He was with the Lord -- spent three and a half years with him. The point here is that it is the masters money and he can pay as much or as little as he wants. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. 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). Look up Psalm 126:6; Matthew 25:21; 1 Corinthians 4:2. Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours. So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. Take what is yours and go your way. Caring for Gods Vineyard: My Sermon on Matthew 21:33-46. Another way to state this and illustrate the unfairness is that those who worked the whole day received the same compensation that they agreed to receive as those who worked for only one hour. But when he came into his vineyard and looked for grapes, he found wild grapes instead sour, tasteless grapes. Upon graduation, Kenyiawa said that joining the Laborers International Union is his opportunity to leave a firm foundation for (his) family.. There is a pruning time, a pruning season. Though it is wonderful when one has the privilege of leading many to Christ, and any of us perhaps can do this on one occasion or another, it is no indication of fruitlessness if you never have had this experience. The parable provides an illustration of this statement. There will be a harvest and we need to work until that time. The Father's work is to find a branch which is beginning to bear fruit, beginning to produce the likeness of Christ, and to cut it back, trim off the shoots, so that it may bear more fruit. Nationally, the Catholic Labor Network works to build church-labor partnerships to further the work of justice, by protecting vulnerable workers and educating the faithful about church teaching, including on a just and living wage. Change). His beautiful analogy has helped a great many Christians to understand the relationship God wants them to know. Many employees look forward to this day as another paid day off from work. Matthew 20:1-16 For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. This is what Bible study and prayer are all about. Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. Surely, Catholic social teaching upholds the dignity of work and the rights of workers. We must, if we would have God answer our prayers, give up any thought that we have any claim upon God. The man who owns it has a heart of concern for what he calls "the up-and-outers" -- those who are over-privileged, who have all too much of everything, yet to whom very few are witnessing, telling them of life in Christ. He did everything possible to cause it to produce grapes. It is a solid education about the grace of God and his generosity toward humanity. 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. If they respond just a little, then your love can reach out further, can deepen and grow. Both these relationships are absolutely essential, not one as opposed to the other but both together. He owns everything. WebGod needs workers for his vineyard. To uphold the dignity of work and the rights of workers means to question unjust systems that violate human dignity by not paying a fair wage, withholding wages or preventing workers from their right to organize and bargain collectively for their safety, livelihood and protections on the job. We believe they deserved more. We will be compensated for our steadfastness to the errand that God has given us to perform, paying little heed to how little or how irrelevant it might show up as. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. In Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI quotes St. John Paul II in Laborem Exercens: In many cases, poverty results from a violation of the dignity of human work, either because work opportunities are limited (through unemployment or underemployment), or because a low value is put on work and the rights that flow from it, especially the right to a just wage and to the personal security of the worker and his or her family' (No. But what about the other four groups of workers? They may have been members of churches for years, but there is no life evident at all. 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. "But the plans of the LORD stand firm for ever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. His joy, the joy that was always there at the bottom of his heart, that gladness of relationship with his Father, is now to be our experience. Is that what we really want? Why should it matter when and where God hires these workers, or how much they receive, as long as we are united in Christ and focused on the mission of making disciples? Gods kingship overturns all our expectations of being treated as we deserve, all our human conventions of social honour, all our natural desires to be recognized as Did you ever see a bunch of grapes struggling to hang onto the vine, trying to grow larger? Several times, he found people standing idle in the marketplace, which may just mean that were unemployed, not that they were lazy. Millions live and die in Europe without a true knowledge of the love of God and of the way of salvation. As leaders, they should have been leading the people to Him. 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. Recall, verse two of the passage: Matthew 20:2 After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. I am always amazed to find people who read this as though the fruit were others won to Christ. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, Why have you been standing here idle all day? They said to him, Because no one hired us. He said to them, You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive., So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first. And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. No one can gain more favor than another, whether we spend a lifetime serving God or, like the thief on the cross, a person who comes to repentance at the end of ones life will be saved and enter into paradise (see Luke 23:39-43). When our hearts are moved by love it is easy to obey his word, for we obey the one we love. All rights reserved. Bible Meaning and Text. Let us remember that God is in control, not us. We must think about what is important eternally. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. It seemed to me a far cry from cleansing away debris to pruning back the branches -- until I learned that, in the usual practice of viticulture (i.e., the care of vines), the branches are pruned back each year in order to cleanse them. Maybe God has not called a few of us to accomplish something extraordinary or fantastic for him, yet would we say that we are unwavering in doing what he has allocated for us to do? The purpose of this vine, obviously, is to bring forth fruit. This huge story represents a vital truth: it is not the measure of time, which we serve nor the unmistakable quality or significance of our position, which decides our reward. It was so in the parable; it is so today. Probably they will respect him when they see him. But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, This is the heir. Who Are the Workers in the Parable of the Vineyard? But we are to be sober, be vigilant, and be steadfast in the faith (1 Peter 5:8-9). Joy, that sense of gladness of relationship with him, will increase as we go. It is also a holiday that is observed to celebrate those who labor. Notice that our