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Let me begin today by pointing out that neither of the sons' actions in the parable of Jesus in our text was the perfect response. One of them eventually came around and went to work in the vineyard, but neither of them gave the right response. The right response when faced with a commandment from the father was to say "yes sir" and then go immediately to the vineyard. The right response was to respond verbally to the command and then respond actively to the command. Both son's responses, even the one who eventually went into the vineyard, fell short of what we should give God today.

The mother is not mentioned in the story, but if my mother would have been there, I know what word that she would have used to her sons because I have heard it many a time. The word is "behoove" and it was a favorite word of my mother in times as this parable. The dictionary defines the word "behoove" as "to be morally necessary and important to respond; to be the most suitable and favorable thing to do." If I had been the son mumbling about not wanting to go work in the parable, and my mother would have been there, she would have taken me firmly by the arm looked me sternly in the eye and with that way of hers say something like: "Robert, it would behoove you to obey your daddy." I never looked that word up until this week, but I sorta figured out what it meant by the body language. When she used that word, it behooved me to moooove!

Let me remind someone today that God is God and we are not. And that our God is the Lord of the universe and every living thing. As the Psalmist said in 100th song, and which I have found ever present in my mind lately:

This is not a passive song suggesting what we could do. Verse 1 is a commandment to make a joyful noise unto the Lord, no matter where you live! And then another commandment is given in verse 2 to serve the Lord with gladness and to come before His presence with singing! Verse 4 gives a direct order to "enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise, be thankful and bless His name. Those are not suggestions but rather commands, and then, almost to justify the reason why we should obey His commandments, the Psalmist throws in the middle in verse 3: "you need to know that the Lord, he is God!" He's God and we are not. It is He who has made us and not we ourselves. We are His people. We belong to Him. We are His possession. We are the sheep and He is the shepherd. He is a merciful God and a mighty God and a God of truth, but don't forget that He's still God and still in charge!

As such, then His commandments should be obeyed! As the shepherd of our souls, He is watching out for us and protecting us. As our merciful Creator, He has our best interests in mind. As our heavenly Father, He knows what is best for us and the path that we should take. There is no a child alive who would grow up mad and angry at their father for his raising his voice to give a command to "step back" when that commandment saved them from an imminent danger such as stepping on a coiled rattler. There is not a child in his right mind that would grow angry at their father if he harshly and roughly grabbed their arm and forcibly yanked them to the ground if it were to deliver them from the crush of a wayward car rushing by. And so let me remind you that if our Heavenly Father has commanded something in His Word, then it is there for your own good and for your protection. If it seems a bit rough, then it is because you cannot see the danger from which it is protecting you from. If the commandments of the Word of God seem somewhat demanding, then remember that they are nothing compared to what obeying them will deliver you from! We serve a good and a merciful God and a kind God who wants the best for His children. Therefore when He gives a command -- as he certainly has the right to do -- then it would behoove us to obey what He has said. With both a "yes, sir" and our personal actions. That and that alone is the right response.

We make obedience so difficult when in fact it is only difficult when we don't want to obey. Let me say that again. Obeying a commandment is only difficult when we don't want to do it. The same energy that is expended in disobeying the commandment could have been spent in obeying the commandment. I have seen children throw a temper tantrum and argue for thirty minutes over not doing a chore that would have taken two minutes, when if they would have just obeyed, they would have been able to return to their video game or whatever sooner and with less effort and less pain. And so it is with us and God. We sometimes spend so much time and effort in giving excuses as to why we cannot simply obey God's Word that our excuses condemn us because by giving such effort and passion to our answer as to why we could not, we revealed that we had the energy and passion to do so if we had so chosen! How it is with us and God today! I have seen people very adamantly state their case as to why they cannot praise because they are not "emotional people" and yet they were getting emotional while they gave their excuse! It has been said that if all the effort and time that the church spends on excuses had been applied to the kingdom of God, then the world would have already been saved! The right response to God is to say "yes sir and then act upon His commandment." It would behoove us to simply "obey."

How many of us have disobeyed a commandment and when we looked back with perfect hindsight, later wished that we would have just obeyed? Listen to what Paul wrote the Corinth church:

God's promises are not "yes and no." There is a double meaning here. First of all it means that it's not possible to live for Him and choose your answer either way. If you want to serve God, then you must be willing to say yes to His commands! The second meaning is that in Biblical days, "Yes and No" was a phrase of someone who was wishy-washy and unreliable and unsteady. They would give you both answers because they were not convinced of whatever they had said themselves. And Paul said that in God "it is always Yes." In other words, when God makes a commandment or a promise, it will come true as He has said it will. He is not wishy-washy. He does not change from day to day. What God commanded for us to do back then in New Testament Israel is still what He commands for us today in modern America. The proper response to any Word of God is always "yes, sir" and you will find that He will respond to you with a "yes!" on His promises also!

