Matthew 20:1-16: “Jesus Teaches About Living Under Grace In
The Parable Of The Laborers For The Vineyard”
by
Jim Bomkamp
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In the previous section of the book of Matthew, we
were seeing that in Jesus’ response to Peter’s question about what they would receive
who had left everything and followed Him, that Peter’s question was really
inappropriate because he didn’t understand what it meant to live under the rule
of grace
1.1.1.
Everything that we Christians receive from the Lord
comes by His grace because as we saw, if we truly got what we deserve from the
Lord, we would receive the penalty of eternal hell
1.1.2.
We saw also that there isn’t a direct correlation of
what we receive in reward in Christ’s Kingdom based upon what we do for the
Lord in serving Him
1.1.2.1.This does
not mean that God is not just and righteous, rather this principle of God’s
rewarding occurs not only because He is gracious but also because He is just
and righteous, and thus only He can truly determine what it is that we should
be rewarded with as a result of serving Him
1.1.2.2.In
determining what reward we should receive from the Lord, He judges many things
1.1.2.2.1.What light
we have received
1.1.2.2.2.What
background we came from, or in other words what baggage we have brought with us
prior to coming to Christ
1.1.2.2.3.The motive
that we have for serving God
1.1.2.2.4.The true
attitude of our hearts as we serve
1.1.2.2.5.What we do
based upon what we know
1.1.2.2.6.The
temptations and trials that we have had to face in serving the Lord
1.1.3.
We saw last week also that God’s grace is lavished upon
us and He blesses us bountifully and manifoldly, and thus we receive much more
in reward from the Lord than our deeds deserve
1.1.4.
Finally, the chapter ended by Jesus saying that, ‘many
who are first will be last, and the last first’, and we saw that when Jesus
said this that He was teaching us that there will be many surprises when we get
to heaven, including the following:
1.1.4.1.Some whom we
thought would be there aren’t there
1.1.4.2.Some we
didn’t think would be there will be there
1.1.4.3.Some whom we
thought would receive great reward receive little
1.1.4.4.Some whom we
thought would receive little reward receive much
1.2.
In this next section of the gospel of Matthew, we will
continue to study this theme of being under the rule of grace as regards our
rewards from the Lord, as we study the parable of ‘The laborers for the
vineyard’
1.2.1.
As I mentioned, I believe that really what triggered
Jesus to teach this parable to His disciples was Peter’s question about what
they should receive who have left everything and followed Him, for in asking
this question Jesus sensed that Peter and the rest of the apostles’ inner
motivation for following Him was really wrong, for instead of just serving Him
because they loved Him and loved to serve, they were calculating what they
would get out of that service
2.
VS 20:1-7 -
“20:1 ”For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in
the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 “And when he had agreed with
the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 “And
he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market
place; 4 and to those he said, ‘You too go into the vineyard, and whatever is
right I will give you.’ And so they went. 5 “Again he went out about the sixth
and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. 6 “And about the eleventh hour he
went out, and found others standing; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been
standing here idle all day long?’ 7 “They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired
us.’ He *said to them, ‘You too go into the vineyard.’” - Jesus teaches His disciples the parable of
the laborers for the vineyard
2.1.
Jesus begins this parable much like the 6 Kingdom Parables which we
studied earlier in the book of Matthew, by saying, “For the Kingdom of heaven
is like…”.
2.1.1.
This parable was designed by Jesus to teach some principles that exist in
His Kingdom, and in doing so deal with some issues that existed amongst His
disciples, issues which can exist amongst God’s people in any era.
2.1.1.1.The disciples had
continually been vying for the pre-eminent positions in His Kingdom, and there
had resultantly been a lot of bickering and strife amongst them.
2.1.1.2.Jesus had already taught His
disciples lessons about what constituted true greatness in His Kingdom by:
2.1.1.2.1.Bringing a little child into
their midst and telling His disciples that the greatest in His Kingdom would
humble himself as this little child (Matt. 18:4).
