Matthew 20 (Click title for audio access)
“Equality And Excelling” • 12.5.10 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Thursday Night Bible Study
Intro
- The disciples have been struggling with the thoughts of greatness, reward and where they would fit in the realized Kingdom of God.
- Jesus was the greatest of course. He would occupy the first seat, the throne, but certainly, they would be awfully close. They had left everything after all, what would they have?
- Jesus tells them that they would indeed have authority and a place of honor, but then adds that the first would be last and the last first in the Kingdom. What does that mean?
- That is what chapter 20 is all about. It begins with a parable.
Text
• Matthew 20:1-7 : "For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. Now when he had agreed with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour, and did likewise. 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?’ 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.’” : There are a few details that I want to draw to your attention. This is an illustration of what heaven is like. The scene would have been a familiar one.
- The land of Israel was surrounded by great, large fields. Their whole economy was based on agriculture. Landowners, close to harvest time, would employ day laborers to meet the harvest.
˚ "The grape harvest ripened towards the end of September, and then close on it's heels, the rains came. If the harvest was not ingathered before the rains broke, then it was ruined; and so to get the harvest in was a frantic race against time. Any worker was welcome, even if he could give an hour of work." Barclay
- In any city, there were designated spots where day laborers could await a chance to work. These were essentially the "lowest of the low" on the totem pole of life.
- Household slaves had the benefit of a famliy like atmosphere. These day laborers had nobody to be tied to.
- Usually, in this situation, the strongest or youngest would be chosen, while the weakest and oldest would be passed over.
- In this story, the landowner, representing the Lord, is looking for laborers for His vineyard.
- We are the laborers, His vineyard is the world. The vineyard belongs to Him.
- He went out early in the morning, meaning that he went out about 6AM. He went out again later, at the third hour, which was 9AM, the sixth, which was noon and the eleventh hour was 5PM.
- To the first group of workers, the promise was that a day's work would yield a denarius. This was a good, honorable wage for a day's work. A soldier made a denarius.
- None of these men could have asked for anything better. A denarius was great for them.
- Later, when he returned, the promised wage was for "whatever was right."
- There is no agreement or promise and these men are just happy to have been hired. Those who were able to work at 5PM would work for only one hour, but it would be better than nothing.
- For many in this condition, any work would help in gaining food for the next day.
• Matthew 20:8-15 : "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.’ And when those came who were hired about the eleventh hour, they each received a denarius. But when the first came, they supposed that they would receive more; and they likewise received each a denarius. And when they had received it, they complained against the landowner, 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.’ But he answered one of them and said, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what is yours and go your way. I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with my own things? Or is your eye evil because I am good?’" : For an hours work, the landowner gave a day's wage! Those who had come at that late hour were just happy to be hired.
- When the steward handed out the wages, to their amazement, they had received a lofty sum. Their surprise and joy would have been great!
- Those who had agreed to that sum supposed that they would receive more. After all, they deserved more than the guys who had not gotten there in the morning.
- In their minds, they believed that the landowner was paying out a denarius an hour! They had worked for upwards of 12 hours, which would have been an amazing 12 days worth of work.
- However, that was not the case. They got what they initially agreed to.
- They were offended and complained. The word for "complained" or "muttered" comes from a Greek word that sounds like muttering! They grumbled under their breath.
- They complained that these others had only had to work for so long and that they didn't have to deal with the harsh elements and the heat of the day.
- The landowner heard these things and answered their complaint. The landowner was simply wanting to be generous! This was not a miscarriage of justice, but their eye was filled with greed.
- He had the right to do anything that he wanted with his money.
• Matthew 20:16 : "So the last will be first, and the first last. For many are called, but few chosen.'" : The last, the ones with the least amount of time, would surprisingly receive an amount that had been reserved for the first.
- The Kingdom of God reverses every natural tendency. The King, in all of His generosity, reserves the right to bless all of His servants with the same gift of eternity.
- Now, consider what the disciples have been arguing and asking about. They wanted privilege. They wanted authority. They wanted to be great in the Kingdom.
- Jesus is saying, the ones who come in at the very end, right before Harvest time, will have the same exact reward that the Apostles do! The short timers will have eternal life with Christ!
- You and I may have been in Christ for years, but our reward will be the same as a person who comes to Christ today!
