Hugging a Cactus

Jesus told a lot of stories when he was here, all of them with some kind of underlying message. I read one the other day found in the beginning of the book of Mark chapter 12, and it hit me like a train.

Here's the scenario:

A guy plants a vineyard. You know, to grow grapes to make wine. He then rented this vineyard out to some local farmers, maybe friends of his, and moved somewhere else like the respectable, successful gentleman the story seems to make him out to be.
Eventually he needs to send some workers to get some fruit from his vineyard, so he does. The people he rented it out to, however, respond in a very vicious manner. They "seized him, beat him, and sent him away shamefully." No doubt the owner was in shock, since he left his land with people he thought he could trust. So he sends another servant, since maybe there was some kind of freak misunderstanding. It happened again. They beat him up and kicked him out.

By now, I'm sure this has the owner really confused and hurt. Let's take this parable by the horns and figure out what on earth Jesus is saying.
For a good long while now, the Israelites had been God's people. His folks. The people group that he promised would generate a savior, a king that would redeem the Israelites and establish his kingdom on earth. His name was going to be Emmanuel, which literally means "God with us." He sent several prophets to tell them this, many of whom were not received very well. Ringing any bells? The beaten, disgraced servants? There you go. God could have given up at that point, but he persisted. Let's continue with the story...

The owner of the vineyard had only his son left to send. His son, "whom he loved." Could he have held on to him? Of course. Did he? No. He sent him anyway, saying "They will respect my son."

You think God hoped we would respect his son when he sent him to this planet? I'm sure he would rather not have to watch him die. Here's the kicker: did he know Jesus was going to die? Yes, he's God. But he sent him anyway.

My gut reaction is to look up and yell "WHY??" If you love him, why the heck did you do that? Why did you send him to a rebellious, straight up evil people, knowing that he would die a horrific death? This is described in my earlier posts, so it should come as no surprise if you've read my other stuff: It's because he loves us so much that we have no concept of the depth of it.

You probably guessed by now that the son is murdered. Betrayed by friends. The implication for those listening is worse, since it's not just a patron that will be betrayed, it's the all-powerful God who made everything. That's scary. Men beating their breasts and screaming defiance to the sky. We are such a lost and depraved people, yet despite our rebellion, he still accepts us. In the story, the owner kills the people he left the vineyard with. That's the only discrepancy, since the owner is still human. God, however, took those people who killed his son, and redeemed them. That's like hugging a cactus with all your might.