The Everything Thread

Anybody remember those old cartoons where there was this loose thread. It looked like it you should be able to just pluck that thing out and cast it into the bin. I blame the Great British Baking Show for the use of the word bin here. Anyway, back to the cartoon. The person tugs on the thread and the whole garment unravels in front of their eyes. It wasn’t a random or useless thread after all. It was the thread; the thread that holds everything together. They should have never attempted to discard it. What a mistake that was.

Luke 20:17-19 is a wrapping up of the story of the parable about the owner of the vineyard. You know, the parable where they sharecroppers thought they were actually the owner; who abused the owner’s servants and killed his son. The workers whom Jesus said would be destroyed and the vineyard would be handed over to others. The people yelled out with a “May it never happen!” It was, in effect, an unraveling of their world. Did they understand that Jesus was speaking about replacing the religious leaders? Same owner, different workers. Did they get it that the owner of the vineyard will only tolerate so much of their shenanigans? Possibly. Did they think that their leaders; their whole system of religiosity; was the thread holding everything together? Maybe.

Jesus looked intently at them and said, “Well, how about Psalm 118:22 then?” Okay, actually he says, “What about this quote?” and then he gives them the quote. Psalm 118 begins with a burst of thanksgiving to Yahweh. The psalmist had been delivered from some kind of distress. He is a royal figure surrounded by his enemies. He had been discarded by the builders as a useless stone, but he became the head of the corner. This is the work of Yahweh; marvelous to behold. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of this psalm, as he is of all scripture. Just as he was the son who was killed outside of the vineyard in the parable, he is the stone that was examined and pronounced useless in this quote. They may think that the parable described a vulnerable son who can be taken outside of the vineyard and killed. Well, surprise! The son is the stone; the head of the corner. This may refer to the corner stone used to level and square the foundation of the building or the keystone at the center of an arch that stabilized the whole shebang. Either way, the son is the everything thread; the stone that levels and squares and holds together.

And everyone who falls on that stone will be shattered to pieces. In Isaiah 8 God calls upon the people to be shattered; to be humbled; to be thwarted in their plans. Yahweh will be a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over. This is about Israel being humbled in their arrogance. Jesus picks this up and ties it in with the chief cornerstone. Your arrogance cannot crash against this stone and not be shattered. The question is, is this a good or a bad thing? Is this shattering to pieces a humbling that will allow for a submitting to the owner of the vineyard? Or is it a destructive shattering? In Isaiah it seems to be about punishment. But the goal of punishment is correction. Will the nation finally be humbled? Will there be a remnant? On whomever that stone falls, they will be pulverized. In Daniel 2, the prophet interprets a dream Nebuchadnezzar had concerning future kingdoms and of the kingdom of God that is a stone that falls on and crushes the other kingdoms. The word in the NASB translated “scatter like dust” originally meant to winnow. It came to hold the idea of pulverizing or grinding into dust. Jesus – the son – is the stone that will crush these other kingdoms. Jesus is the kingdom of God that will last forever. In the parable, the workers of the vineyard thought they could kill the son; they thought they could continue living as if they owned the vineyard. But the son of the owner is not discardable. Nah man, he is the stone that humbles and crushes.

The chief priests and scribes know that the parable is about them; about their arrogance. Instead of listening; instead of humbly submitting to the stone; they try to reject it. That very hour they attempt to lay hands on Jesus. But they are afraid of the people. As much as they try to act and live as if they are the owner of the vineyard, they understand that public opinion can crush them.

Jesus is the stone! Stand on him. Don’t stumble over him and get yourself all shattered up. That may have a positive result if you pick yourself up and humbly submit. But many don’t. Some, even as they lay broken, will stubbornly shout out their arrogance. Jesus is the kingdom of God. Jesus is the everything thread. At the heart of the problem is a deep desire to own the vineyard. Uhm, that would be God. Submit.