Week 42 - The Great Pay Dispute
“So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.” (Matthew 20:10).
During the Dedication Service a fortnight ago, Carmelites stood up and pledged in unison: “I believe the Lord has saved me to serve Him… We are saved to serve.” But, some may ask, “What’s in it for us after we have done our duties?”
The Apostle Peter once asked Jesus the “what’s in it for us” question. Jesus replied with the parable of the workers in the vineyard in Matthew 20:1-16.
I don’t know what you think of the parable but I suspect you would sympathise with the workers who worked the whole day and got only a denarius, the same amount as those workers who clocked in just one hour before closing time. This upside-down system of payment strikes us as grossly unfair. What is going on? Why did Jesus tell this story? What was He driving at?
Well, Jesus certainly did not offer this parable as a model for how Christians should settle pay disputes in the twenty-first century. At least, He did not end the parable with “go and do likewise!”
The context gives us a clue as to what Jesus was getting at. The parable follows Jesus’ response to Peter who wanted to negotiate a contract with God (
Jesus might have said, “Okay, Peter. Let’s put it all down in writing. What exactly did you give up? You say you gave up your position as the CEO of Galilee Fish Corporation Ltd. You gave up a promising career in fishery. That’s impressive. What else? You turned your back on your boat to follow me. Yes, we’ll put that down.”
Whatever anyone has given up to follow Jesus will be repaid a hundred times over in addition to receiving eternal life. God will never be in their debt.
Look at what this parable shows us. To be allowed to work in God’s vineyard reflects His goodness. That work is in itself a gift. There is fulfilment in serving the Lord of the vineyard. In His work, we have a relationship with Him and His harvest.
When we serve Jesus Christ, we do not work for a pay; we receive a reward. When we serve Jesus Christ, He does not put us under a contract; He puts us under grace.
As long as we concentrate on working for the owner of the vineyard to gather His crop, nothing else matters very much. If we understand that He has given us productive work to do and always rewards us out of His generous goodness, we will be satisfied.
Recently, I came across a hymn entitled “Go Work in My Vineyard.” The first stanza goes like this:
“Go work in My vineyard,” there’s plenty to do; The harvest is great and the lab’rers are few; There’s weeding and fencing, and clearing of roots, And plowing, and sowing, and gath’ring of fruits.
There are foxes to take, there are wolves to destroy, All ages and ranks I can fully employ; I’ve sheep to be tended, and lambs to be fed; The lost must be gathered, the weary ones led.
“What’s in it for us?” The question seems redundant. It is enough to hear the Master say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (