Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country.. Jesus further explained the participation rules of the Kingdom of Heaven, which is only by God's grace. We know that your work with us is to the end that we may produce more fruit, that all of us here in this vineyard will be so fruit-laden, that it will be a fruitful place which will make the world around us drool with desire to learn the secret of such fruit. Many employees look forward to this day as another paid day off from work. They plant their empires through conquest and war (Genesis 10:8-12), intoxicated with a taste for blood instead of the pure wine of divine governance (Revelation 17:2, 6). "Abide in me, and I in you," and you will be fruitful -- without realizing it -- manifesting the characteristics of the Spirit, the fruit of the Spirit, the quality of life which is like Jesus. -Serving Here in remarkable imagery he captures the work which goes on in our lives as the Father employs the circumstances in which we are found, the situations of our lives, to make us heed and hear the Word which corrects and changes. He sovereignly rules over all of creation and none of us have a legitimate claim on it. Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours. So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Website 2023 by Ray Stedman Ministries. And though you are responsible to make the decisions and make the choices, you are not responsible for the power to carry them out. This is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED BY YOU BUILDERS, WHICH HAS BECOME THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE. Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.. WebJesus, by the parable of the laborers in the vineyard, shows that God is debtor unto no man; 17. foretells his passion; 20. by answering the mother of Zebedee's children, teaches his disciples to be humble; 29. and gives two blind men their sight. God graciously gives according to His will, as He so chooses. This is a picture of those church members who, despite attending church, never have any manifestation of truth, never have any sign in their lives of that quality of love and forgiveness and understanding and compassion which is born of the Holy Spirit, but are rigid and narrow and hard and harsh and condemning and difficult -- even though they say and do the "right" thing. At the close of Chapter14 our Lord said to his disciples, "Rise, let us go hence." Then He began to tell the people this parable: A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time. For many are called, but few chosen.. 2 And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. The fact that the labourers are in a vineyard suggest the Eucharist, with the clergy as the workers providing the super-substantial bread and wine of salvation. He received a note one day during a meeting that said the following: Dear Dr. Torrey, I am in great perplexity. In the first 13 verses of chapter 20 of the Book of Matthew, Jesus is telling the parable about workers being paid equally. Matthew Henrys Commentary tells us that the immediate object of this parable is, to show that the Jews were first called into the vineyard, finally, the gospel should be spread to the Gentiles, and that they are to be conceded to the same advantages and benefits with the Jews. Thus, this parable flies at the heart of that assumption. But what about the other four groups of workers? Do you want to be recognized as one who follows Jesus? In making claims of unfairness, we forget who the boss isand it is not us! This parable is about the masters generosity His grace. Its a place where to keep you from being idle, to ensure you dont live a Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit." They mistakenly believe that they own whatever they possess. This is what Bible study and prayer are all about. WebThe Workers In The Vineyard Matthew 20:1-16ESV / 10 helpful votes HelpfulNot Helpful For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire May our attitude be as Jesus said: Luke 17:10 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. Also, there is much work to be done. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." All of us have learned, one way or another, that love demands a response if it is to grow. (John 15:9-10 RSV). Making decisions and then trying to do the whole thing yourself, as though the whole responsibility rests upon you, is going to produce a fruitless Christian life -- intense activity, but no results. But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Pingback: Laborers in Gods Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16) | Good Hope Baptist Church. What a fantastic group they are!" By the third evening the guests are all asking, "Where did you ever get this tremendous crew of young people? "But the plans of the LORD stand firm for ever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. We Christians are God's great vineyard. It is not activity which glorifies God; it is character, it is what you are, and the way you react to a situation. When the Landowner went out at the eleventh hour and asked, Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing? (verse 6), they replied, Because no-one has hired us (verse 7). Let me tell you why they are the way they are." By doing so, we heed Pope Franciss advice in Evangelii Gaudium to say no to an economy of exclusion and inequality