2.1.1.2.2.Teaching them that the
greatest in His Kingdom would become as the younger (Luke 22:6).
2.1.1.2.3.Teaching them that the
greatest in His Kingdom would be the servant of all (Mark 9:35).
2.1.1.3.Jesus now tries to explain
to His disciples what some of the principles about living under the rule of
grace have in relation to rewards that we will receive for our service in the
Lord.
2.1.1.4.The disciples saw themselves
as Jesus closest advisors and cabinet members in His Kingdom, which in fact
they were called to be, however they also needed to be humbled and realize that
just being in that position didn’t guarantee them any reward from the Lord, for
the Lord is no respecter of persons, regardless of their position or station in
the world’s eyes.
2.1.1.4.1.From God’s perspective, the
only thing that denotes greatness or goodness comes from a person’s character
and morality.
2.2.
So, in this parable which Jesus taught, the ‘landowner’ is God, the
vineyard is the world, and the laborers whom were sent out into the vineyard
are God’s people whom He has called to salvation.
2.3.
From this parable, we see that all whom the Lord has called to salvation
are called to come and to labor in His Kingdom.
Each of us is given tasks and responsibilities and expected to be
faithful to the tasks that the landowner has given us to accomplish.
2.4.
In Jesus’ day it was typical that a laborer might go and wait each day in
the market place for someone to come and to hire him, and one laborer might
potentially work for one person for part of a day and then work for someone
else for another part of the day.
2.5.
According to the Law of Moses, a laborer was to be paid at the end of
each day of work, and thus we see that portrayed here in these verses.
2.6.
There are various times of the day when laborers are called to come and
to work in the landowners vineyard, and these times of the day I believe can
refer to three different things:
2.6.1.
Eras in time and history when God has called His
people to salvation through the gospel message.
2.6.1.1.The 12 apostles were first
called to come to salvation, and they left all and began to follow Christ, and from
then there have been many generations of people who have subsequently been
called to come to Jesus for salvation.
2.6.2.
Different periods in the life of a man or a women when they are called to
come to salvation through the preaching of the gospel message.
2.6.2.1.Some people accept the offer
to come to salvation during early childhood and then they can spend an entire
lifetime of service for the Lord, while others come to salvation at all
different times of their lives when they finally accept the call to come to Christ
for salvation.
2.6.2.2.The ones who came at the 11th
hour would represent those who come to Christ late in life, perhaps even upon
their deathbed.
2.6.3.
The spiritual sense of hunger of those when they come
to Christ,
with those most hungry coming later in the day, and, in considering this view
we are reminded of Jesus’ words, “He who is forgiven much loves much.”
2.6.3.1.It is interesting here that
only the ones who were called first had actually bargained for their wage and
agreed to work for a certain amount, a denarius, and having been called to work
by the landowner at the beginning of the day they could pick and choose whom
they worked for as well as negotiate their wage.
2.6.3.1.1.The person who tries to
strike a bargain with God and work for Him if God fulfills His end of the deal,
will not grow roots deeply into Christ and after a period of time will
eventually fall away.
2.6.3.1.2.The ones who were called to
work later in the day were just told that they would get what was fair, however
because they had that agreement then all of these ones got more than they could
have imagined and certainly deserved.
2.6.3.1.3.The point we need to see
about this is that the attitude with which we serve the Lord is so important,
and we Christians should serve the Lord not because we think that in doing so
we are getting some reward, but rather we ought to serve the Lord because we
love serving Him and others.
2.6.3.1.3.1.To illustrate this point, I
heard the story one day of Dale and Tom, two laborers for the railroad, who
were by the station doing some work one day when the train pulled up. A man got out of the train who was dressed in
a nice business suit with a briefcase in hand, for he was Bob Simpson, the
president of this railroad. As Bob began
walking towards the station, he saw Tom there working and he yelled out, “Hi,
Tom! Hey, how have have you been doing
guy?” Tom and Bob shook hands and talked
for a few minutes before Bob said that he had to get to the meeting he was
scheduled for. Then, when Tom walked
back and joined Dale again, Dale asked Tom, “How is that you came to know Bob
Simpson, the president of the railroad?”
