As the opposition to Jesus increased, He told a parable foreshadowing what would happen to Him on the cross. Just like those opponents, anyone who rejects Jesus rejects the Father who sent Him.

Mark 11:27-12:12

²⁷ And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, ²⁸ and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?” ²⁹ Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one question; answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. ³⁰ Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man? Answer me.” ³¹ And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’³² But shall we say, ‘From man’?”—they were afraid of the people, for they all held that John really was a prophet. ³³ So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

12 And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. ² When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. ³ And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. ⁴ Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. ⁵ And he sent another, and him they killed. And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. ⁶ He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸ And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.⁹ What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰ Have you not read this Scripture:

¹² And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.

Jesus Is Challenged (Mark 11:27-33)

• The religious leaders’ true beliefs were hidden in their questions (v. 28).
• Jesus’ authority always demands a response (v. 30).
• Be careful not to let pride or fear prevent you from encountering Jesus (v.33).

Jesus Is Rejected (Mark 12:1-12)

• Characters in the parable
  • Man/ Builder: God the Father
  • Vineyard: Israel/ God’s people
  • Tenants: Religious Leaders
  • Servants: Prophets
  • Son: Jesus
• In Isaiah the problem is a fruitless vineyard, in Mark, the problem is wicked tenants (v.1-5).
• Jesus was rejected, not because he was misunderstood, but because he was understood all too well (v. 6-8).
• Rejection of Jesus leads to destruction, but acceptance of Jesus leads to resurrection (v. 10-11).