Deep Dive Part 3 “No Lifeguard on Duty” (Traditional)

Imagine a town with no laws and no rules. There is one. It’s located in the Sonoran Desert in California, and is America’s only law-free area, Slab City. 150 people have taken up residence in a former military base now abandoned. No laws, no police, no government. Anything goes.

 

Jesus tells a story very much like that. About a vineyard where no one is in charge, and everyone makes up their own rules. It’s sometimes called the parable of the Absentee Landlord, which is also the view of some people who feel like God created the world, set things in motion, and then just went away and left us on our own.

“Live life at your own risk”
“You’re on your own.”
“There’s no one here to help you if you get into trouble.”

Jesus tells this story because he knows that’s the way a lot of people think and how a lot of us choose to live.