One thing that is easily learned from our parable of the two sons is that actions speak louder than words. Is there anyone here that would charge God foolishly and say that He has ever made a mistake or failed? Is there anyone here who would say that God does not know best? Is there anyone here that would say God makes foolish judgments and does not have our best interest in mind? Is there anyone here foolish to say that God does not always work and command things that are in our favor or that God is not smarter than we are? But do you realize that these things are exactly what our actions are saying when we hear the Word of God and immediately question if we should obey it or not? Do you realize what your actions are saying when the Word of God commands us to do something and we say "but I don't want to do it, is it absolutely necessary?" We are saying to God with our actions that "I'm not sure if you really have my best interests in mind or if you really know what you are talking about." "If I can't figure out why you demand something or request something, then I'm not going to do it." And by our disobedience, we tell God that we don't think that He quite knows best!

Oh, the blessing and joy that would come from a person who learns to simply obey the commandments of Jesus! Oh, how much better our life would be if we would just simply obey in the areas that we are commanded to obey and would do so without doubt or questioning. I would go as far to say that the greatest sign of Jesus being King and Lord in your life is unquestioned obedience to His Word even when you don't understand. Jesus said:

He is only Lord of those who simply obey. He knows best; He's watching out for us; Even if you can't see why something is important, one day, you will if you will obey it. Our Heavenly Father has our best interests in mind in both positive and negative commandments; it would behoove us to just learn to simply obey in word and deed. That is the right response.

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But there are other responses that are possible, and let me talk to you about them today. We read in our text of two responses to the commandments of the father, and while neither or them were the perfect response, one was better than the other.

In our text we read of Jesus telling the parable of a man having two sons. When commanded to go work in their father's vineyard for the day, one said that he would and yet did not actually go, and the other said that he would not, and then had a change of heart and went. Jesus then asked His audience which of the two actually did the will of the father with the obvious answer being the one who had a change of heart and eventually went to the vineyard.

I want you to notice the difference in what each son said to the commandment of the father. The second son, said "I go, sir." The verb "go" is not in the original Greek and is added by the translators to conform to standard English grammar. The son actually said "I, sir" as in "you can count on me. I will do what you want me to do, you don't have to say anymore." In the Greek, there is even a more a sense of "you don't have to worry about a thing, I'll be there . . . I sir!" The second son was saying all the right things and saying it respectfully.

Compare that to the first's response. His response is translated exactly as it is in the Greek: "I will not." No hesitation. No deliberation. He has no intentions of obeying. He thinks that it is foolish and unfair for his father to command such a thing. He thinks his father is unreasonable and his mind is made up: "I will not." There is not even a "sir" to make it respectful. He is rude. He is totally inappropriate. If it had been my dad, I probably would have got in trouble for speaking to him this way.

But after his emphatic denial and rude, negative response, the first son goes away and cools off and starts thinking about it. His conscience kicks in. He begins to think about all the good things that his father has given him and how that one day of work does not seem all that unreasonable. In spiritual terms, we would say that the first son "repents" and has a change of heart and a change of direction. And as such the feet of the one who said "I will not" turn and head toward the vineyard, where he is later found to have put in a good day's work.

Let me throw in that it is not improper or unreasonable for our Father to ask us to serve and work in the vineyard. How many people have I known to think that it is ridiculous to join themselves faithfully to a church body and to expend effort in the service of others! How many people I have known to think it totally unfair for God to save them and yet expect service rendered in the vineyard of His harvest; for God to feel them with His Spirit and yet expect them to be productive in His kingdom! And yet those same people are the ones that usually end up whining about how they never see the miraculous and how that they never get the finest blessings and see God moving as He has promised that He would. And I submit to you that it is in the vineyard where the harvest is able to be grasped and the fruit of God's promises are able to be seen. It is in the labor of the vineyard, that you will see the result of seeds that have been planted and that have sprung forth in people's lives. If you want to see the miraculous and the power of God at work, then standing on the sidelines in disobedience will never be the best vantage point, but if you want to saturated and inundated with God's promises and blessings, then get in a place where the juice of the fruit of God can run down your hands and fill your basket! Only those who obey the commandments of God will ever be in a position to handle and see and taste the blessing and promises of God in their lives! It is not only an unreasonable commandment to go work in the vineyard, but actually a blessing to be invited into such a place where the promises of God are blooming and being harvested! Within the vineyard, I doubt that the father cares if the son reaches and tastes of the sweetest fruit, fresh off the vine, but that taste will only come to the hands that have been soiled with working in the vineyard in the first place!

