Matthew 20

 

•  Matthew 20:1-15 (NIV) 1  "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2  He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3  "About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4  He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' 5  So they went. "He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6  About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?' 7  "'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. "He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.' 8  "When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.' 9  "The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. 10  So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11  When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12  'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.' 13  "But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? 14  Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15  Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

I don't know that I ever noticed this before but the first workers that the landowners got to work for him hammered out a contract.  They agreed to work for a denarius.  They wheeled and dealt with the landowner for what was "fair."  The people who came after were desperate to work and desperate for income so instead of wheeling and dealing they threw themselves at the mercy of the landowner relying on his generosity.

The real winners were those who decided to rely on the owner's generosity rather than trusting themselves and their bargaining power.  Why were the first laborers upset with their wages?  Did the landowner go against his word?  No, he paid them what was agreed upon, but in their reliance on the letter of the law they missed the greater blessing of the owner's generosity.

I think that one of the things that this parable would point to is the attitude we should have in serving God.  Do we have an attitude of serving God regardless of what the reward will be because we are just happy to be able to serve Him and be in His family?  Or do we do it as a job where we expect to be rewarded with a fair return on our work?  We need to be people who serve God because we are grateful and we throw ourselves on His mercy and generosity.  I don't thing we can outgive God!