Includes a sample introduction to the lesson, text outline and highlights, illustrations you can share, discussion questions for your group, and spiritual life applications you can make. A video version of this overview is available on YouTube at:
(Let me say off the top that our passage this week can be a very difficult one to understand and apply correctly. If you check the commentaries, interpretations are all over the place on this one! But I believe there are two keys in the Biblical context, which guide us to the correct interpretation/application, which I’ll share presently. Please don’t attempt to interpret and apply this passage without reference to these two Biblical context keys!)
INTRODUCTION
??? DISCUSSION QUESTION???
“Does anyone know what a ‘day laborer’ is? (Day laborers are workers who show up early in the parking lot of a Home Depot or other store, hoping to be selected to work for the day. It is a common practice these days — more common in California and the west than maybe in some of our communities. These often work in construction and trades, though others serve as house cleaners, and a good many work as harvesters on various farms.
You might ask if any of your class members have ever seen these outside of a Home Depot or other location, or had any experience with them. (You could reference a news story like this one in Dallas that discusses day laborers:
Then transition to the lesson by saying that in today’s lesson, Jesus tells a story about some “day laborers” just like this — and we’ll see how His message applies to us as His followers today.
(I usually share about context at this point, but as I mentioned, the context this week is so important, that I’m making it “Point I” of our outline this week.)
OUTLINE
I. The All-Important CONTEXT of the Parable
II. The PARABLE Itself
III. What It Does NOT Mean
IV. What It DOES Mean
TEXT: Matthew 20:1-16
:1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 When he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the market place; 4 and to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ And so they went. 5 Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did the same thing. 6 And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing around; and he *said to them, ‘Why have you been standing here idle all day long?’ 7 They *said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’ He *said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’
8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard *said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last group to the first.’ 9 When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. 10 When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, 12 saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ 13 But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? 14 Take what is yours and go, but 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 what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’ 16 So the last shall be first, and the first last.”
I. The All-Important Context
Because the context of the parable is so vital to its meaning and interpretation, I want to make the context the first point in today’s lesson. (You may/may not make this YOUR first point, but I want to make sure that you as a teacher understand just how important context is for today’s passage.) Context is always important in interpreting scripture: what comes before it, that helps explain it? What comes after, that enlightens it? This is especially true of our passage for this week in Matthew 20:1-6.
This particular parable is only found in Matthew’s gospel. It begins in :1, “FOR the Kingdom of Heaven …”. The first thing we should ask ourselves when we read this is, Why would it start with the word “FOR”? Because it is referring back to something Jesus had just said in Chapter 19.
It’s like when Romans 12:1 opens by saying “Therefore I urge you brethren …”. You can’t just start with the “Therefore”! To really understand Romans 12, you have to know what happened in Romans 1-11, which describes salvation by grace through faith. “Therefore” — because of the salvation God has given us by faith in Christ — “Therefore …” here is how should live as a result. Context is everything there.
And context is everything for our passage today. It starts “For …” pointing back to what just came before in Matthew 19. If you remember from Matthew 19, the Rich Young Ruler thought he was good enough to enter heaven, but failed to give up everything and follow Jesus. Then Peter asks Jesus, we have left everything and followed You, so what will there be for us? Jesus tells him the 12 would sit on 12 thrones judging Israel, and then He adds in :29, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive many times as much, and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.”
So Jesus promised rewards to everyone who follows Him — not only the 12, but all who came later as well. And importantly, He ends the chapter by saying in :30, “But many who are first will be last, and the last, first.”
THEN it goes right to our passage this week in Matthew 20:1-16. And remember: these “chapter and verse divisions” were added later; they were NOT in the original Bible text. So in actuality, in 20:1-16 Jesus is just continuing to explain what He just told Peter, about “many who are first will be last, and the last, first.” So in a sense, our lesson for this week, is Jesus’ “illustration” for what He meant by that! Significantly, He also ends the section with that saying as well in :16 (reversed in order): “so the last shall be first, and the first, last.” So this context is really vital for helping us understand this passage.