The commandment to praise God and make a joyful noise, is actually a privilege because obedience to it ushers us into the presence of the power and anointing of God. The commandment to be faithful to church is actually a privilege because it sets us up to receive of everything that God has planned for His people. The commandment to give is actually a privilege because it sets us up to receive blessing in a greater ratio than we gave away! The scripture that says "it is more blessed to give than to receive" literally means that if you just receive, then you will end up receiving less, than if you had given liberally! The commandments of God are not unreasonable requests, but actually blessings in disguise, as God is trying to get us into the vineyard where the fruit of His promises are growing!

It is not the right and perfect response, but it is one that ends well and thank God for it! And probably, our church if full of people who when you first saw the praising and heard the Word of God; when you heard about the promise and commandment of baptism in Jesus' name, and the infilling of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. When you heard about how the Word commanded you to worship Him in spirit and in truth; with emotion and understanding. There are many of you who your first response was an adamant "I will not!" The ways of God was so foreign to your lifestyle and so unlike your way of sin, that you said such things as "I'll never do that." "That's not for me." "I'll never stop doing this." "I'll never obey that." You were adamant, and even a bit rude to God in your response. You came with no uncertain terms that certain things were off limits and would never change.

And yet, I said that our church is full of many of you who at first responded in such a way, but yet as you went your way and pondered the commandments of your Heavenly Father. As you thought on it and slept on it. As the shock and the newness and the anger wore off, you began to think that it might not be as unreasonable as you first thought, these commandments of God Almighty. The thought came that life in the Father's vineyard might actually be better and more rewarding than laboring as you had for years in the slavery of sin.

Some of you when you first responded in your tradition in a denial of the simple message of truth did so adamantly stating that you did not need to be baptized in Jesus' name or to receive the Holy Ghost. That such things were superfluous in your relationship with God. And yet, after your steadfast denial, the words of the servant of Namaan came to you "if he had asked a hard thing, would ye not have done it?" And somewhere, despite your vehement rebellion and resistance, there was a change and a turn. There was true repentance that involves the motion of the soul and body. So that many of you who first responded unfavorably now find yourself in the Father's vineyard serving Him and doing so joyfully! It wasn't the perfect response, but thank God that in the end, it ended up being a good one!

And thank God that the Father did not hold you to your first, rash decision! Thank God that when you came to your senses and changed in direction and came to the vineyard, that like the prodigal son, you found God waiting there hopeful that you would come with arms wide! And to your surprise, despite your initial rudeness and abruptness, you found that when you changed and made your way to the vineyard of obedience, that you received the same blessing and the same response and the same opportunity as if you had never said "I will not!" Despite your first response, He still filled you with the Holy Ghost! Despite your first feelings and verbiage, He still washed your sins away! Despite you initial hesitation, God still gave you an honored place in His kingdom! It wasn't the perfect response at first, and it took a while to turn, but in the end, it was a good one!

We must learn to stop berating ourselves and stoning ourselves over the path that it took to get us here. It matters not how long or winding the path of life was that led you to the vineyard of God's will, as long as you turned and made it safely! Thankfully, there are some that hear the commandment of God and walk directly and straightly into the vineyard. For some, the path is one of hesitation and mistakes and for most of us a turn or two of change of direction is required. But can I tell you that the laborers in His vineyard all receive the same wages and the same earnings! Those that walk directly are able to spend more years in the vineyard and less time in the pigpen, but all those who make it there will reap the same eternal reward! If it took you forty years to get here, don't berate yourself with regrets and stop the "I wishes" that would weight you down! You got here! And even if your first response wasn't the right one, and even if your path into serving Jesus was not a straight one, what matters is that you've arrived and you turned and you made the right decision! Thank God for that! Thank God for those who at first were rebuffed and offended by the commandments of God but yet who later changed and obeyed in action! It's not the perfect way to get to the vineyard, but it is good!

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Unfortunately there is yet another class of responses which is all to common in the church of God. It is the response of the second son. It also is not the right response, but there is no happy ending or goodness that comes in the end. And yet, truthfully it would be to say, that too often the actions of the second son is mirrored in the actions of many people today.

The second son said the right things. He responded respectfully and quickly in the affirmative. He unhesitatingly said "yes" to the father's commandment. He verbally stated the right response in the presence of the father's word, but as soon as his father had departed, his actions did the opposite.

There is a generation of church goers whose relationship with God is as this son's. The focus on Christianity today is upon "what you say" as opposed to "what you do." We have multitudes who have convinced themselves that they are saved and okay with God because they have given a proper response verbally in a church. "They are saved," they will tell you, because they have "accepted Christ as their personal savior" and they have "confessed Him as Lord." And they did say that the accepted Christ and they did confess him as Lord. And yet, they are convinced that because they have given right response verbally, that their subsequent actions don't matter. They have stated that they believe, but you cannot tell it by their lifestyle. They have stated that He is Lord, and yet they do not obey what their Lord has told them to do. They have stated publicly and with great conviction and force that they are believers, and yet in their lifestyle and everyday action and tongue, they state otherwise.

