Scripture: Matthew 20: 1-16 (Call to Worship - Psalm 145:1-8)
Theme: God - "My World (Vineyard) - My Rules - My Grace"
Looking at the Parable from a spiritual, physical, emotional and social viewpoint:
I. THE LORD HAS WORK FOR ALL OF US THIS MORNING!
II. SECONDLY, WE SEE GOD SHARES GRACIOUSLY WITH EVERYONE!
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God our Father and from His Son Jesus the Christ who came to take away the sins of our world!
One of the joys of growing up in my little neighborhood in Kentucky was that the children in our area would get together to play games. More often than not the children would all gather at our house. We had the most children and so it just was a natural place for us to gather there to play a game. We might play hide and go seek or a game of softball or even a game of kick ball. Afterwards we would usually have something to drink and a few of my mom's cookies. Come to think of it, it might have been my mom's cookies that caused us to play at our house.
Before we would start any game the older children would lay down the rules. They wanted everything to be fair and just. We had to know where to run and how we could get someone out. In softball that was easy but when it came to kickball you had to hit below the shoulders. Some of us were small and we didn't want anyone to get hurt because then we couldn't play. Everything had to be just so and so. These were the rules and we were going to have a fair and honest game.
Now, of course that didn't mean that everything always worked out. There were times that we younger ones couldn't kick the ball very good, we were not very good at hide and seek and we were no "Babe Ruth" at hitting the softball. And so, the older ones would "fudge" the game a bit. They would allow us to have four strikes in softball, they would miss us on purpose with the ball in kick ball and they would let us find them in hide and seek.
However, as is usually the case there were some that didn't think that was fair. It was usually the ones that were just old enough to know how to play but still not good enough to be the best. They thought everyone should have to play by the same rules. But since it was the older and bigger children that let us "fudge" the game a bit the middle children couldn't do anything about it.
Our games were a lot like our Gospel passage this morning. Matthew shares with us a passage in which Jesus is revealing a bit more what the Kingdom of Heaven looks like. Jesus does this not only to give us some more information but to challenge us to make our own human society resemble more and more God's Kingdom in Heaven. Jesus wants us to know that when it comes to playing out the game of life here on earth we are to go more by God's Rules than we are our own made up rules. God's grace is to always override our human rules of fairness and justice.
Let's dig into our passage and see what the Holy Spirit wants to teach us:
I. THE LORD HAS WORK FOR ALL OF US THIS MORNING!
One of the things that emerges from this passage is the fact that time after time this vineyard owner goes back to get more and more workers. In fact, he goes to the marketplace five different times. He starts out early in the morning, and then returns at the 3rd hour, the 6th hour, the 9th hour and for a final time at the 11th hour.
The whole scene of this parable might be unfamiliar to many of us this morning. However, at that time and even in some places today, day laborers were and are a common sight in the marketplace. People gather from all walks of life seeking for someone to hire them for the day. Some of those seeking such occupation back at in Jesus' day would have been slaves that their masters would have tried to rent out for the day. These would be slaves who didn't have enough work on master's place and so their masters would try to pick up a little bit of extra money by renting out them out.
The rest of the group would be a varied and sundry mix of humanity. Some of the people vying for work would be those who were unemployed and were desperate to find work to feed their families and provide a little shelter. Others would include those who had just lost their land or homes due to high taxes and therefore would be willing to do anything they could to scrape by. Many gathering there were women and children who had lost their husbands and/or parents and were merely looking for a bit of food and some safe lodging. Finally, there would be a group made up of those who suffered from some type of handicap, had been recently been released from prison or were prostitutes. All of these various groups of individuals were seen as the expendables by ancient society.
All of these individuals made up the lowest rung of ancient society. And more often than not they suffered from various health issues including malnutrition, chronic disease and near death starvation. Many of those who could not find any day work would try to make their way to the Temple and its surrounding area to beg for a piece of bread or a coin or two from those who were going to say their prayers or attend Torah classes.
