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Reel Homilies

The Rejected Stone Became the Cornerstone

Episode Summary

What does God do with the worst thing we ever did?

The Gospel for the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time is the parable of the vineyard. A landowner leases his vineyard to tenants. They beat and kill his servants, and finally they kill his son. Jesus closes the story with a line from Scripture: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”. Fr. Tim goes straight to that line: “the stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”

Fr. Tim hears the whole Gospel as a story of people turning away from God, and he doesn’t leave it in the past. As he puts it, “we’ve contributed to the story by nailing him to a cross through our sins.” The Catechism teaches the same thing: “sinners were the authors and the ministers of all the sufferings that the divine Redeemer endured”.

Then he turns to what God does with it. God takes “that most horrible moment in all of human history” and answers with love, bringing our salvation out of it. The Catechism says Jesus’ death was “part of the mystery of God’s plan”, and that God’s plan includes “each person’s free response to his grace”. Fr. Tim ends with an invitation. “If we say yes to him, and if we commit to him,” he says, “it becomes an A plus, plus, plus, plus.” Our response does not earn salvation; it is our free response to God’s grace. He closes by calling God’s love “literally the most amazing thing ever.”

[00:00:00 –> 00:00:03] Jesus literally gives us a failing grade in the Gospel for this Sunday.
[00:00:03 –> 00:00:04] Oh.
[00:00:04 –> 00:00:08] He says the stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
[00:00:08 –> 00:00:10] The whole Gospel is about yeah, humanity
[00:00:11 –> 00:00:11] failed God.
[00:00:11 –> 00:00:13] Humanity rejected God.
[00:00:13 –> 00:00:17] And what does God do? He takes that most horrible moment in all of human history.
[00:00:18 –> 00:00:18] God dying,
[00:00:19 –> 00:00:21] and he makes it into the most beautiful moment
[00:00:21 –> 00:00:22] of all of human history.
[00:00:22 –> 00:00:23] Our salvation.
[00:00:23 –> 00:00:27] That is the unpredictable and incredibly,
[00:00:27 –> 00:00:30] perfectly creative love of Jesus.
[00:00:30 –> 00:00:32] we’ve contributed to the story by
[00:00:32 –> 00:00:33] nailing him to a cross
[00:00:33 –> 00:00:34] through our sins.
[00:00:34 –> 00:00:36] Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.
[00:00:36 –> 00:00:37] What does God do?
[00:00:37 –> 00:00:37] He loves
[00:00:37 –> 00:00:39] and he redeems all of it.
[00:00:39 –> 00:00:42] that failing grade that we deserve
[00:00:42 –> 00:00:43] through Jesus.
[00:00:43 –> 00:00:45] If we say yes to him,
[00:00:45 –> 00:00:46] and if we commit to him,
[00:00:46 –> 00:00:48] it becomes an A plus, plus, plus, plus.
[00:00:48 –> 00:00:50] God’s love
[00:00:50 –> 00:00:53] is ultimately creative, unpredictable,
[00:00:53 –> 00:00:56] literally the most amazing thing ever.
[00:00:56 –> 00:00:57] This is Spirit Juice. Peace.

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Key Takeaways

  • Jesus ends the parable of the vineyard with Scripture: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”.
  • Fr. Tim hears the Gospel as a story of people turning away from God, and he says our sins are part of that story. The Catechism agrees that sinners were the authors of the sufferings Christ endured.
  • Jesus is one divine person, “one of the Trinity”, so it is right to say that the Son of God died on the Cross.
  • Fr. Tim describes God’s love as creative: God brings our salvation out of the darkest day in history. The Catechism teaches that Jesus’ death was “part of the mystery of God’s plan”.
  • The Sacrament of Reconciliation is where we bring our sins to Christ. Those who approach it “obtain pardon from God’s mercy for the offense committed against him”.
  • Our yes matters. Justification was “merited for us by the Passion of Christ”, and it “establishes cooperation between God’s grace and man’s freedom”.

What This Means for Prayer and Daily Life

Most of us can say that Jesus died for us. The harder part is believing that He can bring something good out of the things we are ashamed of.

Fr. Tim hears the whole Gospel as a story of people turning away from God, and he says we have contributed to that story through our sins. That is hard to hear. But he does not stop there. He asks, “What does God do?” and answers, “He loves.”

That is why Confession matters. When we say, “Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned,” we are not told that we have failed again. We meet the mercy Jesus gave His life for. If something has been weighing on you, take it to Confession this week.

Fr. Tim’s invitation is a yes and a commitment. That yes does not earn anything. It is our response to grace He has already given. So keep it small and real: five quiet minutes of prayer each morning, a Sunday Mass you will not skip, a phone call to someone you have hurt.

When life feels shaky this week, ask: Where have I closed a door on God lately, and what is one way I can say yes to Him today?

A simple prayer might be:

“Lord Jesus, You were rejected, and You gave Yourself for me anyway. Forgive my sins. Help me say yes to You today, and give me the grace to follow through. Amen.”

FAQ Section: The Cornerstone, the Cross, and God's Mercy

A landowner plants a vineyard and leases it to tenants. When he sends servants to collect his share of the harvest, the tenants beat and kill them. Last of all he sends his son, the heir, and they kill him too. Jesus then says, “the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” Fr. Tim hears the whole Gospel as a story of people turning away from God, and he connects it to the Cross, where God takes “that most horrible moment in all of human history” and makes it our salvation.

Jesus quotes a line from Scripture right after the tenants kill the son in his parable, so the rejected stone points to him. The builders threw the stone away, and God made it the cornerstone. The Catechism uses the same image for the Church, which is built by the apostles and “receives solidity and unity from Christ the cornerstone.”

Fr. Tim says we’ve “contributed to the story by nailing him to a cross through our sins.” The Catechism teaches that “sinners were the authors and the ministers of all the sufferings that the divine Redeemer endured.” In the same paragraph, the Church places the gravest responsibility on Christians, and says that Christians have all too often burdened the Jews alone with it.

The Cross came out of human sin, and it is also where Jesus gave Himself for our salvation. His death was part of the mystery of God’s plan, and He gave Himself out of love for sinners. Fr. Tim calls God’s love creative because He brings salvation out of that day.

No. Salvation is God’s gift, won for us by the Passion of Christ. Our yes is our free response to His grace. Fr. Tim invites us to say that yes and to commit to Him.

Take it to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Fr. Tim’s words for that moment are “Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.” In Confession we receive God’s mercy and are reconciled with God and the Church. If you are not sure how to begin, your parish priest can walk you through it.

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