Connect Matthew 20:7 with Ephesians 2:8-9 on grace and works. Setting the context - Matthew 20:1-16 records a landowner hiring workers throughout the day. - Verse 7 captures the latecomers: “ ‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. He told them, ‘You also go into my vineyard.’ ” (Matthew 20:7) - At day’s end every worker, whether hired at dawn or the final hour, receives the same wage. Salvation declared “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) Unearned wages, unearned salvation - The late-hour workers did nothing to merit a full day’s pay. Their pay reflects the owner’s generosity, not their labor. - Likewise, salvation is “the gift of God.” It comes to the spiritually “unemployed” who bring nothing but need (Romans 4:4-5). Grace first, works follow - In the parable, labor occurs because of the owner’s call; payment is guaranteed by his promise. - In the gospel, good works flow from the believer’s new life (Ephesians 2:10), yet they never purchase that life. - Titus 3:5 reinforces the point: “He saved us, not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy.” Guarding the heart against boasting - Early workers complained, feeling entitled (Matthew 20:11-12). - Paul cautions, “so that no one can boast.” Any pride in human effort is silenced by grace (1 Corinthians 1:31). Living in the freedom of grace - Rest: your standing with God is settled by Christ’s finished work (John 19:30). - Serve: step into the “vineyard” with gratitude, knowing reward is certain (Hebrews 6:10). - Celebrate: rejoice when latecomers receive the same salvation, mirroring the owner’s joy (Luke 15:7). Key takeaway The vineyard scene and Paul’s declaration harmonize: God gives what none can earn. We labor not to gain grace but because grace has already found us. |
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