their midst which caused Jesus much grief. Jesus promised unless these churches recognized their true state and were willing to repent and turn from these things, they would receive punishment.
I can’t help but think that the churches in those seven cities aren’t a whole lot different than the churches in my nation and in many places across this world. Many of them, like the religious Jews of Jesus’ time on Earth, are doing some incredible things. But those good deeds don’t make up for the serious sin and outlandish oversights they tolerate.
For instance, Jesus chastised the church in Ephesus for abandoning their original passion for Him (see Revelation 2:4). Look closely at the churches around you. Are they characterized as being sold out for Jesus and glorifying His name or do they seem like they are just going through the motions? Now think about the Christians around you, yourself included, are they/you as excited about Jesus as they/you once were? The waning of passion for Jesus is a common problem.
Jesus reproved the church in Sardis for appearing to be full of activity and power when they were in reality quite impotent (see Revelation 3:1) and the church in Laodicea for being oblivious to their actual spiritual state and for neither taking a stand for what was right nor opposing what was wrong (see Revelation 3:17 & 15). Does that sound like the churches with which you are familiar? Do those statements reflect the attitude of Christians you know? Are you guilty of these things? A.W. Tozer said, “Christianity has been watered down until the solution is so weak that if it were poison it would not hurt anyone, and if it were medicine, it would not cure anyone.”3
Jesus also criticized the church of Pergamum, saying, “‘You have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam’” (Revelation 2:14). Balaam was a character in the Old Testament; his story is told in Numbers 22-24. (Perhaps you remember the talking donkey.) Balaam was a false prophet and diviner that the King of Moab, Balak, hired to curse the Israelites. When he was unable to curse them, he changed his tactics and instructed Balak to use Moabite women to sexually entice Israelite men to participate in the worship of their false gods. Satan may not have been able to stop the spread of Christianity but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t tried to sneak in the back door to bring down Christians. And people in many countries don’t worship idols but that doesn’t mean they don’t have false gods that consume their passions. In my country, sex, money, power, and entertainment have risen to a higher level in the lives of many proclaiming Christians than the One True God.
Also, in the church at Pergamum, there were those who held to “the teaching of the Nicolaitans” (Revelation 2:15). “The deceptive doctrine of these people is that a strict hierarchy of control must be maintained and respected within the church. Ranks and levels are created in order to maintain power so that those considered part of the lowest level of the church (the members) can be taken advantage of at will. The whole system feeds on competition and strife among those who consider themselves believers in Jesus.”4 In his writings, Peter instructed church leaders not to force others to follow them but to gently exhort them to do right for the glory of Christ (see 1 Peter 5:1-3). In the modern church, some denominations are sustained by the domination of one group at the expense of another. Among many professing Christians, there is some kind of competition or prejudice that harms other Believers. We are guilty of this thing that Jesus hates (see Revelation 2:6).
Jesus had this against the church of Thyatira: they “[tolerated] that woman Jezebel, who [called] herself a prophetess and [was] teaching and seducing [Christ’s] servants to practice sexual immorality and [engage in false religion]” (Revelation 2:20). I don’t know if this Jezebel was a specific woman who had taken over the church of Thyatira or if the attitude of this church was like that of the Old Testament Queen of Israel who usurped the authority of her much weaker husband, King Ahab, and instituted the worship of false gods in Israel. (Her story is told in 1 & 2 Kings). But the thing for which this church was chastised was that they were putting up with what “Jezebel” was doing. How much blatant sin do we tolerate in today’s Church because we don’t want to upset those who are most outspoken? Whether the powers-that-be are among members of an individual church or the governing bodies and prominent attitudes of the world around the Church, we often are more concerned about not offending other people than we are about offending Christ.
Partaking of the Plenary Promise
The entirety of 2 Chronicles 7:14 reads, “‘If My people who are called by My name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.’” If one were to shorten this verse it should include more than the call to prayer; it should focus on repentance: “If My people … humble themselves, and pray, and … repent, then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
The original declaration of God to act in response to His people humbling themselves, praying, seeking Him, and turning from their sins was made to King Solomon after he finished and dedicated the Temple to the LORD:
“The LORD appeared to Solomon in the night and said to him: ‘I have heard your prayer and have chosen this Place for Myself as a House of Sacrifice. When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, if My people who are called by My name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this Place. For now, I have chosen and consecrated this House that My name may be there forever. My eyes and My heart will be there for all time … But if you turn aside and forsake My statutes and My commandments that I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will pluck you up from My land that I have given you, and this House that I have consecrated for My name, I will cast out of My sight’” (2 Chronicles 7:12-16 & 19-20).
“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God” (2 Corinthians 6:19)? Christians are now the place that God has chosen and consecrated for Himself. The Church is where His eyes and His heart are. It is among us that He desires to have eyes that are open and ears that attentive to our prayers. But if we turn aside and forsake Him and His ways, He will in some way, shape, or form cast us out of His sight.
I don’t know what is happening in your life in your land among your people, but I am confident that there is something that causes alarm. I believe God wants to right the wrongs we see around us but His people have to want that too. I believe He is using the current events to open our eyes to where our love for Him has grown cold and where we have a form of godliness that lacks power (see 2 Timothy 3:5). I believe God is trying to reveal to us where we are worshiping false gods, where we are filled with pride and prejudice, and where we have let the culture and the lies of Satan erode the Truth. I believe God is giving [us] time to repent” (Revelation 2:21a). I believe God is expecting His people, the Church, to do more than pray; He is requiring us to repent. May we open our eyes and ears and soften our hearts. May we repent and plead to God for His forgiveness for our sins and the sins of those who came before us. May we “‘remember … what [we] received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If [we] will not wake up, [Jesus] will come like a thief, and [we] will not know at what hour [He] will come against [us]’” (Revelation 3:3). If that happens, it will be too late to wish we had repented.
1 Scripture quotations marked with ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All Scriptures are taken from the ESV unless otherwise noted. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.
2 https://www.permaculturenews.org/2016/09/30/dig-fig-essential-guide-need-know-figs-ficus-carica/
3 https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/1299807