Theme: Don’t begrudge God’s generosity
Text: Jonah 4:1-11; Phil. 1:21-30; Matt. 20:1-16
The decision to believe in Christ is an important decision every person has to make in life as it affects where we will spend eternity. Paul believed in Christ and knew he would spend eternity in His presence and so could confidently declare “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain”. (Phil. 1:21) Paul chose to live because he was concerned about the eternal destiny of those living without Christ. He wanted to lead them to Christ so that they could live a life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Life is like a marketplace filled with people who need to hear the gospel of Christ. The labourers in Jesus’ parable today would have spent the whole day in the marketplace, idle and without hope, if the landowner had not offered them a job. The men who were hired last worked only one hour, yet were paid the same as those who had worked 12 hours. They received more than they expected and were grateful for the generosity of the landowner. The labourers who were employed first negotiated a wage and had no reason to hold a grudge against the landowner for his generosity.
The negotiation of a contract is part of the value system of the world. This system uses productivity to determine wages. The first workers employed in the parable chose this system to relate to the landowner. The value system of the world has a pay structure that increases with increased working hours. Workers who work longer hours are paid more than those who work less hours. It also demands that those who have spent a longer time in employment are considered first and given preference when increases in wage and bonus are due.
The value system of God is different from the value system of the world. God does not treat us according to our works but according to His compassion and mercy. According to their works the people of Nineveh deserved to be destroyed. God, however, in mercy sent Jonah to call them to repentance. Jonah hated the people of Nineveh so much he run away in the opposite direction to avoid preaching to them. When he finally came to Nineveh, the whole city repented and was saved. Jonah instead of being happy at what had happened was so grieved that he was ready to die. He felt that the people of Nineveh did not deserve to be saved although he himself was a recipient of the grace, mercy and love of God. God does not want any of us to perish and through repentance and belief in Christ we have access to His presence. Let us turn to Christ today and enjoy His abundant provision.
The value system of God is based on love “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”. (John 3:16) God does not love us because of who we are and what we have done but because of who He is. “God is love”. This value system is by grace because Christ has fully paid the price for sin. We are saved “By grace through faith, and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God”. (Eph. 2:8) The workers who did not work the full time knew perfectly well that they had received a gift they did not deserve. The reason the men who worked 12 hours in the vineyard were so upset was that they were only concerned about themselves. They resented the generosity of God because it was not extended to them.
The men who accepted the value system of God were spared the value system of the world. In the world’s value system wages were determined by productivity, working hours and seniority. In God’s value system relationship replaced work and His generous provisions replaced wages as seen in today’s parable. The landowner was more concerned about a relationship with the labourers than about the work. On His first trip to the marketplace the labourers he employed were more interested in their reward that they first negotiated their wages. To them it was just another day’s work, a job, and a pay cheque. They missed the landowners’ interest in a relationship. On His subsequent trips at 9 O’clock in the morning, at noon, at 3 O’clock in the afternoon and finally at 5 O’clock these workers realised the value of a relationship with the landowner. They saw no need to negotiate a wage. God values each one of us and offers us to work in His kingdom because He wants a relationship with us. Let us accept His gracious offer and enjoy His presence.
We can only accept the value system of God when we trust Him. The first group of workers who were hired negotiated with the landowner to be paid the daily wage. Those who were hired afterwards trusted the landowner’s fairness and needed no contract. They simply accepted his words ‘you also go into the vineyard and whatever is right you will receive’. Negotiated contracts are necessary in the business world but have no place between God and man. God knows our needs better than we do and He desires to meet our needs only if we will let Him. If God were to listen to some of us and enter into a contract with us, we would find life very miserable. Left to His own desires, God will always do what is right. His mercy is always greater than what we deserve and His abundant grace is able to forgive us every sin. If we would leave the choice to Him, He will always give us more than we deserve or can ever earn.
We may want our employers to deal with us fairly in terms of work and pay, but no one would want God to be fair in His dealings with them. If God were to deal with us according to what we deserved, we would all perish. This is why when we think about salvation, we should not think about it in terms that suggest that people are saved because they had worked long and hard enough to merit it. We need to appreciate that salvation is not earned but given purely by grace. Unfortunately many people still believe salvation can be earned. No amount of works or money can save us. We are saved by grace alone. Salvation cannot be earned ‘for by grace we have been saved through faith, and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.’
In God’s Kingdom life does not always appear to be fair and we can be thankful that what God values are different from what the world values. This is the reason why we can crucify God’s Son and be forgiven, why we can rebel against God, spitting in his face, and be forgiven and why a thief or a murderer can confess in the final moment of life and be forgiven. We can thank God that His kingdom is run on grace and that we are saved by grace and not by anything that we can do. The last words of Jesus on the cross were ‘it is finished’. All that ever needed to be done to pay the penalty for man’s sin and to purchase pardon and salvation for all men has already been accomplished by the suffering and death of Christ. To suggest that any man might ever need to do anything more would be to reject the testimony of God’s Word and to discredit the efficacy of Christ’s atonement. Any attempt by any man to earn salvation by his own good works is in effect an insult to God. The penalty for sin has been paid for and the Lord is, as it were, standing in the market place imploring all the people to come to Him. He is imploring all of us to come to where our needs can be met. It is a call to everyone who is not satisfied and who feels that his or her life is incomplete. The only qualification that is made to the invitation is that one must recognize his or her need. The invitation is to all but the offer isn’t available indefinitely. Today is the hour to receive God’s favour; today is the day of salvation. The salvation of God is there for all that will come to him in repentance and faith. God’s grace and gifts are not given to reward us for what we have done but to meet our needs. Our greatest need in the world is Jesus Christ and He is inviting everybody to come to Him. Have you accepted His invitation? Do you believe in Jesus Christ? Let us thank our Lord and Saviour for saving us and bringing us into the kingdom of God. Amen!