andyesto an economy that restores human dignity (No. Choose from news (Monday), leisure (Thursday) or worship (Saturday) or get all three! Economic security is an essential foundation for strong families, explained Father Ty Hullinger, pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, who joined other Baltimore Catholics in a successful campaign for Right to Recall in his city. If we do that we are fulfilling this active, necessary decision of the will to obey his Word, to do what he says, and to stay in touch with him. But if you try, you find that there will be no fruit, no Christlikeness, no manifestation of that beautiful character which arrests the attention of others. It might be something seemingly insignificant that may be behind the scenes or a small task or it might be something that will impact many others. Do you love Jesus? This fact leaves us all without excuse, because there is some valuable job of work we can all do. For example, the Lord needs: To all of us the Lord says - Revelation 3:8! Lets take the definition of fruitfulness. You do not even have to do a thing to manifest that. In our churches and Sunday schools, the need for born again, soul-winning workers is very great. Then God the Father sent His only Son. The marketplace represents the world, furthermore, it is from there that the Gospel of Christ has called us. The point here is that it is the masters money and he can pay as much or as little as he wants. There is a pruning time, a pruning season. You are to rest upon his ability to see you through, to work it out. There is a spiritual principle here. Suffice it to say, the Lord will someday reward the person who may have been a member of a small church. He will compensate us as indicated by our devotion to do the work that he has called us to do. Both of these are necessary in the Christian experience. No matter how long or how much you have served God, you do not deserve His grace. They are mistaken! In between, theres not a lot of work to do. Every Christian, everywhere, should be fully engaged in active service for the Lord in these desperately needy days either by prayer (Matthew 9:38), or by preaching (Acts 5:42) - or by both (Acts 6:4). He may have been eager to make sure people had work. On the other hand, he says, "He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." No, it simply stays in the vine and lets the life of the vine produce the fruit. I will send my beloved son. In the parable that Jesus tells, the master of the vineyard called many, You too go and work in my vineyard!. None of us deserve Gods grace. For those who have accepted Christ and may at times cry foul when life seems unfair, remember that the truly desirable thing is to be called by the Master and work with all our might not for the reward but out of love for the Master. But this man seems to have had a large vineyard that was supposed to make him a lot of money. 5"I am the vine; you are the branches. Fruitfulness brings glory to GOD. WebMatthew Chapter 20. Our Father, as you have been walking through your vineyard this morning, you have been looking at various vines growing here. Only believing in Christ and accepting him as Lord and Savior is what prompts a home in heaven. Pride got in their way. All they hear is, "Do as you please." The thief who asked to be remembered as he was dying on the cross beside Jesus (Luke 23:40-43), will be alongside those individuals who have accepted and served God for a long time. He was with the Lord -- spent three and a half years with him. Was it unfair for them to receive what they received from the master of the vineyard? And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my names sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life. This is somewhat counter cultural as the world seems fixated on entitlements. Then the owner of the vineyard said, What shall I do? "Without me you can do nothing.". Article Images Copyright 2023 Getty Images unless otherwise indicated. Does it Matter That I Didn't Keep My Goals for Lent? And from that we saw that obedience grows out of love. (2) Christian authors and teachers who use the printed word. You may believe that the master of the vineyard owes those workers more. But it must be preceded by that vital phrase, "Love God." Therefore, while Jesus acknowledged that His followers, particularly the Twelve Disciples, would receive a hundredfold reward and will inherit eternal life, He goes on to explain the nature of Gods reward. And if you are truly loving him, you can ask whatever you will. We are to abide in him (that is active, something we do), and we are to let him abide in us (that is passive, something we allow him to do). He even shared in the experience of ministry with the other disciples. Instead there will be a shabby sham, a phony imitation of the real thing, which will drive people away from Christ and will produce nothing but a dull, mechanical religiosity which is piousness without God. If you try to make all the choices and carry all the responsibility yourself, you will lead a fruitless life. Caring for Gods Vineyard: My Sermon on Matthew 21:33-46. 