Character Needed - Bible Sketches 5

CHARACTER NEEDED – BIBLE SKETCHES

Character Needed, by Robert Allen, published by Regular Baptist Press, includes 33 skits illustrating the truths of each of the verses in Proverbs 15.  These Character Needed – Bible Sketches are designed to accompany those contemporary plays, illustrating the same character traits by use of a Bible story.  

CHARACTER NEEDED

THE TWO SONS

Proverbs 15:5

Matthew 21:28-32

Character Trait:  Obedience

Cast of Characters

                        Mrs. Clark (Narrator)

                        Wendy Clark

                        Father

                        First Son

                        Second Son

MRS. CLARK:                       Wendy, why isn’t your bed made yet?  And your room is a mess.  I thought I asked you to clean it up?      

WENDY:                                I said I would, Mother.  I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.

MRS. CLARK:                       I know you promised to do it.  But just making a promise isn’t enough.  You haven’t really obeyed until the job is done.  That is what Jesus was trying to teach us when he told the story about the man who had two sons who were supposed to work for him.

WENDY:                                Did they refuse to make their beds?

MRS. CLARK:                       No, I don’t suppose they even had beds in those days.  They probably just slept on a mat thrown on the floor.

WENDY:                                That would be neat.  Then I wouldn’t have to make my bed every morning.

MRS. CLARK:                       And they probably shared the floor with the sheep and goats and mice.

WENDY:                                Ugh!  I’ll take my bed, even if I do have to make it.

MRS. CLARK:                       Anyway, the father of these two boys came to both of them one day and told them exactly what he wanted them to do.

FATHER:                               Sons, there’s some work that needs to be done out in the vineyard today.  The grapes are ripe and the harvest is upon us.  We need everyone to help harvest the crop before the weather changes, and before the birds carry away all our profit.  I want you to go work in the vineyard today.

FIRST SON:                           But Father, school has started, remember?  I have studies to do and there’s a game over at the park this afternoon.  I shouldn’t have to work in the vineyard after I’ve been cooped up in the classroom all week.  I’m not going!  You can just find someone else.

FATHER:                               But Son, we need everyone to help.

FIRST SON:                           Not me.  Sorry.  I’m busy.

FATHER:                               How about you, Son?  The grapes are ripe and we need help in the vineyard.  Will you go and work today?

SECOND SON:                     Sure, Dad.  I’ll go.  Be right there.

MRS. CLARK:                       That’s what they said.  So what do you think of the two boys now?

WENDY:                                I think that if I talked to Dad the way the first boy did, I’d probably get punished.

MRS. CLARK:                       You probably would.  But which of the two boys would you say was obedient to the father?

WENDY:                                Why, the second one, of course.  He agreed right away to go and do the work.

MRS. CLARK:                       You’re right there.  He agreed to do, and that was good.  But the story didn’t end there.  Right after his father left him, the first son got to thinking about what he had said.

FIRST SON:                           Wow!  That wasn’t a very smart thing to do.  Here my father asks me to work in the vineyard and I give him a smart answer like that.  I should be ashamed of myself.  In fact, I am ashamed of myself.  I’m going to get my work clothes on and head out there to the vineyard and get to work.  Maybe father will forgive me for the way I talked to him if he sees that I’m working hard at what he asked me to do.

MRS. CLARK:                       So the first son headed out to the vineyard expecting to see  his brother already at work, harvesting grapes.  But his brother wasn’t there.

FATHER:                               Hello, Son.  I thought you were too busy to come and help us today.

FIRST SON:                           Please forgive me, Father.  I shouldn’t have spoken to you the way I did.  I’ve come out to work just like you asked me to.  But where is my brother?  I thought I heard him say he would be right out?

FATHER:                               You did.  But I haven’t seen him yet.  Something must have detained him.  I certainly am glad to see you here, and I certainly will forgive you.  I know you’ve spent all week in school and this is your only day off, but we really need the help.  Thank you for coming.

MRS. CLARK:                       The father and son worked side by side all through the day and by night fall the work was done.  But the other brother never did show up.  Now what do you think about the two boys?

WENDY:                                I see what you mean.  It’s one thing to say you’re going to do something, and it’s something else to go and do it immediately.  I guess the first son was the best one after all.

MRS. CLARK:                       There’s another important lesson Jesus wanted to teach us with that story also.  When He finished the story he asked those who were listening which son had done the will of the father and their answer was the same as yours.  Then He said that sinners would go into the kingdom of God before some religious people because they believed in Him, but the others even when they had seen Him, did not repent and believe.

WENDY:                                Does that men that those winners were like the first son?

MRS. CLARK;                       Yes, they did terrible things, but they repented of there sin and He forgave them.  It was the religious people who were like the second son.  They claimed to be obeying God, but actually they were refusing to believe in Christ who God had sent.  They were saying good things, but they were disobedient in their actions.

WENDY:                                And Jesus loved the sinners best?

MRS. CLARK:                       He loved both of them, just like the father in the story loved both of his sons.  But he rewarded the one who learned the lesson of obedience.  Say, where are you going?

WENDY:                                To my room.  I have some work to do—in the vineyard.