went to the second and gave him the same command. This son replied: ‘I will go, sir,’ but he did not go. Which of the two did
what the father wanted?” They answered, “The first.” And Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you: the publicans and the prostitutes are ahead of
you on the way to the kingdom of heaven. For John came to show you the way of goodness but you did not believe him, yet the publicans and the
prostitutes did. You were witnesses of this, but you neither repented nor believed him

Reflection:

Wee sometimes speak without thinking.
Our words get ahead before we even realize what we are
saying. Then regrets come late. And we try to repair the
damage of our idle words. Just like in the gospel today,
the father asks his two sons to go to his vineyard. The
first rejects the father’s request out rightly, but
after some time, changes his decision and goes to the
vineyard. The second son says he will but did not go
afterwards. With this story, Jesus is able to highlight
the difference between His audience who accepted
God readily but does not do what God wants. And
those whose lives reject God seemingly but later on
repent and do what God wants them to do. For it is
not in acceptance alone that our following of God
depends on it. It is what we do afterwards that matter.