Not only will it be fair, it will be generous beyond expectation. The New Testament [5.] Basically what He is teaching is that as we serve the Lord in His vineyard, that what really counts is the fact the Lord sent me. It is the death-blow to human tradition and ordinance in divine things, and in reality depends on the truth of the absolute ruin of man a truth which, as we see, the disciples were very slow to recognize. For him the cup was martyrdom. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight." Their reward was as much of grace as was that of the bitter "firsters"! The scourging was an extremely painful experience. The last trumpet, at the great day, shall call the labourers,1 Thessalonians 4:16. And after the supper He took the cup, likewise and said, this cup is a new covenant in my blood, which is shed for the remission of sins, and as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you do show the Lord's death, until He comes"( 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 ). Faithful labourers shall receive their reward when they die; it is deferred till then, that they may wait with patience for it, but no longer; for God will observe his own rule, The hire of the labourers shall not abide with thee all night, until the morning. Thus, in the scene of the leper, we have Jesus presented as "Jehovah that healeth Israel," as man here below, and in Jewish relationships, still maintaining the law. Jesus purpose in telling this story was to illustrate what he had just said concerning Gods unexpected gift to those who at present appear to be disadvantaged (see Matthew 19:30). Thus the point that meets us in the conclusion of the chapter is, that while every character, every measure of giving up for His name's sake, will meet with the most worthy recompence and result, man can as little judge of this as he can accomplish salvation. ii. Yet it shall not be so among you is a stinging rebuke to the manner in which the modern church looks to the world for both its substance and style. He often fell down exhausted, and the rough men of the slums carried him gently back to his hut. Before he goes to Church let him visit the hospital. There are gates on the East which is the direction of the dawn, and whereby a man may enter in the glad morning of his days; there are gates on the West which is the direction of the setting sun, and whereby a man may enter in his age. Ministers call them into the vineyard, to do their work; death calls them out of the vineyard, to receive their penny: and those to whom the call into the vineyard is effectual, the call out of it will be joyful. 3. The Greek word is constantly so used as an expression of contempt, "This [fellow] doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils." a. It is tragic that in church circles there is also that endeavor many times to exercise lordship and dominion over people.One of the weird doctrines of the seventies was the shepherding doctrine, where so many men sought to establish themselves as the lords over the flock of God and causing people to submit to their authority. They cannot hurt the Christ. Here he asserts his own justice; Friend, I do thee no wrong. He was to be mocked by the Romans; there we see the suffering of humiliation and of deliberate insult. This, then, I apprehend to be the reason why we End two demoniacs mentioned; whereas, in Mark or Luke for other purposes, the Spirit of God only draws attention to one of the two. So now we have, in the healing of Peter's mother-in-law, another fact containing a principle of great value, that His grace towards the Gentile does not in the least degree blunt His heart to the claims of relationship after the flesh. They did not see why the two brothers should steal a march on them, even if they were the cousins of Jesus. Take what is yours and go your way. He did them no wrong, and had broken no promise. And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach." O Lord God, your grace to me is marvelous. Or, are you grudging because I am generous?' As he had asserted in ( Matthew 19:30 ) and which is clearly illustrated by this parable, as it may be applied to Jews or Gentiles, or to nominal and real Christians: for many be called; externally, under the ministration of the Gospel, as . Men little weigh what their words will sound and prove in the day of judgment. Finally, this parable that illustrates the principle that Gods manner of rewarding is not like mans practice of giving rewards. Prophets To the end the events are put together, just as in Matthew 8:1-34, without regard to the point of time when they occurred. In this we have another striking illustration of the same principle, because this miracle, in point of fact, was wrought long before the healing of the centurion's servant, or even of the leper. What an anticipation of the walk by faith, not by sight, in which the Gentiles, when called, ought to have glorified God, when the rejection of the Messiah by His own ancient people gave occasion to the Gentile call as a distinct thing! Thus the great tree and the leavened mass are in fact the two sides of Christendom. "My daughter is even now dead, but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live." of The Lord has nothing for them, or for Him, but to go right on to the end. i. c. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you: The landowner did nothing to explain why he did it, other than simply to say I wish. The reasons for the landowners generosity were completely in the landowner himself, and not in the ones who received. Hold out, faith, and patience, yet a little while. So our goal as disciples is to value things now as God does. They're on the way to Jerusalem; they've come down the Jordan Valley. But Jesus answered and said, You do not know what you ask. Jesus was probably hinting at more in this parable. When the legions were thus completed, the citizens who had been called, but not chosen, returned to their respective employments, and served their country in other capacities. Error: Passwords should have at least 6 characters, Error: Usernames should only contain letters, numbers, dots, dashes, or underscores. Is there unrighteousness with God? The money was paid by the overseer, but he was