Isaiah
55:6-9 Phillipians 1:12-14, 19-30 Matthew 20:1-16
Grace, Mercy and
Peace to you from God our Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Our text today is the Gospel lesson just read, especially these words: “So the last will be first, and the first
last.” Thus far our text.
Dear friends in
Christ. I want my just reward. I want what I think I deserve. This is the attitude of the man in our
parable today. He has agreed to work for
the entire day for a set wage, one denarius.
He labors, working hard at his tasks for the day. And as he works, others come in later in the
day. Some come in a few hours later, and
some others even come in at the last minute, only an hour before the end of the
day. As this man works in the vineyard,
he talks with those who are around him, and learns that they too have been
promised a denarius. The man begins to
think about it. If the man working only
one hour receives a denarius, then don’t I deserve 12 times more? After all, I have worked longer then they
have. I have been here a whole day, and
they have only been here a few short minutes.
As the man watches
the late comers receiving their pay, he begins to imagine what he will do with
his extra income. He begins to imagine
what things he will buy, what sort of food he will eat. He tells himself he really deserves these
things, after all the early bird gets the worm, and I was here first, so I
should get a bonus for what I have done.
You can imagine the man’s
surprise then when he receives his wage for the day’s work, the single denarius
that he was promised at the beginning.
That’s not fair,
is it? That shouldn’t be the way it
works, should it? If someone works
longer, they should get more, shouldn’t they?
They should be more richly rewarded for their faithfulness. And yet, the man in our text received exactly
what he was promised, exactly what he agreed to. He received his just reward.
And what of you,
dear friends in Christ? What does this
say to you? What message can you pluck
from this tale that Jesus tells us?
Friends, the truth is that it is for us that Jesus speaks this
parable. It is for the situations that
we are in. We know what our hope
is. We know what our promise is. We have received the Kingdom from Jesus, we
have had our sins forgiven in the precious blood that flowed from the
cross. We have life, and life to the
full. And we have been promised heaven
for living a life of faith here in this world.
What a gift! What a blessing. For you see that life of faith isn’t even dependent
on us. It is a free gift that Jesus
gives us. Something we don’t deserve,
something we don’t earn, something that is a blessing. And yet, like the man in the parable, we
believe we have earned it, and that it is ours to determine for ourselves. And so just like the man in the parable, we
often look down on those who are around us.
We like to compare ourselves with them, saying, “I am better than he is,
aren’t I? Come on Lord, don’t I deserve
something better than that sinner over there.
I mean, I have done more good things for you, haven’t I?”
We are prideful
people, aren’t we? We do like comparing
ourselves with others, because we are so good at seeing the speck in someone
else’s eye. We are so good at judging
someone else to be guilty while ignoring the glaring sin in our own life. I have been a Christian longer than you, so I
have a greater say in this church. I
have done more good for our community, so listen to what I want. I have sinned less than that poor miserable
person there, so I am holier, aren’t I?
In all of these things, we put ourselves into the first and most
important position, the position of power.
And so we grumble to the master of the house, Jesus, and say, “These
last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne
the burden of the day and the scorching heat.”
But “The last will
be first, and the first will be last.” Friends, it isn’t about being better, it
isn’t about deserving more. Christianity
isn’t about any of these things. Being a
Christian is about Jesus, the one who had all glory, power, and honor, and yet
gave it up on your behalf. As St. Paul
writes in Philippians, “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider
equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the
very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he
humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!” Jesus puts himself in last place so that you
can receive life. He takes your deserved
punishment upon himself so that you can receive his reward. He dies, so that you may live.
And Jesus has made
all Christians equal in his eyes in that he has given to all who confess his
name eternal life. It isn’t that Jesus
is cutting you out, it isn’t that Jesus is taking away what you think you
deserve. No, Friends, Jesus is giving
you the whole thing, and he gives it to those others who believe in him as well. And because all that Jesus gives is a free
gift, we are to receive it with thanksgiving, and with joy. We are to look at those others who also
receive the gifts of God with joy as well.
Look how much love your God has.
Look how he has lavished forgiveness upon all people who trust in
him. Look how much he has done for you,
and your sin, and the sin of the whole world.
Look how he made himself last so that you could be first.
It’s not
fair. It’s not the way it should work,
is it? God gives to all, including you,
even when we don’t deserve it.
Amen.
