It's Not the Economy,Stupid, It's Grace.

Matthew 20:1-16 contains a parable about hard work, sweat and meeting deadlines. It sort of relates to what has been going on in our church beginning with the smashing success of the Harvest Festival Celebration on Nov. 1, this Saturday’s Pastoral Installation, and the Thanksgiving/ Appreciation Dinner on Nov. 23. And more is to come. This parable tells us why we “put our hand to the plow” (Luke 9:62). Sometimes we need to be reminded what is at stake, what the goal of all our labor is, and the principle of rewards sovereignly employed by God, who among many things is the “Great Landowner” and “Great Employer” of the Universe. Let’s zero in on the “rewards.”

The parable itself is about an unnamed owner of a vineyard in first century Palestine, who hires some laborers at the crack of dawn (6 AM) for a days wage, then others at 9 AM, 12 Noon, and 3 PM for a wage to be designated at the end of the day when everyone would be paid (in those days a laborer was paid at the end of each work day). Finally, one hour before the end of the long work day (the eleventh hour), a final group of laborers were hired again for a wage to be designated. So far we have a parable about a group of people who have started to work a vineyard, but some have obviously worked longer and, perhaps, harder than the others. So what’s the big deal?

Actually, this is not so much about a big deal as it is about a “fair deal.” This is so because we are surprised to find out that everyone received the same wage whether they started at 6 AM or as in the case of the “Johnny-come-latelies” at 5 PM (the work day ended at sundown, 6 PM). You might say that this incident sparked the beginning of the “Labor Movement.” The fundamental principle of Labor is “equal pay for equal work.” So those who felt shortchanged “filed a grievance,” but were summarily dismissed by Management-the landowner, because, for example, he had kept his promise of paying the workers with the longest time card the same as all the others including the eleventh hour hirees. Jesus, therefore, according to Huffmann (in the Expositors Bible Commentary, Vol. 8-Matt. -Luke, p.427), deliberately inserted a surprise ending to what normally would have been “another dull day at the office.” In so doing, Jesus taught an important lesson about grace.

The workers who followed the 6AM shift got more than they expected. It pleased the Owner to award them more than they merited, and that’s what God has sovereignly determined for all of us. We don’t get what we deserve, but in Jesus Christ we receive a superabundant grace that is unmerited and gift wrapped in God’s love. Grace is the unmerited favor God bestows on all who trust Him to give them a “Fair Deal.” Notice that the later shifts after the first one TRUSTED the Boss to give them a fair deal. They got much more than that as is best illustrated in the case of the eleventh hour workers who are the “posterboys’ of this parable. Trust and Grace are two sides of the same penny (eternal life) promised to all who labor in God’s vineyard (the world). To modify a noted saying: It’s not the economy, stupid, it’s grace.