Workers in the Vineyard Scripture: Matthew 20:1-16
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Workers in the Vineyard Scripture: Matthew 20:1-16 For the kingdom of heaven is like an owner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
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01
Workers in
the Vineyard<br>
the Vineyard<br>
02
Scripture:
Matthew 20:1-16<br>
Matthew 20:1-16<br>
03
“For the kingdom of heaven is like an owner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.
“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’
“‘Because no one has hired us, ’ they answered.
“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’
“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour, ’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”<br>
He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.
“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’
“‘Because no one has hired us, ’ they answered.
“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’
“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour, ’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’
“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’
“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”<br>
04
He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.<br>
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“About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing.<br>
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He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’
So they went.<br>
So they went.<br>
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“He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing.<br>
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About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them,<br>
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‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’
“‘Because no one has hired us, ’ they answered.<br>
“‘Because no one has hired us, ’ they answered.<br>
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“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’<br>
11
“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman,<br>
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‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’<br>
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“The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius.<br>
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So when those came who were hired first, they expected to get more. But each one of them also received a denarius.<br>
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When they received it, they began to grumble against the owner.
‘These who were hired last worked only 1 hour, ’<br>
‘These who were hired last worked only 1 hour, ’<br>
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they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’<br>
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“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?<br>
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Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you.<br>
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Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’<br>
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“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”<br>
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Workers in
the Vineyard<br>
the Vineyard<br>
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Parables are made-up stories told by Jesus to teach us some truths.<br>
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Depending on the audience, a parable can sometimes have multiple focuses and meanings.<br>
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A common interpretation of this parable is the contrast between Jews and Christians.<br>
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Jews are like the earliest workers, but Christians gained God’s grace even though they came later.<br>
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That is an interesting topic as well, but today let’s focus on a topic that matters to us more --<br>
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The seemingly unfair generosity or grace of God, and our responses to it.<br>
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The main symbolisms:
Owner = God
Workers = followers of God
Wage = salvation<br>
Owner = God
Workers = followers of God
Wage = salvation<br>
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The wage here represents salvation because everyone got the same amount.<br>
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If it’s about rewards in Heaven, then it would be different based on the amount of work done.<br>
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The owner went out early in the morning to look for workers. There’s much to be done.<br>
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To get the work done, the owner likely wants the earliest workers because they are likely more dedicated.<br>
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He also wants to get as many workers as he needs to get things done faster.<br>
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It seems the earliest workers negotiated the wage rate with the owner. It says, “he agreed to pay…”<br>
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One denarius was the typical wage for a day of labor so both sides felt it’s a fair arrangement.<br>
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Then he went out at 9am, 12pm, 3pm, and 5pm and got more workers.<br>
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This is strange because most owners would hire all workers early and get the work done.<br>
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Therefore, there were far fewer people looking for workers as the day went on.<br>
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Those who were still looking for work so late in the day are probably weaker or lazier.<br>
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So as the day went on, it became harder for these laborers to find work.<br>
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Many workers who didn’t get jobs in the morning probably gave up too.<br>
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So those still looking for work in the afternoon were likely very willing and desperate to work.<br>
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When the owner hired these later workers, they did not negotiate for their wage rates.<br>
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They probably assumed they would get pro-rated pay based on the full-day wage rate.<br>
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Desperate for work, they knew they were at the owner’s mercy and would accept anything.<br>
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But the owner paid them the same full-day wages and deliberately made sure the earliest workers saw this.<br>
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The latter workers must have been overjoyed. They got way more than what they deserved.<br>
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But the earlier workers were upset. The earlier they came, the more upset they were.<br>
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Their frustrations were understandable. They didn’t feel they were treated fairly.<br>
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Their logic was sound, too – people who did more work should get more pay.<br>
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Then the owner got upset too! He said he paid them what they negotiated so he did no wrong.<br>
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He said he has the right to be generous to whomever he wants, and they have no right to be upset.<br>
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The owner asked if they are envious because of his generosity towards others.<br>
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Then he said, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” This is a very strange statement.<br>
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This may seem like a simple story, but a lot of things do not make sense.<br>
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First, since everyone got the same pay, I believe the pay refers to our salvation.<br>
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If it were referring to the rewards in Heaven for our work, then it would not be equal for all.<br>
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In this parable, the workday may represent our lives on Earth.<br>
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The workday is the same length whether you use it or waste it.<br>
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Salvation is free, but there is something people have to do. They have to come and stay till pay time.<br>
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If one leaves before the pay time, he won’t get paid by the owner no matter how generous he is.<br>
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It takes effort to get salvation even though it was freely given. One must stay in the field until pay time.<br>
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Salvation requires perseverance till the end – when you die or when Jesus comes.<br>
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The earliest workers negotiated for and received one denarius of pay as they were promised.<br>
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They felt they deserve the wage and so did not see this as the generosity of the owner.<br>
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They represent the people who feel they can earn their way to salvation through their hard work.<br>
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For them, others who do less should get less from God. They think it is salvation by work, not grace.<br>
