GREAT THINGS ENTERPRISE
CLAUDE BLACK
Mark 12:2
Payment Due
A few years ago, everyone received monthly bills in the mail. More recently, there is an autopay system, where bill payments are automatically deducted from an account and sent to the payee. The process is automatic, but no less painful—the bill still must be paid.
There are other debts. Any husband who is curt with his spouse knows about a different kind of debt. There are also instances of personal debt illustrated by the phrase “You owe it to yourself.” For example, “You’ve been working nonstop—you owe it to yourself to take a day off.” Or “You owe it to yourself to pursue what actually makes you happy.”
Mark wrote about Jesus’ lesson in the temple after the authorities questioned his right to drive merchants from the temple courts. He began his lesson about a man who built an elaborate vineyard and then rented it to tenant farmers. “And he sent to the farmers at the season a slave so that he might receive from the farmers from the fruits of the vineyard.” (Mark 12:20)
There is no information in this lesson about the amount of time between the original lease and the time of payment. Estimates suggest it takes about three to five years for a newly planted vineyard to produce a full, commercially viable crop. A tremendous amount of labor is required to protect, fertilize, prune, and trellis the vines. In Jesus’ story, the farmers (incidentally, γεωργός, georgos, from γῆ, earth + ἔργον, work; hence “earthworker” or farmer, cf. George) apparently worked diligently to bring the vines to maturity and developed a sense of ownership.
The target of Jesus’ lesson was the authorities—the lessees were the Jewish authorities, the owner was the Father, and the slave was His prophet or messenger. But another lesson is that sooner or later, the payment will come due. Time may be extended; a sense of ownership may develop, but the payment will come due.
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