The Workers in the Vineyard
(Matthew 20:1-16)
For those of you who are joining us here in worship and for those who are at home joining us
online, may God fill you with His love and grace.
Let’s turn to our neighbor and say, “God bless you.” “May God keep you healthy. It is a blessing
to be together.”
How was your past week? Who did you spend this past week with? It is important with whom
you spend your time with. That is why it is important to walk with Christ in our daily lives.
If we want to walk with Christ, first we must see Christ. We must fix our eyes upon Jesus. We
must be constantly thinking about Christ. Thinking about Christ is how we begin to fix our eyes
upon Christ.
I spent this past week thinking about the tragedy that occurred in Korea, and I felt like crying out
to God in my sadness. I pray that we may find our peace and satisfaction in Christ alone.
Today’s passage is a parable about the workers who entered the Kingdom of God. It is about
“What is the Kingdom of God? And Who enters the Kingdom of God?” If the previous verses
about the rich young ruler is about eternal life, then the parable today is about the Kingdom of
God. In fact, the question about eternal life and the Kingdom of God are closely related.
Whoever has eternal life has found the Kingdom of God, and whoever found the Kingdom of
God has eternal life.
Jesus concludes both Matthew 19:30 and 20:16 in the same way. Jesus says in Matthew 19:30,
“But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.” Today’s passage in
verse 16 has the same conclusion. “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Let’s look at verse 1
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire
workers for his vineyard.”
If we look at today’s parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom of Heaven to a landowner who went
out to find hired workers. Verse 2 shows the agreement he makes with these workers.
“He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.”
The landowner promises to pay the workers one denarius for a day’s worth of work. This
promise represents God’s promise to us, sealing us for Heaven. This is God’s grace towards us
in giving us eternal life if we put our faith in Jesus Christ. John 5:24 says “...whoever hears my
word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged…” This verse shows
us God’s promise towards us that those who put their faith in Jesus Christ will become the
children of God.
However, there is a problem that arises in this parable. The workers begin their work in the
vineyard at different times. Verse 3 shows that the first group of workers begin at the third hour.
According to Jewish time the third hour is about 9 AM. Verse 5 mentions the 6th hour and the
9th hour. This corresponds to noon and 3 PM. Verse 6 even mentions the 11th hour. This would
be 5 PM in our time. As you can see, everyone began their work at very different times.
However, the work was all finished at 6 PM. After they finish their work, the vineyard owner
gives out the promised wages.
Let’s look at verse 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.”
The owner says an interesting statement to his foreman. As he pays the workers their wages,
he starts with the worker who started last. This worker began his work at 5 PM, and he only
worked for 1 hour. The foreman pays him his promised wage of 1 denarius even though he only
worked for 1 hour. The workers who worked much longer began to smile in anticipation. They
probably thought that they would be paid much more because they worked much longer.
But let’s look at verse 10. What happened? “So when those came who were hired first, they
expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.”
The workers who worked much longer also received just one denarius. They had expected to
receive more for working longer. They began to think that it was unfair. They had worked much
harder for the same amount of money. They became bitter and began to complain.
They complain in verse 11-12,
“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.”
We see that they began to grumble and complain. How can they be paid so unfairly? Through
this parable, we can see that our labor is valued very differently according to the world and
according to God. According to this parable, God compensates the worker who worked one
hour and 8 hours equally. This is very different than our compensations in this world. We are
paid according to the amount we work in this world. We are paid based on what we are able to
achieve and accomplish. But God’s gift towards us is solely based on grace.
We cannot be compensated equally for 1 hour worth of work and 8 hours worth of work in this
world. Even if two people work the same amount of time, the compensation will be different
based on their skill level. We can see the same thing in one’s education level. The
compensations for highly educated vs. less educated are often very different. Even our
background matters in what we do.
We say that everyone is equal, but in reality this is often not the case. Because of these
differences, we face many struggles, unfairness, and prejudices. But according to the Word of
God, the Kingdom of Heaven has a completely different order and value system.
In verse 13, the owner says,
“But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for
a denarius?”
This teaches us that there is no inequality in Heaven. There is no one higher than or lower than
another. We are all children of God who have received salvation solely by the grace of God.
