It's Not Fair But It's Grace
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“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
“About nine in the morning 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 noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing.
About five in the afternoon 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 five in the afternoon 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 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, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?
Take your pay and go. I want to give the one 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.”
Luke
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”
But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?
We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23:
“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
“About nine in the morning 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 noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing.
About five in the afternoon 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 five in the afternoon 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 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, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?
Take your pay and go. I want to give the one 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.”
Introduction
For those of you who may not know me my name is Jason Parker and I’m the Pastor at Woods Harbour Wesleyan Church.
Mathew 20:1-16
I want to begin by expresses my sincere condolences to the family for their loss. Our thoughts and prayers are genuinely with you as you grieve the loss of David.
Hook
I grew up in a big family much like David’s. We had five boys in our family and the five of us were only separated by about 7 years. I still don’t know how my Mom and Dad did it but they did and similar to Delores and David my parents were married for a long time and went through a lot but stuck it out.
One of the challenges with having that many children is there is always this competition. Like for instance, when Mom would bring dessert home like those Joe Louis cakes or something like that we would always have to share and if anyone got the extra one we would always say it’s not fair.
Or if someone got to play with a game or a sled or a hockey stick more than us it was always “it’s not fair.”
Now, most of the time it wasn’t me that was saying it because I was spoiled rotten being the baby of my family. But we have all been there before whether it be in our family, in work or we just see other people treated well and maybe we don’t feel like they deserve it and we say, well that’s not fair.
Introduce Subject
Today I would like to talk about Grace and the two passages of Scripture that both Wayne and Marty read are very interesting passages of Scripture. Grace is
undeserved blessing freely bestowed on humans by God
In other words grace is something none of us deserve or are entitled to.
We don’t earn grace it is something freely given to us by God.
God sent his son Jesus to die on a cross for our sins to make a way for us to receive this grace.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Eternal life is not something that any of us deserve but we can receive it because God has chosen to offer this grace to us.
Does that make sense?
Fallen Condition Focus
The problem is that we as humans like to sometimes do God’s job and determine who deserves God’s grace and who doesn’t.
We look at the decisions someone made in their pass somehow disqualifies them from experiencing the grace of God and eternity with God in heaven.
But the reality is - our past does not disqualify us from the grace of Jesus.
We don’t go to heaven based on the good we have done but the good Jesus had done. Amen?
Reason to Hear
But before we get into those let me just
Reason to Hear
My hope this afternoon is that for those of you here that maybe think a past decision has disqualified you from getting into heaven that you would know that there is hope.
I hope also that we would learn to not to judge who deserves God’s grace and who doesn’t because none of us deserve it and we are not God.
Transition to Text
The passage of Scripture are not typical Scriptures being read at funerals. As a matter of fact when you look in the manual of suggested Scriptures to be read none of them are there. So why did I pick those particular passages to be read?
Parable of the Vineyards
The first Scripture was the story of a parable of the workers in the vineyards. In this passage of Scripture workers came to work at 9, 12, 3 and 5. When work was all said and done the worker who worked at 5 got paid first. After the other works saw him get paid they all expected to get more because they all worked more hours. But they didn’t. They all got paid the same amount.
They all began to grumble and complain.
The problem is they agreed to work for that amount of money and were upset because the landowner had chosen to be gracious with his money.
God has the right to show grace to whoever he wants because it is his grace not ours and so we have no right to judge who deserves or doesn’t deserve the grace of Jesus.
Story
I met David in December as he had asked his nephew Marty to bring me over to him and see him. David and Marty and i talked for a few hours that Sunday afternoon about life, about his sickness, about faith and I asked David if he had accepted Jesus and David said that he had. That day I anointed David with oil and prayed for him.
I was away at a conference in the States and I got word from Marty that David wanted me to come visit him again when I returned home. I later found out he wanted his friends and family to be there when I visited again. I arrived home last Friday night and Saturday Marty and I were planning to go visit him. On Saturday David went by ambulance to Yarmouth and so Marty and I went to Yarmouth to visit him in the hospital.
As we visited David he was joking, and funny likely as most of you knew but the thing I noticed was how tender his heart was and particularly his tenderness to the Lord. David really, REALLY, wanted me to pray for him. I remember us saying how we all need prayer and he said, you got that right. As I prayed for him I felt this incredible sense of peace.
Thief on the Cross
These are the verses in Scripture that frustrate us or make us mad or are difficult to understand
The second story of Scripture was the thief on the cross. This is another passage that we have a hard time with. This thief likely lived a lifestyle that we all would say, this guy ain’t gonna make it to heaven. Look at all the bad stuff he did. But yet, at the end of his life he humbled himself and realized that Jesus was innocent and that he deserved this penalty. He only asked that Jesus would remember him when he went to be with the Father.
You see the Thief believed Jesus was totally innocent and he says this crazy statement that shows he believed in Jesus.
Jesus, remember me when you enter into your kingdom.
Point One
The thief believed that Jesus was about to enter into his heavenly kingdom.
Based on his repentance and faith in King Jesus, Jesus offers this man the greatest hope in the most hopeless situation.
Truly, I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.
What an encouraging Scripture.
I’m here to tell you today that Jesus offers you the greatest hope in the midst of what seems a hopeless situation.
When can look forward to eternity with Jesus forever.
So these two passages of Scripture challenge us to think differently about God and about grace.
Getting into heaven is not based on our works but on grace.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
Point Two
Well if that’s the case then what’s even the point in being good you might ask?
Entering into heaven is about grace not works
But storing up treasures in heaven is about allowing God’s grace to work in your life to produce good works.
It’s highly likely because of the thief’s lifestyle and his late faith in Jesus he didn’t take the opportunity in his life to store up treasures in heaven.
But he’s in and we will see him one day.
The same goes for us - we could wait till late in our life, even on our death bed to accept Jesus but we will have missed the opportunity to store up treasures in heaven where we will live forever if we have accepted Jesus.
I don’t know about you but I want to spend my life to store up treasure in heaven.
I think if David had more time he would have been doing the same thing.
So what about yourselves this afternoon?
Sum Up
- We don’t earn grace it is something freely given to us by God.
- Eternal life is not something that any of us deserve but we can receive it because God has chosen to offer this grace to us.
- But the reality is - our past does not disqualify us from the grace of Jesus.
- God has the right to show grace to whoever he wants because it is his grace not ours and so we have no right to judge who deserves or doesn’t deserve the grace of Jesus.
- When can look forward to eternity with Jesus forever.
Suggestion
Maybe you are here this afternoon and you always felt like your past has disqualified you from God; I hope that today that lie was broken and that you realize that none of us deserve it but God still wants to give it.
Maybe you are here this afternoon and you recognize that you need Jesus in your life and want to accept him right now in this moment I would like to give an opportunity for you to make a decision to accept him in your life.
God sent his son to die on a cross for your sin so you could forgiven, set free and liberated. Jesus rose again from the dead and conquered sin and death and sits at the right hand of God so we could have the hope of living forever with him.
You just to make the decision to humble yourselves and put your faith in Jesus and I’m wondering this afternoon if you’d like to make that decision?
Spin Around
These two stories we learned about today might cause us to say “it’s not fair - But it’s grace”.
Stop