Matthew 20:1-16
"For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
"About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' So they went.
"He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6About 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?'
" 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered. "He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'
"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.'
"The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner.
'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.'
"But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'
"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."
a. Assuming the landowner represents God, what do we learn about the character of God from this story?
God gives what He wants.
b.What can you observe about human nature and how people tend to respond to the good fortune of others?
We are covetous and it's hard to accept others good fortune, even more so when you are not equally blessed. Maggie's skirt joy comes to mind...
c. With which worker do you identify?
I think it really depends on the day. Sometimes it's easier for me to be that eleventh hour worker - where I truly am amazed by God's generosity even though I know I did nothing to deserve it. But let's face it, in the real world, surrounded by greed and that me-me-me attitude, it's HARD not to feel entitled and let that bitterness come out and be seen. It's easier to complain and be negative - to bond over common unfairness at work or how you deserve better than you get than it is to just accept that whatever you do is only what you should do and that you don't DESERVE anything for just doing what you should.
d. Why do people tend to thin of the landowner as unfair instead of generous?
Because most of us identify with the person who worked all day and to them the work itself wasn't a gift.
e. What does this story tell us about what God's grace means?
Everything we have is because of his Grace. It doesn't matter if we're late to the party or not - it's always about Him. It also shows that He is generous with His Grace.
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