- The disciples will come into the Kingdom first for the exact same wage that we will receive! In this way, the last and the first are exactly the same! There is no difference in the Kingdom!
• Matthew 20:17-19 : "Now Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them, 'Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again.'" : The rest of the book of Matthew will cover Christ's final months on this earth.
- Jerusalem sits on a hill and the road to it climbs ever higher toward it. On the road, Jesus pulled them aside and for the third time in Matthew, Jesus told them about His fate.
- Betrayal, condemnation, mocking, scourging and crucifixion lay in His path. Jerusalem would be the scene, the religious leaders would be in concert with the Gentiles and Jesus would die!
- Jesus knew the suffering of disloyalty in His betrayal by ones who would call themselves friends. He knew the suffering of injustice, being an innocent man.
- He would know the suffering of condemnation, physical abuse and utter humiliation. The things that any human being has gone through, are mere shadows of what He went through.
- Any kind of suffering, whether it be physical, mental or emotional, was laid upon Him. He did this willingly, as an act of obedience to His Father.
- Even now, knowing the end of the story and knowing why it had to happen, a shock creeps into my system. Imagine what the disciples felt! They must have been floored.
- And like you and I, in spite of hearing about the resurrection of Christ, we focus on the suffering! Jesus though, repeatedly told His disciples that on the third day, He would conquer death.
- This was the path to His glory and the path to ours as well. Many of us want the glory of resurrection, but we forget the cross that we are to take up.
- It's the cross of self-denial. It's the cross that says that the world and it's desires are dead to me! It's the cross that lives to God and shows the heart of submission that is foreign to the world.
- This was what God decreed for His beloved Son and what we must be willing to endure if we are to join them!
- Suffering is the will of God for those who desire to live godly! We suffer from the world, who chooses to reject us and in many cases, hurl their insults towards us.
- We suffer as we attempt to fight our own flesh! God's will is that we choose the Cross!
• Matthew 20:20,21 : "Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him. 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.'" : Zebedee's sons were James and John. This section goes down as one really shameful act.
- You'll remember that the disciples had been arguing about being the greatest in the Kingdom at the beginning of Matthew 18. That sentiment in fact, began the section that we are looking at now.
- Instead of coming to Jesus on their own, James and John decided to send their Mother! They wanted to be the greatest, but did not want to come and ask for this themselves!
- Wow, for being the Sons of Thunder, these guys really acted cowardly here!
- What they are doing is actually much more political than you might think. It turns out that John and James' mother was the sister of Mary. This would be Jesus' aunt!
- Additionally, the sense of the language is that she asked Him to grant Him a wish, but did not immediately tell Him what the wish was. "Promise me first, then I'll tell you!"
- Their wish was to sit down on thrones right next to Jesus. Now, this was not that out of hand in terms of the authority that the Lord conferred upon the disciples.
- At the end of chapter 19, Jesus had assured the Apostles that they would indeed sit upon thrones in heaven. The request here is for the brothers to have the seats of honor.
• Matthew 20:22,23 : "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.' 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.'" : All that the disciples could see was glory. But they had no clue what kind of suffering preceded that.
- Jeus was about to drink the cup of radical suffering and He was going to be baptized into a real and horrifying death.
- To ask if one could drink the cup was a euphemism for being able to suffer the same fate. Jesus is asking them if they believe that they can suffer to the same degree that He was about to.
- James and John spoke with such self-assurance when they said that they were able. They felt like Peter did when he would later express his ability to stay with Jesus.
- If their political climb to greatness failed, at least they had confidence in their own strength!
- Jesus lets them know that they would indeed drink from the cup, at least in part. However, the place of honor that is set for unnamed people is being prepared for some unnamed individuals.
- I suspect, given the context, that those seats will be a few very humble quiet, unknown Christians, who have faithfully suffered for Christ.
- I think in accordance with what Jesus says, we'll be very surprised!
• Matthew 20:24-28 : "And when the ten heard it, they were greatly displeased with the two brothers. But Jesus called them to Himself and said, 'You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. 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.'" : These men were indignant with James and John. It seems that they were not so much angered by the action, as much as they were angry that they did not beat them to it!
- Jesus continues to warn them about not wanting to be great. In their world, the Gentile nations abused authority and used it against the people.