standing by enjoying the scene. (Bruce). God does not permit Scripture to be thus used without losing its force, its beauty, and the grand object for which it was written. Didst not thou agree to take God's word for it? But the future is in view also. Whence they are hired? Blue Letter Bible offers several daily devotional readings in order to help you refocus on Christ and the Gospel of His peace and righteousness. No matter what the great purpose might be, He was there for faith. i. 3 And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 4 and to them he . (ii) These two blind men were undiscourageable. Well, then, to whom was the ransom paid?" [2.] They've come to Jericho. And someone said, "Jesus is going by." "They that are first shall be last, and they that are last shall be first"( Matthew 19:30 ). ". [1.] There must be the mouth to praise the Lord, and speak of the glorious honour of His majesty, as well as eyes to wait on Him. And He came and took her by the hand, and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them." It means quite simply this. Think of when this request was made. James was the first of the apostolic band to die a martyr ( Acts 12:2). That meant that they did believe him to be the Messiah, but it also meant that they were thinking of Messiahship in terms of kingly and of earthly power. Matthew gives no such details, but call and mission are together here. Thus, and after the tenderest sort, there is that which evidences the Messiah on earth present to heal His people who appeal to Him; and the Jew, above all counting upon His bodily presence demanding it, I may say, according to the warrant of prophecy, finds in Jesus not merely the man, but the God of Israel. The landowner reminded them that he had paid them the amount they had agreed to, and if he paid others the same amount, that was his concern. In Christianity there must always be this invincible optimism in the moment when things are conspiring to drive a man to despair. Only tradition will not do this work, nor will human thoughts or feelings. for many be called; externally, under the ministration of the Gospel, as the Jews in general were, by Christ and his apostles; but. Verse 29 gives us strict time. The devil, by his temptations, is hiring labourers into his field, to feed swine. There are a great many things which have to be done at the moment or they will never be done. Is thine eye evil, because I am good? It is enough to meet a difficulty which many feel by the simple plea that the reason assigned is in my judgment a valid explanation, and in itself a sufficient solution of the apparent discrepancy. . And we who have served the Lord all of our lives and we enter into eternal life. Here is the account with the labourers. WORK AND WAGES IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD ( Matthew 20:1-16 continued). All rights reserved. He came not to be served, but to serve. At its close we see the leper approaching the Lord, after He had been preaching throughout Galilee and casting out devils. is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. And then Paul warned the Corinthians about the manner in which they did partake of the Lord's supper. Then inside the house we have not only the Lord explaining the parable, the history from first to last of the tares and wheat, the mingling of evil with the good which grace had sown, but more than that, we have the kingdom viewed according to divine thoughts and purposes. So the last shall be first, and the first last The GENTILES, who have been long without the true God, shall now enjoy all the privileges of the new covenant; and the Jews, who have enjoyed these from the beginning, shall now be dispossessed of them; for, because they here rejected the Lord, he also hath rejected them. These were sent into the vineyard, it is true, at the eleventh hour; but nobody had hired them, or offered to hire them, before. faithful unto death shall receive the crown of life. The Father and the Son have their appropriate part, even as we know from elsewhere the Spirit sent down from heaven in due time was to have His. He was going to build His Church "upon this rock" Himself, the Son of God. It is not the amount of service given, but the love in which it is given which matters. The New King James Version (NKJV) organises this chapter as follows: . Even at such a time that was not the end of his words, for he finished with the confident assertion of the Resurrection. i. We have each of us our own vineyard to keep, our own soul; and it is God's and to be kept and dressed for him. It was a grave step this, and in view of His rejection now. Reviewing, then, these closing incidents of the chapter (ver. Being in the right state of mind to do the Lords work is a gift of grace. But what a mercy that those who appear now to be rejected may be called in another muster, enrolled, serve in the field, or work in the vineyard? If it be so, it is surely a ground of thankfulness to God; for it turns a stumbling-block into an evidence of the perfection of Scripture. That they had reason to fear, lest they themselves should be found hypocrites at last; for many are called but few chosen. We are dependent, therefore, for determining this case, on the fact that Mark does habitually adhere to the chain of events. It is best understood as a parable about grace and reward. The apostle startles at the thought of it; God forbid!Romans 3:5; Romans 3:6. Many be called, but few chosen - The meaning of this, in this connection, I take to be simply this: "Many are called into my kingdom; they come and labor as I command them; many of them are comparatively unknown and obscure; yet they are real Christians, and shall all receive the proper reward. Surely, had he seen this, everything was there; but he saw it not, and so the Lord spread out His actual portion, as it literally was, without one word about the unseen and eternal. The axiom of this verse and of chapter nineteen, verse 30, sets the tone for Jesus entire ministry and the church. God could not be limited by a question of place; His word was enough. He had been there before. Many a man, who, as the world counts it, is a poor man, will be great in the Kingdom, because he never thought in terms of reward but