Matthew 20:1–16
1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ 5 So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ 8 And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ 9 And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. 10 Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. 11 And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, 12 saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ 13 But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ 16 So the last will be first, and the first last.”
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Too often, we forget that Jesus lived in history. Just as we have well-known stories in our day that form and shape our understanding of the world, so did Jesus and the people of His day. Today, if someone says, “I have a Cinderella story to tell you…” you know how the story will go – rags to riches. Well, in Jesus’ day, there was a famous parable that is remarkably similar to this one before us. This parable had been told during the funeral sermon of a well-known rabbi who died when he was only twenty-eight years old. The parable went like this:
A king hired laborers to work in his vineyard. After watching the men work for a couple of hours, he noticed one had a lot more ability than the rest. So, the king invited that laborer to spend the rest of the day with him eating and relaxing while the rest continued to work. At the end of the day, the king lined everyone up to pay them. The one who only worked two of the twelve hours was paid the same as those who had worked all day. The others complained. But the king replied, “This man worked with so much skill that he accomplished as much in two hours as you did in twelve. So, don’t complain; I’m being fair.”
The point of this parable at the twenty-eight-year-old’s funeral was that this famous rabbi had done enough good works to go to heaven early. In other words, be good, do good, and get rewarded. Santa Claus anyone?
Now, there is a kernel of truth to that parable. It is right, proper, and just to reward good works. If you tell your kids they cannot play outside until their rooms are clean and one gets it done more quickly, it is right to not make them wait until the other is finished. The same goes for everyday life. Rewarding good works is the expected thing. It is fair and right to pay according to work done. But there is no grace in that.
Jesus’ parable this morning stands that other parable on its head. Our Lord isn’t teaching about fair wages or justice. He is teaching us about grace. Jesus retells the well-known parable, and in Jesus’ version, a bunch of lazybones who show up just before the checks are written get paid as though they had worked all day.
This is how it is in the kingdom of God. In the kingdom of God, bums who don’t work get rewarded for the work of others. But too often, we complain about this just like those in the parable.
When others are happy or blessed, we grumble and complain. We get covetous and envious. When someone gets a shiny, new toy, we think of all the reasons they don’t deserve it. We murmur to ourselves and others that they must have cheated someone else or gotten it by some undeserving means.
Because of our sin, we like generosity and mercy when we benefit, but not when others do. In our pride, we can even become embarrassed when we receive a generous gift or a simple act of kindness. Think of the rabid feminists who believe that a man opening a door for a woman is an act of micro-aggression.
We are prideful people who are always measuring. We look at our lives and works and compare them against those of the people around us, and somehow, we always end up on top. We keep score and expect God to notice. But then, when things go wrong, when we recognize our failures, our pride causes us to swing into despair. But even in our despair, we keep measuring. We know that we don’t measure up. And our despair makes us wonder if God loves us. Repent.
Repent and see the comfort of this parable. It teaches us that the kingdom of God is not a kingdom of fairness or equal pay. If that were the case, if God’s kingdom was where people got what they deserved, we would all spend eternity in hell. God’s kingdom, God’s vineyard, is a vineyard of grace.
With the Gospel, there is no room for pride or boasting in what we do because there is no doing on our part. Everything has been done by Christ, and we simply benefit because of His work. We who were dead in our sins, enemies of God, and children of wrath are raised, pardoned, and transferred into God’s kingdom.
And, with the Gospel, there is no room for despair. God’s love has been poured out for you to save you. In Christ, God has won your salvation on the cross. On the cross, Jesus bore the heat of the day, the heat of God’s wrath. And you, believer, get His wages.
Rejoice. The kingdom of heaven is the opposite of the kingdoms of men. You don’t earn. You don’t pay. The goods are given for free. It would drive any man-made business into the ground, but God doesn’t care. God isn’t out to make a living. He is out to give away His kingdom.
In Christ’s kingdom, grace reigns, sins are forgiven, and wretched orphans are made to be beloved children. Amen.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.
In the Transfiguration, Jesus is truly beautiful, divinely beautiful. But in there is another beauty that is better than the Transfiguration. The beauty of Jesus is what you see on the cross where God in the flesh dies for the disciples and for you to save you from your sin.
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. 9 When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have become drunk, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
When you or a loved one is plagued with sickness and disease you pray for healing. You pray for a clean scan. You pray that the next doctor appointment will show that everything is normal. You pray for a miracle. These are all good things to pray for.
sin of this world. He has answered them by sending His Own, beloved Son to die and rise again. He has glory for you that is unspeakable and unimaginable.
46 After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” 49 And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” 50 And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. 51 And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.
But as sinners, we never want to own our sin. Instead, we offer excuses and expect others to justify us in our sin. That is why, when someone offends you, you are more likely to tell someone else how mad you are rather than speak to the person you are angry with. Sometimes, we do get approval for our sinful actions from others. But we do ourselves no favors finding approval from others because when we do, we start to think that we can play the same game with God.
If you’ve ever played hide and seek with a little child, you don’t have difficulty finding her. She will hide in the same three or four spots every time. Behind a door. Under a lumpy, moving blanket on the floor with her legs sticking out. Or lying face-down on the couch with her eyes shut because if she can’t see you then you can’t see her, obviously.
Pastorsamwise 
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