Daily Manna 27 July
KEY VERSE: ““And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country.” – (Mark 12:1)
TEXT: Mark 12:1-12
1 And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country.
2 And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard.
3 And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.
4 And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled.
5 And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.
6 Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son.
7 But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours.
8 And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.
9 What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others.
10 And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner:
11 This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?
12 And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.
Read yesterday’s Daily Manna here
A lease is a contractual arrangement between the owner of a property and the user of the property. The contract gives the provision for the user to pay the owner for the use of such asset. There are however instances where the users have attempted to manipulate the owner in order to breach the terms of the agreement or take over the ownership of such asset. This is often the cause of most prolonged property legal tussles that often have bitter ends.
This is the kind of scenario that Jesus paints in the parable of today’s passage. The parable is an illustration of Israel’s rebellion against the ownership of God over their lives. God had in a way planted and built the nation and had richly endowed her. He expected that the nation would acknowledge Him always and give Him the glory and praise that are rightfully His. Instead, they rebelled against Him and refused to acknowledge His lordship. They rejected and killed some of the prophets sent to them to call them back to Him. Lastly, they rejected and killed the Son, Jesus Christ. God had no other option other than to visit them with judgment.
While this parable applies to the nation of Israel in particular, it has a general application to everyone. God is the Creator and Owner of every human life and expects that man will live his life to His glory and praise. Unfortunately, mankind has rebelled against God and has set himself as lord over his life. But no matter how long man may resist and reject God, the terrors of judgment awaits him except he repents.
Your life, time and resources belong to God. Be careful how you spend them. You are on lease and have to give your dues and returns to God. Acknowledge this every day and please Him always. When you do, you will not run into any problem with Him.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: You don’t own your life; it is leased to you!
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 2 Chronicles 30-33
Thank you for studying today’s Daily Manna – Your Life on Lease – by Pastor Enoch A.
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Daily Manna 27 July 2021