It's important to remember that ancient society had a very shallow safety net for those who had fallen on hard times. By our modern standards their world was a cruel world. It was a world in which it was not uncommon to see a dead body lying beside the road due to some horrible disease or starvation. It was not uncommon to see whole families being forced to live outside with very little food, clothing or shelter. A great deal of what we call human decency today is a result of the rise of Christianity. We owe a lot to our spiritual ancestors who took the message of Jesus very seriously. So seriously that they saw as their mission not only to prepare people for the life to come but to enable them to live an abundant life here and now.
When Jesus shared this parable all those around him would have fully understood what was going on. The setting was that of a grape harvest. Which means it was around the time of mid to late September ( The Hebrew month of Tishrei). The owners of the vineyards knew that they only had a very short time to get their grape harvests in before the rainy season. That is why we see the landowner coming back time and time again. Time was of the greatest essence.
No doubt those who were listening to Jesus had watched this very scene happen time and time again. And just perhaps some of them listening knew firsthand what it meant to be a day laborer. They too had suffered some type of devastating loss and found themselves needing to find work to put some food on the table, to cloth their family and to keep a roof over their heads. Life back then was pretty much day to day.
JUST AS THE LANDOWNER HAD PLENTY OF WORK FOR THESE LABORERS TO DO WE ARE UNDERSTAND THIS MORNING THAT THE LORD HAS PLENTY OF WORK FOR US TO DO AS WELL.
Our God is on a worldwide rescue and redemption mission. Our God is on a worldwide restoration mission. That rescue, redemption and restoration mission includes not only all of us humans but all of creation as well. For all of creation has been adversely affected by the Fall. We humans of course have suffered the most but the truth is all of creation has been affected by sin - it's chaos, it's disintegration and death.
Therefore, as part of God's Great Co-Mission we are called to make disciples. Disciples that will live out the life that Jesus' death and resurrection has made possible. Disciples that have repented of their sins, been baptized by water and infilled by God's Holy Spirit. Disciples that then go out and do God's Work. Work that includes the healing of our bodies, our minds, our souls and our world.
Which of course means that God not only calls ministers and teachers but doctors, nurses, carpenters, bankers, bakers along with secretaries, mangers and bus drivers. He calls people to raise animals, others to care for the environment and still others to help provide food, shelter and clothing for those living in our world. He calls grief counselors, law officers and a million more different occupations as well.
The Great Commission is not only to save people's souls - it is to save God's Good Creation. The Great Commission is fulfilling God's Great Rescue, Redemption and Restoration Movement for our whole world. Jesus told his disciples that He came so that they might have abundant life and a large part of that abundant life means putting our world back right - physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually. So, whatever field you are working in the LORD is calling you to help Him transform our world (HIS GOOD CREATION) and to fulfill the Lord's Prayer of "thy kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven."
And just like the land owner who went out to get anyone and everyone so too does the LORD reach out to get anyone and everyone. He wants everyone to be rescued, redeemed and in the process of being restored. He wants everyone to do all they can to bring the Kingdom of Heaven here on Earth. The LORD did not abandon our earth after the Fall or after the Flood. He is not ready to abandon it this morning. No, He has sent His Holy Spirit to infill us and to empower us to share the Good News - the Good News that God is doing all to rescue and redeem all of Creation. Therefore, this morning there is plenty of work for all to do in and through the power and presence of God's Holy Spirit. God's invitation is for everyone this morning.
II. SECONDLY, WE SEE GOD SHARES GRACIOUSLY WITH EVERYONE!
Not only is everyone invited to come and join in God's Mission but like the landowner in this parable everyone also is graciously rewarded.
Now, this caused a little problem. In verses 10 -15 we have a little discussion going on. Those who had worked the longest thought that they should receive a little more than those who had not worked as long. They felt like they should get an extra little bonus. After all, they had endured longer. They had no doubt picked more grapes and they were worse for wear. They were more tired, dirty and no doubt hungry.
I am sure that many here this morning might have some well founded sympathies for this first group. You might even want to take a moment and present their case. You might have even had the same thing happen to you. You may experienced a time in which you thought that you had worked harder than anyone else and yet you were not given any more for your hard work than some of your fellow workers. In fact, you might have been even paid less than what you thought your deserved.
