The Vineyard

“So when evening had come, the owner of the vineyard said to his steward, ‘Call the laborers and give them their wages.’” Matthew 20:8.

Time passes quickly! Soon it is evening and the day for the re­ward for our life will have arrived. The day that will be revealed by fire, which will try everyone’s work, is close at hand. We have blessed promises for our workday. Among other things, we read that if we suffer with Christ in the flesh we will be glorified together with Him and be joint heirs with Christ. Romans 8:17. After such a lifelong work one can look forward to the day of the reward with great boldness.

In this parable of the laborers in the vineyard, the laborers had done nothing to cause their life to be transformed to give them the right to inherit together with Christ. Their labor for God was human and soulish. They were not lacking in many good deeds, which they had carried out through much trouble and effort; however they had not been saved through them. When the day for their reward came they thought they would receive more than the others. Their eye was bad.

Instead of being finished with sin and filled a hundredfold with the fruits of righteousness, the result of their life amounted to no more than a need to have their sins forgiven.

There is a way that leads out of sin and our human nature; it is the way of Jesus: the way of prayer and of crying out in need. Soon it will be evening for us! Are we saved to the extent that we know we have sin under our feet and have a share in the inheritance and the reward?

“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” Revelation 3:19. It is vital for us to know our need so we are zealous to repent. It is also good to receive help in the battle from godfearing people. James 5:16. We must not give up before we have repented from sin. Our life is at stake!

There is a story about a Catholic priest who, instead of hearing a general confession of sins and then forgiving them, announced from the pulpit on Sunday that on Monday he would like all the thieves to come, and confess their sins, and receive forgiveness, on Tuesday all those who were adulterers, on Wednesday all the liars, etc. The result was that nobody came.

We are not saved from sin until we press in, are separate from people and circumstances, and acknowledge and confess our sin.

It must be infinitely sad to be stripped and bared of everything that can endure God’s fire, after having worked for God all day long. One’s human nature has not been surrendered into the death of Christ. One has not understood that it is possible to cease from sin, before it is too late.

May God help us to watch and pray and consider this matter se­riously.