The ball goes into the goal, the hall erupts, and a moment later the referee raises his hand and rules that it came after the whistle. Nothing stings like the feeling that the rules were applied unfairly to us. That experience opens a sermon about the parable of the workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20). The landowner pays the same to those who worked from dawn and to those who came for the last hour, because he is not breaking the agreement but showing a generosity none of us has earned. Listen if you catch yourself comparing what you receive from God with what others receive.
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
Between the Words
When Jesus taught, he often told seemingly simple stories called parables. At first glance, they resembled IMAGES of everyday life. However, when his listeners looked closely at them, those IMAGES became MIRRORS in which they could see their own faces. And as they continued to look at them, the MIRRORS became WINDOWS through which they could view life from a completely new perspective, because in these stories, somewhere BETWEEN THE LINES, important lessons about God and life are hidden.
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