Recently, a friend of mine had this happen to them. They were working on a project with their manager at work and discovered one day that the company had decided to reward them for their work. This one individual was given a $ 100.00 bonus and of course they were overjoyed. That is until they discovered that in reality the company had given a $ 1,000.00 bonus and the manager had kept $900.00 for themselves and shared only $ 100.00 with their co-worker. What made it even more difficult to handle was the fact that the idea originated with the worker and not with the manager. The manager had taken the idea and presented it as their own and then decided to take the lion's share of the reward even though they already made a salary 3 times larger than this particular worker.
That is not what we see this landowner doing. Instead, he does the very opposite. He graciously rewards everyone the same.
His reasoning is simple. Each person needed a day's pay to take care of their needs. The unemployed needed the money. The widow woman needed the money. The single mother needed the money. The man who just got out of prison needed the money. The handicap person needed the money and even those who felt forced to sell themselves needed the money. Perhaps it would enable them to escape a life of pain and heartache that comes with a life of immorality. Each person needed that money to exist for one more day.
The landowner was not so much into paying people a wage as he was making sure people could exist for one more day. He knew he couldn't take care of these people forever but he could bring them some dignity and provision for a few days. He could do all he could to make their lives a little better.
This story reminds me of the story of Ruth and Boaz. Each day Ruth would have to go out and glean in the fields to have enough grain to make her and mother-in-law Naomi some food. When she was able to get a little more than what they would need for the day, she would either store some up, sell it or sell the bread she made so that later on when the grain season was gone her and Naomi could survive.
The Bible tells us that one day Boaz saw Ruth working as hard as she could and decided to treat her a little differently. He decided that he would so to speak - fudge the normal rules. He told his workers to leave behind a little more grain so that Ruth could pick it up for herself and Naomi. Boaz did that out of a heart of compassion and grace.
It was out of this same type of heart of compassion and grace that we see this landowner. It is out of this same type of heart of compassion and grace that our Lord rewards us today with forgiveness, salvation and with the infilling presence of His Holy Spirit.
This passage has some definite spiritual overtones. We today have been graced to have worked in a far easier vineyard than those living years ago. Those like Polycarp at the age of 86 who were tied to a post to be burned might think that they deserve a greater piece of salvation than you and me. Those like Peter who were crucified and like Paul who was beheaded might think that they deserve a greater piece of salvation as well.
But then what about those like Noah who were required to stay faithful for some 950 years. How does Paul's life time of some 70 -80 years stack up against that? What about Moses who for 40 years had to put up with the most cantankerous bunch of people ever to walk on the earth? What about Isaiah who was told from the very beginning of his 50 - 60 year ministry that people would not listen to him nor heed his messages?
Spiritually, we all start off the same. We are fallen human beings enslaved in sin. But in the grace of Jesus we can all be the same. We can be rescued and redeemed by the blood of Jesus. Grace is totally unfair from a human point of view but totally fair from a divine point of view. You and I did not die for the world - God did. So, God gets to make the rules and His rule is whether you live a life of faithfulness for 950 years like Noah or for just a few hours like the thief on the cross then you still get the same everlasting reward.
And this is usually where we take this parable. We usually make the parable a spiritual lesson about grace, mercy and love. It makes us feel good. For in the end do we really want anyone to be lost? When it is our loved one that comes to faith on their death bed we are so thankful for God's grace.
Oh, at times we grumble and complain when someone gets a supernatural reward and is promoted in the church when they haven't spend the years toiling and suffering like we have. We at times get a little upset when all these outsiders are able to come in and receive all the rewards that we have worked so hard for all these years. But when we really think about it and pray about it we realize that God has given us so much grace over the years that we open up our arms to new comers and just welcome them in. The more the merrier. Amen? Amen!
The parable becomes a little more uncomfortable when we look at it from a physical, emotional and/or social viewpoint. It becomes a little more uncomfortable when we look at from an everyday practical life.
+WHAT if for example, the LORD wants us to understand that we are to involve ourselves in the lives of all those people groups that we find in this parable:
-The handicap, the unemployed, the widow, the single mother, those who have been in prison, those who for some reason or the other have lost their way or those who have even chosen to live a lifestyle that we don't approve.
What if we are to seriously go down to the market place and seek them out?
- To find ways in which we can work in their lives providing needed assistance.
- To find ways to help them come to our vineyards to experience a new life of dignity and grace.
-To find ways that they can learn new skills so that they can find employment, meet the needs of their families and themselves.
+WHAT if our mission is more than just spiritually getting someone saved and ready for the afterlife?
+WHAT if our mission is a merger between the evangelical gospel, the social gospel and even the liberation gospel?
+WHAT if this parable is trying to teach us that living the life of a disciple is more than just sharing the Good News but helping people come out of poverty and hardships?
+WHAT if this parable is more about how this landowner made sure that the handicap could work in his vineyard making sure that there was work for them to do?
+WHAT if this parable is more about how this land owner allowed that single mother to work while at the same time provided a place for her children to play and spend the day in safety and comfort?
+WHAT if this parable was to challenge us to help those who have suffered the loss of their job a way to regain some dignity and self-worth?
+WHAT if this parable was to challenge us to reach out to those who have suffered incarceration or those who have been enslaved to addictions and immorality and enable them to experience what it means to be surrounded by God's grace, mercy and love?
+WHAT if we were suppose to take this parable and live like this landowner?
+WHAT if we are to look around the place we work and see who is working just as hard as we are but are not making what we make and instead of thinking that they should have gotten more education or a better job instead try to find a way or ways for them to have more?
+WHAT if we are to be advocates of change within our corporate structures and do all we can to bring about a level of financial and social equality?
+WHAT if we who are paid more are simply to share with those who are paid less?
Immediately, we could find ourselves in verses 10 - 15. We could say - Hey, this is not about practical living it's about spirituality.
It's easy to give God's grace away as long as we don't have to give up our time, our resources and our energy. Suddenly, if we are faced in sharing our money with someone else then we are all for God's grace to be poured out upon everyone even those who we at times don't feel like they deserve it. God's grace after all doesn't cost us anything. However, making this parable practical could transform the way we live and the way we look at people.
Over the years I have gone to a great many churches that have had all different kinds of cards or forms to fill out. They ask for your name, your address and if you are in the faith or would like to be in the faith. They even ask at times if you would like to volunteer in a certain area or two, would like to receive giving envelopes or have a prayer request.
But very few churches ask if they can help out in the areas of finance, shelter or clothing. Very few churches ask if they can help the unemployed, the handicap or those who are suffering from addiction, been in prison or who are currently living the wrong life and are seeking a way out.
We do a pretty good job in times of crisis reaching out to people but when it comes to every day to day practical living we would rather keep this parable in its spiritual box rather than allow it to become practical in nature.
What would it do to our budgets if we had to provide counseling, food and shelter? What would it do to our time schedules if we had to help people find work, help them rehabilitate or find a new way of life?
I mean what this landowner does is amazing. He reaches out to everyone he can and provides for them a place to work and at the end of the day rewards each of them in such a way that they can make it another day.
We have to understand that the people involved in this passage wanted to get involved. Some of them waited 11 hours seeking work and help. They didn't go away. They waited and waited and waited. All they needed was for someone to come by and give them a chance. They were more than willing to work. They had stood out in the marketplace all day long in the heat ready to get involved.
Thankfully, this landowner came back time and time again. I wonder if each time he came back with a few, his mind went back to those who were still waiting. He just couldn't get them out of his mind. Even right before the closing bell he remembered that man or that woman who he knew needed some money to make it another day and so he returned to get them.
I think with all my heart this morning that Jesus wants us to have this mentality. The mentality and heart that doesn't quit. The mentality and heart that whether it's early or late we are still doing our best to help people into the Kingdom and to experience a better life.
I remember years ago being involved in a discussion concerning a mother and her children. Some people in the church were upset with her manner of dress and the manner of dress of her children. They would come to church with clothes that were not in the best shape - they either did not fit or they fit a little too tight and often it looked like the children had slept in them the night before. The mother's clothes were a little on the liberal side to speak - they were conservative in the amount of material they had at the top and bottom if you know what I mean.