Hear this preacher: such a person is not saved. The parable of Jesus in our text today proves that the kingdom of God is not so much about what you say as what you do! A person can say all the right things, and yet still be disobedient to the commands of their Heavenly Father. In the light of such scriptures that say things as "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16) and "Except a man be born of the water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5) and "Likewise, water baptism does now save us" (1 Peter 3:21) and "this spake he of the Spirit, that they that believe on Him should receive" (John 7:39), I have often heard people respond, "I don't need to obey those scriptures; I don't need to receive the Holy Ghost; I don't need to be baptized in the name of Jesus, because I have believed and have stated so publicly, therefore I'm saved." And yet, the saying is true that "He who truly believes obeys and only those who truly obey, believes." We are saved by faith, but faith without works is dead. To say that you truly believe something means that you are willing to take action towards it! If you truly believe in Jesus Christ as your savior, then you will do what He says and has commanded. If you truly believe that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, then you will obey His Word. If you truly believe that God is true and the Bible is as He claims, the very breathed Word of God, then you obey the commandment to repent, and to be baptized and to receive the Holy Ghost, and to praise, and not forsake the assembling of yourselves together. If we like the second son, say that we are believers and yet do not obey the commandments in action, then have we truly done the will of the Father? Need I remind you that the second son who said the correct things, never made it to the vineyard, and his very lack of action regarding the commandments of his father are the very thing that kept him out! Saying the right thing is good, but we must realize that what we say has no effect unless it foreshadows what we do! It does no good to confess Him as Lord and savior if your daily actions confess otherwise!

And yet there is such a class of people as this second son, that can exist even in an Apostolic church that believes in putting action to their faith. If we are not careful, we can become like James said "a hearer only and not a doer of the Word." James uses the analogy of a man who looks in a mirror and then walks away and forgets what he saw. By trying to forget what he saw, the man deceives himself into thinking that what he just saw is not reality!

The Word of God is like that mirror. It reveals to us things that before we faced it were unseen and unknown. Back when I had hair, I had a bad cowlick that if I was not careful, caused my hair to stick up in the back "alfalfa style." There have been times in my life that I came face to face with a mirror, and discovered that while I was being all cool and hip, that my hair had been sticking straight up. I did not realize this, until I came face to face with the mirror. And when I did, I would only be deceiving myself to say "it's not sticking up" and walk away without doing something about it! I could convince myself that it wasn't true, but the mirror didn't lie, and the only person who was deceived is me!

When the Word of God is preached, it has the ability to bring you face to face with faults that you did not know existed. It reveals things that we need to do, things that we need to change, things that we need to work on. And yet so many people hear the Word of God preached and walk away from the service and forget what they have heard and pretend that they didn't see that they needed to do something. They pretend like everything is alright, and yet like that man in the mirror, they are only deceiving themselves!

And there are people who like the second son of our text, have convinced themselves that because they responded openly and correctly and verbally to the Word of God in a service, that they are alright and obedient and saved. How many people receive the Word of God with a stalwart "amen" and respond by repenting at an altar and asking God to forgive them and saying all the right things, and yet when they walk out of the house of God, their actions that week confess the very opposite of what they said. They are masters at saying the right things and having the proper response when they have come face to face with the commandment, but when they are away from the point of meeting, they do something quite different. As the second son, they do not truly obey. Despite what they said, they acted in the opposite manner. The words of Jesus are ringing loudly today: the kingdom of God is not so much about what you say, as in what you do!

The kingdom of God is not so much in what you hear, but what you obey. You can hear good preaching and be lost. You can go to a truth-filled church and be lost. You can say the right things at church and miss heaven. You can say that you are a Christian and even preach the Gospel and yet be a "worker of sin." Like the second son, it is possible to appear pious and reverent and be full of disobedience and rebellion. The proof of truth and a right heart is not in what you say, but in what you do!

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God is not looking for lip service today. He is not looking for someone like the Pharisees to make a show of their prayers and worship and giving and holiness and yet on the inside and in private do the opposite of what God has desired. He is not looking for a church of fakes where they say one thing and yet live another throughout the week. Where we say that Jesus is Lord of all, while in action we are firmly holding upon the reigns ourselves! He is not looking for someone to say "I am totally committed to you, Lord" when in practice other things are more important. Such is not the right response to such a great God as we serve.

And yet it's okay to come pray today. It's okay to make promises to God. It's okay to say yes to Him today. It's okay to ask for forgiveness. It's okay to ask Him for the Holy Ghost. It's okay to praise Him. Because the father has spoken, and the right response is to say "yes, sir" and then after the speaking is over, to do what He has commanded! The Word of God has spoken today, let's give Him the right response!