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Maybe the master was trying to keep the unemployment rate low during that time. Given the circumstances, we should center around God's benevolence toward us, and be grateful for what we have. But many are troubled by those who claim that, unless a Christian is constantly winning others to Christ, he is a fruitless Christian. Israel was that vine. But when that call comes at the eleventh hour, they cannot say that they had not been called. Just come to Him and place your trust in Jesus Christ. Upon graduation, Kenyiawa said that joining the Laborers International Union is his opportunity to leave a firm foundation for (his) family.. The vineyard is the kingdom, the sphere of Gods rule. When God sent someone to give a message, they would not listen. Do you love people? We would be foolish to appeal to God for justice rather than grace, for if we really received justice, we would all be condemned. So you can do what you please when you love God. His beautiful analogy has helped a great many Christians to understand the relationship God wants them to know. Jesus told a couple parables that deals with the heart of those who are called to do Gods work. Now remain in my love. On the other hand, our Lord gives us the results of fruitbearing -- four beautiful manifestations. (John 15:4-5 RSV). Many people in Jesus day had a small personal vineyard on their own small plot of land that they worked for themselves. From then on there are still no meetings, but invariably every week there are those guests who come and say, "I want to know more about this." Notice the workers were called at different times:-. When he said, "I am the true vine," he did not mean, "true in contrast with something false, fake, counterfeit," but rather "real, genuine, as opposed to the mere copy or symbol." If you love somebody, and reach out toward them, you can go only so far unless they respond to that love. It appears that this master, however, does not share that expectation. Giving. This is the way that manifestation of discipleship is accomplished. There was a sense in which the workers were right in standing and waiting. (3) Criticism (verse 15) - criticism of the Lord and of His dealings. If you open your Bible and begin to read it without the conscious expectation that it is going to tell you something about him, you will read in vain. The fact of the matter is that God does not work that way. We should never compare ourselves to others. All that we have, including all that the church receives and has belongs to Him. We do not deserve anything from Him. She holds a masters degree in theology.). He did everything possible to cause it to produce grapes. Furthermore, it is added to any new believers as a consolation of the grace of God. But that was not the end of it; there was to be more as they went on. 3 And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, The result will be, "Ask what you will". And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out. Gods vineyard is the entire earth, and the workers in the vineyard He does not show favoritism. Here is the process in which the branch is cut off, and then it withers -- grows dry and dull and dead. He will interview perhaps 300 young people and from them select only 30. How that can be deduced from this parable is difficult to understand, because there is nothing in it which suggests that at all. It is a matter of human dignity, he said. Chris Swansonanswered the call into the ministry over 20 years ago. If you are not feeling the depth of love you would like to experience, one of the reasons may be that you are not responding to the love which is already reaching out to you. You suddenly were confronted with what you were doing to yourself and to others -- you felt it and heard it and saw it. There is also the other side -- "Let me abide in you." God sent prophets to Israel to tell them to get right with God, but they were ignored, beaten, and/or killed. Is that what we really want? The purpose of this vine, obviously, is to bring forth fruit. And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, saying, These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day. But he answered one of them and said, Friend, I am doing you no wrong. It is the love of Jesus for us, "shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit" (Romans 5:5 KJV), which awakens our love toward him in response. The leaders of Israel did not see it that way. If you left everything family, friends, a good job, material possessions in order to follow Jesus, you might expect something more from Jesus. He does not even owe us a denarius. Gods desire is that we are all saved and that we are all filled with joy. Cultivating the vineyard of the Lord includes cultivating the lives of those who toil in the vineyard. (John 15:3 RSV). Open Jobs. New Heart English Bible For we are God's fellow workers. In fact, if God were to give us exactly what we do deserve, we would receive condemnation. It is now generally viewed as a time for barbecues and the end of summer, but it was originally observed to acknowledge the contribution workers make to our society. You cannot tell him when to answer your prayers. However, the illustration might be applied all the more by and large to show us that God is not in debt to anyone; an extraordinary truth. Both these relationships are absolutely essential, not one as opposed to the other but both together. (LogOut/ The late evangelist pastor, and writer, R. A. Torrey had an interesting perspective on this. Thus, the parable is not about us, but about Him. 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