Somehow I got drugged into the discussion. Was it appropriate for this mother and her children to attend our church? What would people say that saw them? What would visitors say who saw them? (You know you are in a great conversation when suddenly everyone is worried about the visitors).
So, I gave them what I thought were some good suggestions.
+Give the mom some money to buy some new clothes.
+Go out and buy some new clothes yourself and give them to the mom and the children.
+Buy a gift card and then secretly give it to the mom enabling her to buy some clothes and other needed items.
Suddenly, I found myself in verses 10 - 15. Do you mean we should take our hard earned money and merely give it away to this mother and her children? Surely, there was some Goodwill or Clothing Station that could take care of their needs. Surely, the government was giving her enough. The truth they thought was she must be wasting her money. There was no way Jesus would want them to intrude in her life in either of the ways I had suggested. Instead, they all decided that it was my job to make sure that she dressed right.
If they had taken the time to know this woman they would have understood that her husband (partner) had recently left her with all these children and did not pay child support. The little bit of money she got from the government didn't go very far. Their clothes came out of local rag barrels and not all the time did those clothes look good or fit properly. With four children the cost of day care alone made it impossible for her to find work. She did her best to find the odd job now and then but she couldn't be gone too long or social services would label her an unfit mother and take the children away because it would look like she abandoned them.
I would like to say that we adopted that family as a church and did our best to help them. A couple of individuals did do their best but they didn't have the means to help them each and every month. As a church we could have adopted them. It would have been tight but it could have been done with just a little more stretching here or there and little more giving here or there. In the end however the looks they got and some of the cold shoulders they received did the trick. In a few months we didn't have to worry about them any longer as they finally got the hint - they needed to go to some other vineyard.
It's hard to live out the faith of Jesus. It's hard because it not only involves the spirit but the physical, the emotional and the social. It's hard because it means that we get involved with all of humanity - the wealthy vineyard, his employed staff and other workers, the day laborers, the poor and the needy. It's hard because the LORD wants us to make sure that everyone around us has enough regardless of their position(s) in life. Regardless if they are at fault or merely the victim of unforeseen circumstances.
I think I would be more comfortable if we just go back to this parable and start looking at it only in its spiritual sense. After all, we can all agree:
Yes - God's grace is big. Yes - God's grace rewards all of us the same - whether our walk is faithful like Noah for 950 years or for a few minutes like the thief on the cross.
I like that. I can live with that. In fact, I can even get all holy and righteous with all of that. Oh, I may at times have to adjust some of my thinking about all these "Johnnie Come Lately" types but in the end I guess that is okay.
BUT TO SEE THIS PARABLE AS PRACTICAL?
+To have to think of ways that I can help people around me who receive less wages than what they should be getting?
+To actually have the courage to go to management and argue for equality?
+To actually propose that upper level salaries be lowered so that lower leveled salaries can then be moved upwards?
+To adopt a family secretly or corporately and help provide for their physical, social and financial needs?
Wow! Now. that is something else.
But that something is what Jesus shares with us through this Parable. This landowner is doing what he can to help others - to the point where he gives the same reward to everyone because everyone needs the same help.
This morning, I am fully aware that all of this doesn't come in line with capitalism and the American free market system. It is not the way we have been taught to believe how the system works. It's because we have been taught here in this country a Wall Street Mentality instead of a Jesus Mentality. Jesus is taking about Life in the Kingdom. Jesus is telling us that we are to take Grace and expand it to all areas of our world.
Someone has said the principles Jesus shared here are LISTERINE PRINCIPLES. We don't like them very much, they don't always taste good but in our hearts and minds we know that they are both true and right and good for us.
The bottom line is when it comes to life our God has a divine way of looking at what is fair and just. It's different than our human one. What He wants us to do is to adopt His way of looking at things - for that is the only way we fulfill the Great Co-Mission of rescuing, redeeming and restoring His World. That is the only way we partner with God in our prayer - "THY KINGDOM COME, THEY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN".
This morning as we close let us allow the LORD to speak to us through His Word. Let us allow His Word to lead us this week to do all we can for others. Let us not merely hear the WORD, take it in for a few moments and then allow it to fade away. Let us see what we can do to make a difference in our world!
Closing Song/Prayer/Open Altar
