“When the Saints Go Marching In" is a traditional black spiritual that originated as a Christian hymn.1 “When the Fruit Goes Pouring In” isn’t a song, but a description of what happens when Christians submit to God’s authority and are empowered by His Spirit to live for Him and others.
Jesus told the parable of the workers in the vineyard about tenants who challenged His authority and behaved like they owned His vineyard (Luke 20:9–19). The vineyard imagery was familiar to Jesus’ audience. Isaiah 5:1–2 pictured Israel as a vineyard with bitterly disappointing grapes.
In the parable, the owner sent a servant to collect his share of the fruit, but the tenants badly mistreated him. We would think the owner immediately took legal action to recoup what was his. He didn’t. The parable highlights God’s unimaginable love, patience, and forgiveness.
The owner sent a second servant the tenants abused even worse, still without fruit. The third servant received bodily injuries but collected no fruit.
The owner then sent his cherished son, figuring the tenants would respect him and do the right thing. Wrong! The tenants decided to kill the son who was the heir and claim the vineyard.
Jesus' parables had spiritual punchlines. They weren’t just stories. The owner of the vineyard was God. The tenants represented the Jewish religious leaders.
The vineyard was Israel in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament. God expected spiritual fruit from His vineyard but wasn’t receiving it.
The servants were the prophets God sent to Israel to challenge His people to give Him the fruitful service, dedication, and worship He was due. Jesus was the cherished son.
The religious leaders knew that the parable was about them. It angered them so much that they wanted to arrest Jesus immediately (Luke 20:19). They were both evil and foolish to think they could oppose God and win.
Jesus explained the bottom line to the religious leaders. The vineyard’s owner would kill those tenants and lease the vineyard to others (Luke 20:16). His listeners didn’t think such a thing should ever happen.
Jesus knew it would. It fulfilled Scripture. “The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. Everyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone it falls on” (Luke 20:17–18 NLT).
Commentators explain this Scripture variously. Jesus is the stone. That is sure. God will judge those who reject Jesus.
Although the Jewish religious leaders mostly rejected Him, He would become the most important stone in the church—the new thing He would build. He could be the cornerstone, the capstone, or the keystone in the church. In both Testaments, God’s people are the kingdom He rules. Both Israel and the church belong to God.
We don’t serve “our” church. It is God’s church. Those who don’t stumble over Jesus, but repent and trust in Him as their Forgiver and Leader, produce fruit consistent with repentance. The Owner beams a radiant smile when the fruit goes pouring in! See additional free spiritual growth resources for Christians. #freediscipleshipresources #freeevangelismresources #freechristianleadershipresources
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