There is no ranking system before God. God has promised each of us one denarius.
If the value system of Heaven was like the world’s, there would be much confusion and despair.
We are supposed to display the order and value system of Heaven in the church, but we are so
accustomed to the world that we often see a hierarchy even within the church. The church
members with more money, or talents, or education are often more highly regarded than others.
Godly order does not focus on our works and there is perfect equality, but worldly order causes
inequality and doubt and despair.
Let’s look at verses 14-15
“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?’”
There are a few applications and lessons I want us to take away.
First, we want to ask what the purpose of this parable is. This parable was meant for Jesus’s
disciples. The disciples’ way of thinking was very worldly before they were transformed by the
Holy Spirit. They often compared themselves to one another even while they lived beside Jesus.
Jesus knew their thoughts and used this parable to teach them the order of Heaven. He taught
them that they were all equal before God.
Let’s think about John the Baptist. John the Baptist came before Christ to prepare the way and
make straight the path for Christ. He lived in the wilderness and wore camel’s hair and ate
locusts to fulfill his purpose. He did not consider his reputation or status, but fulfilled his calling
to be the voice calling out in the wilderness. He even called out king Herod’s sins which led to
his execution. His role was to be a herald.
This applies to the church as well. There are those who were saved earlier and helped build up
and establish the church. They might have worked harder and accomplished more than who
came after. However, this does not grant us preference or status before God. If by God’s grace
we were saved first, we are called to serve those who come after us all the more.
Secondly, this parable was particularly meant for the Jewish people. The Jews are the chosen
nation of God. This also led to strong national pride. They had pride in the fact that God had
chosen them and led them through thousands of years. Even today, Israel continues to exist
against all odds, because of their strong national identity.
Why did God choose the Israelites? Why did God choose Abraham and choose David to bring
us the Messiah. God did not choose Israel because of their ability or worth, but He chose them
as His tool to bring salvation to the world. God’s purpose was to bring us the Messiah through
Israel.
The Jewish people did not understand this, and they thought they were God’s chosen people for
their own salvation. They considered the Gentiles unclean and unworthy of salvations.
How tragic was their thinking? The Jewish people rejected Christ due to their wrong beliefs, and
salvation was proclaimed to Gentiles through Christ. The Jewish people believe that salvation is
their own right, and this has led to countless conflicts even to this day. The Middle East is filled
with conflict with no end in sight.
It is true that the Jewish people are God’s chosen people. However, this was not for their own
glory and for their own salvation. Salvation has been given to both Jews and Gentiles. God has
promised one denarius to both Jews and Gentiles. Salvation is our reward irregardless of how
quickly or slowly we have come to faith.
Then what is the benefit of coming to faith early? It is not to receive an extra reward, but it is
found in seeing salvation being given to those that come after us. As we see them also getting
their one denarius, we can shout Hallelujah Praise the Lord! This may be difficult to relate with,
but imagine seeing your own children coming to faith. The child you have been praying for and
worrying about finally appeared at the vineyard at 5 PM.
Others may say that this is unfair, but a parent’s hope is for them to still receive that one
denarius. This is why we shout Hallelujah even if they showed up late. It doesn’t matter if you
have worked more. You are just glad that the lost child had finally come. This is the heart of God
and this is the Christian’s heart. This is the promise of salvation.
Thirdly, this parable gives us an application. The grace of God is given to us regardless of when
we come to faith. There are those who believed from a young age, and there are those who
believed when they are old. There are even those who are saved right before they die.
However, the reward is still one denarius. Some may live a life full of sin and find faith right
before they die, and yet they are still rewarded one denarius.
Let’s look at the thief that was next to Jesus on the cross. The Thief had never met Jesus before
and had no theological training. However, he was able to meet Jesus on the cross. When the
other thief cursed Jesus, this thief said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your
kingdom.” Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” This thief was
able to receive salvation as he was dying on the cross. God’s grace and forgiveness were still
given to him.
Fourthly, we learn that our works are not judged by the quantity, but instead judged on the type
of work that they did. The world pays us according to what we are able to accomplish. The more
we work the more we get paid. However, the way that Heaven rewards us is completely
different.
Let’s look at Verse 6-7
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.
