Life's Not Fair

Matthew 20:1-16

The New Revised Standard Version The Laborers in the Vineyard

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; 4 and he said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. 5 When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. 6 And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’ 7 They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’ 8 When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.’ 9 When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. 10 Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. 11 And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12 saying, ‘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.’ 13 But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14 Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ

Praise to You Lord Christ

I. Introduction

“The last shall be first and the first shall be last.”

Have we truly thought about what that means?

These were one of the first public words spoken by Jesus as he began his ministry during the sermon on the mount and they are some famous words.

This is also the phrase Jesus ends this parable with.

But again, I wonder do we truly think about what that phrase means.

What did Jesus mean when he said, “The last shall be first and the first shall be last.”

To answer that question, I believe that we can look no further than this parable on this morning.

In this text, Jesus is telling a parable and if I could some this parable up in one sentence, I would say, “The last shall be first and the first shall be last.”

In describing the kingdom of God, Jesus tells this parable about a landowner and day laborers who were hired by the landowner to work the vineyard.

The landowner goes out and hires a group of laborers early that morning and he agrees to pay them the usual daily wage. He then sends them into his vineyard.

Then he goes out a nine and he hires another group of laborers. He agrees to pay them as well.

He goes back to the market around noon and he hires another group of laborers.

He does the same thing again at three o’ clock and then again at five o’ clock.

The day ends and the landowner does something rather unconventional.

He pays the last hires first and the earliest hires last.

Not only does he pay them out of sequence but he pays them the same wage.

Think about it for a moment. Put yourself in these vineyard workers shoes.

Think about if someone hired you off the street at 6:00 that morning.

You’ve done most of the work.

You were in the sun all day.

Your body is weary.

You’re tired and you’ve given up your entire day.

Then suddenly someone gets hired at the end of the day and they get the same pay you got,

and not only did they get the same pay but they got paid before you.

You had to wait in line behind them to get paid.

Y’all, I would be livid.

“You mean to tell me, I’ve been busting my behind all day and I got paid the same thing they did?

“All nall dog.”

“We are going to have to adjust something here.”

I could imagine them sitting back in the cut and seeing what the late hires made and thinking to themselves while sitting in line,

“If they got paid that, I just know that I’m going to get a bonus.”

I can also imagine the disappointment in their eyes as they get to the line and receive the exact amount that the late hires received.

Jesus in this parable is giving new meaning to this whole idea of “the last shall be first and the first shall be last in the kingdom of God.”

Jesus in Matthew’s gospel tells us that the workers were in the back of the line became angry and expressed that anger to the landowner.

They were basically telling the landowner that what he was doing was not fair. Look at their response in verse 12:

The New Revised Standard Version The Laborers in the Vineyard

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.’

The landowner responded by essentially telling them (and this is the Walter Roberts,Jr. trasnlation):

A deal is a deal, take your money and go home. Leave me alone.

I paid you what we agreed upon.

It ain’t none of your business what I paid the other folks.

You got your money.

Don’t worry about my money

And stop accusing me of beating you when we agreed upon this.

Don’t hate on me because I am generous.

Remember they who are first will be last and they that are last shall be first.

Life is not fair so get over it.

You know, growing up my mom had this saying and she would say it especially to me when I whined about something not working out in my favor or whenever someone treated me unfairly.

She told me that, “fair is a place where you judge pigs.”

Allow me to repeat that, “fair is a place where you judge pigs.”

In other words, life is rarely ever fair.

We live in a society where things aren’t equitable.

We live in a society where things aren’t fair or equal and maybe just maybe, things can be fair in the church.

Jesus in this parable is turning our idea of fairness and equity upside down.

You see on the surface, we look at this parable and we say, this isn’t fair. This is not equitable. This is wrong.

And you are right!

On the surface, workers coming in at 5:00 in the evening getting off at 6:00 in the evening while also getting paid the same thing that someone who came in at 5:00 am and worked essentially a 13 hour shift is unfair.

But guess what my sisters and brothers....

Grace is unfair

This is what this parable is about.

It is about an unconventional God who freely gives in unconventional ways.

This parable is about each of us here.

You see in those days, the landowner would seek out the worker.

He would then agree to pay the worker a day’s wage.

He then paid the worker the agreed upon wage.

My sisters and brothers, we are the workers and God is the landowner.

You see, before you and I were even aware of God was.

Before you and I even wanted to know or experience God.

God was pursuing us.

He was pursuing us and he never gave up on that pursuit.

God said, I want you to be my vineyard worker and not only do I want you to be my vineyard worker but I am going to pay you with this thing called grace.

Then I am going to bring some people to come alongside you to work the vineyard with you.

Because it’s going to lonely in the vineyard

There are going to be some tough days in the vineyard.

There are going to be some tough rows to hoe.

But I am going to bring some people alongside you to tend this vineyard.

And they’re not going to be just fellow workers, no sir they are going to be your family; your brothers and your sisters.

Each of you are going to receive a gift for your work and this gift is priceless and the gift is grace.

Friends, Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:8–9

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast.”

Some translations say, “For by grace you have been justified through faith,

The Spirit of God justifies us through faith.

That means that no matter if you experience the Holy Spirit and decide to start anew today and follow Christ or if you chose to follow Christ 15 years ago, you both receive the same gift, and that is grace.

Grace is not fair and I think that sometimes we, “long in the tooth” Christians forget that.

Instead of coming alongside the new vineyard workers and seeing the value in them we get concerned because we’re not getting more benefits to this thing called discipleship than the person who just decided to follow Christ.

We think that we deserve more and wear badges of honor because we’ve read through the Bible three or four times.

Friends after we decide to put our faith in God. After we decide to freely receive God’s grace. The Spirit does something else for us; it adopts us.

Meaning, we become apart of the family of God.

But this family is different.

There are no black sheep in this family.

This family is one that doesn’t care about your economic status.

This family doesn’t care about what mistakes you’ve made in the past.

The only thing this family requires is love.

This is what Jesus is trying to get us to see about the kingdom of God.

There are no big “I” or little “You’s” We are all given the same wage, the same gift once we place our trust in Christ. That gift is grace and God offers each of us that free gift on today.

Will you take it?

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.