So what can we learn from all this:
— First of all, this is another “parable of the kingdom” like in Matthew 13. Verse 1 says, “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like …” So Jesus is describing for us, through this story, what His kingdom is like.
— Second, the context tells us this is about the rewards that Jesus’ disciples will receive. Peter had just said, “What will there be for us”? And Jesus story is in response to that. So it’s about our rewards.
— Third, the very last verse of Chapter 19, and the end of this story in :16, both have that saying about “the first shall be last” etc. The parable comes in between. (This is called an “inclusio.” These two sayings in a sense “put a parenthesis” or a “bracket” around this parable. By doing so, it’s telling us that this parable in some way illustrates what Jesus’ two sayings about the “first and last” means.
You might SHARE A CHART of the inclusio:
The “Inclusio” of Matthew 19:30 & 20:16:
—19:30 “But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.”
— PARABLE OF THE LANDOWNER
— 20:16 “So the last shall be first, and the first last.”
This “inclusio” shows us that the parable is about that “first/last” saying. People are adept at dreaming up all kinds of interpretations of scripture, especially ones that fit their own theological “hobby horses.” But these elements of context teach us that any interpretation or application of this parable that we share must deal with REWARDS of the believer, and it must also explain the INCLUSIO, showing how “many first will be last/last first.”
Understanding that, let’s look at some of the elements of the parable, and then we’ll look at what it does and doesn’t mean.
II. The Parable Itself
So :1 says a landowner “went out early in the morning to hire laborers.” — the “day laborers” we talked about in the introduction. If you don’t use the question/news article there, you might do that here. This is exactly what Jesus is talking about: a man hiring workers for the day to gather his harvest. This happens in California every harvest season! Below is an image you could use; these are harvesters at a California vineyard — just the kind of laborers Jesus is talking about in Matthew 20!
The landowner in the parable obviously represents God, the workers are His people who are serving Him, and the vineyard represents His Kingdom work they’re doing in the world. That’s easy enough to understand.
The landowner sees some workers (at the Jerusalem “Home Depot” or wherever they gathered!) and :2 tells us that he agrees with them for a denarius for the day. We’ve seen before (remember our lesson on forgiveness from Matthew 18), that a “denarius” is a common one-day’s wage for a working man — so this was a fair wage for one day’s work. Good enough.
NOW Jesus’ story takes a twist. He said in :3 that he went back to the “Home Depot” at the “third hour” (remember their timing: the day began at 6:00 a.m., so “the third hour” was 9 a.m.) and he tells these also to work for him — but he didn’t tell them he’d give them a denarius. Instead, he said in :4 “Whatever is right I will give you.” And they trusted him, and went.
One Bible commentator says this signifies an element of faith. They trusted the landowner, and followed him by faith, not knowing where they were going, or what they might be paid; they just trusted him that he would give them what is right. That’s a good example of our relationship with God. We have to follow Him like Abraham did, Hebrews 11:8 says by faith Abraham “went out, not knowing where he was going.” Just trusting God. That’s how we all have to follow Him as well. We don’t always know where He’s leading us; how it’ll end; or what reward there might be for us — but we go out, like these workers, by faith!
And Jesus says this happened over and over. The timing here is important to understand. They all came at different times:
— the day began at 6:00 a.m. with the call to the first workers.
— so the 3rd hour was 9:00 a.m.
— the 6th hour was noon
— the 9th hour was 3:00 p.m.
— the 11th hour was 5:00 — only one hour before the work day ended!
So they all came at different times, but they all received the same reward. That’s what happened in the story. Ok … so what does this mean? Let’s look first at what it does NOT mean, and then some things that according to the context it CAN mean, and some ways we can apply this to our lives today.
