Real Freedom

Scripture – Mark 12:6-12: ⁶“He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷“But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. ⁹“What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰Haven’t you read this scripture: “‘The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; ¹¹the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” ¹²Then they looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.

Reflection: This parable is part of Jesus’ teaching in Jerusalem during what we call Holy Week. It is a brief summary of what would happen this week. God sent His Son. He was rejected and killed.

The Jewish leaders were upset with this because they knew Jesus was talking about them. I find it interesting that they avoided acting because they were afraid.

One of the powerful dynamics of this Holy Week experience is that Jesus moved with such freedom, while the people trying to kill him were caught in their fear. Here the leaders didn’t do what they wanted because they were afraid of the crowd. They were not free because the approval of the crowd controlled them.

I know that fear. Peer pressure is not reserved just for youth. By the grace and power of Christ, I will live in freedom today.

Lord, you know the things that bind me and hold me back. Please set me free today. Remind me to move and act according to your call and not according to my feelings. In all of that, give me a sensitive and discerning spirit.