Matthew 20-12.14.21

Scripture 

Matthew 20:1-16 

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius[a] for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went. “He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. 6 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?’ 7 “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ 8 “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.’ 9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘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.’ 13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?  14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you.  15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Observation 

Jesus tells a parable about workers who feel they deserve more than others who did not work a full day but received the same pay. The workers had agreed to a certain wage for the day, but they didn’t think it was “fair” for others to get the same wage for less work. The landowner points out that how he spends his money is his decision. And likewise, God’s ways are not like our ways. In more than one parable, he says the last will be first and the first will be last. 

Understanding 

“That’s not fair!” How often does that come out of a child’s mouth? And if I’m honest, mine too! Most of us think that things should be fair (deserved, due, justified, merited). If I work hard, I should be rewarded. If I make a bad choice, there will be consequences. There’s nothing wrong with fair. But “fair” is not how God works. If God was fair, he wouldn’t have saved me. He wouldn’t continue to forgive me over and over again. I don’t deserve it, I didn’t earn it. I didn’t get what was due to me. I got love and forgiveness and salvation. Because I’ve been a Christian for a long time, do I deserve more love and more forgiveness than someone who gets saved tomorrow? Or can I do enough good works to make Him love me more than someone else? Can I level up in the kingdom of God? 

So when God says the last will be first and the first will be last, He’s asking us to give up our earthly mindset of striving to be first (focusing on ourselves) and put Him first. If we put our focus on Him, we don’t have room to be worrying about our status. If we put our focus on Him, we won’t be concerned with what others are doing. As we put our focus on Him, we will hear His heart for people and learn to love them like He does. Putting others’ needs before ours will become natural. 

Life Application

God, thank you for reminding me again today that there is nothing I can do to earn your love. And I don’t need to, because you freely give it. Help me to accept it and give it to others. 

-Debbie Dunn