III. What It Does NOT Mean:
There are several ways this parable can be misapplied, which we need to clarify, because they are contrary to truths clearly revealed in scripture. Many times, when there is a scripture that we’re seeking to understand, it can help to “cross out” things that, according to other scriptures, we know it can NOT mean. This helps us here too. So let’s look at a couple of things this parable does NOT mean:
A. It does NOT mean we are saved by our works.
We must NOT look at this parable and say, the landowner is God, and the disciples are His followers, and the reward is heaven, so it’s showing how we work to get there.
We know that’s incorrect, right? The Bible has too many references to how we are saved “by grace, through faith … not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) So we absolutely KNOW it is not teaching that.
The context helps us here: in Matthew 19 Jesus was talking to Peter about the rewards they would get in heaven for following Him. So it’s not about salvation; it’s about rewards. That’s an important distinction.
B. It also does NOT mean that every person will get the exact same reward in heaven. I can see how someone might think that from the text: Well, they all worked different hours, but they all got the same reward — so it’s teaching that we all get the same reward in heaven.
There’s actually good people who DO believe this. Craig Blomberg is a well-known theologian and apologist for the resurrection of Christ. In his commentary on Matthew he says he does believe it teaches “there are no degrees of reward in heaven.” He adds that this is not widely understood in Christian circles.
Well, I think the reason it’s not widely understood, is that it is not true! Other scriptures clearly teach that we will each be individually judged by the Lord, and will be given appropriate rewards for our service. These passages include:
— I Corinthians 3:8, where Paul is talking about himself, Apollos, Peter, and other Christian workers: “Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.” (“reward” here is “misthos,” “reward, wages, recompense” — the SAME GREEK WORD FOR “wages” used here in Matthew 20:8!)
— II Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” So “ALL” of us will appear before Christ, and be “recompensed” for our own, personal deeds.
— Romans 14:10,12 “For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God … So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.” There is nothing more personal and individual than this. We give an account of “ourselves” to God. He will judge us personally.
— And what about the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25, where Jesus said each slave received a different reward, based upon his own individual performance?
So if the scripture didn’t clearly teach otherwise, you might indeed believe this parable teaches that all will receive the same reward in heaven. But it DOES clearly teach otherwise, in multiple places — which helps us understand that this parable must mean something else. So what does it mean?
IV. What It DOES Mean: God Is Gracious in His Rewards
Remember, context tells us that this whole story is Jesus’ explanation of what “the last shall be first, and the first, last” (the “inclusio”) means about our rewards for following Jesus. He says that those who followed Him first may not get greater rewards. There’s no “tenure program” in God’s kingdom! So in this parable Jesus is illustrating how “many first shall be last” in His Kingdom rewards.
The “BIG PICTURE” it shows us, is that GOD IS GRACIOUS in the rewards He gives His people. God is saying “I can give whatever I want, to whomever I want, no matter what their “tenure” or stature is in others’ eyes.” It shows us that God is gracious, and that He gives to whom He delights to give — sometimes unexpectedly, and often contrary to what WE might think He will. In light of that, there are several applications here:
A. This is true CHRONOLOGICALLY: “tenure” doesn’t necessarily equate to reward in the Kingdom of God. Just because you’re here first doesn’t mean you get the greater reward:
— This is what Jesus was telling Peter and the 12 here. They would sit on 12 thrones, and they be repaid “many times as much” for all they’d left — but there may come others later, who’d receive an even greater reward. Just because they followed Him first chronologically, doesn’t mean they get the greatest rewards. Some of those “first” might be last.
— Some suggest that this applies to latecomers to the Kingdom, like “tax collectors and sinners” who came after the disciples and many others. They started off poorly, but still came to the Kingdom. And they can still have a great reward — maybe even more than some of the original 12!
— The same with some Gentiles who come to the Kingdom later than the Jews (who had known God for centuries). Some of them may receive a greater reward than some of the Jewish followers. Luke the physician, for example, who accompanied Paul, and who wrote Luke, Acts, and perhaps Hebrews, may receive a greater reward than Simon the Zealot, or others of the original 12.