worked for the thrill of working and for the joy of serving. The mother of Zebedees sons came to Him: This mother of James and John (Matthew 4:21) came with a request that would make a mother proud and the sons very happy. Whatever might be the Church or the kingdom, it is precisely when the Lord unfolds His new glory in both the kingdom and the Church that He maintains the proprieties of nature in their rights and integrity. Second, this passage sheds a light upon the Christian life. As we have seen, the pay was 4 pence a day; and, if they were unemployed for one day, the children would go hungry at home, for no man ever saved much out of 4 pence a day. If, among this number who are called into the kingdom, I choose to raise some to stations of distinguished usefulness, and to confer on them special talents and higher rewards, I injure no other one. He had no reason to quarrel with the master; for what he gave was absolutely his own, Matthew 20:15; Matthew 20:15. And about the eleventh hour, [five in the evening] he went out, and found others standing idle, and said unto them, Why do you stand here idle all day? Your promises are thrilling. Spurgeon applied this to us spiritually: Why is any one of us remaining idle towards God? A verification email has been sent to the address you provided. See Matthew 19:27-29. Thereon the Lord also has His word to say, first reminding Peter of his new name suitably to what follows. Would you prayerfully consider a gift of support today? The spirit, as well as the form, was alien. This furnishes occasion to the Pharisees to vent their unbelief: to them nothing is so offensive as grace, either in doctrine or in practice. The apostles were then sent thus, no doubt, forerunners of those whom the Lord will raise up for the latter day. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Now life treated James and John very differently. Any worker was welcome, even if he could give only an hour to the work. (Barclay). When they received it, they grumblingly complained against the master. All of this takes the simple picture Jesus gave too far. Many be called, but few chosen - The meaning of this, in this connection, I take to be simply this: Many are called into my kingdom; they come and labor as I command them; many of them are comparatively unknown and obscure; yet they are real Christians, and shall all receive the proper reward. And they said unto him, We're able ( Matthew 20:22 ). All other things, although important, are secondary. b. c. Early in the morning: This is literally at dawn, usually reckoned to be about 6:00 in the morning. Isaiah prophesied the fact that He would be scourged, but in prophesying the fact, Isaiah tells us the reason. Matthew 20. The laws of that kingdom are not wrapt up in parables, but plainly set down, as in the sermon upon the mount; but the mysteries of that kingdom are delivered in parables, in sacraments, as here and Matthew 13:1-58; Matthew 13:1-58 The duties of Christianity are more necessary to be known than the notions of it; and yet the notions of it are more necessary to be illustrated than the duties of it; which is that which parables are designed for. GO GO GO! And so anti what Jesus has declared. She replied, "In your Kingdom, please let my two sons sit in places of honor next to you, one on your right and the other on your left.". 2. Sorrow would come full soon when He, the Bridegroom of His people, should be taken away; and then should they fast. Secondly, the prophecy of Psalms declared, "not a bone of Him shall be broken"( Psalms 34:20 ). Particular epochs in Luke are noted with great care; but, speaking now of the general course of the Lord's life, a little attention will discover, from the immensely greater preponderance paid to the consideration of time in the second gospel, that there we have events from first to last given to us in their consecutive order. 2 And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. Usernames should only contain letters, numbers, dots, dashes, or underscores. Would any man make of the Messiah a mere man and a mere subject of the law given by Moses? It is a very significant story, for it paints a picture of the spirit and of the attitude of mind and heart to which the most precious gifts of God are open. Throughout it is the religious kind that are tested and found wanting. Here is royalty and kingship restated and remade. iii. The highest creature must go away into nothing, if he must go away with that only which is his own: but if we understand it of that which is ours by gift, the free gift of God, it teaches us to be content with such things as we have. It is not enough that Israel be awakened from the sleep of death, and see aright. Luke-Acts God hires labourers, not because he needs them or their services (for, if we be righteous, what do we unto him? said the Lord; and then stretched forth His hand toward His disciples with the words, "Behold my mother and my brethren! On the evening of the day when He delivered the seven parables given in Matthew 13:1-58. And thus as Isaiah predicts the scourging, the stripes, he declares, "by His stripes ye are healed"( Isaiah 53:5 ). THE MIND OF JESUS ( Matthew 20:20-28 continued). v. Living under grace is sort of a two-edged sword. Then follows another incident, which equally proves that the Spirit of God is not here reciting the facts in their natural succession; for it is assuredly not at this moment historically that the Lord goes into the house of Peter, sees there his wife's mother laid sick of a fever, touches her hand, and raises her up, so that she ministers unto them at once. There will be differences at the close. We are in his hand, as clay in the hands of a potter; and it is not for us to prescribe to him, or strive with him. Whatever is right I will give you whatever is right you will receive: The landowner promised the earliest workers a days wage (a denarius a day). 748.]. Jesus recognized that they didnt really understand, but they would. God proves what He is by the revelation of Jesus. Poetical Books without holiness no man shall see the Lord. When they get to Jerusalem, those culminating events of the life of Jesus are going to take place.
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