Lord divides it into two sections. New Heart English Bible For we are God's fellow workers. Choose from news (Monday), leisure (Thursday) or worship (Saturday) or get all three! Needless to say, such behavior doesnt impress God at all. What Is the Significance of Not the Letter but of the Spirit? The workers of a railroad car manufacturing company began the strike because they thought they were not treated fairly. We can comfort others and show them the lifestyle choice since we have been assisted with our concerns by God and his workers (2 Corinthians 1:3-7). and do it wholeheartedly. We do not have to work at it. Web-Working in the vineyard involves work! If allowed to continue to grow, they would dissipate the life of the vine through so many branches that the vine would produce little or no fruit but would produce leaves instead. (4) workers who visit and use their practical skills (Acts 10:38). They must satisfy him that they love people. It was the 25th Sunday of the Year, cycle A. The good news is that God does bestow grace on us, the eleventh hour workers, and we receive the same reward of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal glory as the earliest workers. (LogOut/ Its a place where to keep you from being idle, to ensure you dont live a Notice that Jesus says here to the disciples, "You are already made clean." So you can do what you please when you love God. The day of work is their lifetime. In that respect, this parable is not based on reality. Almighty God, you have so linked our lives one with another that all we do affects, for good or ill, all other lives: So guide us in the work we do, that we may do it not for self alone, but for the common good; and, as we seek a proper return for our own labor, make us mindful of the rightful aspirations of other workers, and arouse our conc He is the boss in charge. So every vinedresser knows it is important to prune away these little sucker shoots in order that the vine may produce more fruit. We do not deserve anything from Him. (2) Jealousy (verse 10) - the Devils master-stroke among the Lords workers! This is the glory of Christian liberty. Many religious leaders are more interested in their fame and fortune than they are at leading people to the truth. 07/15/2018. A friend of mine passed through Palo Alto this week on his way to Colorado to participate in a very unusual ranch. But where love is responded to, it grows deeper and richer and truer, and eventually becomes a glorious experience. This is also suggested in the parable. The land was Gods planting (Psalm 80), Gods vineyard (Isaiah 5). You cannot tell him when to answer your prayers. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. In closing, the principle of this parable is that it is foolish to demand fairness from God. But if you pray because you are talking with One whom you love and want to know more of, sharing with him out of the fullness of your heart, then prayer becomes a beautiful and marvelous experience. Rather, they were to ask God for additional helpers. That is abiding in him. In Gods vineyard, people have no anxiety at all. Instead of worrying they pray with thanksgiving, [making] their requests known to God. In this, they can be utterly 3You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. The result will be, "Ask what you will". Here is the process in which the branch is cut off, and then it withers -- grows dry and dull and dead. Labor Day was first recognized nationally in the United States in 1894 following a massive railroad strike. On some, Lord, you see sucker shoots which need to be pruned away. He does not even owe us a denarius. 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." 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. I believe this is a reference to other such Scripture passages which say that the angels will be sent out to gather out all which offends in God's kingdom and cast it into the eternal fire where it will be burned. In verse three, the householder went out about the third hour into the marketplace and found others standing idly by. Because it is large, many workers are needed. Cultivating the vineyard of the Lord includes cultivating the lives of those who toil in the vineyard. Prayers are answered, growing out of that relationship of an obedient and a dependent heart -- leaving the process and timing to God. There is a spiritual principle here. How discontented we are (Hebrews 13:5)! Working in Gods Vineyard Many are called to do Gods work. There is a great need for Gods people today to get a worldwide missionary vision because we can be very local and parochial in our concept of the Lords work. The traditional site of the Upper Room in Jerusalem is on the western side of the Old City, on the slopes of Mount Zion. You can be flat on your back in bed, sick, but manifesting a Christ-like spirit, and you are glorifying God by that experience. You can check out his work here. (5) stewards of the Lords money, seeking to extend His work. That is, a vine produces certain shoots (called "sucker" shoots) which start to grow where the branch joins the stem. Our Lord goes on now to point out the consequence of not abiding in him: "If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned." We must make choices, we must determine to expose ourselves to him, we must seek his face in the Word and in prayer and in fellowship with others. (John 15:7 RSV), Answered prayer is one of the first signs of a fruitful life. Let us work together while there is time and much work to do. I love the saying, "Joy is the flag which flies over the castle of the heart when the King is in residence." The story includes a master, his vineyard, and some workers. 2023 Words of Life Ministries - an independent evangelical Registered Charitable Trust (no.269381) Cookie Policy | Privacy Policy Website by: TEKOA Creative, Study 1 THE FARMER, THE SEED, AND THE SOILS, Study 2 THE PHARISEE AND THE TAX COLLECTOR. When we read this parable we are probably struck by the perceived unfairness of the master toward those who had worked the longest. Fruitfulness brings glory to GOD. Changing Yourself Hard Work And Perseverance Life By God's Word Self Confidence Receiving God's Word Games, Spiritual Useless Labour Athletics Victory The Fact Of That Day The Christian Race The Soul When our Lord says "Abide in me," he is talking about the will, about the choices, the decisions we make. 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. The denarius represents eternal life. Leaders of the church need to stand strong and have boldness and never deviate from the truth. If you put in a certain amount of time and effort it only seems right to be fairly compensated for it. As Isaiah tells us, God cleared out the rocks in his vineyard and hedged it about. God graciously gives according to His will, as He so chooses. The Father is at work to cut them off, to prune them back. (LogOut/ Are you going through a pruning season right now? It appears that this master, however, does not share that expectation. There was no fruit. "Without me you can do nothing.". And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and said to them, You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you. So they went. More information about Good Hope may be found at the following site: www.GoodHopeBC.org. 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