Summary:
What can we learn from the parable of the workers in the vineyard? Do we see serving our Heavenly Master as a joy and honour? Have we become servant to all, just as Jesus was? And do we see the good He has given us in our lives?

In the book of Matthew, there is a series of parables that begin with, “The Kingdom of Heaven is like”. There are 10 of them in the gospel of Matthew. There are some who say there are 6, and others who say 7 of these are found in Matthew 13.

Why did Jesus speak the parable of the workers and the vineyard? It was to answer a question Peter asked in Matt 19:27. To this question, Jesus gave a 3 part answer.

1. Matt 19:28 They’ll get status.
2. Matt 19:29 They’ll get wealth of a hundredfold, since they gave this up for Him on earth. They’ll be given eternal life to enjoy this.
3. Matt 19:30 Jesus warns them that many who are first will be last, and the last first.

Then, He speaks of the parable of the vineyard. He thus spoke this parable in line with the 3rd part of His answer.
A hundredfold of wealth is mentioned because just before this parable was told, they had encountered the rich young ruler who was not able to give up his riches to follow Jesus.

Matt 20 can be divided into 3 parts.

1. Matt 20:1-7

‘1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.
2 Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went.
5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise.
6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing idle, and said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day?’
7 They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right you will receive.’

The landowner/master of the house PERSONALLY went out to hire workers for his vineyard. He could’ve just sent his steward to do it, but he personally went to pick people to hire. He did this actively. He did this 4 times! He went out early in the morning at the third hour, sixth, ninth and eleventh hour.

This is reminiscent of what Jesus said in another passage “the harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few”.

A denarius is the daily wage of an unskilled labourer or a soldier. The wage the landowner offered was fair. When he went out at the eleventh hour, he found some standing idle. When he called them, they went willingly. This shows they weren’t idling by choice, but rather it was because no one had called them to work. Without work, they wouldn’t be able to get food.

When a person cannot feed himself or has not been able to get work for a long time, it bears on his sense of self-worth.

Matt 4:18-19
‘And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him.’
Here, the fishermen became fishers of men.

2. Matt 20:8-15

‘8“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’
9 And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius.
10 But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius.
11 And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner,
12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the heat of the day.’
13 But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius?
14 Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you.
15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’’

The workers were paid by the day.

Deut 24:15
Each day you shall give him his wages, and not let the sun go down on it, for he is poor and has set his heart on it; lest he cry out against you to the Lord, and it be sin to you.

From this we see that it is a sin if you don’t pay your workers after sundown. They lived from day to day; and not giving them their wage would deprive them of food for that day.

Matt 20:8
“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages, beginning with the last to the first.’

The last of the workers were paid first; they received one denarius. The third and second batch of workers made no complaints as they hadn’t worked a full day but received a full day’s wage of one denarius. But the first batch of workers complained. Upon seeing the 11th hour workers being paid one denarius, they thought they would receive more e.g. a denarius for every hour. They complained, “You made them equal to us!” In other words insinuating they were not equal. They reckoned the equal pay was unfair.

Imagine you had a $200 voucher but the most expensive thing you would like to buy is $120. If you bought that $120 item, you would not get $80 back. The Terms and Conditions dictate it’s not exchangeable for cash. This means you can’t get cash back if the good you want is worth less than the voucher.

This is fair, that is, when two people both get the same equal $200 voucher.

In the first place, the world has no equality, and God is trying to restore it. This is the meaning of grace. We are given equal wages.

We have sins and they are washed away by the blood of Jesus. Murderers and rapists who believe in Jesus also have their sins washed away. The blood of Jesus washes all sins away regardless of what has been committed! We cannot say this is unfair. If we were to say this was unfair, it would be like saying,“You washed away his many sins, but You only wash away my small amount of sins.”

Of course this doesn’t mean God doesn’t reward people differently. We don’t expect to be rewarded as well as Apostle Paul. But that’s not what this parable is about.

In the parable of the vineyard, they were promised one denarius. They lived from day to day, and without the wage, the worker and his family would not have food. This situation doesn’t call for fairness but for kindness.
The first batch of workers complained, “[We] have borne the burden and the heat of the day [but the] last men only worked one hour.”

We shouldn’t be jealous of someone who is converted on his deathbed. We enjoyed His grace earlier. We had been freed from the burden of sin earlier!

Do we see being a Christian earlier as a grace (compared to being converted on our deathbeds)? Do we see serving our Heavenly Master as a joy and honour?
The first batch of workers only thought about the burden and heat they bore. They didn’t see it as a joy.

Matt 20:16 links back to Matt 19:30. “So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.”

3. Matt 20:20-24

‘20 Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him.
21 And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She said to Him, “Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.”
22 But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.”
23 So He said to them, “You will indeed drink My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with; but to sit on My right hand and on My left is not Mine to give, but it is for those for whom it is prepared by My Father.”
24 And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers.’

The first workers in the parable had the mindset: If you serve/work less than me, you’re not equal to me. The disciples’ mindset was this: We are all equals, why do you (James and John) seek to be higher than me?
Notice that the third, ninth and eleventh hour workers did not discuss the wage they would be paid; they just started work. They had a better attitude towards work.

Matt 20:27-28
‘And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave— just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”’

How did Jesus serve? To the extreme. To the point of giving His life. If we want to be served, do what Jesus did. We must be a servant to all.
Are we willing to serve to the point of losing our lives for the kingdom?

Matt 16:24-26
‘Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?’

If you’re a follower of Jesus, follow His example of service. The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and give up His life.
All Christians serve God in different ways but we must serve God with the same right attitude. Or we might be in danger of losing our place in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Why do we serve?
To be number 1 in reward? To be number 1 in recognition? To be number 1, we must be a servant of all.

Matt 20:16 warns us about wanting to be first. Many are called, but few chosen.

Matt 22:13-14
Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For many are called, but few are chosen.”

And if we aren’t chosen, we won’t be saved.

Luke 13:28-30
‘There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”’

“Last will be first, and the first will be last” is related to “few are chosen”. If you always want to be first, beware. Many are called, few are chosen.

Matt 20:15
“Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?”

What does an evil eye mean? Jesus had explained earlier on.

Matt 6:22-23
‘The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!’

If your eye is bad/evil, your whole body will be dark. An evil eye means you’re not able to see good. The landowner was so kind and gracious. But the eye of the workers just couldn’t see good, because it was evil.
People say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. But here, it says good is in the eye of the beholder. If we are not evil, our eye will not be evil. We will be able to see all the good in this world.

The landowner is so good. He gives us work and meaning in life; and he did not revoke our payment. Now, he graciously gives fellow labourers the same pay. But we don’t see his goodness.
Later, Jesus heals 2 blind men to show He is the remedy to an evil eye. He gives us light to see good. The Pharisees were like the blind leading the blind. Only by following Jesus will our life be full of goodness.

Do we see good in God’s word? Do we see good in God’s workings? Do we see the good He has given us in our lives? ‘All things work for good to those who love Him, to those who are the called according to His purpose.’ You are called according to His purpose.