The workers are day laborers who earn just enough to survive for the day. They do not have a
consistent job and are not earning a salary. Most jobs allow the worker to take a few days off
and still be able to provide for their family, however day laborers earn enough to last for the day.
They wait for someone to hire them and do whatever job is required of them. Even if they are
hired for the day, the next day is not guaranteed.
So when the verse mentions that these workers were waiting until 5PM, this means that they
had been waiting all day to get hired. They were desperate for a job and needed the money to
provide for themselves for the day. They could not just go home and rest. They were willing to
work even a few hours to provide food for their families.
When the owner asks, “Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?” They
answered, “No one has hired us.” Can you understand their disappointment and frustration?
These day laborers have been waiting all day and hoping to earn even a little bit of money to
provide for their families. How does God treat these people? God rewards those who have
worked all day and those who only worked one hour in the same way. The work that God gives
us is not for us to earn money or worldly benefits, but it is all for the glory of God. The workers
glorify God by serving the people around themselves and by serving God. This is a holy and
joyful work.
Fifthly, this parable teaches us that God is full of grace and filled with generosity. Let’s look at
Verse 14.
“Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you.”
The feeling you get from this verse is that the owner is annoyed and tells the workers that he is
giving them exactly what he promised. The promised compensation was 1 denarius and this is
exactly what he was giving them. Why does it matter if the owner is being more generous to
some of the workers.
Verse 15 says, “Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you
envious because I am generous?”
God is the God of grace and the God of mercy. He wants to give the same blessing to those
who came later as well as those who were earlier.
However, the workers complained and thought that this was unfair. The first reason they
complained was because they were wanting justice. They thought it was unjust that they worked
8 hours and received the same reward as those who worked 1 hour. Even if they were promised
the same, they thought the promise was unfair. They do have a point, but as they wanted
justice, they forgot about love and grace.
Justice without Love and Grace is like a sharp knife. It can be used to harm and kill people.
Justice is like a surgery that removes an illness. It can be used for good, but it is necessary to
sew them back together and bring healing. If you fail to properly close the incision, there is harm
and even death. Today’s society always shouts for justice, but why is there no justice or
righteousness in this world? It is because we are lacking in love.
The workers who are complaining in this parable are wielding the sharp knife of justice without
love. However, the owner is acting out of love and grace. One denarius was a day’s wage and
what was needed to survive. When God sees us and sees our flaws and sins, and even if we
come to Him at the end, God wants to give us grace and mercy and salvation.
We see this same love and grace in the parable of the Prodigal Son. The father could have
easily said, “Look at this ungrateful son. I will punish him before accepting him.” This is how
most people would have responded. However, the father in the Prodigal Son does not say this.
When he sees his son in the distance, he runs to him and accepts him. This is our Father’s
heart in Heaven. The father embraces his son that was living amongst pigs, and he clothes him
in clean clothes and puts his ring upon him. He invites everyone to have a feast for the son that
was lost and had come home. God accepts sinners in the same way. Even if you are late, He
still responds with love and grace.
However, there are those who are dissatisfied. In the parable of the prodigal son, the older
brother is unhappy. The younger brother had received his inheritance and wasted it, while the
older brother stayed working for his father. He had not wasted his inheritance foolishly like the
younger brother. However, he complains that the father had never thrown a feast in his honor or
placed his ring upon his finger. Anyone can understand the older brother’s frustrations. How did
the older brother view his younger brother’s return? He viewed it through the eyes of justice.
This is the same way that the workers who worked all day viewed the workers who came at the
end.
However, the father’s view was different from the older brother’s view. The father says, “My son,
you were always with me…but this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost
and is found.” The father was sad that the older brother could not understand the love he had
for his son. The older brother could not understand the love and grace of the father.
Beloved members of Acts Church!
Heaven is where God is patiently waiting for us full of love and grace. God rewards those who
worked for 8 hours and those who worked for 1 hour both equally with 1 denarius. He wants us
to understand His heart and respond with joy when we see those who come after us receive the
same reward.
Heaven and the Church is not a place to honor those who came first, but it is a place that
welcomes and loves those who come after. They say, “Come I have warmed a place for you.”
Jesus concludes his parable in Verse 16. “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Amen!
I pray that this week you may also continue to walk with Christ.