Grace Isn’t Fair

Matthew 20:1-16 Read the New Testament in a Year: Acts 27:1-26 Jesus tells a parable that demonstrates again the wonder of his great love. The parable of the workers in the vineyard shows the extraordinary generosity and grace of God, who gives to those who enter the kingdom last the same blessings that he gives to everybody else. This sometimes makes us ‘envious’ (v.15b). We are happy with our situation until we hear of someone else doing even better. Then, we are tempted to envy them. The landowner in this parable overturns all the normal commercial practices. He does this, not to make extra profit for himself, but for the very opposite reason. He wants to be generous and pay more than justice demands. God is like that landowner, and his blessings and forgiveness are always more than we could ever deserve. We sometimes hear testimonies from people who have lived terrible lives. Then, at the ‘eleventh hour’ (v.9), they repent and believe in Jesus. They are totally forgiven and receive all the benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection (v.19). Some people complain that this is unfair, or that those who didn’t work as hard as us don’t deserve it. Yet God uses their testimonies greatly, often seemingly more than those who have borne ‘the heat of the day’ (v.12b). As we saw yesterday, God’s kingdom is an upside-down kingdom: ‘So the last will be first, and the first will be last’ (v.16). Jesus is saying this is not a reason to be envious. Rather, it is a reason to marvel at the generosity of God. In his great love he is generous to all. It is all grace. It is all undeserved. It is all a result of what Jesus foretold (vv.17–20). The reality is that it is not just other people like Shane to whom God is generous. He is generous to you and me. If God gave us only what we earned, we would be far worse off. Yet if you accept the generosity that God showers on you, the result is staggering. Through his death and resurrection (vv.18–19), Jesus makes it possible for you and me to be forgiven and to enjoy his great love into eternity.]]>