Deliverables in the Vineyard

Luke 20:1–26 (ESV)

Pastor Scott Berglin

November 1, 2026

God from Luke’s Eyes to Yours

What Are We Giving Back to God?

What does God expect from us? And what are we doing with what He has entrusted to us?

In Luke 20:1–26, Jesus faces leaders who challenge His authority, tells a parable about a vineyard owner whose servants and son are rejected, and answers a trap about paying taxes to Caesar. Beneath these encounters is one central issue: Who has authority in our lives, and what are we doing with what belongs to God?

Pastor Scott draws four important lessons from this passage. Rejecting God's authority ultimately leads to our own rejection. Rather than resisting His answers, we should receive them with wonder. Everything we have is already God's and has been entrusted to us for His purposes. And most importantly, we must remember whose image we bear.

Jesus is calling us beyond simply questioning Him. He invites us into a relationship where we listen, respond, and give back to Him what has always been His.

01 · AUTHORITY

Rejecting His Authority Leads to Rejection

LUKE 20:2, 8, 15

The religious leaders challenge Jesus by asking who gave Him the authority to teach and do the things He is doing. But their question isn't really about understanding. They are trying to discredit Him and protect their own position.

Jesus responds with a question about John's baptism, exposing their unwillingness to acknowledge the truth. They are more concerned with winning the argument and getting their way than understanding what God is doing.

The parable of the vineyard makes the issue even clearer. The tenants repeatedly reject the owner's servants and eventually kill his beloved son because they want the inheritance for themselves. They reject the very person who has authority over the vineyard.

Pastor Scott challenges us to recognize that rejecting God's authority doesn't bring freedom. It leads to rejection—and ultimately, we are the ones who lose out. We can move toward God in obedience, or continue down a road of resistance. Either way, we are moving somewhere.

02 · WONDER

Reward His Answers with Marvel

LUKE 20:26

After Jesus answers the religious leaders' trap about paying taxes to Caesar, they are unable to catch Him in His words. Luke tells us they marveled at His answer and became silent.

Pastor Scott points out that we have an opportunity to respond to Jesus differently. Rather than resisting His answers, we can receive them with wonder. We can become intrigued by His wisdom, drawn into His teaching, and increasingly familiar with the way He thinks.

God has given us His Word, the church, fellowship, worship, and opportunities to serve so that we can grow closer to Him and understand His answers. We don't have to understand everything before we obey it.

The goal is not simply to collect information about God. It is to become so familiar with Him that His truth begins to shape our instincts, choices, and responses.

Pastor Scott encourages us to move from rejection to acceptance, from resistance to relationship, and from arguing with God to genuinely communing with Him.

03 · STEWARDSHIP

Render to God the Things He Loans You

LUKE 20:22–25

The religious leaders try another trap by asking Jesus whether it is lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. Jesus asks them to show Him a coin and identify whose image and inscription are on it.

When they answer, "Caesar's," Jesus responds:

The question goes far beyond taxes. Jesus redirects their attention to the bigger issue: What belongs to God, and what are we giving back to Him?

Pastor Scott highlights an important perspective: everything we have is already God's. Our children, relationships, resources, opportunities, talents, and gifts are entrusted to us. We don't own them independently of Him; we have been given the responsibility to use them for His purposes.

When we begin to see our lives as something God has loaned us, it changes how we approach stewardship. Instead of asking what we can keep for ourselves, we begin asking how we can honor Him with what He has entrusted to us.

Each person has different gifts and opportunities, but every one of us has something God has placed in our hands.

04 · IDENTITY

Remember Your Likeness

LUKE 20:24 | GENESIS 1:26–27

Jesus asks whose image and likeness are engraved on the coin. The answer is Caesar's. But Pastor Scott takes the question one step further: What image is engraved on you?

Genesis 1:26–27 reminds us that God created humanity in His image and likeness. We were made in the image of God—Imago Dei.

The coin belonged to Caesar because it carried Caesar's image. We belong to God because we bear His image.

Pastor Scott challenges us to remember who we are, who owns us, and why we were created. We are meant to give ourselves back to the One whose likeness we bear.

This connects directly to our need for reconciliation with God. As Pastor Scott points out through 2 Corinthians 5, God has given us the ministry of reconciliation. He desires a relationship with us and invites us to be restored to Him.

We are not meant to live disconnected from our Creator. We are invited to know Him, understand His design, and live according to the purpose for which He made us.

Overall Commentary & Application

The religious leaders in Luke 20 were focused on challenging Jesus, protecting their positions, and finding ways to trap Him. They were so busy resisting His authority that they missed the opportunity to know Him.

The vineyard parable reminds us that God has repeatedly reached out to His people. He sent servants, and ultimately His beloved Son. Yet the tenants rejected the very person who had the rightful claim to the vineyard.

Jesus then turns the conversation toward what belongs to God. The coin bears Caesar's image, but we bear God's image. The question is not simply what we owe in taxes or what we should give away. It is whether we recognize that our entire lives belong to Him.

Pastor Scott challenges us to consider four responses:

The goal is not simply compliance. It is communion—a genuine relationship with God in which we become increasingly connected to Him.

As Pastor Scott emphasizes, we don't have to understand everything before we obey it. When God asks us a question, we should be willing to answer. When He gives direction, we should respond. That is how we move from resistance to relationship, from pretending to genuine faith, and from simply knowing about God to truly knowing Him.

01. God's authority is not something to defeat. Resisting Him doesn't lead to freedom; it moves us farther from the One who knows and loves us.

02. Questioning God is different from asking God questions. Bring your questions to Him with a heart that is willing to listen and respond.

03. Obedience doesn't require complete understanding. We can trust God's wisdom and act on what He has already made clear.

04. Marvel at God's answers. Let His Word capture your attention and shape the way you think and live.

05. Everything belongs to God. Our time, relationships, resources, abilities, and opportunities are entrusted to us.

06. We were created in God's image. Our identity and purpose are rooted in the One whose likeness we bear.

07. God invites us into communion with Him. He wants more than outward compliance; He invites us into a genuine, growing relationship.

Give Back What Belongs to God

This week, take an honest look at your relationship with God. Are you resisting His authority, or are you learning to trust Him? Are you holding tightly to things that He has entrusted to you, or are you using them for His purposes?

Four Steps to Put This Message into Practice

This Week's Challenge

Give Him What Has Always Been His.

Stop treating your life as though it belongs only to you. You were created in God's image, entrusted with His gifts, and invited into relationship with Him. Give Him what has always been His.