A Lesson in Justice and Grace

Introduction:

Think of the stark contrast between Judas Iscariot and the thief on the cross.

one was a close disciple of Jesus Christ and gave three years of his life to the best, most intensive religious instruction available anywhere.

But his soul is lost forever.

The other was a hardened, lifelong criminal who was still mocking everything holy while being put to death for crimes.

But he went straight to paradise.

The difference between these two men could hardly be more pronounced, nor could their endings be more surprising.

Judas, a disciple in Christ’s closest circle of twelve.

He preached, evangelized, ministered and was even given the power to cure diseases.

Luke 9:1 AV

Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases.

Judas seemed like a model disciple.

So much so that when Jesus predicted that someone was going to betray Him, no one even suspected Judas.

They trusted him to the degree that Judas was their treasurer according to John 13:29.

Evidently they saw nothing in Judas that would have caused them to question his character.

Much less believe him to be diabolical.

The thief on the cross, on the other hand, was a career criminal, serious enough to have been sentenced to execution by the most cruel, painful forms of death at the time.

He is called a “robber” in Matthew 27:38, using a greek word that speaks of a brigand or a highwayman.

He was being crucified with a partner and was originally slated to be crucified next to Barabbas; himself an insurrectionist.

All of this indicates that they were part of a gang of cutthroats who stole by violence and lived by no law but their own passions.

This man was clearly vicious, mean-spirited, and aggressive.

Because early in the crucifixion, he was chanting along with everyone else with ridicule and mockery.

Matthew 27:44 AV

The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.

But as the one thief watched Jesus die silently, the hardened criminal had a remarkable last minute change of heart.

Literally, in the last moments of his life he confessed his sins and prayed and prayer of confession.

Luke 23:41–42 AV

And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.

And Jesus promised to usher him in that very day into paradise, clothed in perfect righteousness, all his guilt borne and paid for fully by Christ.

How is it really possible to forgive in an instant a lifetime of sin?

If that criminals lifetime of crimes could be forgiven in an instant, could not Judas’ one time treachery be forgiven as well?

If the thief was forgiven, why wasn’t Judas?

The Parable in Matthew 20 tells us.

The quick answer is that God gives His grace to the one whom He wills.

God has every right to show mercy to whom He will.

Exodus 33:19 AV

And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.

People who protest that God is unfair or unjust when He shows grace to the least undeserving people, simply do not understand grace.

Undiluted justice would mean immediate death for every sinner.

Romans 6:23 AV

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The truth is that we do not really want “fair.”

We all desperately need grace and mercy.

Grace can never be defined as a reward for good works.

Heaven is not a prize for those who deserve it.

And no one can make a claim on God’s mercy.

God can dispense His grace however He sees fit.

Romans 9:15 AV

For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.

The Parable on Matthew 20:1-15 of the land owner tell os these principles.

Matthew 20:1–15 AV

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way. Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house, Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day. But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

Like all parables, this one aims to teach a profound truth.

Jesus is not making a point about fair labor laws, or minimum wage, equity in business dealings, or any other earthly principles.

He is describing how grace works in the sphere in where God rules.

I. The Plot

The text introduces us to a man that is a “householder.”

That is the Greek word “οἰκοδεσπότης” meaning that he was the “master of the house” that owned everything that would have been on that land.

He says in verse 15:

Matthew 20:15 AV

Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

And verse 8 calls him the “lord of the vineyard.”

And he must have had a sizeable estate to require so many workers.

So this was a man of great influence and wealth.

The people that were listening to Jesus would have been familiar with vineyards.

The land of the day was filled with neatly arranged grapevines growing in terraced vineyards.

There were two kinds of agricultural land: plains and mountains slopes.

The plateaus and flat, expansive areas were used for farming grain and grazing livestock.

The steeper mountainsides were skillfully terraced for the planting of vineyards.

This was difficult work because the terraced had to be supported by stones, which were carried up and put in place by hand.

Any topsoil that was required also had to be carried up on the shoulders of men or animals.

Grapes were planted in the spring and pruned during the summer.

Harvest was a very short season near the end of September.

The rainy season began immediately after that, so harvest was hectic because the crop had to be brought in before the rains came.

The owner needed extra help to get in the crop.

So, he went to the market place to try and find some laborers.

The marketplace was the most public place in the village.

And it was a gathering place for people that needed to work, these people were called day laborers.

Rather unskilled people that would work menial tasks and would be paid daily.

Verse 1 says that the landowner went out early in the morning, no doubt prior to 6:00 am, when the 12 hour work day started.

Now, wages for a day laborer were usually much lower than the standard pay for a full time employee or household servant.

They were paid about a denarius a day.

