At first glance, one might think this is the story better known as the Prodigal Son. However, Jesus told this parable when the religious leaders of his day wanted to know where his authority came from. In this parable, a father asks one son to work in the vineyard. The son says, "No," but then changes his mind and harvests the grapes anyway. The second son, when asked, replies, "Yes," but then refuses to do the work.
The story ends with Jesus telling the religious leaders that the tax collectors and sinners are like the first son and that they themselves are like the second son. The tax collectors and sinners changed their ways and will come into the Kingdom of God first.
On the one hand, the YCW story does very clearly explain the story to the children who are listening. Indeed, the children who heard this story were paying very close attention, even an 8-year-old who was present. But somehow, the story was more of a "retelling" of the parable and something was missing for me. The mystery was lacking and there wasn't much to wonder about at the end. However, I would definitely tell it again to children, to help them become familiar with this story.
During the Wondering, one of the children present seemed to identify with the second son. "Because I don't always obey my parents," he said. Interesting . . .
The materials above are from Worship Workworks. While beautiful, they were very expensive and were a gift from my mother to our children's ministry.
Do any of you do YCW as well as Godly Play? How do you feel about the differences?