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So when later workers came, they assumed those workers would get less pay than they do.<br>
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This was a reasonable assumption, but the owner saw it differently.<br>
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The owner thought he could pay them whatever he wanted, with one denarius being the minimum.<br>
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He seemed to care more about the workers than his profits.<br>
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That is not how most business people think, but then again, the owner is not a typical man.<br>
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We will dig into his mentality deeper later in the message. It tells us much about our God.<br>
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The latter workers were desperate for work and income, and so did not bargain for wages.<br>
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They assumed they would get prorated pay, and they accepted that and worked for the rest of the day.<br>
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When they got more than they expected, they knew it’s due to the owner’s generosity.<br>
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They knew they don’t deserve the full pay, and so they understand it is the grace of the owner.<br>
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Earlier workers were upset because they did not get more pay than the later workers.<br>
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All this drama would not have happened if the owner were not so strange!<br>
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There were many things he could have done to avoid the drama and the conflict.<br>
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First, he should have gotten all the workers he needed or wanted early in the morning.<br>
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That would be the smartest thing to do -- to get the best workers and get the work done faster.<br>
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Second, he could have paid prorated wages and everyone would be satisfied.<br>
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Third, he could have paid the earliest workers first and sent them away so they didn’t find out.<br>
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But he did none of these things that could have avoided the problems with the early workers.<br>
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He intentionally told the foreman to pay the latest workers first so others can see it.<br>
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Why would someone intentionally cause problems for himself? It does not make sense at first glance.<br>
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A smart owner would want his work done fast, at the lowest cost, and with as few problems as possible.<br>
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The vineyard owner here did the exact opposite and that is very perplexing.<br>
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There is one plausible explanation: what he cared about the most were these workers and not his profits!<br>
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In this parable, since the vineyard owner represented God, this is not unthinkable.<br>
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Also, he intentionally caused the “problem” with the workers who came earlier.<br>
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The strangeness of this owner reveals the heart of God.<br>
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In this parable, it seemed to be hard to find work. People were looking for work throughout the day.<br>
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The last workers said no one would hire them. Maybe they were not strong or had disabilities.<br>
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He knew there’d be people looking for work all the time. So he went out to find them four more times.<br>
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He seemed to have hired anyone willing to work regardless of their conditions.<br>
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Being “willing” is the key here. If anyone came out to look for work, he would have gotten one from this owner.<br>
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Grace is freely given to anyone willing to accept it. This is the basis of the Christian faith.<br>
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The grace of Christ is simply too generous and unbelievable to the point that people don’t understand it.<br>
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The earliest workers felt they earned their pay solely through their own efforts. They stayed till the end, and so they did get paid.<br>
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They were just not happy. That’s not the owner’s fault. They didn’t know the owner’s wishes.<br>
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The earliest workers didn’t understand the owner and were envious, which upset the owner.<br>
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At the end of the day, the later workers would understand the generosity or grace of the owner.<br>
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Owner: all are paid because of my grace. It may seem unfair to some people, but do accept my generosity.<br>
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It was clear that the owner wanted all these workers to understand his grace and generosity.<br>
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That’s why he intentionally asked the last-in workers to be paid first.<br>
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God really wants people to know that their salvation comes from the grace of God and not because of their own efforts.<br>
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We say we understand grace, but many of us struggle with watching someone else receive it.<br>
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God wants us to have the right mentality. He really wants us to understand and appreciate “grace”.<br>
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It may be fun to speculate what would happen the next day…<br>
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The owner was so generous to people that we can assume the work environment was not bad either.<br>
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People who got the most grace from the day before will likely come early to get the job again.<br>
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They did not want to miss the chance to work for this generous boss.<br>
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In 1914, Henry Ford started paying his workers $5 a day, twice the normal rate at the time.<br>
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People line up outside trying to work for him. Ford got really committed workers as a result.<br>
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That lowered absenteeism and increased productivity.<br>
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So the owner might be creating a more dedicated workforce by being generous to them.<br>
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On the other hand, the earliest workers from the day before who were upset may not come early.<br>
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They may even want to come later so they could get the same pay while doing less work.<br>
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This might be why Jesus said, “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”<br>
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The owner attracted more eager, dedicated workers because of his generosity.<br>
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The owner was generous towards the workers, but he also wanted dedicated workers.<br>
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It was clear that he cared a lot about the mentality and attitudes of the workers.<br>
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That’s why he was upset with envious workers – their mentality was not pleasing to him.<br>
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Their mentality directly affected their work ethic and their attitude towards the owner and their work.<br>
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What kind of worker are you? Do you understand God’s grace and want to come work for Him?<br>
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We have a generous boss. We need to be dedicated workers because that’s the best option for us.<br>
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Salvation is free because of the grace from God, but we need to be willing to receive it.<br>
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Effort does not earn salvation, but understanding grace changes our mentality and how we work.<br>
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Once we understand God’s thinking and grace, our attitude towards Him and His work would change.<br>
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We also need to stay till the end because that’s when we get paid. Salvation is realized at the end.<br>
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Remember God’s grace all the time. Don’t lose faith and leave him when you encounter hard times.<br>
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Our boss is full of grace and very generous. He is our best and honestly, our only option.<br>
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God is generous to us. He lets us choose to follow him or not. Would you follow Him and stay till the end?<br>
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We hope to see you in front of God’s vineyard each and every morning!<br>