Well, said Tom, “Bob Simpson and I joined the railroad on the same day
20 years ago and we worked together.”
Dale replied, “How could you and Bob have joined the railroad on the
same day, and yet Bob is now the president of the company?” Tom replied, “Well, I started working for
$4.25 an hour, and Bob Simpson started working for the railroad!”
2.7.
The idleness of the people who were waiting in the marketplace to be
hired speaks to the fact that people’s lives are really going nowhere and have
no real meaning and usefulness until they come to Christ and find their purpose
and calling in serving God.
2.8.
It is sort of curious here that these ones who were picked up for work at
the 11th hour mentioned that no one had invited them to come and to
work, yet where were they when the landowner had sent several times to pick up
laborers early during the day?
2.8.1.
Perhaps they had been working elsewhere and weren’t actually waiting at
the marketplace and available for work as they said they were, when the
landowner had sent for more laborers…
2.8.2.
To spiritualize this a little, perhaps though these ones had been at the
marketplace earlier when the landowner had sent and made invitations for work,
they hadn’t been paying attention and thus didn’t hear his voice calling out,
for we know that the scriptures teach us that the Lord is always revealing
Himself to men in various ways (see Romans 1).
2.9.
The ‘denarius’ was a typical wage for one day’s work in Jesus day, and I
believe that in this parable it represented ‘eternal life’, which was the
general reward that all who worked in the vineyard received at the end of the
day.
2.10.
So then, we see the principle that it doesn’t matter when you come to
Christ in your life, even if it is upon your very deathbed, nor does it matter
in what era of history you come to Him, for all are guaranteed that they will
receive eternal life in heaven with the Lord, and, that reward is in and of
itself tremendous, for as I mentioned what all sinners deserve is hell.
3.
VS 20:8-15 - “8
“And when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard *said to his foreman,
‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to
the first.’ 9 “And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one
received a denarius. 10 “And when those hired first came, they thought that
they would receive more; and they also received each one a denarius. 11 “And
when they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last
men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have
borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ 13 “But he answered and
said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with
me for a denarius? 14 ‘Take what is yours and go your way, but I wish to give
to this last man the same as to you. 15 ‘Is it not lawful for me to do what I
wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’”
- The landowner hands out each workers
pay at the end of the day
3.1.
We see here that the landowner chose to hand out pay to the ones who were
hired based upon the opposite order of the time of their having gone out into
his vineyard to labor.
3.1.1.
We need to learn from this that the Lord is going to reward people the
way in which He wishes to reward them, and what we may think in our own minds
and understanding is best, may not be what the Lord with His infinite wisdom,
knowledge, and understanding decides is the best.
3.1.2.
Since we are living under the rule of grace as Christians we ought to be
grateful for any and all blessings which the Lord chooses to give us,
regardless of what others may receive or be blessed by the Lord with.
3.2.
This parable then is meant to teach us as God’s people the huge lesson
that in Christ’s Kingdom there must never be envy and jealousy, for when we are
living under the rule of grace there can be no place for those things since all
that we have received is undeserved, plus the Lord, because of His magnificent
giving and gracious nature, gives us much more in rewards than ever we should
deserve.
3.2.1.
This lesson was initially directed towards the Jesus’ 12 apostles so that
He might be able to squash all of their squabbling and competing with each
other. If Jesus chose merely to give
them eternal life, and nothing more then they should be thankful for all of
eternity for that tremendous and unbelievable gift for they were completely
undeserving of receiving anything from the Lord at all, and if He chose to
reward them with more then this is just all the more reason to be thankful and
to give Him praise.
3.2.2.
Notice here how that envy expresses itself, for the ones hired at the
first hour grumbled not because they thought that they should receive more,
having agreed initially to work for a day for denarius in the first place, but
they grumbled because they thought that those hired at other hours of the day
shouldn’t receive as much as they received.