- They used the power that they had been given to crush the people of Israel under their proverbial foot. This is the power of domination. In the next phrase, we have something different.
- Those who are great exercise authority over them. This is a little different.
- The word used here literally means "authority down." It appears to be a colloquiallism which would be our equivalent of "throwing one's weight around."
˚ "It is the idea of vaunting their power and it seems best to see this in the comparison also with the other passages as the power of personality." Macarthur
- These are the worlds methods of being great, all in these verse: Political pressure, self-confidence, domination and charm! These are the ways that one becomes great in our world.
- Here are the key words: "Yet it shall not be so among you!" The Kingdom of God is different.
- We are not looking to be greater than someone else. We are not hoping to step on each other as we climb the proverbial ladder of fath!
- That is not the spirit of the Kingdom of God. In fact, the ones who would be great ones will excel in service to each other.
- You might respond, "Wait a minute! I thought that being great was not something to desire?" Jesus is not condemning greatness or the desire for it.
- Jesus is telling you to seek the greatness of the Kingdom in a Kingdom way, not a worldly way. The Kingdom way is the path of humility.
- Jesus uses the words for “deacons” and “bondslave” to describe our service.
- I was surprised to discover that the word "deacon" did not originate from a position in the church. It was a secular position that described a person you would hire to do something menial.
- They might clean something from your house or remove trash from your home. Then, He uses the word "doulos," bondslave, to describe how we might be permanently employed in this.
- Those who allow themselves to serve others will be the first!
- Why is that the truth? Why is it that service is the standard for greatness in the sight of God? Because that is what His Son did!
- Jesus deserved the honor and the glory. He deserved to sit on thrones and demand allegiance. He deserved the world's affection and their attention.
- Instead, He did not come to this earth to be served. While He lived on earth, Jesus served the greatest need that humanity has ever had.
- In the end, He laid down His life, which was like a ransom, a redemption price for many. One man's payment, the greatest Man, would ransom a great many from their sins.
- Those who would receive this, would indeed be ransomed!
• Matthew 20:29-31 : "Now as they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, 'Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!' Then the multitude warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying, 'Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!'" : Jesus, the Royal Kingly servant, has gathered another great multitude.
- The reputation of one who could heal would garner a great crowd, even if he could not heal anyone! Think of how many people show up for healing crusades! Jesus was the real deal!
- He's in Jericho, which in Christ's day, was basically the "Palm Springs" of Israel. This was roughly 6 miles from Jerusalem.
- As they moved along, two blind men cried out for the Lord's attention. It's amazing that while they lacked physical sight, they had amazing spiritual insight. The want mercy from the Messiah!
- "The Son of David" was a Messianic title. They heard that Jesus was there and they called out to Him with accurate knowledge of His person! That's the surprising thing: How!?
- The multitude warned them to be quiet. The world is always trying to keep people from Jesus!
- You have to love these blind men. They would not be quiet. They cried out even more. They cried out louder and with more frequency. "Have mercy on us!" We don't deserve it, but we need it!
- Notice their urgency. This is their one shot or their blind! Jesus, the man who is known to heal and for whom, blindness is a small thing, is passing by! These men wanted Christ to attend to them.
• Matthew 20:32-34 : "So Jesus stood still and called them, and said, 'What do you want Me to do for you?' They said to Him, 'Lord, that our eyes may be opened.' So Jesus had compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed Him." : Jesus stood still. At some point in the procession, He just stopped. Being at the front of the crowd, Jesus sent a messenger back to summon them and He asks a wonderful question: "What do you want me to do for you!"
- In many ways, He asks that every day. He asks people daily how He can serve them. "How can I meet your need?" What would you ask of Him?
- This is the heart of God that serves us even now. These men had tunnel vision, as they wanted their eyes to be opened. Jesus, from a place of compassion healed them.
- He served their need and for the heart that will not be dissuaded, He will do the same!
Conclusion
- There is nothing that you can do on this earth that will give you a greater reward than what has already been promised to you: Eternal life with Christ!
- We don't improve upon it. We don't earn it. We don't get more than another on that level.
- And yet, Jesus chalenges you to be great in His Kingdom. He condemns the use of manipulation, domination or charm, as these are worldly ways up.
- No, He calls you to understand: In the Kingdom, the way up is the way down!
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