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That’s Not Fair! How many times have you heard that?  As a parent if you’ve heard it once you’ve heard it a thousand times. It’s amazing how quickly children can develop a sense of “fairness”, especially when it comes to getting what they think is theirs. I remember hearing our children say things like, “That’s mine, I had it first!”, “He got more than me!”, and “It’s my turn!”

I asked Debbie this week when she first discovered life isn’t fair. For her it was in kindergarten. She discovered the boys got to play in the sand box and get dirty, but the girls had to wear dresses and stay clean. I suppose time has changed that, but the sense of what’s fair and what isn’t doesn’t change.

Jesus was a tremendous story teller. We are going to look at four of His stories over the next four weeks. In this morning’s story in Matthew 20, Jesus appeals to this sense of fairness and expects his hearers to respond: “That’s not fair”, because he wants to teach us something about the kingdom of God.

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

Matthew 20  “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard.  ² He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

³ “About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing.  ⁴ He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’  ⁵ So they went.

“He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing.  ⁶ About 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?’

⁷ ”‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.

“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

⁸ “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.’

⁹ “The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius.  ¹⁰ So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.  ¹¹ When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner.  ¹² ‘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.’

¹³ “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?  ¹⁴ Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you.  ¹⁵ Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’

¹⁶ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Background:

            The parable ties into the dialogue Jesus has had with the young rich ruler in, Matthew 19:16: “What good things must I do to have eternal life?” This young man had kept the commandments, he was exemplarary. The type of man every father would want his daughter to marry. Not just a moral, religious man but wealthy and prominent in the community as well. I imagine that as he approached many would step back in respect and make way for him.  A man admired and honored by all. If you were running a political campaign this is the type of guy you want behind you. But Jesus was not running for political office.  When Jesus told the man to go sell everything he had and give it to the poor, this man realized he loved his riches more than he could love God and the Bible says he turned and left sadly. Jesus was teaching that nothing can stand in the way between us and God. For this man it was his wealth.

The disciples are amazed by this and Peter jumps in and says, “Lord, we’ve left everything to follow you, what’s in it for us?”

We read that question and it sounds rather selfish, but Jesus does not rebuke Peter.  Rather He hears it as an honest question and in fact tells the disciples there is a special reward for them because they have followed Him and not just them but anyone who follows Jesus.

Matthew 16:29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.  ³⁰ But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first. [1]

It is that last statement that Jesus illustrates with this parable. Jesus turns the world’s values upside down; the first will be last and the last, first.

This story would be a common sight for the people at that time. History records that unemployment was high at that time in the Jewish nation and it was common for those looking for work to go to the marketplace. It would be similar to going to the union hall or a temp agency today. Workers would gather in the marketplace waiting to be hired.

While the story is common, there are some unusual twists. First, a wealthy landowner would have sent someone to hire the workers, but in Jesus’ parable the landowner himself goes to hire the laborers. Their work day goes from 6 AM to 6 PM and the landowner doesn’t go out just in the morning but returns at 9, at noon, at 3 in the afternoon and once again at 5 o’clock. We can see the urgency of the landowner in going repeatedly to hire more workers. The harvest is ready and it can’t wait. But who would go out and hire at 5 in the afternoon, one hour before quitting time! We can see the shift from the importance of the harvest to the compassion for those needing employment. It was not that these workers were lazy, they had waited all day to be hired. But for whatever reason, they have not been hired. Now without work there is no way they can provide for their families. So not for the sake of the harvest but for the sake of the workers, the landowner says: “Go work in my fields!” 

But the most unusual twist comes at the end of the day. The custom was to pay the workers at the end of each day and the owner has his foreman begin paying the workers, starting with those who were the last to come. The owner had agreed to pay those he hired at the beginning of the day a denarius. That was a decent days wage for laborers; this would be about a day’s wage for a Roman soldier. Here comes the twist, the owner pays those who had only worked an hour a full denarius. Can you imagine the shock, they didn’t know what he was going to pay but they were getting a full day’s wage for one hour of work! Those standing in line no doubt began to think, “If he paid them a full day’s wage, what’s he going to pay us?” Here’s George back there poking Harry saying’ “Did you see that!?” A denarius for one hour, let’s see that means we should get 12! I’d be happy if just paid us 6! This was their lucky day! Those who work 3 hours were paid the same, then those who worked 6, and so on until he pays those who had worked all day. Can you see their puzzled faces turning to anger as they are handed the same pay as everyone else?

That’s just unfair. Those who had worked all day began to grumble. Not any different than people of today.  “I have my rights”  -  Fair housing rights, civil rights, first amendment rights. This is the kind of stuff lawsuits are made of. Put yourself in their shoes, you’ve worked out in the heat of the sun, much of the day was over 100 degrees in temperature; you’ve worked hard, you’re tired. The denarius you were excited about when you started the day, now seems like an insult. 

Jesus obviously wants us to respond that way. But note, it was not because the owner was a cheat or mean, but because of his generosity that the workers said he was unfair. It’s clear that God is the landowner and the workers are those called to serve Him. I am convinced that what Jesus is telling us is that when we really grasp the generosity of God our response will be “That’s not fair!” His goodness, grace and mercy are so incredible, so amazing, so overwhelming that there’s really no other response.

What’s fair about God sending his son to die on a cross for my sin? It’s not fair, it’s grace.

How is it fair that a thief hanging on the cross next to Jesus can in the final moments of his life receive eternal life just as the person who has served God a lifetime?  It’s not fair, it’s grace.

How is fair that I can rebel against God, fail time after time yet still be forgiven? It’s not fair, it’s grace.