3.2.2.1.I have alluded before to how
that sometimes churches have taken on the attitudes of the big brother in the
parable of the prodigal son, for instead of rejoicing when people have been
brought from darkness unto light and death unto life, they instead become
jealous that God is showing His favor towards some who have not labored as long
nor as hard as they have.
3.2.2.1.1.We saw this attitude in the
book of Acts when the apostolic leaders of the church in
3.2.2.1.2.When I first came to Christ
during the days of the hippie movement, some churches didn’t want anything to
do with any of us dirty long-haired hippie kids, even though in case of many of
us, we had actually come to know Christ and were now a child of God.
3.3.
Again, we in the church must come to the place where we realize that God
is totally holy and just and that He will decide what is fair and right to give
in rewards to each and every person who comes to faith in Him, and we must
learn also just to keep our eyes upon the Lord, and off of others and how they
are being blessed and how God is using them, for we must simply be obedient to
the Lord and the calling that He has for us.
3.3.1.
After Jesus had raised from the dead, He appeared to Peter one day and
they had an interesting dialog, one which relates to this topic of envy and
jealousy and taking our eyes off of the Lord and putting them on other
people. As Jesus walked with Peter on
this day He told Peter to tend His sheep three times, and then Jesus spoke to
Peter of the type of death that he one day would die for his faith, and then,
as recorded in John 21:18-23, Peter asked Jesus what might happen to John, and
for asking this Jesus rebuked Peter and told him that this was not any of his
business what happened to someone else, for his business was simply to follow
Jesus himself, “18 “Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were
younger, you used to gird yourself, and walk wherever you wished; but when you
grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will gird you, and
bring you where you do not wish to go.” 19 Now this He said, signifying by what
kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He *said to
him, “Follow Me!” 20 Peter, turning around, *saw the disciple whom Jesus loved
following them; the one who also had leaned back on His breast at the supper,
and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” 21 Peter therefore seeing him
*said to Jesus, “Lord, and what about this man?” 22 Jesus *said to him, “If I
want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!” 23 This
saying therefore went out among the brethren that that disciple would not die;
yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to
remain until I come, what is that to you?””
3.3.2.
I have seen in my 28 years as a Christian though that there are so many
Christians who sometimes become jealous or envious of others, sometimes they
are jealous of the ungodly because God is blessing them while we labor hard and
aren’t blessed, and sometimes it is people in the church whom they are envious
of.
3.3.2.1.I have seen people envious
of those who have been given positions of ministry within the church, with the
envious person feeling that they have been around longer than the other person
or that they are more gifted for a particular ministry or more deserving to be
in that ministry than the other person.
3.3.2.2.I have also had people
become envious of me in my position of authority in the church as an elder and
then as a pastor.
3.3.2.3.However, we Christians must
realize that jealousy and envy are very evil sins, and we must avoid allowing
ourselves to put our eyes on others and how God is blessing and using them.
3.3.2.4.At times I have been jealous
of other pastor’s because I’ve heard of how the Lord was blessing their
ministry.
4.
VS 20:16 - “16
“Thus the last shall be first, and the first last.”” - Jesus told His disciples that according to
this parable of the ‘Laborers in the Vineyard’, that ‘the last shall be first,
and the first last’
4.1.
In this verse Jesus is explaining that His words were meant to interpret
what He meant when He said at the end of chapter 19, “Many who are first will
be last, and the last first.”
4.2.
As I mentioned when this verse was first quoted from Jesus at the end of
chapter 19 of Matthew, Jesus is teaching us that there will be many suprises in
the Kingdom of heaven, and God’s system of rewarding people is going to be
opposite of what the world does in judging and giving rewards.
4.3.
The disciples were forced to face the fact that they should be grateful just
that they have eternal life with God in heaven, and anything beyond that is
just frosting on the cake, so to speak.
4.4.
As I have mentioned, God rewards us bountifully and generously, and we
need to learn to be thankful for every blessing that is given to us, for we
realize that every single one is really underserved, for we are living under
the reign of grace, and there is no other place that I personally would rather
be!