A Parable About An Unrepentant Son (or Sinner)

In a place called Vineyard there lived a Father and two adopted sons. One day the Father told the sons He would be leaving the Vineyard, but He would certainly return at a future time. He left instructions for the boys that the Vineyard was to be tended, and the grapes were to be harvested. There was no doubt both sons loved their Father, and there was no misunderstanding as to their mission - they were to harvest the grapes.

Over time, however, the sons had families of their own and soon many people from the the two son's families were in Vineyard harvesting the grapes as instructed by their Father. Eventually one of the sons, named Order, noticed his brother was not washing the grapes the way Father had taught them. Worse, all of those in brother's family were washing the grapes in the same manner - different from Order's way.

Order gathered his own children who were in the Vineyard and instructed them again in the proper way to wash grapes. Order spent hours that first day teaching his children the way Father had instructed them to wash grapes. The next day Order gathered his kids around and taught them again the principles of proper washing. Some of the young children who listened to Order were scratching their heads - they had always washed their grapes the way Father had taught them and were confused as to why they were being kept from the Vineyard to remind them of their Identity.

Soon, the reason for Order's ways were clear. Order 'order'ed his family to not associate with his brother's family in the Vineyard. He informed them that those grapes being harvested by their kin were possibly not part of a legitimate harvest because they had not been properly washed. Some of the more rebellious and independently-minded children of Order objected. The Vineyard was the Father's Vineyard, they said, and we are but stewards. Do not brother and his family answer to the Father and not to you, dear Order?

Order was livid. In his mind his own children were losing their Identity and a Rennaissance of what it means to be part of Order's family was needed. Order told his free-thinking children that if they did not have pride in being part of Order's family, they should leave the Vineyard. The children of Order responded, quite directly, that the issue was not disagreement with Order, but whether or not they would obey orders to not cooperate with their brother's family harvesting the grapes.

Order then pulled out all the stops against his brother and his brother's family by saying to all of Order's kids - "Our brother and his children are unrepentant sinners and we have been told by Father not to associate with the unrepentant, but to treat them as publicans. They do not belong in the same Vineyard with us." Some of Order's kids heard this and thought Order had lost his mind. Some wondered how Father would react when He found out Order called the Father's son an unrepentant sinner. Others in Order's family were embarrassed that those outside the Vineyard - people who didn't understand how the family operates - might think Order spoke for the whole family. One wise son of Order, however, won the day by speaking up when Order announced the need for an intensive Renaissance of Order's ways.

"Order," said the wise son, " Do you honestly believe it wise to take all of your kids out of the Vineyard to protect them from the brother's faulty methods of washing? Have you ever considered the fact that brother will one day answer to Father, and it might be best for us who are part of Order's family to work side by side with our brother's family, washing the grapes the way Father taught us, but concentrating on the harvest rather than identifying brother as an 'unrepentant sinner?'"

Order loudly rebuked the wise son in front of all the family, and even suggested the boy didn't understand the ways of Order. He implied the boy might be a secret member of brother's family; or worse, not even someone who should be in the Vineyard in the first place. Brother's family heard all the arguments on the Order side of the field and began to wonder why Order's family fought so much.

Right then, in the midst of all the debate and arguing among Order's kids, Father returned.

When Father asked for an accounting of the harvest in the Vineyard, Order proudly told Father that he had done his best to keep Order's family washing the grapes properly. When Father asked why the Harvest was low, Order proudly explained that when brother's family began to depart from the proper mode of washing grapes, he had withdrawn all of Order's kin from the Vineyard in order that he might rebuke them for associating with brother's family who were washing grapes improperly.

When Father heard from Order all the problems between brothers in the Vineyard, He called for the brother in unrepentant sin to stand before Him to give an account for his actions.

The moral of this parable is in the form of a question.


Which son stood before the Father in unrepentant sin?