JESUS THE REJECTED STONE, THE CORNERSTONE
Luke 20:1-19
Key Verse: 20:17
1. What was Jesus doing in the temple courts (1a)? Who challenged Jesus’ authority and why (1b-2)? What does Jesus’ counter-question teach (3-8)?
2. In Jesus’ parable, what did the owner do (9-10a)? What does this show about him? What did the tenants do (10b-12)? In what way does this picture God’s relationship with Israel (Isa 5:1-2)?
3. What unexpected decision did the owner make and with what purpose (13)? How did the tenants respond and why (14-15a)? How does this parable illustrate God’s patient love and fallen man’s wickedness?
4. What will the owner do with them (15b-16a)? How did the people react to Jesus’ parable (16b)? Why do you think they were so surprised?
5. Read verse 17. How does Jesus relate his parable to Psalm 118:22? In what way is Jesus the stone the builders rejected who became the cornerstone1 (Ac 2:23-24; Ac 4:11-12)? What does this mean to us (Eph 2:19-20; 1Pe 2:6)?
6. What serious warning did Jesus give (18)? What did the religious leaders want to do (19)? Why were they not successful?
In ancient construction, the cornerstone is the first stone set in the foundation of a building, which all other stones depend on for their stability and trueness.↩