—Jesus may also be predicting that there may be some in the centuries to come who may be used greater than the 12.
???DISCUSSION QUESTION???
“Who are some of the great Christian servants you can think of through the centuries?”
(The Apostle Paul shortly later, Martin Luther in the 1500s who precipitated the Reformation, “The Prince of Preachers.” Charles Spurgeon in the 1800s. Maybe missionaries like Lottie Moon, or Eric Liddell, the runner of “Chariots of Fire” fame, or Jim Eliot.
Do you think some of these, who came to the “field” later, may receive a greater reward than Thaddeus, or Simon the Zealot, whom we don’t hear that much of? Perhaps Jesus meant these when He said “Some of these last will be first, and the first, last.”
— Perhaps He also meant that some who only came to Christ at the very end of life, may receive a greater reward than some who served their whole life.
— And it could apply to some who don’t have the long family heritage of Christianity for generations like others have had. God may choose to use and reward some of these “newcomers” more than some with an established heritage in the faith. (I’ve seen this in churches, and maybe you have too: some of the “established names” in the church may be surpassed in zeal and service by some newer folks. Might God reward them more? He might!
Don’t despise some “newcomer” in your church: maybe a new church member that God uses greatly, or a younger person, whom He moves to a position of authority or service. Just because they came “last,” doesn’t mean He doesn’t want to use/reward them greatly — maybe even “first.” Like Jesus says in this passage, don’t “let your eye be evil” towards that. Just thank Him for how He’s using them. Remember it’s all about the KINGDOM, not about us. (See John the Baptist, John 3:26-30)
— Several commentators have suggested that Jesus was teaching us not to despise those who came to faith late in life or even on their deathbed.
You/your group might think of other ways this applies. But from the context we see that Jesus teaches that many of those who come to Kingdom service later, may receive a relatively greater reward than some of those who were serving previously.
B. This may also be true POSITIONALLY: some people whom WE THINK of as “last,” may actually be “first” when it comes to God’s rewards, and vice-versa. Only God knows the true state of a person’s heart — who loves and serves Him most — or how He chooses to reward them by His grace. Just like Jesus said in :15, “Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own?”
We may be very surprised at the rewards of heaven. Things will be very different there than here on earth. God who sees the hearts of all will reward in HIS way, not according to the judgment of man, which is based primarily on outward appearances.
I know I’ve referred to this about 3 times in recent weeks, but that story of C.S. Lewis’ from The Great Divorce really applies here: about how the visitor to heaven sees a great parade, and thinks it’s some famous person, saying, “Is it … Is it …?” But his host say, no, on the contrary, it’s “just” Sarah Smith from Golders Green,” whom no one knew on earth. Yet as Milton wrote: “A thousand liveried angels serve her.” The visitor says, I thought it was one of the great ones. The angel replies: “Aye. She is one of the great ones. Ye have heard that fame in this country and fame on Earth are two quite different things.”
This just reminds us that WE DON’T KNOW WHO THE “GREAT ONE” ARE! Some whom we consider to be “last,” God may reward as “first.” Someone we may be tempted to look down on here on earth, may have a finer mansion in heaven than we do!
Think of Mary & Martha from Luke 10:38-42. Who was the “busiest” for the kingdom? One might say, O Martha, without doubt! She worked hard with all her preparations. But who do you think Jesus rewarded the most? It would have to be Mary, right? Because she loved Jesus so much, she just sat at His feet. We’d have said “Martha is first.” But Jesus said “Mary is first. “She has chosen the good part.” May we learn to do the same!
C. The whole point is GOD’S GRACE IN HIS REWARDS. God loves to give to those who don’t necessarily “deserve” it. Those who haven’t served the longest, who don’t have the most “tenure” or respect of men, God may reward greatly in His grace.
The landowner hired all these people, who he may not have really needed, in order to be gracious to them. And He rewarded them graciously, according to His own generous will.