How could he possibly do that? Amazing Grace is more than a song we sing, it is a reality of the God we serve. As I meditated on this passage, I found myself praying, “God, overwhelm we with the truth of your grace” I invite you to rejoice in God’s grace.

I want to focus on two simple, but life-changing truths from this story.

You can’t earn God’s favor, it’s a gift

The pay the workers received was based on the owner’s generosity not on the hours worked. In the same way, heaven isn’t the reward for long years of service, like a gold watch is on retirement after 30 years of service to the company. Heaven is the gift of God received by believing that Jesus can save you by his grace in spite what you’ve done.

Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We get hung up trying to make ourselves acceptable to God or even trying to show we are not that bad and we miss the point of grace. We try to make it fair, but God says it is only by grace.

Psalm 103:7-12

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,

his deeds to the people of Israel:

⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

⁹ He will not always accuse,

nor will he harbor his anger forever;

¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his love for those who fear him;

¹² as far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us. [2]

The type of grace that God displays is illustrated in a true story Jerry Jenkins wrote in the Moody Monthly magazine about a man awakened in the middle of the night by a phone call.  He was groggy. The girl on the other end was weeping. “Daddy,” she said, “I’m pregnant.”

            Though the father was stunned beyond belief, he forgave her and prayed with her.  The next day he and his wife wrote her two letters of counsel and love.

Here are a few excerpts:

Part of me seemed to die last night. Not because of what it means to me as much as what it means to you. Though I weep inside, I can’t condemn you, because I sin too. Your transgression here is no worse than mine.  It’s just different.  Even if my heart did not shout out to and defend and protect you – as it does – the New Testament tells me I can’t take forgiveness myself and withhold it from others.

We think of sin as acts. But sin is a package, an attitude that expresses itself in different ways and to different degrees. But it all comes from the same sin package you inherited through us. Christ is the only difference.  God forgives this sin as well as others – really forgives and cleanses.

Satan has no doubt tried to tell you that this affects your standing before God. It doesn’t, but it will affect your relationship till you bring the whole matter to Him. There will be coolness, a separation an estrangement, until you open the problem by confessing and asking forgiveness.

I will not reproach you or your boyfriend. I will not even dare to look down at you in my innermost heart, but it is not because the issue doesn’t matter. We’re praying much. We love you more than I can say. And respect you, too, as always.

Saturday I was very downcast. I tried to sing as I worked outside, and then, increasingly, I seemed to see a calm and loving face I knew was Jesus. It was no vision – I didn’t see details – but it was a strong reminder that He is with us and waiting for us to remember this: He loves us and will help us through, especially you. It’s great to know Jesus is walking with you.

We’re glad that in a measure, at least, we can help the daughter we love so much. This is a day of testing, but God will give us the victory. That’s wonderful! We’re looking forward to your being at home. Love, Dad.

Three days later the man received another phone call. His daughter was shocked by the letters. She was not the one who had called earlier . . .Apparently some other girl had dialed a wrong number.

But the daughter later said, “These letters are my treasure, real love letters written by a godly father who never imagined he would have to write them to his own daughter.”  She now knew without any question the extent of the love her father has for her.

That’s the love and grace that God has for us. No way to describe it than amazing. His grace is free. You can never earn; you will never deserve it. You simply accept it.

The second truth that jumps out at me in this story is:

You are never too small to be significant in God’s Kingdom

By the time the day was at the end the best workers had been hired. Those still waiting at the end of the day would feel like the little boy standing in line waiting to be picked for kick ball. Notice the complaint of the workers is that the owner took those who only worked one hour - people no one else was willing to hire – and verse twelve says, you made them equal to us.

It’s amazing how satisfied we can be with what we have until we see someone with something better. It doesn’t matter whether it money, cars, houses, or gifts and talents or even an ipod. Human nature is to compare to others and we establish an unspoken system value based on possessions and positions.

My brother bought a horse and things were just fine until he bought a second one. I didn’t know this before, but if you put two horses in a field together and one will be dominant. They were biting and kicking each other for a couple of weeks until one established the dominance. Once that was established the weaker had to submit to the other. Whether is was feeding time or something else, the dominant horse was first.  People often act much the same way.

There is no such value system in God’s kingdom. In fact, if you think your something special in your own estimation you need to think again. You can never be too small to be significant in God’s kingdom, but you can be too big in your own eyes. The rich young ruler had just walked away – a man with total admiration of his neighbors, but was nothing in the kingdom of God. This is the point that Jesus is making, the first will be last  and the last will be first. He said this just before this parable and again at the end. The first will be last and the last first.

While still in High school our girls ran cross country.  For them it wasn’t about the competition, I think it was just another social event. If they crossed the finish line and had fun doing it, that seemed to be enough. But that certainly was not the case for many. They ran to win! In one of the races at Comstock Park those in the front were running hard; the girl in the lead missed a turn and runner after runner followed. They all crossed the finish line thinking they had run a good race only to discover they were all disqualified.  One girl who probably had never won a race before and probably never again after made the turn and followed the course. She wasn’t the fastest runner, but she ran the right course. Those who thought they were first were disqualified and this one who was expected to be last was first.

We want to come to God on our terms, but that’s not the way it works. We must come to God on his terms, laying down ourselves, our ambitions, our pride, our goodness, everything about us and saying God it’s only by your grace.

Do you have that sense about God’s grace that says: “That’s not fair! But I am thankful.”  If God were fair, we’d all be left out. This morning his grace is here, waiting for you to receive. There is no other way to come to God except through faith in Him. The Bible tells us we simply need to turn from our sin by confessing our sin and turn to God asking for his forgiveness and receiving his grace.