Matthew tells this encounter between the Temple leaders and Jesus in such a way that we can feel the discomfort of the leaders in trying to ask Jesus where his authority comes from and to answer his question about the authority of John the Baptist.

We probably all know that feeling of having a question we want answered but knowing that in order to get the answer we want, we have to approach the topic indirectly.

Jesus is not the Messiah that everyone else is looking for – they want a strong military leader who can help them escape from the oppression of the Romans, rather than this preacher from the countryside who seemingly has no resources or power. But something about Jesus makes them wonder… Does he have authority? That is their great concern. If Jesus has power, where does that leave their privilege?

Rather than answering the Temple leaders’ question about authority, Jesus asks them where they think John the Baptist got his authority. This puts them in a dilemma, they know that John was popular with the people and they don’t want to upset the crowd, so they say they don’t know.

Jesus then tells a story about sons who say one thing and do something different. One son tells his father he will help in the vineyard but doesn’t actually do anything. The other son says he won’t help but changes his mind and does go. We think that Jesus is referring to the chief priests of the Temple, who were imposing harsh rules on the ordinary people, rather than helping everyone to worship God Jesus is letting people know that they can change their mind and do the right thing, even if they began by saying “no”.

Changing our mind about important aspects of life can be difficult, but Jesus will be walking alongside us. Discerning when it’s right to change our mind can be tricky. Asking for help is often important- both from God and from the people around you.