The denarius was a silver Roman coin containing just under 4g of silver.

It was also the typical days pay for a Roman soldier, so it was a respectable living.

The landowner in Jesus’ story have been a good and generous.

Matthew 20:2 AV

And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.

The word there for “penny” is “δηνάριον” and is literally referring to a denarius.

Just to give you a little comparison, a denarius is equivalent today of about $8 USD.

But this landowner paid these day laborers much, much more than they would normally had been paid.

Naturally the early morning crew agreed to those terms and went to work.

Matthew 20:3–4 AV

And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.

Again, he goes out about 9:00 AM and found more works, the difference is that he did not negotiate with them on the money, he just said I will do right by you.

So, they went, knowing him to be an honorable man, and went right to work.

Matthew 20:5 AV

Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.

So, he again went out at 12 noon and 3:00 PM and made the same deal.

Matthew 20:6 AV

And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?

So, he goes out at 5:00PM when the day is all but gone, the work day being 6:00Am to 6:00PM, and made the same deal to those the text says had not been hired yet.

Perhaps these were the older people or some kind of persons that were not desirable to hired.

He went out and hired them.

Now, the law required that at the end of the day, the day laborers must be paid.

There was no “holding it back a week” to get paid.

You were paid the day of the work.

Deuteronomy 24:14–15 AV

Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee.

Matthew 20:8–10 AV

So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.

Starting with the ones that were hired at 5 and only worked an hour, he paid a denarius.

And then at the end of the line must have been salivating because to them it seemed that the landowner had committed himself to a Denarius and hour.

Matthew 20:11 AV

And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,

The word for “murmured” is the Greek word that sound just like what they were doing, “γογγύζω.”

Complaining under their breath about the pay that they received.

Matthew 20:12 AV

Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.

Then the landowner said:

Matthew 20:13–15 AV

But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

Does it seem far that those that only worked an hour receive the same pay as those that worked 12?

But we must not lose sight of the fact that those who were hired at 6:00AM were quite happy with the offer of a denarius a day.

What changed their mood?

Just that someone less deserving (or so they thought) was treated with even more generosity.

Instantly they felt mistreated and envious of the other persons good fortune.

II. The Proverb

Jesus made this statement at the end of chapter 19.

Matthew 19:30 AV

But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.

He made a similar statement at the end of this parable.

Matthew 20:16 AV

So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

What does that parable mean?

In a foot race, for example, the one way for the last to be first and the first to be last is for everyone to finish simultaneously.

If everyone crosses the finish line at exactly the same instant, the first are last and the last are first.

Everyone ends in a dead heat.

And that is the exact point that Jesus is making in this parable.

Those hired first and those hired last all got exactly the same pay.

All of them, from, form the first to the last, for the full benefit of the landowner’s generosity, in equal shares.

III. The Point

The story is a picture of God’s sovereign saving grace.

Since all sinners are unworthy, and the riches of God’s grace, all believers receive an infinite and eternal share of His mercy and kindness, though no one really deserves it.

The Father gives to all believers equally.

The thief of the cross who repented in his final moments entered paradise, where he is enjoying eternal life and everlasting fellowship with Christ just the same as Peter, James, and John, who literally gave their lives in service of the Savior.

IV. The Principles

There are a few principles that we see in this parable.

A. Salvation is not earned

Eternal life is a gift that God gives purely by grace according to His sovereign will.

B. God gives the same abundant Grace to everyone who follows Christ

Tax collectors, harlots, beggars, and blind people will share in the same eternal life as those who have served all their lives.

C. God is the initiator of Salvation

In the parable, the landowner went out to find the laborers in the marketplace of the world and brought them into His vineyard.

God does the seeking and the saving.

Our salvation is entirely His work, and that is the main reason we have no right to make demands or set limits on what He gives to someone else.

It is God’s prerogative and His alone to show mercy to whomever He chooses.

D. God calls sinners, not the self-sufficient

He brings into His vineyard those who know their own need, not people who think they are rich.

The men that were in the marketplace looking for work were desperate.

They were fully aware of their need.

They were poor and meek, devoid of resources, begging for work, representing the poor in spirit.

Mark 2:17 AV

When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

E. God is Sovereign in the outworking of Salvation

Why does He wait until the last hour to call some?

Why didn’t the landowner hire everyone in the marketplace on his trip there?

The parable does not reveal the reasons.

Neither do we know why God saves people at different stages of life.

He sovereignly determines both when and whom He will call.

But all of those who are called know they are needy and are willing to work.

And their willingness is the result, not the cause, of God’s grace to them.

Philippians 2:13 AV

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Grace is sufficient and equal to all those that receive it.