I think that may be the salient point here: GOD GRACIOUSLY GIVES US MORE THAN WE “DESERVE” as His servants. He is a gracious God and Father to us.
ILLUSTRATION
Some of your class members will likely know the answer to this question: When callers ask financial advisor Dave Ramsey on his radio show, “How are you doing Dave?”, how does he answer? (He always says, “better than I deserve.”) A man in our church in Texas always said that too. And it’s a good answer, because it’s true: God treats us better than we deserve. That is what “grace” is: God treating us better than we “deserve.”
This is the attitude that we as Christians should adopt all the time. We should be so thankful that God has/is/will treat us “better than we deserve.”
(We should always look for some point in the lesson each week to share the gospel, and this might be that point this week. Share that the only way we can even be saved, is because of God’s grace: that He treats us “better than we deserve.” Just like Ephesians 2 says, we were dead in our trespasses and sins, “But God, being rich in mercy … by grace you have been saved” through faith in Christ. None of us “deserve” heaven; it’s only by God’s grace in Christ. Through Him, He treats us “better than we deserve.” Encourage your members to trust in God’s undeserved grace to save them, not anything they can earn or deserve.)
And this parable helps us understand that this is true for our rewards in the Kingdom as well. It’s not based on some kind of “wage” or “tenure” system; rather God will be very gracious to us, giving many of us more than anyone ever thought we might receive.
This is what the landowner does for the workers in this story. Even though they came late, he paid them a whole day’s wage. They didn’t “earn” that; they didn’t “deserve” it; he just gave it to them, as Jesus says at the end of the story, “because I am generous” (literally “agathos,” “good.”) God is good; He is gracious, so He rewards us better than we deserve.
ILLUSTRATION:
Cheryl & I have some projects we wanted done for our house: minor repairs and improvements. Because our son who lives nearby has a young family with kids, not a lot of time, and not a lot of money, we told him we’d pay him “something” to do some of these things for us. Like the laborers in this story, we never talked about how much. We just asked him to do it, and he just did it, and trusted us. So when he’d finished one of the jobs, I paid him. He said “Dad, you’re giving me too much.” Maybe it was. But I’m his father, and I wanted to bless him for what he’s doing. I can do what I want to with my own money!
In that regard, our passage for this week really encouraged me: THIS IS HOW GOD IS WITH US! God’s not just our employer, or even just our God, He’s our “Father”! And our Father, like any good father, wants to give generously to His children — even more than we might “deserve.” This is one of the primary lessons of this text, and it should encourage us to be faithful, and serve Him with all our hearts. He’ll reward us more greatly than we could ever imagine; “better than we deserve.”
???DISCUSSION/APPLICATION QUESTION???
“Who is the most generous employer you have ever worked for/heard of?”
(Example: Our son’s employer recently noticed he had been working so hard for his company the past months, that he wants to give him an extra special vacation. They’ll talk over the next days about what exactly that will look like. But that’s a very kind, and very generous employer!)
You/your group can share your own stories about generous employers. But then make the point: NONE OF US HAVE EVER WORKED FOR ANYONE MORE GENEROUS THAN OUR GOD! Think about that! Who is more generous than God?! No one! So what incredible blessings we have to look forward to for serving Him — it will be beyond our imagination!
This should inspire our greatest efforts for Him and His kingdom work. Don’t be sluggish in your work for the Lord, don’t count every hour and minute you serve; don’t add up every dollar you give; calculating what the reward should be. That’s how some of the workers in this parable were! No, just trust the Lord to give you what’s right. If any employer in your life ever treated you right, God will! He will give generously; He will give graciously; He will give more than we ever deserved. So as I Corinthians 15:58 says “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.” As the old saying goes, “We can’t out give God.” He gives so generously, so graciously to His children. So let’s serve Him with all our heart, soul, and strength, and look forward by faith to a reward that is “better than we deserve”!
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